Jamesbo

I bought my 69 442 convertible from a friend who drove it through high school, then his 4 brothers drove it through high school. I let my 2 nephews drive it through high school before I restored it.............but I just couldn't put in a new back seat.

When I restored it, I left the rear seat as a Shrine.

csstrux

I know who D. B. cooper is, but could use an education on Richardson.

csstrux

Amazing what a person can learn from an olds forum. Inever thought much about that song or the symbolism before. Or the amount of thought that went into that song.

Oldsguy-I think you will enjoy this one "The Day the Music Died"

VERY POWERFUL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmyGZ64J9yg[/quote]

Jamesbo

The Big Bopper, who was killed in the plane crash with Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens February 3, 1959.

Hence the song American Pie or "The Day the Music Died"

The youtube clip explains it in a very moving way.

However there appears to be disagreement over who lost the coin toss to Ritchie Valens and did not get on the plane that would soon crash. For years I've heard it was Waylon Jennings, but now I hear it was Tommy Allsup. I duno

citcapp

Met with some old high school buddys and got to talking about high school pranks. The assistance principle had a Renult dolphine and he was a means son of a gun. One night at a high school dance where he was a shaprone a bunch of guys including myself carried the car up the steps and placed in in the front hall next to the office. No way to get it out but the way it was put there. Boy was he mad never did find out who did the deed. Ah revenge was sweet. Amy more stories?

Jamesbo

I didn't know where else to post this or if anyone would find this interesting. But when ya got you 8 track player, it came with a demo tape in the glove box telling you about this newest mavel of stereophonic music "The 8 track tape player."

Stop yawing youngsters, this was before we put a man on the moon. And in it's day it was really some'in

Lady72nRob71

I always thought those dealer supplied tapes were more like just music tapes, much like the cassette tapes that were supplied in the 80's. I have the cassette from my mom's car and the only unique song was the "There's a Special Feel in an Oldsmobile" which was track 1.

I would love to hear what is on those 8-tracks, the commentary on the then new marvel of technology.
I hope someone out there preserves some of them on mp3 or CD before the tapes finish deteriorating.

Jamesbo

I think "Marvel of Modern Technology" might have been me embelishing on my poetic license a bit to impress the "Young Whipper Snappers"

In the future I will try to eschew my obdurant obfuscation

And stick to "The Facts Mam, just the facts."

citcapp

Stick with the young wipper snappers. We of the "older generation" deserve our special language that we grew up with. The younger generations have theirs as well.

Jamesbo

I agree we had our own language. Here are some quotes I grew up with. See if you can remember who said them

"Nobody goes there anymore; it's too crowded."

"It was impossible to get a conversation going; everybody was talking too much."

"I'd find the fellow who lost it, and, if he was poor, I'd return it."

"This is like deja vu all over again."

"All right everyone, line up alphabetically according to your height."

"Being with a woman all night never hurt no professional baseball player. It's staying up all night looking for a woman that does him in."

"It's wonderful to meet so many friends that I didn't used to like."

"Never make predictions, especially about the future"


"There comes a time in every man's life, and I've had plenty of them."

"It's half past……………………………I dunno - the little hand's broke off."

"He looks like he might be somebody, Bill."

"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee."

"It ain't braggin' if you can back it up."

“He slud into third."

Jamesbo

I went to a car show yesterday, along with the usual bevy of "stangs" and vintage 55,56,57 Chebbies, was one Poncho, an ersatz Shelby Mustang, a few Cameros, Chevelles and two Olds [both mine]

But there was one "Z" body for those of us who think GM was once going in the right direction, before book deals and politics killed a really neat car that had alot going for it. [and got good gas milage]

