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Heads up, Larry~! 1930 birthdate for this Packard... 1910 birthdate for the driver....

80K views 301 replies 60 participants last post by  Brimjolt 
#1 · (Edited)


A PAIR Margaret Dunning of Plymouth, Mich., is 101 and her Packard 740 roadster is 81. She will be showing the car at the Concours d’Élégance of America this month.


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/automobiles/packard-81-is-a-youngster-to-its-driver.html


Here is the video embed (finally figured it out)

:p




PLYMOUTH, Mich.

WHEN Margaret Dunning was 10 years old, she lost control while driving the family’s Overland touring car and careered into a barn, fracturing several boards.

“I hit it, and it didn’t move,” Ms. Dunning, who turned 101 last month, said.

“That car had a mind of its own,” she said. “And I’m not a very tall person, so I had trouble getting onto the brakes with enough power to hold that engine down. It just got away from me.”

Soon enough, though, she was back at it, rumbling around the back roads of Redford Township, just west of Detroit, where her family owned a sprawling dairy and potato farm. By then she had already been driving for two years.

Before the barn incident, Ms. Dunning’s father had often let his young daughter steer while he operated the other controls. One day he let her do it all, but not without a stern lecture.

“Do you know what you’re controlling here?” she recalled him asking. “Do you know the power that you’re controlling?”

“He explained to me how, for some jobs, it was better to use multiple horses,” she said. “But the minute you lose control, you’ve got wild horses to deal with.

“And that’s how he taught me about horsepower,” Ms. Dunning added. “And it stuck with me.”

After that, Ms. Dunning, an only child, drove everything on the farm that was drivable, she said, including a Maxwell truck and eventually, tractors.

When she was 12 her father died, and his Model T Ford became hers.

Once her politically connected mother, who had arthritic feet and could not drive cars, finagled a driver’s license for the 12-year-old Margaret, she drove her mother everywhere. Her mother drove the farm’s four teams of horses.

“If you had just a little knowledge and some baling wire and bob pins, you could keep the thing going,” she said of the Model T. “It was the little car that made America.”

She cherished her time in the car alone, reaching into the wind for roadside stalks of fragrant sweet clover. “I’d see a few friends or race past a blind pig,” she said, using the euphemism for Prohibition-era drinking establishments. “Before I could get home, people would be calling saying, ‘I think I just saw Margaret, with quite a dust pile behind her.’ ”

In those days there was something else in the air: the excitement spawned by a burgeoning auto industry. Henry Ford not only led that wave, but to the Dunnings he was a friend and neighbor who lived minutes away.

“Dad would come in and say, ‘Well, Henry’s outside and I’ve asked him to stay for dinner,’
” she said. “Mom had made huckleberry pie and offered Henry some.

“He said that was his favorite pie — I think he was being polite, but he was marvelous just like that.”

She added, “He always wore a hat with a sizable brim and a black band, and he’d push it off his face when he talked to you, and looked you right in the eye.”

Ms. Dunning, who never married, attended a private high school in Wellesley, Mass., before enrolling at the University of Michigan, intending to study business.

“When I was little, Mom asked me what I thought I wanted to do for a living,” she said. “I told her ‘to buy and sell.’ I think that surprised her.”

She dropped out of college during the Depression to help at her mother’s real estate business and later had successful turns in banking and retail.

All along she supported her beloved town of Plymouth, where she has lived in the same home since she was 13. In the 1940s she and her mother donated property to establish what is now the Dunning-Hough Library. She has also donated more than $1 million to the Plymouth Historical Museum.

Her love affair with vehicles never waned. She drove a truck as a Red Cross volunteer and has owned a parade of classic and antique cars. At her home, she also keeps a 1931 Ford Model A, a 1966 Cadillac DeVille that she often drives to car meets, a 1975 Cadillac Eldorado convertible and her everyday car, a 2003 DeVille. A battered Model T steering wheel is her garage doorstop.


But her real love is a cream-color 1930 Packard 740 roadster, which she has owned since 1949. She plans to show the Packard at the Concours d’Élégance of America in Plymouth on July 31 .

“I saw a for-sale picture and I was a goner right then and there,” Ms. Dunning said. “The guy said his wife had told him they had to get a closed car if they were going to have children. It was raining that day in Detroit when it came in, I remember it well. It sat in a carrier all by itself.”

Ms. Dunning cannot recall how much she paid for the Packard, and said it was unclear how many miles were on its in-line 8-cylinder engine. The Packard had not exactly been pampered, she said, before it was fully restored by a friend.

