Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival 2014

Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival 20142

Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival 2014 3

Board of Trustees

Fred Ouweleen, PresidentJane Parker, President EmeritusPeggy Muckenthaler Albert, SecretaryAndy Ersek, Co-TreasurerMatt Apodaca, Co-TreasurerCarol Danforth Fütterer, Vice President

At Large: Seon Chun-Burbank, Nick David, Barbara Gregory, Austin Muckenthaler, Steve Richardson, Norma Rodriguez, Marcia Ryan, David Schindele, Kevin Staniec, Joni Stein, Britt Sullivan.

Advisory Board: Buck Catlin, Daisy Vanderlinde, Wayne Wedin, Jim Williams, Sally Williams.

Ambassadors: Marty Burbank, Marianne Dolan, Eric Fütterer, Dr. Richard Jones, Dan Kiernan, Irene Lange, Chung Lee, Mike Oates, John Phelps, Monette Velasco, John Waite, Jim Williams, Sally Williams.

Legacy Club: Marty Burbank & Seon Chun-Burbank, Jonny Copp, Jane Deming, Carl Gregory, Bill McGarvey, Walter & Adella Muckenthaler, Harold & Shirley Muckenthaler, Fred & Jane Ouweleen, Emmett & Mary Wells, Zoot & Monette Velasco.

Sponsors

GOLD ($10,000+):Bootlegger’s Brewery, Carl Gregory Foundation, City of Fullerton, Colette’s Catering, Elaine Redfield, Harold Muckenthaler, James Irvine Foundation, John W. Carson Foundation, The Jane Deming Endowment, The Muckenthaler Center Circle, The Muckenthaler Family, The Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival Committee, Orange County Community Foundation, Ouweleen Family Foundation, Popular Community Bank, The Wilson Phelps Family Foundation.

SILVER ($5,000+):Automobile Club of Southern California, Don & Peggy Albert, Benchmark Productions, Branding Personality, CA Arts Council, Chevron, John Phelps, Kemp Financial.

BRONZE ($1,000+):ABM Copy Solutions, Behr Paint, Dr. Joann Brannock, Burger Parlor, Commonwealth Audi, Fullerton Family and Friends, Fullerton Sister City Association, Grand Inn, itsRich! Portrait Photography, McCoy Mills Ford, Edward Mittelman Memorial Foundation, Moon Tide Press, Doug & Ann Myles, National Charity League, Fred & Jane Ouweleen, Pacmin, Photo Booth Artist, Kerry Phelps, Sempra Energy, Smokewood Enterprises, Southern California Gas Co., Theresa Theiler, Union Bank Foundation, Volvo of Orange County, Craig Walker & Associates, Dr. Jim Young.


Dear Guests, It is with great privilege and pride that my Co-Chair Mark Reihl

and I welcome you to the 20th Anniversary of the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival. It’s hard to believe twenty years ago, I was driving down Malvern Avenue minding my own business when I glanced up the hill at the Muckenthaler. I was surprised to see a lawn full of incredible cars. In my excitement, I immediately made an illegal U-turn, found a parking place, and jumped the fence, not realizing it was a pay event. After looking at all the fabulous autos, I located the person responsible for starting the whole thing. As it turned out it was a very attractive little brunette who had a vision of what could be on these beautiful grounds. I let her know I was a serious car guy and I would love to be involved with this great event. She batted those big browns at me and said she would love to have some aerial photographs of the show. I gave her my standard answer and said “no problem, I know a guy who has an airplane over at the airport’ and the next thing I knew, I was hanging out the window of a vintage WWII observer plane taking pictures of the Car Show. That’s how I got my start at the Muck and that is how I met the fabulous Jane Parker. Jane really led this event to a world class status. Mark and I are mere caretakers of her heritage and we are very proud to be able carry on the legacy.

The Car Show is such a team effort and over the years the team gets better with each show.

I can honestly say with very uncharacteristic modesty, the greatest credit to this year’s festival has to go to my co-chair, Mark Reihl. He has the enthusiasm and drive it takes to really lead an adventure like this. Any of you out there who have worked as a volunteer know it is a lot of hard work, no pay and little thanks. So if you don’t like the show, tell me. But if you do like it then find someone wearing a committee badge and thank them. If it weren’t for these dedicated and devoted people we would not be here. I for one wish to thank each and every one of the car show team. They are the ones that year after year make the show a success and make me look like I know what I am doing.

Somewhere it occurs to me that the big reason we are here is to enjoy the magnificent

automobiles on display. Everything from the coolest customs and bad a*% hot rods on Saturday, to the most elegant examples of automotive stylings on Sunday. We thank the owners of these exceptional automobiles for bringing and sharing them with all of us. These car and their owner are the show!

Your support of this incredible festival is much appreciated. The Muckenthaler Cultural

Center has so many wonderful programs and events, most targeting youth involvement in the Arts. It is indeed a worthwhile and necessary undertaking and deserving of your patronage. Please pick-up a brochure at the Muck Booth. It tells about the really neat things going on here. You can join as a member and get all of the benefits we offer.

Finally, visit and support our sponsors. They are our primary financial contributors and

have been loyal to us every year. We truly appreciate their support and we would really appreciate you supporting them.

So on behalf of The Muckenthaler Cultural Center and The Car Show Committee, I thank

you for attending and supporting us. If you see areas where we could improve we would love to hear from you. I sincerely hope you have a fun and wonderful weekend here.

With Warmest Regards, Nick David

Welcome


Judges Tom Colitt Mitchell Mrazek Lloyd Askew Terry Ott Dale Becker Rene Parenteau Marcy Becker Will Nighwonder Jerry Dotson Ernest Prokopovych Corena Dusek Bob Reinfried Judy Flowers Bud Smika Richard Frauenzimmer Gary Swank Anthony Huff Ken Thomas Tom Hanson Ed Vanklaveren Steve Holgate Lisa Walbschmidt Joe Hurst Don West Diane Klayman Gerry Willburn Jerry Klayman John Willburn Lawrence Leifer Jim Williams Bob Maxwell Brayden Robinson Bart McGrath Curtis Waldschmidt Diana McGrath David Robinson Wayne Medeiros Joe Jarreau Elena Ross Tom McDonnell

Lynn Hern Blake SmithChief Judge Concours Assistant Chief Judge Concours

Jim Freiburger Ken PirtAnnouncer Concours Chief Judge Rod and Custom


Ernie CarrilloPhotography

Bob Carver

Sponsorship Chairman

Nick DavidCo-Chairman

Michael Eckerson

Art Director & Branding

Andy ErsekConcours d’Elegance Chairman

Richard Frauenzimmer

Lynn Hern

Judges Co. Chairman

Cher HobbickEvent Director

Mike Hobbick

Kevin Islas

Data Base Management

Tom McDonald

Ed MoorlachNeighborhood Liaison

Phil Nigash

Website Design

Ken PritJudges-Rods & Customs

Terri Prado

Bob ReinfriedJudges Co-Chairman

Mark ReihlCo-Chairman

Tony Schavone

Field Logistics

Bob SilkRecruitment

Diane SilkRecruitment

Frank Smika

Chairman Hot Rods & Customs Show Signage

Blake Smith

Judges Co. Chairman

Nancy Spiegel

Gary SwankVendor Relations

Vern Terry

Dave Trigg

Information Technology

Primo VanEpps

Don Weberg

Committee Members


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Mission/Purpose of the Organization: The mission of The Muckenthaler is to provide our community experiences that stimulate creativity and imagination, while conserving the heritage and architecture of the Muckenthaler Estate.

