(07-06-2018) – Like most men, Mark Melvin grew up with an awareness of Playboy Magazine. But unlike most men, Mark and and a pal now have a memory of the magazine (and it’s centerfolds) that no one has. An actual “Playmate of the Year” car! Mark is a big AMC guy. Loves Ramblers, Ambassadors and more importantly the first series Javelin/AMX from 1968-70.
In 1964, Ford Motor Company was looking for publicity for their new car they were debuting as a 1964 1/2…..they called it the “Mustang.” What better way to get publicity for it than put it in a magazine that had the eyes of men thanks to their buxom and scantily clad models in their pages? Not sure if it was Playboy’s idea or Ford’s…..but a legend was born. The Playmate of the Year pink car! 1964 with PMOY Donna Michelle was paired with the Mustang, in 1965 it was Jo Collins and a pink Sunbeam Tiger (like the one “Maxwell Smart” drove in the classic “Get Smart” TV show), in 1966 Allison Parks was given a new Dodge Charger, in 1967 Lisa Baker drove a newly redesigned 67 Barracuda and in 1968 “Angela Dorian” received a new ‘68 AMX.
Mark tells Randy about how he found the car, and what it took to restore it. Turns out “Angela” (not her real name), held onto the car for a long time….and it looked like it. Sadly, her life took an odd turn…..which resulted in a stay in prison. But more about that in the podcast.
BTW, the pink playmate cars continued through 1975 when Marilyn Lange received a Porsche 911S (and sadly had to deal with crazy stalkers, so Playboy ended the “pink” car program). EXTRA NOTE : you had to feel bad for the late Claudia Jennings who in 1970 was given a pink….Mercury Capri. Not exactly the same as the Shelby GT 350 PMOY Connie Kreski received in 1969 or the Pantera that Liv Lindeland was given in 1972, but I digress.
Then we come to Cecile Bukmeier who made a name for herself in her native Canada as a painter of custom cars. Cars, that most of the time, she never saw finished until she painted Johnny Martinez’ “Wicked” 1929 Ford Pickup. It’s a masterpiece of deep color and subtle dark hues. Cecile saw the truck for the first time at this year’s Classic Auto Show at the LA Convention Center. We brought both Cecile and Johnny (whose car story can be heard on Talking About Cars 70 on our “Classic” site on Soundcloud & iTunes) with our pal Bob Beck of GAAS Great American Auto Scene to hear about Wicked and Cecile learning her craft!
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Todd Wertman and Nick Smith know their cars (and motorcycles) and know this show has been very educational. On “TAC 112” with Randy Kerdoon and guest co-host Bob Beck (Great American Auto Scene/GAAS), they talk about their own car history, car stories, and some of the wheels they saw during taping of the reality show that was taped in an LA warehouse that was torn down soon after shooting ended. (Makes you wonder if there is a season two, what they’ll do for a new set.). Todd talks about working for actor Nic Cage and why Cage LOVES him as a provider of classic cars, and Nick talks about the bike he’ll never sell.
…..Chris Jacobs (Overhaulin’, Long Lost Family) had his ‘68 GTX at the show, altho he wasn’t there….