Packard Forum Index » General

You dont need my name to identify me to Roger ! Just ask him about "Tar Baby" - if he remembers why Tony Heinsbergen (long deceased) gave my 12 that name, he will probably smile..!

Todd:

Thank you for your private E mail post - but suggest we converse in here where everyone can see it. Our babbling about the old days might be of interest to the group.

First of all, what was the NAME of the guy you knew who lived above Barham and went to Valley View Elementry ? We lived on Blair Drive, up at the top of the hill. I knew several car nuts in the neighborhood. But I did not go to Valley View - we didnt move up to Blair Drive until '52, when I was already in Junior High ( Le Conte - from which I got expelled for fighting - then finished Jr. High at Bancroft).

Re: your question about "old military equipt". I presume you are referring to the collection of World War ONE tanks and trucks that Gary Holtz had stored in a garage that was part of the old Barham Estate on the west side of Barham Blvd. He shared the garage with Tony Heinsbergen, who took me to my first CCCA, So. Cal. Region meet in '55 and got me signed up as a member.

The guys I used to hang around with in the '50's, were Wayne Gilman (still alive) Dave Permutter (no idea what happened to him = '38 Cad. V-16) John Osborne '35 Packard V-12, Bob Locke (very much alive!) '32 Cad V-12, Ted Barton '32 Cad V-12 (very dead) and too many others to name who were active in the CCCA, So Calif in those years.

Of COURSE I know what happened to the '37 V-12 Club Sedan of Roger's - was just "testing" you to see if you were legit!

Sad to say So Calif bears little resemblence to the fun place where I grew up ( that's a lie..I never grew up). I remember with a great deal of fond-ness those early CCCA So Cal Region tours, where we'd typically have a turn-out of 50 of the big engined "super luxury" cars of the pre-war era (that was before the word "classic" came to mean ANYTHING you were trying to sell) (just had some "Classic Coke" with my "Classic Chicken" while reading about "Classic Chevrolet Pick Up Trucks....!). It was clean, nice, and the roads werent crowded mad-houses.

The drives to our favorite meet places were typically pleasant on two lane roads (only four lane road after leaving Los Angeles to the north and north west were 101 and 99 to Bakersfield) and of course the speeds were such that we werent all in that much of the way.

By comparison, Roger and I left the recent PAUL CERF MEMORIAL MEET at the Lakewood Country Club together, heading north on the Long Beach Freeway. In the RIGHT lane, both going 70-75 mph...(both of us have "high gear" rear axle ratios) WE WERE IN THE WAY ! Not just in the way of cars...but also in the way of garbage trucks !

Yes I do remember the tanks. We were only about 10 or so at the time. So while you were in LeConte (sort of) we were still in elementary school. My friends last name was Ancona, his mother still lives in the house one and a half blocks off of Barham. Still can't think of the name, but it is where the liquor store had been for as long as I can remember.
Don't know any of your friends as we lived on the other side of the Hollywood Freeway off Mulholland.

Roger may forget why my '38 V-12 Formal Sedan was called 'tar baby' in those years. It is a funny story which he might remember if you remind him. Being a Formal Sedan, it had a formal leather top (blocked out quarter windows where they would otherwise be in a standard sedan).

Well, the leather on the top was pretty far gone, so I removed it, and coated the sheet metal underneath with rubber under-coating. I textured it as best I could, to LOOK like leather from a distance. ( Well....what could a broke teen-ager do ? ) Remember, this was in an era when Bob Gottlieb, in his book CLASSIC CARS AND ANTIQUES, said "why spend a hundred dollars on a complete restoration of a beat-up classic, when for $175 you can get the best of the low mileage originals.....!

Anyway, the late Tony Heinsbergen "christened" it "Tar Baby" after that, and the name stuck.

Then as now, I drive the Twelve regularly - you may have seen it down thru the years.

Incidentally, I was the guy who made up the "Advertising Board" for Charlie - the framed series of photos showing the steps of over-hauling a Packard V-12 engine, that he proudly displayed in his shop till his last days.

Quote:

Todd,

Looks like Kev's been on the case. Tried to do a post on another thread a little while ago and instead of wiping it this message and the post came up: "Invalid submission. You could have exceeded session time. Please re-submit or make a backup of your post and login to resubmit if necessary."

