Kenny's '48 Chrysler "Woodie" is my latest World on Wheel's custom

I've known Kenny Buttolph since I first came to Iola in 1974.

At the time, Kenny was an adjunct to the staff of Old Cars Weekly. Several times a year he would drive the OCW sales trailer to major car shows around the country where he would link up with the paper's editors and ad sales people.

Later he would fly the company flag at the major collector car auctions in Arizona in January, reporting on prices realized, etc., in his role as the company's automotive price guide expert. One year in the early 1980s when the company was particularly flush due to the success of our sportscard publications and books, Kenny was hired as a full-time employee.

Kenny has owned more than 1,000 collectible cars and related vehicles such as Airstreams, trucks, buses, motor scooters, etc. I believe he can cite chapter and verse on each of them . . . where and how he acquired it and where it went when it left the collection.

One of my personal favorites among the cars he has owned was a 1948 Chrysler Town and Country convertible coupe. I recently found a copy of the Old Cars 1980 calendar that I coordinated during the year I edited the paper, Sept., 1979-Sept., 1980. Kenny's T&C was one of the 12 cars featured on the calendar in an autumn photo we took in front of one of Iola's post-war homes.

The Town and Country was one of the most expensive American production cars in the immediate post-war era, at $3,395. Promoted as a "suburban estate wagon," the advertising materials for the car said it was a vehicle "for those to whom distinction comes naturally," and the car whispered of "country clubs and moonlight rides." 

The T&C was a favorite of Hollywood's elite in the late 1940s. Bob Hope had one, as did Wallace Berrie and Barbara Stanwyck. Clark Gable had a pair. Really nice examples of the genre sell for up to $130,000 or so in today's collector market.

My World on Wheels custom of Kenny's 1948 Town and Country was whipped up in one day's time so that I could present it to him on his 78th birthday recently.

Airstream custom World on Wheels card

My latest custom non-sports card in the 1954-55 Topps World on Wheels genre pairs my passion for that card set with my fascination with Airstream travel trailers, particularly the mid-century models.

I'm a Fifties guy, so these mirror-finish aluminum trailers really strike a chord with me.

I actually owned an Airstream for about a year a decade or so ago. If I recall the specs correctly, it was a 27' 1967 International Land Yacht.

It was purchased on eBay for $1,500. My wife and I planned to plant it in the yard of our place in Wisconsin and use it for a home office, guest bedroom, etc.

We had grand plans to restore it to its original glory, but like about 95% of those who buy Airstreams with such intentions, it didn't get done.

We did have a friend rewire the 120-volt electrical system so the air conditioning could be used, and my wife reupholstered the front couch and made new curtains in a retro parakeet fabric. 

She used the trailer that summer as a place to have an early morning cup of coffee while watching her horses in the adjacent field. I used it as a place to spread out and sort the nearly one million sports cards I bought from Krause Publications when I left their employ in 2006. It is a blessing to have space to work on your hobby activities without having to pack up and put away everything the next time the kitchen table is needed at mealtime.

We were overmatched, though, when it came to restoring the exterior finish. Like all Airstreams, the aluminum skin oxidized over time and our amateur attempts to bring back the gloss were unavailing.

I sold it after about a year for $2,500. My wife still reads the Airstream ads on various internet sites, but I doubt we'll ever again take the plunge. If we do, it will definitely not be a project trailer.

Creating this custom card reconnected me briefly, but enjoyably, with the world of vintage Airstream trailers. That satisfied the urge for the time being.

New World on Wheels features Chet's Minerva

The most recent addition to my lineup of World on Wheels custom cards depicts an auto that I was once quite familiar with. It is a 1926 Minerva Town Car that was owned by my former boss (and current owner of the building where I have my retirement office) Chet Krause.

At one time, the pictured auto was the crown jewel of his vintage motor vehicle collection. In 1971 Chet had founded Old Cars newspaper as an expansion of the numismatic periodicals and books line that he had begun in 1952. By the mid-1970s, his publishing business was doing real well, and he had the resources to indulge himself with buying and/or restoring all manner of vintage cars, trucks, military vehicles, tractors and gas engines.

For a tumultuous year in 1978-79, I served as editor of the Old Cars division at Krause Publications before moving on to create the company's baseball card division. 

The car on this WoW custom was built for former professional boxer Patrick "Packey" McFarland.