The Muckenthaler Villa is a journey to another time and gentler culture in the middle of Southern California suburbs with sweeping grounds filled with festivals, children’s camps, picnics, and special events. The Villa is truly a time capsule of Orange County’s past. It was built in 1924 by Walter and Adella Muckenthaler. For their only son, Harold, the rolling 8.5 acres and the 18-room house were a never-ending place for adventure. Set amongst orange groves, the Villa hosted countless family gatherings from birthdays to anniversaries, holiday dinners to summer picnics.

In 1965, Harold donated his childhood home and the grounds to the city of Fullerton to be preserved and used as a cultural center for the arts. In 1999 the Muckenthaler received designation by the National Register of Historic Places. Now in its 49th year, “The Muck” hosts over 100 performances, gallery exhibits and classes every year, serving over 45,000 patrons. Another 30,000 people visit our weddings and corporate event rentals, which help pay for cultural programs. Our site includes the historic mansion with art galleries, two arts studios, and a 250 seat amphitheater.

FAMILY PICNIC IN PATIO - 1934

WALTER and ADELLA

The MuckenthalerCultural Center


FAMILY PICNIC IN PATIO - 1934

A New Chapter

Because of the tremendous need for arts in North Orange County the Muck (as we affectionately call it) continues to grow. A new master plan has been developed to better serve our programs and patrons. We are excited to lay the ground work for a new gallery, recording studio, media lab, dance facility, dedicated classrooms for fine arts and fine crafts, an indoor events space, and an event lawn designed to cut down on noise from programs, while improving space for functions. Our new event spaces will have stunning views of Catalina and Disneyland’s magical evening fireworks. The plan will also restore many historic features and allow us to refurbish the mansion to a house museum so future generations can tour the home and see how a prominent 1920s family lived. The Muckenthaler’s grounds will include a new heritage grove, rose garden, butterfly garden, walking trail, fountain and stream, restored courtyard and native planting areas. This new master plan completes what was planned for the Muck in 1968 and 1984, making it a valuable resource for North Orange County preserving history, fighting poverty through arts education, and giving North Orange County needed arts resources. We are also working to add more new education and satellite sites throughout the region, planning as many as 32 sites by the end of 2015. Our Executive Director loves having new visitors and patrons. Contact Zoot Velasco, Executive Director, and ask for a tour.Won’t you help make our Muck, your Muck too?Zoot Velasco | [email protected] | 714-738-3328

For more information on the Muckenthaler’s master plan please visit MyMuck.org

Today the Muckenthaler Cultural Center serves over 12,000 children, seniors and adults annually through our arts education programs in 13 sites located throughout six North Orange County cities (This is a dramatic increase from the 1000 students we served onsite in 2009). Partners include foster care, shelters, schools, afterschool programs, and the Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC). We also provide scholarships, free school tours, free family festivals, and a free admission to our gallery.

Proof that our little historic center is an important part of North Orange County’s cultural landscape can be found in what others say about us. Awards and accolades include the 2009 Fullerton Chamber of Commerce’s “Quality of Life” award

for best non-profit organization in the city; the 2010 award for “Best Arts Program” in the county by Arts OC, the county-wide arts council; The Orange County Board of Education 2013 “Outstanding Contribution to Education” award; and several readers poll awards for best museum, best wedding venue, and best historic site.

Since 2007 we have more than quadrupled in size, and our demographics have changed from an overwhelming majority of white seniors to mirror the city with 38% Latino, 40% Caucasian, and 18% Korean/Asian diverse in socio-economic backgrounds, ages and interests. We invite you to be a part of the Muckenthaler family in 2014, an important year for us as we celebrate the 90th birthday of the estate.

DELL and HAROLD - 1926


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Text by Jeremiah McDanielImages by Don Weberg

They come from the far reaches of the earth to converge on the martian soil, so inhospitable that not even plants dare to grow. The air, hot and dry, feels almost palpable as it mixes with the scent of methane, alcohol, and adrenaline. Hearts beat fast with anticipation as they watch their fellow competitors speed down the course. Some have prepared their whole lives for this one week, for their shot to bare their sole to the salt gods and sit on the throne as the King of Speed. For Danny Thompson his dreams of being king started when his father’s reign was cut short.

In 1960 Mickey Thompson piloted the Challenger I down the course at Bonneville Salt Flats - just outside of Salt Lake City, Utah - to a record breaking 406 miles-per-hour, becoming the first American to break the 400 mph barrier. To this day Mickey is one of only eleven drivers to steer a piston-powered car past the 400 mph mark. While his 406 mph pass qualified him for the record, he had to execute one more pass to solidify the record. On his return pass he blew a driveshaft, ending his bid for the year.

Racers will tell you that in Bonneville you are at the mercy of the weather, and when Mickey returned in 1968 with his newly built Challenger II streamliner, the weather had no mercy. He ran a qualifying run right at 400 mph, according to Danny, but never got a chance to push it; rains moved into the flats and put a stop to everyone’s hopes for the year. In 1969, sponsors like Ford, Chrysler and General Motors withdrew from racing, and without funding, Mickey mothballed his dream.

Challenger II sat for 19 years until one day in 1988 Mickey called Danny and told him he wanted to make a run, only this time with Danny at the helm. As preparations began fate intervened, halting the dream once more. In March 1988 Mickey and his wife were killed outside their home. Devastated, Danny shelved the project once again.

Now, 46 years after it was first stored, the Challenger II is poised to run, poised to take back the crown that lay just beyond its reach all those years before. Danny, with the help of a faithful

Danny Thompson’s Quest for the Holy Grail


crew, has been working, sometimes around the clock, to prepare the car for another run on the salt.

“It’s the most bitchen’est thing I’ve ever done,” said Danny. The new project has kept the same car, the elder Thompson,

built in 1969; its signature cigar shape, hand-formed aluminum panels, striking rear fin, but it is getting modern updates. The Challenger II will be powered by two 500 ci aluminum-block Hemi’s, running a 50 percent nitro/methane mix and producing a whopping 4,000 horsepower. It’s also getting a number of other upgrades like suspension, steering, brakes, and modifications to meet current safety standards.

“You can’t just go to the part store and buy things for this car, everything has to be handmade,” said Danny.

All of his preparation will be put to the test this August in Bonneville when Danny hopes to break the current record of 439 mph, held by George Poteet.

“This is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” said Danny. “You can’t go ask anyone because no one has ever done it before, you just have to surround yourself with the people you think are the best.”