“It had been through the boot camp at some Army places during the Second World War,” she explained. “In those days soldiers wanted something to drive from camp to their new city, and they loaded them with other soldiers and ran the dickens out of them.”

Since it was restored, the Packard has mostly been a show car, although Ms. Dunning used to drive it more often than the three or four times a year that she takes it out now. “It’s always been a car that I’ve kept separate from other cars,” she said, adding that she has owned other Packards.

“They’re just made out of such fine material,” she said. “I love the engineering that went into it. There’s just a lot of very, very fine workmanship.”

Packard, an upscale brand produced from 1899 to 1958, ushered in several innovative designs, including the modern steering wheel. Ms. Dunning’s roadster was built in Detroit in an Albert Kahn-designed factory complex, now abandoned, that covered 3.5 million square feet and once employed 40,000 workers. In addition to the luxury vehicles, the factory turned out engines for World War II fighter planes.

Ms. Dunning still changes the oil herself, but mostly relies on a small maintenance team that includes a 90-year-old friend. “His hands are just magic,” she said.

Her car has black fenders and a red leather interior with a cigarette lighter, map light and glove compartments on each side of the dashboard. The windshield pushes outward, and there is a rumble seat and storage compartment in back. The transmission is a 4-speed — manual shift, of course.

All these years Ms. Dunning has kept her Packard’s original key with its elaborate crest. For her recent birthday, some friends duplicated the prized key.

“I was thrilled to death to have another one,” she said. “If I had ever lost the one I had, the locksmith would be out here for a week, and I still would not have that crest,” she said.

Ms. Dunning, who belongs to several car clubs, including the Michigan Region Classic Car Club of America, said the Packard has never given her much trouble, although there were times she had to deal with vapor lock, when the gasoline gets hot and evaporates before making it through the carburetor.

“You wait until the car cools off, restart it and off you go,” she said.

“I’ve never run out of gas with it,” she said with a chuckle. “That’s the famous thing to do with old cars. You’re so busy trying to keep everything else in shape, you forget about the gas.”

She said she was looking forward to the concours because she had not shown the car in years. “And it’s just such a pleasure to revive old memories, people I haven’t seen in such a long time.”

Having experienced the horse-and -buggy and Model T days, Ms. Dunning is amazed by the technology and styling of contemporary cars, she said. She is considering buying another vehicle, but she does not know what yet. “It’s just so much easier to drive now because of power steering and brakes,” she explained.

“With the older cars you have to use what I call arm-strong steering. But cars like the Packard make it all worthwhile. I love that car a great deal. I mean, I honestly do love it.”
 
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#60 ·
Hey~!!!!


That's you... and the Lady Wolk..

Nice outreach.

I was trying to embed it... but wouldn't work

dang it...
 
#63 ·
nice little side story about how her friends got her an exact duplicate key created (just in case she lost the only original one she had)

All these years Ms. Dunning has kept her Packard’s original key with its elaborate crest. For her recent birthday, some friends duplicated the prized key.

“I was thrilled to death to have another one,” she said. “If I had ever lost the one I had, the locksmith would be out here for a week, and I still would not have that crest,” she said.


Ms. Dunning has kept her Packard’s original key with its elaborate crest.
 
#64 · (Edited)
Packard Straight Eight

Big 'ol beast of an engine



 
#69 ·
The woman is Carole Lombard, who later married Clark Gable, and who was killed in an airplane crash into a mountainside near Reno, NV during WWII while on a USO tour. I don't know for sure who the guy is, but he looks like Dick Powell, a journeyman actor in the thirties and forties.
 
#67 ·
These roadsters are absolutely gorgeous cars

:p

 
#76 ·
V12 version of the Roadster.

Wow.



not quite sure where that fits in the model lineup or year though

Seems they quit making the V12 in '39
 
#78 ·
The 30's. Packards.

Interesting time and interesting vehicles

Bigger than life in a lot of respects

 
#80 ·
Gable had at least 2 Model Js, with this Bohman and Schwartz-bodied car being one of them. Also, when his wife, Carole Lombard, died in the plane crash I mentioned earlier, a grief-stricken Gable gave instructions that this car, which was in Canada at the time, never be brought back to the US again during his lifetime, so that he would not have to see it again, since apparently the car had a great deal of importance to both him and Lombard.

Clark Gable's other Duesenberg Model J was his "hotrod" SSJ, one of only 2 such short-wheelbase, lightened models built, the other belonging to his friend and fellow enthusiast, Gary Cooper.