Like most luxury autos in that era, McFarland's limo was one of a kind. The car was designed by Paul Ostruk. Its chassis was built by Minerva in Belgium. The body was crafted by LeBaron in New York and the car was powered by a 30 H.P. six-cylinder Knight engine.

McFarland died in 1936 when a staph infection attacked his heart. His widow sold the Minerva around 1946. In 1953 it was purchased by collector Embert Grooters of Grand Rapids, Mich. In the auction of his estate in 1972, Chet Krause bought the Minerva.

Chet recalls that the Minerva was a "little rough" by the time it reached his hands. He expended considerable money in refurbishing the body and engine.

The Minerva was used periodically to convey visiting dignitaries around Iola. I recall that in 1984, when Allen Kaye, publisher of Baseball Card News, brought his family to Iola to finalize the sale of his hobby paper to Krause Publications, his wife and daughters were much impressed by being chauffeured around town in the long blue beauty by a multi-millionaire. 

Not long thereafter, the Minerva was auctioned in one of James Leake's famed collector vehicle sales in Tulsa.

Electing to offer the car at no reserve, Krause was unpleasantly surprised when it was hammered down at a price that he recalls was under $25,000. Two of the auto hobby's deep pockets went after the Minerva initially, but when they discovered they were bidding against each other, one dropped out.

The car was sold to the Imperial Palace casino hotel in Las Vegas, where it was displayed. It was again sent to auction in 2000, and was bought by an English collector. Subsequently, it was sold to a collector in New Zealand. At last report, the car has been repainted in burgundy tones. 

During Chet's ownership of the Minerva, I bought an example of a T9 Turkey Red cabinet card of Packey McFarland. McFarland was one of 25 boxers in the 1910-11 series that was contemporary to the tobacco company's more famous T3 Turkey Red baseball players.

The card was kept in a pouch in the passenger compartment to show to guests. It may still be there today.

McFarland was born in 1888 in Chicago and turned pro as a boxer in 1904. Fighting in the lightweight and welterweight divisions he compiled a record of 105 wins (51 by knockout) against just one loss, six draws and a no-contest.

Considering that record, it is surprising that McFarland never won a world title. Ring Record Book and Boxing Encyclopedia suggests McFarland was the best fighter to never become a world champion. During his career he met and defeated most of the title holders in his weight classes, but none of the bouts were for the championship.

He retired in 1915. Unlike so many boxers, he retired to a life of luxury. He had sizable investments and was a director of two banks. He could well afford this custom-built chauffeur-driven town car. 

Vincent Black Shadow added to World on Wheels

In the closing years of the 1960s, I rode a motorcycle, Wisconsin weather permitting. In my circle of associates from the neighborhood and at McDonalds, where I worked throughout high school, it was the preferred mode of transportation.

I rode a Yamaha 250. John Kurzynski had a Honda 160, Davey Kuhn had a Bugatti, Sputzie Steinke had a Suzuki 250. Crazy Roger had a Triumph. There wasn't a Harley to be seen among us for several more years.

In fact, it wasn't the Harley that was our dream bike of choice; we all aspired to a Vincent Black Shadow. We only knew of that English classic by reputation, none of us had ever seen one on the streets of Fond du Lac, Wis. I don't believe I've ever seen one on the ground, even now.

Technologically advanced, hand-assembled, expensive and with fewer than 1,700 bikes produced between 1948-53, the Vincent Black Shadow was everything a bad-ass motorcycle should be. The bike got its name from its striking appearance; everything that wasn't chrome was painted in stove-enamel black. Its reputation came from it status as the fastest production motorcycle of its day . . . and for years beyond.

The Black Shadow had a 55 hp, 998 cc V-twin engine and a 4-speed transmission. It sported an oversize speedometer that registered to 150 mph. It could make a pretty good run at pinning that needle, but actually topped out at about 125 mph.

With a sticker price of about $1,700 (in Great Britain), the Vincent Black Shadow was about 25% more expensive than an Indian or Harley Davidson. I could no more afford a Black Shadow today (even if I could still ride a motorcycle) than I could in 1969. In England, a nice original Vincent sells for around $25,000, while a restored bike can bring $50,000 or more. That's Jay Leno territory.

My latest World on Wheels custom card pays tribute to the legendary Vincent Black Shadow and the dreams of a Wisconsin kid 45 years ago.