The fastest Danny has currently driven is an impressive 286 mph, and he is predicting that the Challenger II will run somewhere near 450 mph – commercial airplanes fly at speeds around 600 mph.

“At that speed I’ll be traveling at almost 750 feet-per-second, or one mile every seven seconds,” said Danny.

In Bonneville hundreds will bring their cars and motorcycles, many built in home garages all over the world, to make runs to break the various speed records.

“The thing that’s cool about Bonneville is that everyone is trying their idea of what will work, no one has an ugly or bad car,” said Danny.

Between now and Speed Week Danny and his team have a lot of testing to do. He says the window of opportunity at Bonneville is very small so they have to make sure everything is perfect before making any passes. They will be running function tests on the airstrip at El Toro Marine base near his Huntington Beach, California garage. When everything is complete and they finally get that 46-year-old rocket ship lined up to make history on the salty course, everyone will be watching, and whether Danny solidifies his namesakes spot in the record books or not, it’s a ride that everyone has been waiting for.

“When they latch that canopy and tell me to go, it’s going to be heaven.”

“At that speed I’ll be traveling at almost 750 feet-per-second, or one mile every seven seconds,”


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Everyone has his own particular “barn find” fantasy of opening the door to an automotive vault (garage/barn/tomb) and finding his dream machine quietly lying in wait. And of course in this fantasy world, the owner no longer wants it and is willing to practically give it away. For some, that dream car is a Ferrari of one stripe or another. For others, maybe a Bugatti, Packard, or Duesenberg. This story is about another iconic, automotive high watermark: a Mercedes-Benz 300SL coupe, aka the mighty Gullwing. And only a guy like Jay Leno, one of the world’s most engaging and best-known motorhead collector/enthusiasts, could find it, buy it, give it a deep cleaning and sensitive mechanical recommissioning, then take it out any time he likes and drive the wheels off of it.

Star PowerBy Matt Stone

PHOTOGRAPHY BY THEAUTHOR, AND COURTESY JAY LENO

“I found this car locked up in Anaheim,” Leno says. “It was raced extensively in the ’60s, and the guy damaged the engine. He claimed to have sent the engine to Mercedes to be rebuilt and, well, you know how that goes. We opened up the engine that came with the car and saw evidence of fresh parts and assembly lube, so we hoped for the best. On the dyno, it ran great and made good horsepower, and so far so good.

“The car has a wonderful Southern California hot-rod appeal. It was painted this candy red by hot-rod and show-car legend Junior Conway and has a custom leather interior by the late Tony Nancy, another local hot-rod, show-car, race-car icon, plus it has a rollbar of unknown origin. We of course kept all that and cleaned the car up visually and mechanically. It’s a joy to drive and runs great. It’s fun to take to car shows because I don’t worry much about it. People always have lots to say about all the missing hunks of paint, but if their kid bumps up against it, he’s certainly not going to hurt it.”

Imagine that—a beater Gullwing. Or, more accurately, a driver Gullwing. Leno worked at a Mercedes-Benz dealer when he was a kid, and adds, “You can’t imagine the impact this car had at the time. Just look at the specs: born of a race car, overhead-cam engine, mechanical fuel injection, those outrageous doors. It was every bit as exotic in its day as any Ferrari, Lamborghini, or McLaren road car is now. It’s really the first postwar exotic car, if you don’t count the earliest Ferraris, which had more cylinders, but weren’t any more technically advanced than the 300SL was. And the quality—other cars just weren’t built like this back then. Everything is well engineered and beautifully made.

“And, fortunately, you can buy nearly every part on it. Stuff ’s expensive, but they have it through the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center. Buy a new fender for this car, and it fits with very little work. Buy a replacement panel for some other cars, and then the body shop usually has to get to work trimming and

hand-fettling it so it’ll come close to fitting. That’s the difference with a classic Mercedes.”

Jay offers me the pilot’s seat. I flip down the steering wheel, then Twister my large frame inside. I sit relatively tall, with short legs, and the Gullwing proves a made-to-measure fit for me. I just have to remember to duck a bit when closing that special door.

“Know how to cold start one of these?” he asks. Of course


not—unfortunately, I don’t own one. It’s simple: First you activate the fuel enrichment via a knob on the dash; ditto the auxiliary fuel pump. A twist of the key, and it fires right off and thrums with purpose. The exhaust system consists of a well-worn muffler and a large thin-wall single tube exiting the driver-side rear of the car. We idle for a minute to warm the fluids, engage first gear, and pull away with no drama. This engine feels torque-rich (it’s got to be more than 203 pound-feet), and the fuel injection meters in the fuel with relative precision, so it’s crisp. After a half mile or so, Jay clicks off the enrichment and aux pump. The engine clears its throat and feels ready for action. I drive conservatively as there’s not much temp on the gauges yet, but after a while, Jay points to the far side of the tach and says to give it some revs. Sure, boss, if I must.

We find a relatively traffic-free, country-type road not far from Leno’s Burbank, California, Big Dog Garage and give the Gullwing some stick. No wonder this car took the world—and most racetracks—by storm in its day. This thing is fast by any standard, even now, although of course it wouldn’t take on a

new ZR-1 or Gullwing’s spiritual successor, the SLS AMG 63. No matter. Go deep with the throttle in lower gears and the exhaust system snorts and bellows, the rear end squats a few degrees, and this baby really goes. Most cars of the day didn’t stand a chance against it.

The view through the curved windshield is breathtaking-—the prowed fenders and hood look classic and terrific. You know you’re at the wheel of something special. The view out back is good, too, thanks to lots of glass area. I’m keenly aware of every car around me, and how close each one is to our position. I’m worried for the welfare of Big Red’s fabulous fenders, even if its owner isn’t overly concerned.

The Gullwing is a wonderfully analog car. There’s no computerized interference. You know the throttle pedal is connected to the intake system and the engine, and that the four-speed manual transmission’s shifter is moving actual mechanical gears in the transmission, which sits just below it. There’s no asking some computer for permission to drive fast. The brake pedal actuates the brakes. This is not only a car, it’s a machine. And a refined, and damned sporty one.

The SL has a wonderfully supple ride quality—never mushy, always in control, with no danger to your dental work on less than butter-smooth roads. One contributing factor is the relatively high-profile rubber, from when tires were more than glorified O-rings wrapped around an oversized wheel.

Leno points out this example’s factory steel wheels and hubcaps, which look absolutely right on this car. “A lot of

Gullwings were factory-fitted with Rudge knockoff wheels, and many have since been retrofitted with them. The knockoff aspect is cool, but did you know they’re actually heavier than these?” Jay knows his stuff, and appreciates the steelies-and-caps’ lower unsprung weight, if less racy look.

The suspension is nicely calibrated for controlled compliance rather than hair-trigger responses. Because of the SL’s prodigious power, it’s not only easy to make speed in this car, but also to carry it. The steering is linear and true, with meaty weighting, no kickback on rough stuff, and meaningful feedback from the road surface. There’s a bit of body roll, but once the car takes its set, it tracks true and consistent. There are plenty of brakes, even though they’re drums.