Behold the 180 hp turbocharged Corvair Corsa convertible

hardtop/ragtop

My Dad had a 1956 Pontiac 4 Dr. sedan. It was 1964 and they had just opened a section of the 401 Hwy in Ontario. Dad took me out for a drive to try out the hwy. Once out there he said something like, "this is a nice straight road, let's see what this car will do". Remember this is a Canadian Pontiac, virtually only a reskinned Chevy. It was a 6 banger powerglide. It took a while to get up to speed but I remember Dad backing off when she hit 105 mph. He still didn't have the pedal all the way to the floor so who knows what she might have hit. Probably not much more than 110 if that. The car was involved in an accident in 1969 (not dad's fault) and the Ins. Co. wrote it off and gave dad a check for $100. It was the only time I ever saw him with tears in his eyes. He really loved that car, it was so reliable. Robin egg blue with a white top. That was the car I first drove when I turned 16. It was just a nice old car back then. I remember it well.

citcapp

With My dad that was standard proceedure. He was a Packard man then a Chrylser man all of his life and I was his car buddy. He used to set me on his lap and let me steer the car. I suppose that started when I was about 5 years old. The local town cop Less was a friend of his and would wave when he saw dad comming down the road with me on his lap. The 40 Packard Saloon dad had in 52 was his favorite. We lived in a rental house on a large farm at the time and my mom had a very large garden (4 kids). There was an old plow and dad would rig the plow behind the Packard and have mom drive it while he operated the plow behind her. Made quite a site. When all of the neighbors got together to gather the hay feed one fellow had a old ford flatbed a 39 1 ton dad would set one front wheel in a row, put it in granny low and pull the throttle out a little I would set behind the wheel all day pretending I was driving a big rig while the men loaded the hay in the back. How many kids have that much fun today. Better then video games.

Jamesbo

If you've worked a hay field like I have, Doesn't it seem kinda funny to see people pay money to go on a "Hay Ride" I'd pay money not to go on a hay ride and have the stuff down my back,in my drawers, in my mouth, lungs, hair etc.

citcapp

Got that right. When my kids were young my wife talked me into taking the kids to a dude ranch. We all rode in the back of a wagon plulled by a team of horses setting on hay bales hard as a rock to an out door dinner. Had a sore butt for days. Got even though, They served rocky mountian oysters (Bulls nuts) as a treat wife didn't know what they were and ate them. Told here what they were when we got back home, got sick and pucked. Never has asked me to go to a dude ranch agian.

csstrux

Ya gotta love the old Vair I was watching one up here for the price to come down to something I could slide past the wife. a clean solid original hardtop. I think I almost had her talked into it when the place shut down. May be next time

yogi442

in the mid 60's several of us would drive to the Ballard area of Seattle to get the cheapest priced gas around, 19 cents per gallon at the old Hancock station. It was a regular caravan of us. Being in High School and not much money the biggest concern was making sure my 57 Chev Belair rag top was full so we still had money for that nite. I used to have a Drive In speaker that somehow ended up still attached to the car one nite on the way home from the old Puget Park Drive In. We usually all headed over the Dick's Drive in for burgers after. First fast food place in the area and was around before McDonalds. Still better than McDonalds and to this day during the summer months you can come in on any saturday or sunday eve and find a few old cruisers.

citcapp

A group of us from Bothell used to hang out at the Dick's in lake City. Had a 56 Chev hardtop with a 389 Pontiac and tri-power. Painted it chevy orange. won a lot of $20.00 races up 125th. Dicks. still makes the best french and freezes around

Jamesbo

Here's a funny on a local blog about the car show I went to titled "Old car Young child"

http://miltonville.blogspot.com/2008...ung-child.html

True true ture

citcapp

Boy, that adds a few years to my age, Eveyone who rides in my Olds thinks the little front window thinge's are cute and then they ask what thay are for? Flipping out cigar ashes is what I tell them

csstrux

I take it that is you? nice vista. Believe it or not there was a girl(teen/early twenties) who got locked into her car. Again this is old info, so the details are fuzzy. I'm not sure where I heard this but some girl call 911 on her cell phone that she was locked in her car. apparently her battery went dead while listening to the stereo or something. she couldn't understand the cop so she called 911, gave them her phone number for the cop to call her on the phone, and he had to talk her through manually unlocking the doors so she could get out. This is supposed to be a true story, and from what I have seen out there I would buy it, but I an a cynical bitter bastage

Jamesbo

Actually, that my "super model" wife, I drove the 69 H/O and she took the Vista to the car show to give some Oldsmobubble representation to a local event. No tell'in what my friend's daughter [who hitched a ride in the 3 mile police escorted parade] would of thought of the 8 track in the H/O

"How that thing work again?"

csstrux

Lucky bugger. Did you ever hear anything about that wagon being used as a storage shed? my curiosity was piqued on that.

