John, you stole the show. My narrative was on the way to North Korea. To be honest I don't have any friendly comment on this country and wonder that the sun still is shining there. Unfortunately the roaring mouse has one or two big firecrackers. Ok, back to old cars.

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These pictures taken from a documentary movie of the 60s containing the answer. Richard Nixon used an old ZIS convertible on his travel through Poland. What looks like a lambada dancing man is a defense response against flying flowers. Please don't forget that even the fairest rose has spikes!
Moments later the driver got into trouble.

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Well, end of the fifties! The Packard prewar design reached the age of the rocket and even the strongest ZIS got tired. But what's that? The pictured car seems to sail under false colors. Help! Car force number one fell into the wrong hands. Alert! The red flag acompanied by the regalia of the President of the United States? That must be the work of a secret defector! Or a diplomatic egg dance?


[picture source: Dansk Aftenbladet]

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John, I support a Czech ZIS-owner to get original parts (picture one & two)
and now he is looking for a way to say thank you and invited me. The car will probably be a Tatra 52, I neither know its body maker nor any other detail - never look a gift horse in the mouth. That's a sample picture.

1959 - We call it tradition-conscious when the Britsh Prime Minister uses an old fashion car to go on state visit.
Ok, let's start to call the Soviet behavior (US-American) tradition-conscious when comrade Nikita picks him up in a ZIS.


John, this year I will go on a vintage car rally in a prewar Tatra.



[picture source: Красная звезда; Feb 14, 1959]

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A small red hexagon reveals that the Finnish car is in good hands.

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The 1941/1942 Packard prewar design was ageing in the postwar mid fifties but did its representative job admidst the fresh and slimline cars. The picture shows the ZIS of Mr. Kekkonen, the eighth President of Finland in 1957. My read is that the more modern cars are a brand new 1957 Cadillac Series 75 Limousine, a 1955 Imperial Crown and a ZIM GAZ-12.

[picture source: Helsingin Sanomat]; Aug 19, 1957

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Well, Ike wasn't a close friend of Packard. All the more surprising when Nikita parked a Soviet Packard with red flag as hood ornament right under his nose.

[picture source: L'espresso 11/1955]

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rdsieber, you will love --> that website!

Ken, congratulation! Will you restore it in Italy?