Gable with the JN roadster:



Gable's SSJ roadster on the left, and "Coop's" SSJ on the right:



Good picture of the 2 Duesy-buddies together; Gary Cooper on the left, Gable on the right. Legends driving legends:

 
#82 ·
Good picture of the 2 Duesy-buddies together; Gary Cooper on the left, Gable on the right. Legends driving legends:

Thanks for that post, Larry....

wow....

What a great shot!

Wonder what the firepower is and what they were after....

:wave:
 
#81 ·
thanks, Larry.

Great shot of the two stars and their cars.


This Packard article coincides with the National Packard Museum Car Show in Ohio happening this weekend.



SALEM - History will roll into town on Friday, July 22.

As part of the 22nd Annual National Packard Museum Car Show this year the National Packard Museum has planned a stop on its annual celebration tour in Salem.

The NPM show runs from July 20-24 in Warren, the home of Packard.

This year's event is called "Packard for the People."




 
#84 ·
My guess would be that the photograph is a studio publicity shot, and they were most likely shooting skeet or target shooting or something like that, if even shooting at all. Cooper in particular was a very casual person, and probably would never wear a tie while actually hunting (who would? :laugh:). He was a superb horseman, btw, and always did his own riding and stunts in the many western movies he made. It's fun to me to know a little bit about these larger-than-life figures who originally owned the iconic automobiles we cherish today. :)
 
#88 ·
Compelling story from start to finish



Thread even more interesting now that Larry gives some sidebars on Cooper, legends and fun stuff

:thumbup:

:popcorn:
 
#89 ·
Show moved to St. John's from Meadowbrook.

Shot of a 740 Roadster at Meadowbrook a while back in the sunlight.

Stunning

:p

 
#90 ·
That orange roadster is a textbook example of what constitutes genuine Classic Era design. As someone who studies such things, it has long astounded me how automobile manufacturing, as a whole, internationally, seemed to absolutely LEAP, in just a few years' time, into this golden age of fine design. All the way throught the 1920s, automobiles had remained primitive looking and "spindly", retaining way too much of their horseless carriage-days design traits, with poor proportions, crude detailing on all but the most expensive cars, and an overall unappealing look of "a bunch of parts thrown together", at least IMO.

Then, in a flash, it seems everything began to change greatly. I'll even name the year...1928. Harley Earl was hired by GM to "style" (it was a brand-new term coined by Earl) the 1927 LaSalle, which he did, and created a whole new look for automobiles. The '27 LaSalle borrowed a few cues from current Hispano Suizas, but Earl took design to a new level of sophisticated proportioning, integrated elements, thoughtful detailing, and most importantly, a look that said "modern", even to our eyes almost 90 years later. Compare these two cars; one a typical "Roaring 20s" design, to the 1927 LaSalle. This was the turning point for automotive design to enter the Classic Era, of which the orange Packard above is so emblematic:

1926 Chrysler. A fine automobile, but it still looks "horse and buggy"-ish:



1927 LaSalle. Earl himself at the wheel. Notice the "sugar scoop" fenders, and the overall feeling of fully-evolved proportioning, along with the careful placement of the lighting elements, etc. This was the first car of the Classic Era, and it looks nearly as current as any car built years later. It left the horseless carriage era behind, and the rest of the industry followed suit.

 
#91 ·
Much appreciated, Larry.

Artfully described as to why I often "feel" the lines and style of a car works wonders but can't quite put my finger on the particulars as what it is that pulls it off so well.

You give me a chance to focus in on what is making the statement so well. And, of course, the life and times of people involved just make it all the mo' bettah.

:thumbup:

Keep it up. And yes I know that you've described some of these elements in previous threads, but it's always nice to hear it stated in a fresh approach to the environment of that era.

Looks like St. John's is gearing up for next weekend.



Caroline Oberst, of Grosse Pointe Woods, left and Rebekah Decker, of Grand Rapids stand beside a 1969 Mercedes 280 SL during media preview of the Concours d' Elegance of America held at St. John's in Plymouth, Mich., on Tuesday, July 12, 2011




The hood ornament of a 1931 Cadillac Fleetwood Sport Phaeton during media preview of the Concours d' Elegance of America held at St. John's in Plymouth, Mich., on Tuesday, July 12, 2011.
From the sublime to the just strange.

What the hell?



