Sunday, December 18, 2016

AUTOS: Lucky's Garage and the Man who Inspired It...



A replica of the original garage from Harold LeMay’s home is featured in “Lucky’s Garage,” a new exhibit in honor of LeMay at America’s Car Museum in Tacoma. Peter Haley Staff photographer. (Image source: Tacoma News Tribune/ thenewstribune.com)
And the Beat goes On, as just cannot help Thyself, as my Bimmers' invade ACM tome just kept growing & growing; turning into Triplets...

I first became aware of the name Harold LeMay and his yearly one-day Car Show in Spanaway, WA some twenty-plus years ago, when scribblin' monthly for the Washington Shelby American Automobile Club's (WASAAC) local club under the presidency 'O "BOSS BILL" and his SAACtime' created Newsletter, as it's Motorsports Beat' writer for 6yrs, which started this writing thingy in earnest; CRIKEYS!

Yet I never quite made I-T to the event until just happening to attend the 30th Anniversary of said Automobilia extravaganza with Snowbyrd MJ' Wayback in Twenty-oh-Seven.


As fast forward to this early October, when once again Tacoma Bureau Chief Mary Ellen escorted me to the relatively new LeMay ACM, aka America's Car Museum, an AWESOME 165,000sq ft four story museo in Downtown Tacoma, which opened in 2012.

whilst spiraling our ways downwards, we stopped to listen to a most enjoyable video montage of various people's memories of Harold, as I especially enjoyed the female employee's recollections of an extremely pissed off customer wanting to give Harold a piece of his mind, presumably over a garbage bill.

As the lady recounted how Harold enjoyed wearing overall's that never featured his first name, just others as mundane as Fred, Jim, George, etc.

With Harold slipping in the office to see what the ruckus was about and with a gleam in his eye,  she told the angry customer in front of him - that Harold was around somewheres' whilst playing along, he politely tapped upon this angry man and calmly asked him what all the fuss was about? And Harold as "George" quickly soothed the irate male before serenely slipping away!

Another person interviewed on the video montage; possibly his son? Noted how although Harold reputedly never had a favourite car, he did own an astounding array of 41 Car's of one make. Perhaps the '46 Cadillac? Although ran across somewheres' on Zed Intrawoods', nee internetz that he'd amassed 60 Packard's...

as I'll see if I can get somebody at the ACM to help fill in the blanks for Mwah? Having forgotten to scribble down said automobile afterwards - before I-T vanished from Yuhs know where...

NOTE
The car some feel was Mr. LeMay’s favorite was the 1941 Chevrolet. It did not seem to matter which model as he had coupes, sedans and convertibles.


Whilst after his death, his wife purchased the one car Harold always wanted but refused to pay what he deemed an exorbitant price for it, being the Tucker, for which the museo now proudly owns one of: No. 7 of 51 produced.


And although the original LeMay Marymount Academy Homestead in Spanaway still exists, along with holding its yearly Car Show & Auction each August the focus has now primarily shifted to America's Car Museum (ACM) instead, which now houses a recreation of Lucky's Garage, it's first permanent exhibit, honouring the late Harold Lucky' LeMay and a replica of his early garage in Spanaway.

Whilst the Marymount Homestead in Spanaway is still active, being open to the public weekly, operating under the guise of the LeMay Family Collection,  for which Y'all can visit their website by clicking Here

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Kudos to Mr. Dale Wickel, Collections Technician of America's Car Museum for providing answers & clarification regarding the '41 Chevrolet possibly being Harold's favourite car.