Sunday, August 22, 2010

Miscellaneous Tucker Memorabilia

From Diamond Matches "Classic Cars" Series
The July 2010 issue of our printed monthly newsletter, Tucker Topics, included Reggie Foote's "Foote Notes," which mentioned a series of Diamond Match kitchen match boxes featuring Tucker No. 1041 (as well as other classic American cars of the 40s, 50s & 60s).  Founding TACA member Bev Ferreira and his wife, Dorothy, were the proud owners of No. 1041 (Dorothy passed away in July 2008, followed by Bev in February 2009).  No. 1041 was sold at auction in June 2009 for $853,100 (including fees).

Tucker No. 1041
Bev purchased No. 1041--then painted black--for $5,000 in 1970 from the collection of the famous Cliff House restaurant in San Francisco, CA.  He drove the car regularly, bringing it to many TACA conferences over the years.  Images of distinctive yellow No. 1041 may also be found on posters and calendars--and possibly a postage stamp from a former Soviet republic!

(Sources: http://www.tuckerclub.org/, http://thecolektr.com/)

(Post credit: Kit Fox; photo credits: thecolekter.com and TACA websites)

Friday, August 20, 2010

2010 TACA Conference Videos and Photos Needed


Those of you who attended this year's TACA Conference in Atlanta, GA will remember that our regular conference videographer/documentarian, Bud Harrington, was not able to join us.  To help us to help Bud to compile the 2010 conference DVD, please contact TACA President Jay Follis if you have photos or video to share.  Thanks!

(Post credit: Kit Fox; image credit: Microsoft clipart)

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Tucker Road Trip, Day 1

We're kicking off a new feature in the new Tucker Tribune--the Tucker Road Trip!  Starting in September 2010, twice each month we'll feature a brief article about about a location where you can view a Tucker on public display, with photos and contact information.  We'll be visiting Tuckers in ascending order by serial number.  It may not be the shortest road trip you've ever taken--or the most direct route--but we hope you'll have fun along the way!

The "Tin Goose"
For the first installment in this series, we'll begin with the home of the "Tin Goose", the Swigart Museum in Huntingdon, PA.  In addition to housing the Tucker '48 prototype, the Swigart Museum is also home to Tucker No. 1013.

The William E. Swigart, Jr. Automobile Museum is a 501(c)(3) non-profit museum dedicated to the preservation of the American automobile history. Its remarkable collections have existed for more than 85 years, beginning as a private passion of its founder, W. Emmert Swigart.  His son, William E. Swigart, Jr., fell under the spell of these wonderful machines and built up the collection to about 150 cars, of which 30 to 35 are on display at the museum at one time. Some are one-of-a-kind such as the 1936 Duesenberg 12 cylinder Gentlemen’s Speedster, the 1920 Carroll, and the 1916 Scripps-Booth, in addition to the "Tin Goose" and Tucker No. 1013.

Tucker No. 1013
Open daily from Memorial Day weekend through the end of October, the Swigart Museum is located at 12031 William Penn Hwy., Huntingdon, PA 16652.  Located in beautiful central Pennsylvania, "America's Oldest Automobile Museum" is not far from Altoona, and roughly half-way between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh.  Check out the Swigart Museum website for more information.

(Sources: http://www.tuckerclub.org/, http://www.swigartmuseum.com/)

(Post credit: Kit Fox; photo credits: TACA website)

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Tucker No. 1045 Sells for a Record $1,127,500!

Tucker No. 1045 in the RM Auctions catalog
RM Auctions' restored Tucker No. 1045 sold at the Monterey auction this weekend for a record $1,127,500 (with fees).  RM previously sold restored Tucker No. 1038 at the 2008 Monterey auction for $1,017,500 (with fees).

Tucker No. 1045
Check out RM Auctions website for more information.

CORRECTION: RM Auctions did not restore No. 1045 prior to this auction.

(Photo credits: http://www.tuckerclub.org/, http://www.rmauctions.com/)

(Post credit: Kit Fox; photo credits: RM Auctions and TACA websites)

Saturday, August 14, 2010

This Month in Tucker History

1947 - After working on the 589 engine for several months, an August 1947 engineering report deemed the cost for the starter would be prohibitive. The report also pointed out that the piston load was three times greater than that of any competitor’s engine.

1948 - After a rather difficult July, August 1948 seemed to hold some promise for Tucker Corporation and the fulfillment of Preston Tucker’s dream. Renowned automotive journalist and regular contributor to “Mechanix Illustrated,” Tom McCahill test-drives a Tucker ‘48 and writes a glowing review on the auto for the magazine. Work continues swiftly on the less expensive helicopter engine, the 335, with 91 units being delivered by Tucker Corporation’s newly acquired Aircooled Motors of Syracuse, NY.