Memories, many homes in the Hollywood Hills, Mulholland Drive area had not been built yet. So many trails for young men to follow, ocassionally go through a long dark drainage pipe.Pretty scary for a ten year old. Lots of frogs and polywogs in the shallow water. My good friend Ted Ancona, followed you to Hollywood High about seven years after you. I went on to (yep the snob school) Beverly Hills High School.
A bit of reminiscing, living in Beverly Hills in the mid sixties, to the early seventies. Just about every legend remembered now lived in Beverly Hills. My day was not complete with out passing Groucho wearing his berret, and smoking a cigar. I would say good morning many a time, and he always smiled, waved his hand, and tipped his hat. Charles Boyer lived two doors down. Bill Cosby at the end of the block. Up the street was Lucille Ball's house. By this time no Packards. Plenty of Rolls Royces, Bentleys, Jaguars,Cadillacs,and convertible Lincoln Town Cars. Many a time Jack Benny would drive his Rolls Convertible down Sunset Blvd. with his apricot ascot flapping behind him. Growing up in Los Angeles in the fifties,sixties, and seventies, was wonderful. A transition from a large, but still very rural city, to todays nothing but contrete, and anything worth while torn down. No more trails to follow above Lake Hollywood. Cannot hike to the Hollywood sign anymore. At one time me and a friend nearly pushed one of the letters down. They were in bad shape at the time. Enough of this.
Hope Packard12 Fan remembers this also.

Hello Todd,
I've read this story through from the start and I've gathered that you enjoy a story, so I'll share this story with you. I hope it's worth your time to read...
I live on the opposite side of the planet to California, on an island called Tasmania, off the biggest island down under; Australia. Mine is not a wealthy family but in 1983 (the year I turned 18), my father took possession of a 1935 1201 818 coupe. It was a reluctant deal in which my dad helped his very elderly aunt finance her bathroom renovation, and in return he semi-reluctantly received the Packard; a very unusual and original car for our part of the world.

I fell immediately in love with the beautiful, mysterious, elegant old car, but as a teenager I had no money to spend on it, and my dad was too busy running a small business and providing for our family. Together we loved the beautiful old car, but we did little more than slide it into storage. I read as much as I could; I learned about Packards, but being impecunious, my dreams for the car went no further than that.

A few years later, when I was a university student with still no income, I was lucky enough to score an undergraduate exchange to the UK. I could barely afford to take up the placement; the most affordable ticket to England was with Iberian Airlines via California. In hindsight I was extremely lucky to pass through LA both to and from England, but I had so little money that on the way over I slept on the streets of L.A. and showered at the beach showers on the coast.

On my return to Australia in January 1990, I got lucky with my timing and stopped over in Los Angeles in time to attend the annual gathering of the Packards International club. During that event I met many fantastic people, but one man was generous above all others.

That generous man invited me into his home, fed me, gave me a secure place to stay, and taught me plenty about these magnificent machines. He arranged for me to experience a personal viewing of the Nethercutt Collection. He gifted me the thrill of driving his V12 1939 Limousine on the incredible motorways of L.A. Consider that I live in a distant and isolated place where more than one lane each direction is rare. The experience of forcing that throttle open in a perfectly tuned Packard Twelve in its ultimate expression, in 10 hectic lanes of traffic... that was a magical day.

That generous man was your friend, Roger Morrison.

I came home to Tasmania after that experience determined to keep in touch with my new friend Roger, and equally determined to preserve and enjoy our family's humble 1201 coupe. But to my sincere regret I failed. Life intervened. I got married, had kids, forged three hectic careers (as a wilderness guide, then as a chemical engineer and now I'm a teacher) and inexcusably lost touch with Roger. Life went on, our Packard became neglected and I gradually lost the memory of Roger's name.

This year the time has come to make amends. Twenty-six full years have gone by since my time learning about Packards in California with Roger. My young family is growing up and I finally have the time, and suddenly have the motivation to restore our old coupe. I've done more reading and research in the last two weeks than during the last twenty years; and finding this thread has brought my memories of my time in California with Roger flooding back. Thank you, Todd, for posting it.

Todd; I'm not sure if this post will pop up in your forum view. If you do read this; are you still in contact with Roger? If so, could you please pass on my belated and warm greetings? I hope Roger is still healthy and happy. If you have Roger's address, could you please send it to me via PM? I'd love to write to Roger, and let him know that despite the passing of 26 years, his warm Packardian hospitality has helped keep my Packard flame alive after all these years.

All the best from way down under,

John

I moved to Las Vegas about six years ago, but I still talk with him every few weeks. He still has that car, and a couple others. He retired from Nethercutt several years ago. I will pass along your request in the next several days. Meantime send me your contact information to my email. tolandis@yahoo.com
He does not want a computer, so it is either mail, or telephone.
Talk soon, Todd

Email sent. Thanks very much, Todd.

John

What a wonderful story. Packard People and their worldwide connections at their finest!