This is a superlative machine for covering big miles when you have lots of time, and especially when you don’t. “I wasn’t really lusting after a Gullwing,” says America’s favorite comedian / late-night talk-show host, “because the car always looked heavy to me. I didn’t realize how quick they are until I drove one.” Unlike some high-strung exotics, the SL proves a vice-free, yet thrilling drive. It’s precise yet forgiving, plus completely and properly Germanic.

“That’s one of the things I love most about old cars: The driving experience among them is so different,” Leno explains. “Drive a new BMW or Audi or whatever big luxury sedan, and if you couldn’t tell the difference visually or by the badges, you may or may not know which was which. They’re all pretty quick, quiet, smooth, comfortable. They all have the same gadgets on them now, and the differences in driving experience has been largely homogenized out of them. You want to try something really unique, drive a steam car or a turbine—that’s different!”

With a 300SL Gullwing, every drive is an occasion. And let’s not forget, its beauty inspires a shortness of breath in most serious car fools, including your author. Will Jay ever “restore” and repaint and replate this car back to pristine original or Concours levels of finish? Who knows? He says it’s not part of any current plan; too many other projects in the shop at the moment. We bet it’ll stay just as it is. Because Jay Leno likes it that way. And so do we.

Our thanks to Jay Leno. Tour his garage, car, motorcycle, and automobilia collection, and lots of other fun stuff, at Jaylenosgarage.com.

“RESCUED FROM A SOCAL LOCKUP, JAY LENO’S TIMEWORN

1955 MERCEDES-BENZ 300SL GULLWING COUPE IS A RUNNER AND A DRIVER—AND BEAUTIFUL

JUST AS IT IS”


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FULLERTON

Grand Reopening of the front doorMay 26


LegacyCollector gets his motor running...By Carley Dryden / Fullerton Stories

PHOTOS BY DAVIS BARBER / FULLERTON STORIES

Buzz Pitzen glides his fingers along the curve of his one-of-a-kind silver 1930 Buick Speedster, lifts up the hood and smiles.

“This was a wonderful car for racing,” he says, proudly listing the specs — 8-cylinder motor, aluminum body less than 400 pounds, 5-inch stroke. “It would power out of the turns and average over 100 miles per hour.”

His grandson, Jordan Umlauf, 21, hops in the leather cab and turns the ignition as the engine roars to life, reverberating off the garage walls. As the car inches out of the garage, sunlight glistening off the pearlescent paint, Pitzen motions to the passenger side, “You’re going for a ride.”

This is the car all the grandkids want.

“There’s only one. There will never be another one,” says Pitzen, 80.

The 36-year Fullerton resident ambles through his garage, the walls covered with framed photos of his many car restorations and his grandchildren posing next to the vintage automobiles. A sign reading “Grandpa’s Toy Shop” hangs prominently next to faded black and white photos of racing Speedsters.

The love of Pitzen’s life is clearly his wife of 60 years, Martha — “I still feel like I’m 21 years old. We’re still a great partnership,” he says — his two daughters and his four grandchildren.

But cars are a close second.

A tour of his garage is like a trip back to the Great Depression era. Next to the Buick Speedster is a khaki-and-crimson 1931 Buick Phaeton, a seven-passenger convertible-style vehicle, one of only 12 in the world.

There’s a bright blue-and-black 1928 Ford Model A, a burgundy 1915 Oldsmobile – “This belongs in a museum,” he says – and cream-and-black 1926 and 1928 Buick Roadsters.

Car collector might not be the most apt title, since all of Pitzen’s cars are “drivers,” meaning he drives them around town, they don’t collect dust in his garage. His Speedster has been to Arizona twice. The Phaeton can be spotted cruising in Fullerton parades. He drives his candy apple-red 1952 Chevy truck to lunch.

Every car in his garage was built and restored by Pitzen and his grandsons, but there have been many more.

His first restoration was of a 1929 Dodge, parked in the driveway of an empty house next door to his childhood home in Hawthorne.

“I managed to get it running without my dad knowing it,” he says, with a slight chuckle. “I repaired it, fixed some things, painted the outside. It came to a quick end when my dad caught me driving it.”

Pitzen’s father was a mechanic, but he never wanted to restore a car.

“He had his hands in cars all the time,” Pitzen says. “I saw that early on. I told myself, ‘I want to keep my hands out of it as a profession and just keep it a hobby.’”

And that he did. He moved up the ranks at Rockwell, first sweeping the floors at the welding shop at 18 years old, and retiring 41 years later in 1992 as an executive in the financial department.

In 1978, Pitzen, then 45, and his wife bought a one-acre lot in Sunny Hills, and Pitzen fulfilled his dream of building his own house and stables, where the couple still live today.

The land also allowed Pitzen a seven-car garage.

Over the years he has restored more than two-dozen cars.


Two have made the cover of Hot Rod magazine — the 1929 Model A he restored in 1959 and the Ford Model T or T-bucket in 1962.

Pitzen does all of the work himself, beginning with the thorough research of designs and models on the Internet, the location of parts, the bodywork, everything but the exterior paint.

“Mechanics fix cars, and I build them. You have to know the difference,” he says. “My emphasis is having fun designing and building the parts.”

He’s currently in the midst of constructing a 1934 Model 40 Speedster, fabricating new parts when original parts can’t be found.

While recovering for a year from heart surgery, Pitzen found himself watching TV a lot.

“I told Martha, ‘I’m not going to die watching TV. I need a project,’” he said.

A small model of the Model 40 sits on top of a shelf in his garage. Pitzen works from every document he can find when restoring a car. He holds out a binder of photos and other print-outs of the Model 40. “I’ve wrung out the Internet by now,” he says.

Pitzen estimates that he spends about $50,000 on a car plus the labor and the cost of the car. The Phaeton was $30,000 just for the car alone. “By that time, you just don’t show the receipts to your wife,” he says, smiling.

Pitzen is meticulous in his work. He notes that his shop is clean, even though it’s busy.

“He’s hardworking and persistent in most aspects of his life,” says Umlauf, sitting next to his grandfather. “For example, before I came over here today, he probably called me five times over the last five days to see when I was coming over.

Pitzen’s Buicks lead the way

“Everything has to be done right. He always says, ‘If you’re going to do something, it might as well be done right.’”

Pitzen says his dad used to ask him, “Why are you rushing? Do it right the first time.”

Once, Pitzen built a car frame but had to dump it and start all over again.

“After you do that a few times you listen to your dad,” he says. “When I finish a car, the first time I turn the ignition switch, I want everything to work perfectly – the brakes, the lights, the engine, everything. That’s the goal.”

It takes time and it’s hard work, he says, but to him, that’s the challenge.

Pitzen admits that he has the same apprehension with each car. After months of hard work, when he goes to turn the key that first time, will it start? Will everything work OK?

It usually does, Umlauf says.

“A lot of guys are out there working on cars, restoring cars and showing them, but not a lot of them do everything themselves,” he says. “They get a lot of help from other people. Not a lot of people do all the work themselves like my grandpa does. The finished result is much different because of that.