Jamesbo

Here's what it looks like today as a trailer park

csstrux

citcapp

Memories................ Nothing lasts forever but the memories

cmblair76

Ok, so I barely remember the '70's, but have always believed that I was born 20-years too late. I LOVE American metal!!!! I was born in the year of the Bicentennial; the same year my father reached management in the old South Central Bell Co. in New Orleans and purchased his first "New" vehicle.... It just happened to be a '76 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Regency with the 455-V8 (What a beautiful car!) Consequently, my grandfather had a '75 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Royale LS with the 455-V8 (Another beautiful car!) Along with these two behemoths my grandmother drove a Custom Cruiser. When we had holiday dinner at our house, all of this American metal took up a lot of real estate!

I have been searching for a '75 Ninety-Eight to add to my "collection"; my daily driver is a '62 Karmann Ghia Cabrio.... The Ninety-Eight will drastically dwarf the KG.... LOL....

Maybe I am too sentimental or these cars were the best ever produced by GM, but I can remember LOVING these two cars when I was a boy. I could lay in the back seat and not even touch the doors, my sister would lay in the parcel shelf on road trips and the nose entered Alabama LLLOOONNNGGG before the trailer we were towing on vacations.

I spend hours staring at the ceiling of these cars on roadtrips and can still remember how they smelled and the exact perforations in the headliner and how as I was a teenager the back window began to delaminate on the '75.

I also remember my father coming home from work in '84 and saying he was rear-ended by a Chrysler K-car.... of course the Ninety-Eight has minor damage and the K-car was a total loss.

I can close my eyes right now and smell the stogie smell in the '75 and looking over to see my grandfather driving with a big smile on his face behind the wheel. Actually, the car always smelled like stogies and breath mints.... LOL.... My mother hated it when I drove with my grandfather because of the cigars.... But I cherished those moments and took advantage of it as much as possible.

In the end, the '76 was stolen out of our driveway and eventually discovered in a Housing Project in New Orleans chopped up.... the 455-V8 had been pulled and was most probably pushing around an old shrimp boat. The '75 was traded in in '87 for a new Ford Crown Victoria LX.

These cars were a part of our family.... modern cars cannot say the same. So, if any of you came across a '75 or '76 sedan.... Please let me know and I will gladly take it off you hands.

Jamesbo

I don't know what it is but I know it's not a 69, but it's a cute little Olds

csstrux

I'm guessing 86 or there about ciera wagon. That one is a front driver, or "wrong wheel drive" as you so elegantly put it earlier. She is clean though. Does it run?

Jamesbo

I doubt it, it's been sitting there for years and years. My friend who owns the garage doesn't throw away anything. You can walk in the place for piles [and I mean PILES of stuff] One pile of starters, one pile of distributer wiring, another pile of engines and outside are pile of radiators and rear ends and what ever.

csstrux

Too bad. Does he have any clean rwd wagons in a pile he might want to sell? It doesn't need to run, in fact it might be better for me if it didn't. Brand goes without saying . just a curiosity thing until spring, freight is slowing down already, and so are the funds.

Jamesbo

I need to get my machette out to see what all he's got in the weeds, but mostly ole trucks and such. The place is really a mess with cats, dogs, cows, chickens cars all over the place. It looks like a shop out of the movie "Thunder Road"

He has a 3 stall garage and the three concrete block walls up for a 4th he was "going ot build." I the midddle of the 3 walls with no roof or floor stands a pine tree about 26" in diameter. That's how long he's been thinking bout finishing the 4th bay But he's a great friend.