1948 - The War Assets Administration awards a Cleveland blast furnace/steel plant to automaker Kaiser-Frazer even though Tucker Corporation’s sealed bid proves to be the highest. The second Securities and Exchange Commission investigation of Tucker Corporation officially ends.

1988 - The Tucker auto again captivates America’s interest in August of 1988 when the movie “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” is released nationwide. The Francis Ford Coppola (“The Godfather”) and George Lucas (“Star Wars”) production stars Jeff Bridges and his father Lloyd.

1988 - The 1960 Charles Pearson book “The Indomitable Tin Goose - The True Story of The Tucker Auto” is re-released in paperback following the movie.

1995 - August of 1995 finds the Tucker Automobile Club of America on the internet with a website created by member Chris Miller. The following year, Larry Clark, automotive historian and TACA member, nominates Preston Tucker for induction in the Automotive Hall of Fame.

2010 - The Tucker Automobile Club of America expands its internet presence even further with the introduction of a blog and a Facebook page.

(Post credits: Jay Follis and Kit Fox)

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Unveiling of the NEW Tucker Tribune

The Tucker Tribune email bulletin was started in June of 1998 by Jay and Barbara Follis with 11 subscribers, and grew to a peak of over 4,500 Tucker enthusiasts by 2008—not too shabby.

The last issue of the Tucker Tribune email bulletin was mailed in late December 2008, issue #110 – announcing the death of long-time TACA member, author, friend and Tucker design team member Phil Egan.

While it certainly wasn’t our intent to make that our last it appeared at the time that it was. With taking on more duties within the Tucker Automobile Club of America, Inc. creating and mailing the Tribune become more time consuming and burdensome. We had utilized an automated service to email the Tribune and to manage the subscriber database which billed TACA based on the number of email addresses shown in the Tribune database—regardless if they were outdated, incorrect, or non-functioning. It was at that time that we decided to stop sending the Tucker Tribune email bulletin.

Barbara and I are pleased that TACA Board Member Kit Fox has revived the Tucker Tribune as an online blog. He shares the same goals we had with the email newsletter—to provide timely, bite-sized news and information on the Tucker automobile and its legacy.

We welcome the Tucker Tribune Blog as our newest partner in “BRINGING THE LEGEND ONLINE” and invite you to follow it.

DON'T LET THIS TUCKER PASS YOU BY!

Jay and Barbara Follis

(Post credit: Jay Follis)

Sunday, August 8, 2010

2010 Midwest Tucker Mini-Meet

Historic Spring Street in Jeffersonville, IN
Join co-hosts Millie & Brent Morris for this fall's Midwest Tucker Mini-Meet in Jeffersonville, IN on October 1st and 2nd. You can book rooms at the Fairfield Inn-Louisville North at the special rate of $79/night by calling the hotel directly at (812) 280-8220 and mentioning the "Tucker Automobile Club" rate.  Plus, the Louisville Concours d'Elegance will be held across the Ohio River in Louisville, KY at historic Churchill Downs on October 3rd.

(Post credit: Kit Fox and Brent Morris; photo credit: Wikipedia

Thursday, August 5, 2010

2010 Commemorative Tucker Coins

Obverse
Reverse
After a slight delay, attendees to this year's TACA Conference in Atlanta, GA should be receiving their commemorative coins in the mail.  A very limited number of additional coins--along with a 2010 dash plaque--will be made available for $20 (including shipping) by contacting shop@TuckerClub.org.  These coins will not be re-minted, so when they're gone, they're GONE!

(Post and photo credits: Kit Fox)

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Tucker Topics, Volume 38, No. 7

The July 2010 issue of our award-winning, printed monthly newsletter, Tucker Topics, should be appearing in TACA members' mailboxes by now.  Look for articles about the upcoming Midwest Tucker Mini-Meet in October, and a brief pictorial history of Tucker Corporation sales brochures.

(Post credit: Kit Fox)

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Welcome to the Tucker Tribune!

This is the inaugural post of the new blog for the Tucker Automobile Club of America, Inc., the Tucker Tribune.  Long-time TACA members may recall our former e-mail newsletter of the same name.  Well, we're back, and we'll be posting regularly with items of interest to TACA members and other fans of Preston Tucker, the Tucker Corporation and the Tucker '48.  Take a moment to "follow" this blog, using the link in the column to the right.  Thanks for helping us to keep the dream alive!

(Post credit: Kit Fox)