My First Car - Not a Ford

By Ron Blum

It was 1958 and I was a junior at Evanston High School.  I was 17 and wanted a car like the other “guys”. My father was going to buy a new car and I wanted his 1955 Plymouth Savoy 4 door sedan.  It was black with a white top, funny looking red interior and the shift lever for automatic was on the dash.  There was only one problem, there were conditions.  I had to stop chewing my nails and promise to drive my parents around when they could no longer drive.  I agreed.

The next day I drew up a contract - very legal looking to my 17 year old eyes.

Two months later, I had stopped chewing my nails and the car was mine for one dollar.

Since I was already married and my father-in-law owned a chrome plating company, I was going to have the coolest Plymouth in town.  I had my valve covers, oil cap, air cleaner, and fan blades all chromed for free. I then proceeded to have the car “nosed and decked” which was the expression in the 50’s for taking off all extraneous trim on the car and filling in the holes with lead.  The finishing touch was to put on skirts.  I told my mother this but she had no idea what I meant.

Arlene and I decided to name the car “Sally Savoy.”   We have kept up this tradition of naming our cars ever since.  We kept the car until 1961 when I bought a Chevrolet Impala 348 V-8, three speed, named “Pamela Impala.”  Of course, I took it up to Union Grove dragstrip after I put on lakes pipes and ran several times over the next few years.

I have owned my 1940 Ford Fordor Deluxe in Garnet red since 1996, longer than any other car I ever had.

Oh……….by the way his name is “Humphrey” in honor of the 1940’s movie star, Humphrey Bogart.