I go by and ask him if he's got any more Olds stored in the woods. He's can remember what he's got so when he needs a spring for a q-jet he just goes hunting in the brush

But danloncar had a nice 69 Vista he was thinking of selling. Check it out.

Here's a pic of another one of those "wrong wheel drive" Olds Culti with the flags on the fenders.

csstrux

I'll have to check it out. They used that on their "international series" cars. I thought exclusively. I guess not The parents had it on their 90 cutlas supreme int. Back in the day I thought they were cool looking cars. Nice seats lots of support, decent ride, and that 3400 could scoot! for a wrong wheel drive. They got that I got the79 cutty cruiser. Nice deal huh!?!

crumps

"wrong wheel drive"

rocketraider

Toro Rex has an issue with that "wrong wheel drive" comment. The nerve...

csstrux

T HEE HEE

Bluevista

LOL That reminds me of a place way out in the sticks I used to go to in the 70's. It was a sort of working farm with an old boneyard with cars from the 50's back to the 30's. The owner/farmer was an older real big guy with a beard and a gruff attitude, didn't say much but he put up with us. He always had a shotgun on his tractor for some reason, maybe a warning to anybody thinking about sneaking in later?
The animals were in the yard half the time, there was a junk horse, junk cow, junk chickens, and junk ducks in a pond in the middle. They probably went for parts later but we couldn't touch them at that time.
One time I was there with a friend and this monster dog came running up to us and stopped about 5 feet away, needless to say we froze in our tracks. The dog looked like a giant greasy Saint Bernard mix and he was mad, growling and baring his teeth, drool dripping from his mouth, hair all bristled. If we moved back an inch he would step closer two inches and we stood there for a good while until the farmer came slowly riding up on his old Ford 8N tractor. He stayed on the tractor and in a deep gravelly voice he calmly said "Kick'em in the b#lls", my friend and I just looked at each other shocked and said "What?!" back to him at the same time I think. He said "Do it if you want to show him you aren't scared", not scared?! this thing could bite your foot off before it got that far. It must have looked like a comedy routine, my friend whispered "go ahead", I told him "that's okay, after you", then it was back and forth on who was going to do the deed, all in hushed voices as not to upset Cujo. The farmer got tired of waiting and said "you have to show him", then he reluctantly got off the tractor and just walked up to the back of the dog and moved his foot a little and the beast went running scared. Probably back to chewing up an old engine block or big rig tire.

Allan

Oldsguy

Allan,

That's a good story. When I was 18 and living away from home for the first time with a room mate we used to go out on the weekends drinking beer, throwing the empties at rural mail boxes and generally being hooligans. We were always on the lookout for cool hangouts, you know, dead end roads where we could stop, turn up the Led Zeppelin on the radio and just drink and be wild. We found one road like that one night and some where along the way I needed to take a leak. I walked down the road a little ways with my back to the headlights and started. Over Robert Plant screaming "Hey Baby! would you like to do it now" I began to hear a different sound, was it a dog howling? YES! and it was coming toward me! I zipped up as fast as I could and started running for the car. My buddy Keith said it was the strangest image seeing me with a wet stain on my pants, running for the car, headlights in my eyes like a scared deer, with a big black hound dog about thirty yards behind me and closing. By the time we both got in the car and Keith turned around and headed out the Farmer was firing his shotgun at us. Luckily for us, he missed.

Jamesbo

Reminds me of "Hooch" in "Turner and Hooch" for some reason

My buddy with the garage is over 80 and has had several heart attacks but he's still "geeting by."

In his shop are the ole Lance glass cracker jars on the metal frame stands and an old Coke machine, only when you open it up, the bottom shelf [which should be used to cool Cokes before they are transfered to the racks] usually has a 12 pack of cold brews.

KeithA0000

Well, I'll bite:
One or two of the first few sound like Steven Wright. A few obvious Yogi Berra ones, one from Mohammad Ali (did he say that before he changed his name?) Are the last 2 from Bull Durham?
We need the answers!