Every part of the car was welded together by him, the headlight mounts, everything.”

Pitzen’s home office is filled with trophies from the Muckenthaler Concours d’Elegance. He and his grandsons have won dozens of accolades from the various shows across Southern California they attend each year.

Often, Pitzen gets offers for his cars, or requests to go into business.

“When I was a young man raising a family, when I built a car,

I had to sell it,” he says. “Now that I’m retired, when I build a car, I get to keep it. So I’m keeping all my cars, even though I don’t have room.”

Although Pitzen says he still can’t wait to get up in the morning and head out to his garage, he is gladly letting his grandsons take the wheel also.

Right now, life, to him, is perfect. “It’s like driving a new Corvette. Picture that,” he says.

“What’s not to like? It makes all the hard work, and there’s some hard work – broken fingers, trips to the hospital, I don’t think I have a straight finger – but when you get done, you pull this beautiful car into a place like Concours d’Elegance, they put you right up front and the grandkids are telling spectators about the car. And I sit back and have a beer. I don’t know how you put a number on it. That’s fantastic. It’s what it’s all about.”


Myth: A Famous Chrysler Concept car sunk to the bottom of the ocean aboard the Andrea Doria cruiseliner.

Today most people refer to them as “concept cars.” By “them” we mean those one-off dream machines, mock-

ups, design studies and turntable toys intended to dazzle us at auto shows, give potential customers and the media a hint at specific vehicles or automotive design language that’s coming in the near future, and possibly even gauge reaction to the same. Virgil M. Exner, Sr., used a different name – he called them Idea Cars, because to this visionary designer and design department leader, the power of good ideas was everything. He began his career as an advertising illustrator. As a young design phenom and protégé of GM design boss Harley Earl, Exner ran the Pontiac styling department, before leaving to join Raymond Loewy and Associates in 1938, there working primarily on Studebaker projects. Exner was dismissed by Loewy in 1944, only to join Studebaker directly, even though Loewy gets much of the credit for Studebaker’s fresh post-war designs, much of that effort should be more correctly attributed to Exner. Exner left Studebaker in 1949 to join Chrysler’s design studio, ultimately to become Chrysler’s styling chief, and a member of the board.

Exner rightly assessed that Chrysler’s early post-war cars were staid and boxy, and went to work revolutionizing their look to be more in step with the post-war jet age. He was immediately successful, his new “Forward Look” designs were sexy and exciting, and sales improved

dramatically. “Ex” as he was affectionately nicknamed, respected the great work being done by so many of Italy’s design houses and automotive bodybuilders, and soon established a friendship and business relationship with one of the best: Luigi Segre ran Ghia in Turin, Italy, and Exner saw the value of a relationship with an Italian carozzeria that could turn out high quality one-offs in relatively little time and at affordable costs. Soon followed a decade-plus long parade of Idea Cars that enthused the public, the media, and Chrysler management and customers.

In an internally published catalog about Idea Cars, Chrysler stated that they …”had to be more than just a

show car that was simply a production model with special paint and upholstery.

Yet it couldn’t be an impractical ‘dream car.’ It had to have a completely new body that would interest and even startle

the casual observer. It had to have new, practical, usable ideas in body styling and passenger accommodation.”

The Idea Cars are well known to anyone who is a student of automotive design, and

include landmarks such as the Chrysler Special, the K-310, Flight-Sweep I and II, the original DeSoto Adventurer and

Adventurer II, the GS-1, Plymouth Belmont, several iterations of Dodge Firearrow and

The Andrea Doria andthe Norseman


many others. Of the 28 vehicles built from 1940 through 1961 that Chrysler identifies as Idea Cars, 24 of them were built in cooperation with Ghia; largely designed by Exner and his staff in the United States, then detailed and built by Ghia in Turin.

Once their days as dazzling turntable toys are over, some concept cars spend a quiet retirement in the carmaker’s museum or heritage collection. Over the years, many have been appropriated by design studio chiefs or other corporate executives for use as personal transport. Some are disassembled and the parts reused in the creation of other concept cars. Far too many have been cut in to pieces or crushed whole and destroyed.

One of Exner’s jet-aged concepts, the Chrysler Norseman of 1956, like “Luca Brasi” of The Godfather fame, now “sleeps with the fishes.” The Norseman’s principle design innovation was the use of a roof section that was cantilevered from the rear and appeared to float over the front half of the car, using no thick, conventional windshield pillars, Mr. Exner’s main goal with this design was to make the car appear “visually lighter” and, to improve the driver’s forward visibility without thick “A pillars”

to impede the view. In place of the traditional windshield posts, the Norseman employed chromed steel rods at the corners of the windshield to help hold up the roof and support the glass. The Norseman was a good looking car, combining a sweeping fastback rear end design and Chrysler’s own take on a tailfin and bumper treatment. The Norseman also employed hideaway headlamps up front, and a finely detailed chrome grille. The Norseman’s cabin design was elegant and filled with chrome and other luxury detailing, including large, thickly upholstered front bucket seats with a wide, padded center console in the middle.

As with most of the rest of Chrysler’s Idea cars, Exner and his styling team designed the car, and then provided Ghia with a Chrysler chassis and powertrain. The car was built in Turin during the first half of 1956, and completed in the early summer.

On July 17, it was loaded aboard the Italian luxury cruiseliner Andrea Doria, which was preparing to embark for New York. The Norseman, being more than a mere automobile, was specially crated and packed into the Doria’s Number 2 cargo hold with great care to ensure it made the 4000 mile journey to America safely and without suffering any damage.

Sadly, the Norseman never got to strut its stuff and show its innovative design features to the world on the 1957 show car circuit. Because, in one of the worst civilian maritime disasters in history, the elegant Andrea Doria, sailing just off the coast of Nantucket and only a few hours from safe harbor in New York, was struck broadside by the SS Stockholm, another passenger liner, of Swedish registry, at around 11:00PM on the evening of July 25, 1956. The gravely wounded Doria took on water and began listing immediately, but somehow stayed afloat, well into the next morning, at which time, with her

nose was fully submerged; she pointed her tail toward the sky, and began a tragic dive toward the ocean bottom with the Chrysler Norseman aboard.

Andrea Doria

Concept rendering of the Chrysler Norseman


The injured Stockholm remained afloat and even though her ride height had dropped several feet due to the damage to her bow, she was able to assist in rescuing passengers from the Andrea Doria,

and miraculously steamed into New York harbor under her own power.

Naturally, there were numerous inquests as to how this tragedy could have taken place; Given the dark foggy conditions at the moment of the collision, it is likely that both ships were traveling slightly too fast, and its generally accepted that various crewmembers failed to properly read the radar signals showing the other ship’s location and direction of travel. It’s unfortunate that the two ships failed to contact each other or otherwise communicate their positions, in which case the disaster might have been avoided. Five people aboard the Stockholm died, and approximately 46 Doria passengers and crewmembers also perished.

