Saturday, October 12, 2019

I love this artist's style, Bernd Rueters. this piece is actually named the VW Krankenwagen

American Ambulance Field Service (from an ambulance specific website)

When German troops invaded France in 1914, the American colony of Paris set up a volunteer ambulance service to transport the wounded from the front lines to the American Hospital e Neuilly (outskirts of Paris). It uses Ford "T model" cars, whose reliability and ease of use are very valuable.

The volunteer ambulance train sections of twenty to thirty individuals, assigned to French combat units and sent directly to the front. At the beginning of the year 1917 there are more than two hundred cars in activity.

WWI. Grégoire berline 12/24CV Alin & Liautard donated by the Czarina [in Epernay] WW1.

Single car made in Courbevoie in 1912, it was offered between August 20 and September 4, 1914 by the Russian colony and Empress Alexandra Feodorowna to the health service of the French army.

During the second half of 1915, following an order given to the army to destroy all special and unique vehicles to standardize its car fleet and to better maintain it, it was destroyed.

Ambulance bought during the First World War thanks to a collection organized by the English sea scouts.

Bulletproof cover for German stretcher operating in the trenches of the First World War.

Ivy Cummings and her mother in their racing car, 1920 A Motor Meeting at Brooklands

The Golden Arrow at Bonneville, 1929

1938 ‘Staten Island’ Ford-based Boat Tail Roadster

68 Rebel SST

that is a great looking muscle car

If a 67 Road Runner had a baby with a 66 Nova SS

1930 Anheuser-Busch Cadillac “Bevo Boat” Budweiser II Land Cruiser

From the 1920s through the early 1930s, the Anheuser-Busch Vehicle Department produced eight inboard-styled cruisers on automobile chassis. Four versions of the unusual automobiles were created. The original “Bevo Boat” was named after A-B’s non-alcoholic beer.

that front bumper made of anchors is a cool touch, and the folding steps are too

once upon a Mopar storage lot

1932, Husqvarna 120 SV

Gulf “streamline modern” station built for the 1939 World’s Fair on Long Island

Friday, October 11, 2019

huh, I don't think I've ever seen anyone replace the tail lights on a Corvette before

well, that's different. Simple enough to be low key, but maybe not the best choice. Something a bit smaller maybe.

the majority owner of the grocery store chain Piggly Wiggly designed and patented the grocery cart

it had one issue that needed a solution to be improved on for perfection, that the back of the basket needed to hinge up for nesting of the carts so they take up far less space when not in use

This is a 1935-1936 Caudron C.460 of which only three were built.

up until 1936, the National Air Race (NAR) in Los Angeles, California was an all American competition, and ’36 was the first and last year foreigners were allowed to compete.

 One might say that the Caudron made a few folks upset with its speed and experienced pilot. I mean, the team showed up to the 1936 NAF with one engine (330hp) for the Greve race and another engine (380hp) for the Thompson Trophy race, and after they won the Greve they just left the lower powered engine in.

 This long nosed, french blue bird was flown by Michael Detroyat, sometimes called “Detroit” by Americans, and returned to France with around $15,000.00 (that’s just over $250,000.00 in U.S. currency, before he took it to France.)

the original Gone in 60 Seconds Mustang on a frame rack

and a lot of people haven't seen a pulling rack, so, in case you were wondering, that's what it is

the XB-70 Valkyrie

1953 Bentley crashed into a concrete culvert near Crosby Texas, and appears to be a total loss Thanks Gary!

the first trailer for Disney’s Jungle Cruise, an early 1920s adventure that follows riverboat captain Frank (Johnson) and scientist Dr. Lily Houghton (Blunt) as they venture into the wilderness.

I hope you're going to take photos if you're getting off the pavement onto some old two rut roads this weekend

Slovenian cyclist Janez Brajkovic has shown off the shocking state of his legs following his comeback race after serving a doping ban and battling bulimia.

Brajkovic shocked fans after he uploaded a picture of his leg after a comeback race following his doping ban.

He was suspended back in July 2018 for 10 months after testing positive for methylhexaneamine, but returned in the CRO race in Croatia earlier this month.

He posted photos showing the state of his legs after the race, where every muscle and vein is seemingly visible.

A local sports doctor, Natasa Desnica, the official doctor of the Croatian ski team, explained why Brajkovic’s leg looks like that after the 10-month ban.

“In this sport, this is a normal occurrence and on several occasions

"I have seen cyclists shortly after three weeks of cycling races in France, Italy and Spain, who looked like him.

"Their legs were incredibly tiny, with no subcutaneous fat, and they were even dehydrated, so every bone could be seen as well as veins on the face and body, and you could see every single muscle like on an anatomical atlas.

“Fortunately, the cyclist recovers from this condition relatively quickly, his appearance normalises, it is only a matter of how such cycles have a lasting effect on health."

Brajkovic, who in 2004 won the World Under-23 Time Trial championship, finished in 38th place in his comeback race where he represented the Adrial Mobil team

yup. There's nothing so blind as a deluded fanatic

if anyone wanted to convince us they were all green energy, they'd have a hydro electric dam powering their car charger, or a solar panel array. I'm fine with both of those. More even, I'm enthusiastically supportive of green energy.

Wanna know why? Independence from the damn power company bill that never seems to pay off the crap they raised the rates to pay for. Screw the power company, buy solar panels

The UAW strike is still ongoing, (day 26) even if it's out of the news, and GM ain't faking indifference... they're trying to skip the union leaders, and get in the heads of the workers on strike.... that ain't gonna work.

the UAW on Friday said General Motors is "playing games," a day after the automaker complained that the union is going too slowly in talks to end its 26-day strike.

