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Share your earlier memories of Cadillac's of the past. Just for fun. Priceless

Started by Bill Young, August 03, 2019, 09:29:29 AM

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Bill Young

Ok , I'll start. My Dad bought a new 1955 Olds 88 two door sedan in turquoise and white shortly after I was born ( which I Loved ) and it was followed by a succession of Ramblers. In 1967 one day I saw my Father in the family room putting castors on our console TV and asked where Mom was. He said she is with your Grandmother at Valley Cadillac ( Rochester , New York ). I laughed and said , no. He said yes. Later Mom showed up driving in the driveway with a Starlight Silver 1966 Cadillac Calais 4 door hardtop with Black Delrio Cloth interior. It had Climate Control, Six Way Seat ,Power Windows and Am Radio. I was stunned. WE had a Cadillac. I was ecstatic. Some of the neighbors were not so. Our next door neighbor an Eye Doctor who drove Buick Electra 225's , you could tell from his face was wondering how Jane and Court Young could afford a Cadillac.

Big Fins

It was 1964 and I was just 6 years old. I met a boy up the block and we became friends. I had never been down to his house. One day we went to his house and his dad was working in the garage. Across from his bench sat a London Gray, 1959 Cadillac Sedan deVille. I remember my eyes lighting up when I saw those beautiful fins and the 'rocket' tail lights.

His dad saw me looking at the car and opened the door, 'Here, look in, son.' I sat behind the wheel and just marveled at the expansive interior of this car. One of 'dad's', favorite things to do, was drive his Cadillac with a big cigar and his arm hanging out the window like some gangster. After a few rides in the back seat, I sat up in the seat, hanging onto the back of the front seat and I said, "Pop, I'm going to have a car just like this one day." He told me I'd be a made man when I could own a Cadillac. I had no idea what he meant, but the words seem to just stick in my mind.

Fast forward to 2005 after many previous Cadillac's and there in my garage was a 1959 Sedan deVille in black with a light blue interior. I practically kick myself every day for selling that car. My second car was a 1969 triple white Sedan deVille with all of the toys. I traded a guy that I worked with even up for my 1969 GTX. That Cadillac only had 19,000 miles on it. It was willed to the trader by his aunt that died and he hated the car. I will always love the Cadillac's from 1976 and earlier.
Current:
1976 Eldorado Convertible in Crystal Blue FireMist with white interior and top. (Misty Blue)
1969 Fleetwood Brougham in Chalice Gold FireMist with matching interior and top. (The Old Man) SOLD!

Past and much missed:
1977 Brougham de Elegance
1976 Eldorado Convertible
1972 Fleetwood Brougham
1971 Sedan de Ville
1970 de Ville Convertible
1969 Sedan de Ville
1959 Sedan deVille

Bill Young

Great story Big Fins. Was the 1959 Sedan DeVille of your friends father a six window or a 4 window wrap around vista roof.?

cadman56

My Junior year in high school, 1965.  My uncle had a 56 Coupe deVille and he let me drive it one day.  He was a jet engine mechanic at Boeing and raced cars on the dirt track.
He had a local engine machine shop specially grind a 3/4 race cam for it and had installed glass packs in the exhaust.
When I was told to hit passing gear at 60 mph I almost fainted .  It was instant love.  I have owned, restored, and driven many 56's since then.  I no longer drive due to failed eyesight and have since sold all my cars.  Memories will last forever.
And yes, I always drove my cars above the speed limit on the freeways.  Isn't that what you are supposed to do with a Flying Goddess leading the way and an 18" steering wheel to steer the way?
1956 Cadillac Coupe deVille (sold)
1956 Cadillac Convertible (sold)
1956 Cadillac Eldorado Seville (sold)
1967 Cadillac Eldorado (sold)
1968 Cadillac Convertible (Sold)
1991 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham dElegance
Larry Blanchard CLC #5820

76Caddy

I had a great-uncle that bought a new Cadillac every year (said it was cheaper than paying taxes).  Every time he came to visit my grandparents or they went to see him, I made sure to be with them so I could get a ride in a Cadillac.  The first one I remember was a 1973 Sedan de Ville (I was 7).  He had Sedan de Villes until 1977 when he switched to Coupe de Villes.  He did keep one longer than a year and that was a 1976 Seville and the reason I have one now.  At his passing he had a 1987 fwd Coupe.  He is the reason I fell in love Cadillacs and I bought my first one in 1980 (a 1970 Sedan de Ville at the age of 14).

Tim
Tim Plummer
CLC #18948
1967 Eldorado
1976 Brougham
1976 Seville
2019 XT5
1969 Chevy c/10 pickup
1971 Chevy Impala

Bill Young

Hi Art ! , I remember well in 1975 responding to an a newspaper ad in Rochester , New York and going to a garage behind a business called Mr. Panel on Ridge Road East. There side by side was a white on white with black and white interior 1965 Eldorado Convertible bondo queen and next to it a totally original 12,000 mile 1963 Eldorado Convertible in Gold with white top and white and black interior. Every option available as well as Bucket Seats and Console. I bought it for $600.00. I owned it a year and sold it to go to College ( wrong move ). I saw the car in about 1982 again one day painted resale red. Then never saw it again.