Strange though it may sound, the Norseman’s fate is, perhaps in some ways, better than the destiny that awaited it in the United States. Chrysler’s plan for the car was to tour the 1957 auto show circuit. Then, in order to test the structural rigidity of its unusual roof design, it was scheduled to be crashed at Chrysler’s Proving Grounds. The Norseman would surely have impressed show goers had it made it to the United States and safely into Chrysler’s hands. But in a way, it is now part of a greater more historic story, as having been aboard the Andrea Doria’s final voyage, it avoided the injustice of crash testing and systematic destruction once its days on the auto show tour were done.

Chicago native Joe Bortz has purchased, rescued and restored many of Detroit’s most famous concept cars, including some that have been cut into many pieces and long thought destroyed. One of the world’s experts in the area of factory design studies and concept cars, Bortz knew of the Norseman and its unfortunate fate. He wondered, given today’s advanced industrial diving techniques, if the car could be located within the ship, extracted, brought to the surface, and restored. After some research a few years back, Bortz was introduced to an industrial diver who claimed he could do the job. Bortz pursued additional research plus discussion with scientists qualified to assess what the car’s condition might be after more than 50 years under water. Bortz and company concluded that the ravages of time, pressure, and the corrosive nature of salt water, will have reduced the hapless Norseman to little more than rusty sludge.

According to an article on Hemmings.com: “In the mid-1990s, David Bright, a leading underwater researcher and explorer, wrote on his website about finding the remains of the car. “While looking for a lost diver, I had an opportunity to see the Norseman for myself in the cargo hold,” he wrote. “Normally, all passenger cars were placed in the garage section of the Andrea Doria that is slightly aft of the collision point where the Stockholm impaled the Doria underneath the bow wing bridge. These cars would have been placed onto the Doria by use of a crane and meticulously parked in the garage and arranged strategically for stability. However, the Norseman was no passenger vehicle and was specially packed and treated with extra care. The Norseman was put into a wooden crate and placed in the number 2 cargo area.

“The crate had disintegrated and the car was in very, very poor condition. The ocean’s salt water invaded the Norseman’s metal and most of the car is rust, corrosion and a heap of indistinguishable junk.”Thus, the Chrysler Norseman rests aboard the Andrea Doria, which lies on her starboard side, off the cost of Nantucket, Massachusetts, some 250 feet below the ocean’s surface.

SS Stockholm

Concept rendering of the Chrysler Norseman


The ever Graceful Italian:

SS Andrea DoriaThe SS Andrea Doria was an ocean liner

owned and run by the Italian Line, calling Genoa, Italy, its home port, and is unfortunately best known for its sinking in 1956. Named after the 16th-century military admiral Andrea Doria, the ship was rated at 29,100 tons with a capacity of about 1,200 passengers and 500 crew. It wasn’t as large or as grandly fantastic as the Titanic, nor did its sinking kill nearly as many people.

Of graceful design and lushly decorated with the Italian artworks, the Andrea Doria was an icon of national pride. It was quick, sporty looking in a large elegant way, and reputedly safe. It was launched on June 16, 1951, and undertook its maiden voyage in 1953.

Struck in its port side by the SS Stockholm on July 25 1956 the top-heavy Doria listed severely to starboard, which left about half of its lifeboats under water and thus unusable. The consequent shortage of lifeboats might have resulted in a more significant loss of life, but amazingly, it remained afloat for over 11 hours after being hit by the Stockholm, before sinking off the coast of Nantucket.

Packard’s famous motto was?

Ask the Man Who Owns One


Monday – Thursday: 4pm-2amFriday: 3pm-2amSaturday: 11am-2amSunday: 10am-2am

110 E. Commonwealth Ave. Fullerton, CA 92832

TELEPHONE:(714) 626-0050bourbonstreetfullerton.com


TURISTAS EN MÉXICO: MEXICAN POSTCARDS FROM THE EARLY 20TH CENTURYMay 1 – June 29Anonymous SponsorGallery Opening Reception: Thursday, May 1, 6:30 p.m.Gallery Tour: Thursday, June 5, 7:30 p.m. | Free | Donations welcomed20th Century Mexico is the subject of this selection of historical postcards from the Slauson family collection circa 1908–1928. The postcards depict the art, culture, cities, and natural wonders of a country emerging fromrevolutionary times.

THE NORTH ORANGE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL ART SHOWCASEMay 1 – June 29The North Orange County High School Art ShowcaseJoin us in a celebration of local high school artists in a rotating gallery that exemplifies the next generation of artists. Select pieces chosen form the very best of North Orange County high school students’ portfolios will be presented in Walter’s Gallery.

WASHI: PRINTMAKING WITH PAPER OF FUKUIJuly 10 – September 28Sponsored by Fullerton Sister City AssociationGallery Opening Reception: Thursday, July 10, 6:30 p.m.Gallery Tour: Thursday, August 14, 7:30 p.m. | Free | Donations welcomedTraditional paper of Japan, known for centuries as washi, is used for everything from furniture to toys, clothing, and origami. It is also a particularly fine ground for printmaking and other art. This invitational exhibition features prints, drawings, and paintings made on washi paper from Fukui, Japan.

HISPANIC WEAVINGS: THE ROMERO COLLECTION OF BLANKETS FROM THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY, MEXICO, AND SOUTH AMERICAOctober 16 – January 1, 2015Gallery Opening Reception Thursday, October 16, 6:30 p.m.Gallery Tour Thursday, November 6, 7:30 p.m.Celebrated Los Angeles artist Frank Romero has been collecting Hispanic blankets for thirty years. Hispanic weavings will include examples of blankets from the Rio Grande Valley, Mexico, and South America from the 1860s through the 1980s.

GALLERY at the Muck


EVENTS at the Muck

2014 Jazz FestivalSix Thursdays: May 22, May 29, June 5, June 12, June 19, & June 26.All programs begin at 7:30 PM.Ticket prices are $20 in advance, $25 day of concert, or $100 for the entire series. No member discounts available.We would love to welcome you to our Muckenthaler Jazz Festival Family. Entering its 9th season, The Concert Series has emerged from nativity to be a recognized force on the Southern California Jazz Scene.

Summer Solstice FestivalSunday, June 22, 12:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m.FreeSunshine, live music, fresh food, and plenty of activities— The Muck’s Summer Solstice and International Taco Festival returns. Enjoy an afternoon filled with free art workshops, a children’s play area, an arts and crafts fair, gallery tours, and storytellers. Don’t miss the always popular Fullerton Sister City Association’s International Taco Festival Fundraiser from 1:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m. Last year this event set a record as the most attended event in Muck history!

Sunday Social at The Villa: A Special 90th BirthdaySunday, September 14, 12:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m.Free Celebrate the Muckenthaler Mansion’s 90th Birthday with 1920s panache! See vintage cars, taste exquisite food and authentic cocktails, and hear period music on two stages! Join the Leisure League’s Autumn Invitational Bocce Ball Tournament or try your hand in a game of croquet or badminton. Fantastic musicians, from Ragtime stride piano to Roaring ‘20s sweethearts will be on hand to entertain you as you dance the afternoon away (pianists provided by RagFest). Browse the vendors’ booths selling everything from period jewelry and art pieces to tasty food and the finest “bathtub gin”.

