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and a large 48-51 hood ornament to show up on film more easily

Hi Garrett

It was likely leased from Pacific Auto Rentals that maintained a stable of cars covering decades of examples, everything from Model T's to Duesenbergs, which they rented to movie production companies.

Even if it wasn't, the NADA Used Car Guide, May 1952 listed all 1940 Packard 180 models including the Darrin convertible victoria at $175 as is; $235 average retail.

So if the call to PAR found they didn't have a "swanky" convertible they'd rent with the understanding it would see some rough usage, just send a minion down to used car row to scare up a cheap, classy rig. Then, just as now, moviemakers see cars as just an expendable prop to put the story across.

Steve

Hi Steve!

Fascinating info. I never knew there existed such a movie resource, but it stands to reason there would be, considering the need for period-cars for some pics.

I was staggered by 1952 NAPA used-car value on such cars. Wow! Talk about giving it away!

Watching a stunt driver drive that Packard like a bat-out-of-hades in "Blowing Wild" had to have taken a serious toll on the suspension system and possibly damaged the under-carriage flying over exposed rock formations. Oh, the humanity!

as always
Garrett M

I never knew there existed such a movie resource, but it stands to reason there would be, considering the need for period-cars for some pics.

I'd guess there are a fair number of companies whose business it is to rent cars to the movie-making and similar industries; there are two here in northern New Jersey, (1) Cars of Yesteryear in Alpine, and (2) Cars for Films in Newark, NJ. Both have their own stable of cars and when something is needed that they don't have they "put out the call" to other collectors for suitable vehicles. I've abstained when called due to a few "horror stories" but some of my friends have taken up the offer, generally you get a couple of hundred $ for a day's appearance.

Several years ago, here in Baton Rouge, a movie company was filming around the state capitol building for a movie about the Depression Era. I worked in an office building not far from the capitol and well remember seeing the so-called "period cars" parked in front of the capitol for atmosphere. Even with my limited knowledge of cars, I knew that many of the cars were NOT vintage-1930's, rather 1940's. I guess the producers figured most movie audiences wouldn't know the difference.

as always
Garrett Meadows

There have always been companies that rent cars to the movies-especially in Southern California. In fact, PAC's Earle C. Anthony PMCC region once had a member whose sole business was renting cars for movies, TV and commercials. I also rented a few to the film industry.

And yes, the cars are merely props and considered expendable by some folks. It depends on who you have overseeing the movie... and the cars... and your personal car if you are renting.

Several decades ago, back when I was in college I would sometimes get a fee to go with these cars to make sure directors and stage hands didn't wreck them. One director wanted to drill giant holes in the back of a Packard I was with... then said, "Hey... we've got people who can fix it back so you'll never know!" Right. Another said... "...just turn it in for insurance!"... when something that was irreplaceable was severely damaged. There was no emotion, no historical sentimentality, no fretting about whether something that was original could not be replaced... since it was merely just another prop and expendable-or replaceable so he thought. It was all just dollars and cents to some of these folks. But others had deep appreciation. In particular, one of the guys with the Burbank Studios was a really caring and concerned transportation manager.

I had to get several permissions and became SAG eligible. I babysat the cars and sometimes drove them. In one particular MOTW with Gig Young, Bob Crane and John Savage I took a prewar Packard ambulance and we shot for about a week or so. One of the big guys on the set came over at lunch time and asked me what I thought of the cars they were using. I told him I thought everything was fine, except the scenes were supposed to take place in the late 1940s. I told him it would be a neat trick to have a 1952 Pontiac sitting in the main shot! They weren't too happy to hear that, but the '52 Pontiac later went away.

Another time, my good buddy's black 1956 Patrician (with air) was rented for a TV series about a police detective in New York (it was shot on the sets in SoCal). I was not available to go with the car, and that was ominous.