The strike has made things tough for both sides, and as the situation drags on, it only becomes more difficult. UAW members continue to live on strike pay that equals $250 per week. GM has shut down production at multiple Mexican plants as parts shortages force manufacturing to grind to a halt. The work stoppage in Mexico has affected transmission assembly and production of its ever-important pickup trucks. It's rumored the strike will also delay the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray's launch.

The automaker has decided to appeal directly to employees via a blog post that laid out the terms of its latest offer.

The statement read, “The strike has been hard on you, your families, our communities, the Company, our suppliers and dealers. We have advised the Union that it’s critical that we get back to producing quality vehicles for our customers. (…) Our offer builds on the winning formula we have all benefitted from over the past several years.”

Side affect of the stike? The US Govt is losing hundreds of millions of dollars a week in lost tax revenue... and if that sounds like an odd thing to bring up, the govt realized about 60 years ago to weigh the affect of actions vs tax revenue, when it drafted Elvis. If he'd been left out of the military, he'd have made a lot of money, and the govt would get it's share. In the military, he made no money, the govt took a hit in the wallet because of that. Similarly, Muhammad Ali was banned from boxing in the USA, and the govt lost money on that...

well, the longer the strike goes on, the less money the govt gets.

The report by the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor said the UAW strike that would enter its fifth week Monday is costing GM some $450 million per week in lost revenue. That estimate is roughly in line with estimates from other other analysts.

the UAW issued a public response around noon. It said the members stand behind their negotiators and continue to hold out for a good contract. The statement also criticized GM's handling of negotiations.

"At every step of the way, GM has attempted to undermine the ongoing, good-faith efforts the UAW has made to end this strike," said Brian Rothenberg, UAW spokesman in a statement to the media.

"The company’s strategy from day one has been to play games at the expense of the workers," said Rothenberg. "It has released half-truths, ripped away health care in the middle of the night and it reverted to previously weak and unacceptable proposals in response to the UAW’s comprehensive solutions."

UAW members want to return to work, but, "GM is purposefully stalling the process to starve UAW-GM workers off the picket lines to protect millions of dollars of corporate bonuses. This strike has been and continues to be about securing the American workers’ future."

On the other hand

The UAW strike may force credit raters to move the company closer to junk status, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

The strike has passed the two-week threshold that raters including Moody’s Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings had said posed downside risk.

In an Oct. 9 report, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Joel Levington wrote that the “fuse is burning” for ratings that, in Moody’s case, are just one notch above junk.

Last week, Moody’s said it was considering downgrading GM bonds to junk status. That rattled some because it means "GM would have to pay higher interest on borrowing, and that is a real cost to continuing this strike," Shaiken said in a previous Free Press interview.

In 1949 artist Jack Davis was commissioned to illustrate a training manual for Coca Cola

It was a training manual for Coca Cola route drivers, and was such a good paying gig that Davis was able to afford to move to New York City, look for a job, and buy a new car

Jack Davis: Drawing American Pop Culture By Jack Davis

originally opened in 1928 by a man with the profits from his hot dog stand, now, 91 years later, his dedication to farm fresh delicious fast food has kept The Varsity in business, and grown it to be the world's largest drive in!

What began as a hangout for Georgia Tech students is now a legendary burger joint billed as the World's Largest Drive-In. It has branched out to 6 other locations in Atlanta Ga

The Varsity was founded in 1928 by Frank Gordy, a Georgia Tech dropout who had been operating his own hot dog stand for two years, saving the profits to build the first version of The Varsity. On his first day in business, he made $47.30, which was not a bad haul considering hot dogs cost 5 cents.

The two-story restaurant now seats 800, while the parking lot and drive-in stalls (5 total acres) hold 600 cars, and is the single largest restaurant point of sales for Coca Cola, in the world

The Varsity has nailed it's place in history as the origin of the car hop, because it's early waiters would hop on the running boards of cars as they pulled in, letting exuberance set the tone for the customers, and driving in repeat business

Clark Gable dropped in when he was in town filming Gone With The Wind

One of the best-known employees at the Varsity was Erby Walker, who worked there for fifty-five years, starting at the Varsity at the age of fifteen sweeping floors, and was noted for his ability to move the service line quickly, especially during the rush period right before a Georgia Tech football game.

His signature catchphrase was, "Have your money out and your food on your mind, and I'll getcha to the game on time!" In 2003 Walker was inducted into the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau Hospitality Hall of Fame.

Comedian Nipsey Russell began his entertainment career at The Varsity in the 1940s as a carhop. The creative and resourceful Russell would dress in a flamboyant style and pepper his order-taking duties with jokes and amusing songs, thereby earning him extra tips.
The above art work of famous people who've been by The Varsity, is by Jack Davis

U.S. presidents Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama all visited The Varsity during their terms in office.

It also appeared in the movie We Are Marshall while the coaches are recruiting players.

It never closed from 1928 until 1983, for Gordy's funeral

"The Captain and The Kids" model sheets drawn by the great Charles Thorson (thanks Steve!)

Rudolph Dirks started "The Katzenjammer Kids" for the Hearst paper the "New York Journal" in December 1897. After some legal tussles he left in 1914 and Harold Knerr drew the cartoon for the next 35 years. Dirks started a rival cartoon called "The Captain and The Kids" using the same characters except that the hair color on the boys was switched one for the other.

These two versions of the same cartoon competed against each other until "The Captain and The Kids" was discontinued some 60 years later in 1979. "The Katzenjammer Kids" however, lasted until January 1, 2006, but but the 'reruns' are still in syndication, making it the oldest comic strip still in syndication and the longest-running ever.

Rudolph Dirks was the first guy to habitually use the speech balloon to contain a characters' dialogue.