Muck Roots Music SeriesSponsored by Kemp Financial DUSTBOWL REVIVALThursday, July 17, 7:30 p.m.$12.50 Member, $20 Student/Senior, $25 Non-memberThe Dustbowl Revival is a Venice, California-based roots collective that merges old school bluegrass, gospel, jug-band, swamp blues and the hot swing of the 1930s to form a spicy roots cocktail. Known for their inspired live sets, the Dustbowl Revival boldly brings together many styles of traditional American music.


GRUPO FALSO BAIANOThursday, July 24, 7:30 p.m.$12.50 Member, $20 Student/Senior, $25 Non-memberGrupo Falso Baiano plays a mix of Brazilian choro and jazz. Choro is often considered the “ragtime of Brazil” made popular in the 1920s and 1930s. This music is the “mother” of samba. This concert features special guest vocalist Katia Moraes on sultry and classic sambas. The band is based in Northern California but has traveled throughout the West Coast and in Brazil.

THE SALTY SUITESThursday, August 7, 7:30 p.m.$12.50 Member, $20 Student/Senior, $25 Non-memberThe Salty Suites are a breath of acoustic fresh air with amazing instrumental talent and soulful leads and blended harmonies. The Salty Suites is Scott Gates on mandolin, Chelsea Williams on guitar and Chuck Hailes on bass and vocals. They have opened for Kenny Loggins and other big names.

THE ORIGINALITESThursday, August 21, 7:30 p.m.$12.50 Member, $20 Student/Senior, $25 Non-memberTotal world domination is the only option for our species, a special kind of species known as the The Originalites, who’s destiny is to travel through inter-galactic space and time in order to cure, heal and enlighten the souls of the universe via stupendous harmonious vibrations.

HAMILLThursday, September 4, 7:30 p.m.$12.50 Member, $20 Student/Senior, $25 Non-memberKorean Traditional Music “Hamill” Team was formed in 2008 with a vision to bridge the gap between different culture communities. The team “Hamill” has been active in delivering and educating harmonies through Korean traditional music, infused with traditional and modern instruments. Through the dedications of their performances, they hope to touch the hearts of other ethnicity communities.

Upcoming Special Events

GATSBY’S BLACK & WHITE SOIRÉEThursday, September 25, 6:30 p.m.$100 per guest Because this is a special event fundraiser, no discounts are available.Calling all Dapper Dans and Debs! Join us at Jay Gatsby’s opulent digs in West Egg, Fullerton, for a soiree fit for a king…or bootlegger. The cream of New York society—both legit citizens and miscreants—celebrates Gatsby’s wealth in true sexy and sinful Jazz Age Style! Live vaudeville, fancy food, dancing, and fine spirits! Be hip to the jive in your best black-and-white glad rags! Bid for flights in a biplane, weekends away in a mountain cabin, and participate in opportunity drawings to support our children’s programming.

OKTOBERFESTPresented by Burger Parlor and Bootlegger’s BrewerySunday, October 12, 12:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m.Admission $20 (includes one adult beverage and three sliders) Designated Driver and Student $15 (includes non-alcoholic beverage and three sliders)Because this is a special event fundraiser, no discounts are available. Break out your lederhosen (or not…) and prepare your taste buds. Enjoy an afternoon of great food, amazing beer, and ‘wunderbar’ live music in the amphitheater! Experience various beers from local breweries in our “Craft Beer Alley”. This is not your ‘Opa’s’ Oktoberfest, this is a contemporary twist on the German classic celebration!

MICHAEL MCCARTY: FAMILY SCARY STORIESThursday, October 23, 7:30 p.m.$10 Member, $16 Student/Senior, $20 Non-memberMichael is a multicultural storyteller of African, African-American and International folk tales, historical tales, stories of science, spiritual stories as well as stories of the brilliant and absolutely stupid things he has done in his life. His stories inform, educate, inspire and amuse. Join us for an evening of funny scary, scary, scary, tales of mystery and suspense from here there and everywhere!


One of the core goals at the Muckenthaler is education, a desire to provide the public with experiences that stimulate creativity and imagination.

Our arts programs offer a diverse and exciting course list of visual and performing art classes to children as young as five years old to adults of every age.

The Muckenthaler’s Arts Outreach includes:Sixteen to twenty hours per week of art classes at four Crittenton Foster Care campuses funded by Crittenton.

Muckenthaler’s artists-in-residence and volunteers bring the arts to the patients at Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) funded by Kay McCarty; and Women’s Transitional Living Center (WTLC), sponsored by the Carson Foundation.

The Muckenthaler is bringing the arts to the students of Imperial Middle School in La Habra and partnering with the La Habra Children’s Museum to bring classes to elementary schools throughout the city. We combine the disciplines of social studies, English and mathematics with various mediums of art. Our partner organizations have noticed that art classes have increased the speed in which ESL students learn English. In 2014, we will start the first STEAM program (adding art to STEM programs-Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) in Orange County in an exciting pilot program teaching 8th grade physics with animation through a partnership with the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity.

Thanks to support from Southern California Gas Company, the California Arts Council, and the

Phelps Family Foundation, the Muckenthaler has joined with Project HOPE, bringing art classes to transient and homeless children who have had little exposure to the arts before.

The Muckenthaler is pleased to announce their partnership with Bixby Educational Events, Inc. (BEE) for the implementation and coordination of Classes, Workshops and Events that enhance learning skills for all children in our Home School community. For more information on BEE at the Muck, follow the Muck Calendar of Events at: https://www.bix-bee.org/locations/muckenthaler-cultural-center/ or phone BEE at: 855-4 ART BEE - (427 8233). For more information on BEE at the Muck join our mailing list on the BEE website.

The Muckenthaler is looking for sponsors and patrons to invest in our outreach programs such as CHOC programs which runs out of funding in 2014. Will you help?

Summer Camps Weekly camps starting Mondays, June 2- August 18, 9:00 a.m. - 3:45 p.m. $180 per student (includes materials).Each year the Muckenthaler’s Multi-Arts Summer Camp (MASC) condenses our catalog into an intensive yet fun week-long camp series. Children ages five to 13 are given a unique opportunity to explore a variety of diverse art forms. Students return year after year to explore new art projects, build self confidence, and meet new friends.

Older Adults Programs (OAP)The Lifeskills Education Advancement Program (LEAP), which is a part of the North Orange County Community College District, has partnered with the Muckenthaler to bring their OAP classes to a wider audience. Free of charge, these classes include ceramics, drama, quilting and knitting to adults ages 50 and over.

For more information about our performances, galleries, special events, classes, or to purchase tickets please visit www.TheMuck.org , call 714-738-6595 or email [email protected].

Support the Muckenthaler Cultural Center and become a Member or Sponsor TODAY! For additional donations or corporate-level sponsorship please email [email protected] or call 714-738-6595.