Joe Bortz jumps the ropes to show the crowd details of his 1955 Chevrolet Biscayne at the Concours d'Elegance of America at Meadow Brook on the grounds of Meadow Brook Hall in Rochester, Sunday,July 25, 2010.
Sez it's a '55 Biscayne.... really? On what planet?

I mean somebody's got some explaining to do here. And yes, I'm pretty uneducated when it comes to some of these one off or concept/prototype cars
 
#93 ·
Dang, Barry. That was quick.

Faster than I could google Bortz and Biscayne

:D

Yep... wow


Joe Bortzs 1955 Chevrolet Biscayne




Motor Trend Classic readers know Joe Bortz. He’s the Chicago-based restaurant mogul and car collector who has been buying and restoring concept cars from the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s for nearly four decades. I’ve been fortunate enough to drive five of Bortz’s cars and write about them for Classic. His 1953 Buick Wildcat I and 1954 Pontiac Bonneville-Special GM Motorama cars were on the cover of Issue 5. His 1955 Chrysler Falcon, 1957 Chrysler Diablo and 1966 Duesenberg Model D, all Ghia-built Virgil Exner designs, were in this summer’s Issue 10.




All Motorama cars would have been crushed or drawn-and-quartered, if not for the crafty purveyors of Warhoops, the junkyard about 10 miles north of GM’s Tech Center, where the concepts — “dream cars” in ’50s vernacular — were to be destroyed.; All except the ’54 Bonneville; Bortz proudly calls the Pontiac the “most original” concept extant. It was titled to a GM employee after it made the showcar rounds, and Bortz bought it from that employee 30-some years ago.

The Buick Wildcat wasn’t so lucky. Bortz’s long-time car handler, Paul Peterlin, told me in 2006 that he could find only three of the car’s original roto-static hubcaps (they remain steady, the Buick logo stays upright as the wheels turn). A fabricator took two years to make the fourth out of a Weber grill cover.



That’s the way one- or two-off dream cars are restored. There are no parts cars, although many production pieces can be used. The Wildcat and Bonneville-Special are powered by production Buick and Pontiac engines, and the Chrysler Falcon and Dart have production Hemis.



Same with Bortz’s latest re-creation, the 1955 Chevrolet Biscayne. It was designed to show off Chevy’s new small block, and it’s now powered by a 265 cubic-inch V-8 from a vintage production car. Warhoops had to cut the Biscayne into three parts; the top and front clip were in separate pieces. Bortz’s son found the car at Warhoops in 1988. It wasn’t until GM sent original blueprints for the car in ’96 that Bortz had Hopperstad Custom of Belvidere, Illinois, begin restoration. They had to build a chassis for the fiberglass body, and add structure inside.

It looks great.

The Motorama Biscayne is far from the most handsome concept ever built. The bugeye headlamps point skyward when the hood is opened, of course, while the denture-like maw below it lacks the cuteness of the Austin-Healey Sprite that debuted three years later. The Biscayne’s side scallops hint at the ’56 Corvette’s, though they’re reversed and run from the front door back.

The 2+2 four-door hardtop (the ’55 Buicks and Oldsmobiles introduced this bodystyle, but Chevy wouldn’t get it until ’56) has frameless suicide doors, one particular area where Hopperstad had to add structure. While the Biscayne has a front-mounted V-8, its tail also hints at the 1960 Corvair.

Bortz showed the reconstructed, but unrestored Biscayne at the Pebble Beach Concours a couple of summers ago. Last weekend, he unveiled the fully restored, mint green-on-mint green Biscayne at the Concours d’Elegance of America, at Oakland, Michigan’s Meadow Brook. He called his display a “mini-Motorama,” featuring the Buick Wildcat I, Pontiac Bonneville-Special and 1953 Pontiac Parisienne.



Ed Welburn, the sixth and current GM design chief, was pretty excited to see the 55-year-old Chevy, and he showed his weakness for Buick, asking Bortz if he could sit in the Wildcat. Welburn is busy getting GM design in order. He’s made great strides with Buick by referring to its past — especially its early ’50s heyday — without going retro. The Chevy Cruze owes nothing, as far as I can see, to the Motorama Biscayne. Except, as analyst Jim Hall pointed out to me, this: it’s a semi-premium compact Chevy. There’s nothing in the Biscayne’s design that suggests the compacts Detroit would introduce in the following decade should be priced below full-size deluxe models.



Read more: http://blogs.motortrend.com/joe-bortzs-1955-chevrolet-biscayne-2670.html#ixzz1T2RlNBBH
 
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