When the Patrician came back it was barely running. It was quite apparent the car had been overheated ...and the front had been very poorly repainted-with a bug in the paint! My friend found buckets of gravel wedged in underneath the car and the Torsion-Level no longer worked. Oh, and the tires. The whitewalls were scuffed up pretty hard. We finally figured out what had really happened when the show aired a few months later. We were mortified. Burn-outs, drifts, skids...they did them all-and more...with the car in chase scenes and posing as a Russian ZIL. Yes, they figured nobody would know any better-all the way around the equation.

Anyway, yes, there are companies that rent cars to the movies and it can be a very pleasant and even lucrative experience-providing that you have someone to watch over your vintage vehicle when it is out of your hands. Just remember, for a lot of people, a car is just a piece of machinery... or a prop. You can't expect that people will all feel emotional about your baby. Even if they've seen old cars a lot (and most people on movie film sets already have), this does not mean they have either expertise in handling vintage vehicles or emotional attachment to them.

You mean to tell me that those are real vintage cars I've seen wrecked, run off bridges, and purposely crashed in movies?! Oh, the humanity! I had no idea. I thought they were using modern-versions/ mock-ups of vintage cars.

You are so right about the total indifference and lack of concern for vintage items used in movies, whether they be cars, furniture, and/or incidental props. My cousin worked for a dealer in vintage advertising items, including automotive related items, in San Fransisco who REFUSED to rent items to anyone making movies for the very reasons you cited. The owner started telling movie producers that if they wanted a particular item for a movie, they would have to buy it.

One particular instance involved a very rare Coca-Cola free-standing Santa Claus display from the 1930's, which came back from the set torn nearly in two and--get this--taped back together with masking tape.

as always
Garrett Meadows

One of the saddest Packard demises I remember seeing is an early 50s gangster movie that was on TV not too many months ago. After killing the car owner and throwing his body over a cliff the bad guy got into the dead guys 22-23 series convertible to speed away. One curve later he runs into a gasoline tanker, swerves and he too goes over the cliff. You clearly see the Packard with an egg crate grill and interior fully ablaze smashing into some rocks halfway down before continuing to the bottom.

I suppose a 3 or 4 year old Packard was just a used car then and don't think they had special effects capability to spare the car so am fairly sure the crash and fire part was for real. It was disappointing they picked such a nice car to trash.

Remember back then, they were just used cars. Today, no one would shed a tear if they destroyed a modern used car in the same way.

Quote:

Certainly not all vintage cars you see (or think you see) crashed and trashed in movies and TV are real... especially in more recent years. It all depends.

If the folks running the film have a scene in the script that calls for an old car to be smashed... and they can pick up something that kinda-sort looks like it, they may just do that. Car wrecks on film can be expensive. So? If they can pick up say, for instance an old Packard for $1500... that plus the cost of wiring it to blow is the cost of the smash-up. Rather than the huge expense of purposely fabricating a fake vintage car. Done deal. Again, a matter of dollars and cents.

Check out one of the cars destroyed in the James Bond film, Dr. No. The car you may think is going down the mountainside in flames is not really what it appears to be. Just something the kinda-sorta looks like it. Of course the Continental that they squished in Goldfinger was real-minus the engine (watching that one for the first time indeed brought a tear!). Of course, the little cube of crushed metal that villain, Odd-Job returned with to Auric Goldfinger's Lexington, Kentucky ranch obviously was too small to actually be the Continental-at least not a whole one.

On the other hand, some movie shoots do indeed go all out and spend the money to make replicas that may get smashed or be used to give the look of something it isn't on camera. For instance, I had friends on the set of the filming of the Tucker movie and there were a few replicas mixed in with real Tuckers. I even have some photos of a couple of the fakes under construction and sitting on the set.

In the 1970s I was also on the set of the filming of a Harold Robbins book... The Betsy... only in that film they mostly dressed up other cars (at least one of which was a Packard) to look like cars from what was called "The Bethlehem Car Company"...all imaginary. They used everything from Ford LTDs to Mercedes to Packard and more... and disguised them all. I still have the grilles and hood ornaments off of some of the cars that I saved. They tossed most of the disguise parts after the filming was over.

So it just all depends.