CLASSES andARTSOUTREACH


SAVETHEDATE

What did BMW produce before automobiles?

Aircraft engines, followed by motorcycles

and then automobiles

Speak with a Muckenthaler Committee Member to have your car club marque considered for next year’s featured

automobile.

May 16 and 17, 2015

THE PREMIUM BRAND


Special thanks to our friends at Bootlegger’s Brewery.


FULLERTON, CALIFORNIA (714) 264-8001 • [email protected]


Most any Bugatti is a special automobile for numerous reasons. Bugatti is a prestigious French marque. Many of them are

spectacular examples of great automotive design. Various Bugattis were successful racecars, and one particular 1925 Bugatti Type 22 “Brescia” Roadster is best known for having been allegedly won in a card game, and then seized by Swiss authorities for the non-payment of duty taxes. Obscure and somewhat Byzantine laws at the time required that the seized property be destroyed, so those in charge at the time felt the best way to effectively yet mercifully do the job was to sink it into Lake Maggiore, a large and beautiful resort Lake which borders Italy and Switzerland.

According to the lore and legend of the day, the French Blue sports roadster was owned by Bugatti team racing driver, and several times grand prix race winner Rene Dreyfus, who came in contact with a Swiss national named Adalbert Bode. Bode’s history is somewhat cloudy, with his interests and occupations variously noted as bartender, racing driver, and gambler -- No matter, in or around 1934 in Paris, France, Bode and the ever-gentlemanly Dreyfus (who after retiring from racing as a professional, owned a famous French restaurant in Manhattan, named Le Chanteclair) reportedly consumed several bottles of fine champagne and then engaged in an impromptu game of poker, with the rare Bugatti two seater as the stakes. Dreyfus lost the game, and thus the car in the process.

When Bode attempted to bring his newly won car into Switzerland, he was unable to pay the duty taxes on his winnings. He reportedly left

the car parked in a private garage near the small town of Ascona. Swiss law required destruction of the property at issue in order to avoid unjust enrichment of the guilty party due to the non-payment of the taxes. The authorities, for reasons not entirely clear, chose to sink the car into Lake Maggiore, as opposed to merely impounding it, or perhaps disassembling or consigning it to a dismantler. No matter, sometime in 1934 the car was tethered to 35 foot long steel chains and suspended off the shore into the water. The reason for the chains was that in the event the owner wished to pay his taxes and reclaim the car, it could theoretically be done. To further complicate this somewhat murky situation, there is also information leading to another possible owner, an architect named Marco Schmuklerski who moved to Ascona about the same time, moving there from France.

What seemed like the proverbial “good idea at the time” proved not to be, at least from the car’s perspective. Time and corrosion ultimately fatigued the chains and the hapless Bugatti broke loose of those reins, sinking to the lake bottom approximately 170 feet down. It came to rest on its left side, the wheels, fenders, and some portions of the bodywork compressing into the soft silt and mud on the lake bottom. Locals had never forgotten the story of the “The Lady in the Lake” and once it was located, it became a popular attraction for recreational divers. Among them was a young local named Damiano Tamagni.

Tamagni was attending the Carnival festival in Locarno, Switzerland on February 1, 2008 when he was set upon by at least three thugs who

The Lady in the LakeBy Matt Stone

Photography by the author and courtesy Bonhams.com


beat him severely. The 23 year-old Tamagni died as the result of his injuries from that savage attack. The motives for this murderous crime are not fully known; it may have been a robbery gone awry, and some speculate the act may have been a hate-related for Tamagni either being gay or perceived as such. No matter, local divers and Tamagni’s family began taking steps to rescue the Bugatti from the depths of Lake Maggiore, with intent to auction it off to benefit the charitable foundation established in Tamagni’s name, its mission being to combat youth violence.

Bringing the car to the surface of the lake proved to be a complex engineering and logistical undertaking that ultimately took nearly a year, with the goal of the car to be sold by Bonhams auction house at its annual sale at the Retromobile classic car event in Paris in early 2010. The three prime protagonists in the rescue and exhumation effort were local diver/adventurers Jens Boerlin, Nicola Sussigan, and Stefano Mattei. Despite occasional bouts with bad weather, and the sinking of a floating platform built for which to work from, and help guide the car back to the surface, the team got the job done on July 12, 2009, to the cheers, tears, and applause of several thousand spectators. Although the car had certainly suffered from decades of submersion, a fair amount of the car remained intact; far more than if it had been in the ocean; Lake Maggiore is a fresh water lake, and the corrosive effects of ocean saltwater would have been dramatically more destructive. Oddly enough, the left side of the car, which had been pressed into the silty lake bed, was relatively well preserved. But the right side of the car, exposed to the open water and to any bacteria choosing to feast on the metal, wood, rubber, and other components of the car, suffered considerably more decay.

Damaged wheels and missing tires prevented the car from being moved easily around, so Bonhams’ constructed a relatively simple metal framed dolly so the fragile chassis could be moved and transported without risking further damage. The car was also washed in order to remove the worst of the mud and silt impacted into the chassis, and minimize their potentially corrosive effects.

Bonhams and the Foundazione Damiano Tamagni were besieged with requests about the car, how and when would it be sold, what was the real story, how much was it worth, and such. Even Bonhams’ best automotive experts didn’t really know for sure, as selling this type of vehicle was new territory for everyone. Restorers, collectors and potential buyers speculated as to whether the car could, or should, be restored. Fortunately, Californians Merle and Peter Mullin, and Andrew Reilly, (founders and benefactors of the Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard, California, and the museum’s curator, respectively) were of the strong opinion that to restore the car would be a crime against its history. The Mullins, a couple of considerable taste and means, are known for one of finest collection of art deco era French cars in the world, and while they have many concours winning cars in their museum, they felt the only proper way to respect the car’s history, and pay fitting tribute to young Tamagni, was to preserve, conserve, and present the car in its as-found condition.

Bonhams consigned and auction the car in Paris, as planned, and Mullin was the winning bidder, paying $366,367 including purchase price and commissions.

Curator Reilly acknowledged that his role, as it relates to this car is now more that of preservationist; needing to protect the car in its current condition, and prevent further degradation without any actions or process that could be deemed “restoration.” The closer Reilly inspected the car, the more of its secrets were revealed. Many of the glass covered instruments were filled with water. The manual transmission, apparently tightly sealed when built, still held transmission oil from when the car roamed the roads and race courses of Europe. The car is now on permanent display at the Mullin Automotive Museum, the star of its own special exhibit, bathed in an eerily soft and soothing light, designed to the extent possible mimic its appearance while submerged, surrounded by photography of the car while it lived at the bottom of Lake Maggiore. The major difference is that the car sits upright, rather than on its left side, as it did when on the lake bottom.

Our thanks: Bonhams Auctions, and mullinautomotivemuseum.com

“Bugatti Type 22 Roadster is best known

for having been allegedly

won in a card game.”


GOOD. BETTER. BEHR.

See you next year!May 16 and 17, 2015

Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival 2014

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Transcript of Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival 2014