Big Fins

Quote from: Bill Young on August 03, 2019, 10:22:31 AM
Great story Big Fins. Was the 1959 Sedan DeVille of your friends father a six window or a 4 window wrap around vista roof.?

6 window.
Current:
1976 Eldorado Convertible in Crystal Blue FireMist with white interior and top. (Misty Blue)
1969 Fleetwood Brougham in Chalice Gold FireMist with matching interior and top. (The Old Man) SOLD!

Past and much missed:
1977 Brougham de Elegance
1976 Eldorado Convertible
1972 Fleetwood Brougham
1971 Sedan de Ville
1970 de Ville Convertible
1969 Sedan de Ville
1959 Sedan deVille

Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621

#7
Growing up with in the family car business I was exposed to countless different cars over the years. My father changed cars like socks and I was always running outside to see what would be in the driveway next. From Thunderbirds to Corvettes; Ninety Eights to Camaros I loved them all. 

One summer evening at around twilight (that time of day when the lighting always seems to make a car look best) I was playing in the driveway around the age of 6 when father pulls in with a black 65/66 SdV fresh out of the reconditioning shop and that was the end of all other cars.

The interesting thing is that I have no childhood recollections of the model years I enjoy most today, ie: 59-62. My interest in those came much later. For a while I was smitten on 1964 partly do to being my birth year, but that gave way to 1962 after spotting a blue '62 Coupe deVille in the background of a magazine ad for 1964. (This was the period when Cadillac actively promoted used models in the same advertisement for current models).

For many years I had always shied away from 1959 and 1960, preferring the 61-64 models which had a more modern appearance but still retained the fins. But whenever one was around at a car show, swap meet etc, I was always drawn to them, especially 1959s. Eventually intrigue gave way to obsession which was only intensified by many years of frustration and elusiveness.

The journey was long and strange - taking many zig-zags along the way before arriving at the final destination, while enjoying every minute of it.

A Cadillac Motorcar is a Possession for which there is no Acceptable Substitute

bctexas

My dad drove a Cadillac when he could afford it, and a Chevy when he couldn't.  In 1962, he paid $2500 (and a rusted, clapped out '55 Chevy in trade) for his first Caddy - a white 1959 Sedan Deville.  At the age of 8, I was already a car nut and thought it was pretty cool.  We lived in Milwaukee, and our house had a 2 car garage facing a alley behind the house.  When we would arrive home, I remember getting out in the alley and running around behind the garage to watch through a window as he backed that behemoth of a car in.  To get the garage door closed in front of it, he literally had to back into the rear wall of the garage, and push it back an inch or so.  I'll never forget watching that wall move!  My older brother would occasionally drive the Caddy, and more than once he peeled some of the trim off the side of the car backing into the garage.  Didn't do the garage much good either.  I was riding in the back seat listening to the radio the night the news of the Apollo 1 fire came on the air.......

In 1966 dad had the body rust patched up (Milwaukee, remember?), and had a knee-knocker air conditioner installed.  That summer, he took the family on a vacation to Phoenix to visit relatives and see the Grand Canyon among other sights.  We went out Route 66 and I remember seeing the first mountain of the trip in Tucumcari.  It was the last family vacation - my brother went off to college that fall. 

In the late '60s dad's work had us moving to Tampa.  The old Caddy was getting a bit long in the tooth by then.  A year of so after we moved, it shed the bolt from the front of the crankshaft that held on the harmonic balancer.  We managed to find the bolt by the side of the road, and he had it reattached by a mechanic, but the mechanic said the threads in the crank were damaged, and it wobbled pretty badly.  So the now badly rusted old girl was parked in the back yard, and dad picked up a used '66 Bel Air - which tells you the state of dad's finances at the time.  I had fun with the old car - it ran, but was never driven again.  Dad even bought me a carb kit and some carb cleaner so I could try doing a carb rebuild for the first time!  Dad finally had it towed away to meet its doom.  I remember watching it disappear down the road on a hook.  Sad day.  I still have the radio, clock and two of the tail lights to remind me of the once-grand old girl.

In later years, dad had a '68 Fleetwood 60s,  a 76 SDV, and a '86 Fleetwood (but no more Chevys).  The '68 was by far my favorite - dad and I rebuilt the engine, and I got to drive it quite a bit.  Those stories will wait for another time....
1965 CDV
1970 SDV

Big Fins

They can take everything we have or will have in life, from friends of days gone by to the present, to close family members. But, one thing no one can take from you is the great memories that you will treasure the rest of your life.

I have many, both good and bad. I smile at the good and hopefully learned from the bad.
Current:
1976 Eldorado Convertible in Crystal Blue FireMist with white interior and top. (Misty Blue)
1969 Fleetwood Brougham in Chalice Gold FireMist with matching interior and top. (The Old Man) SOLD!

Past and much missed:
1977 Brougham de Elegance
1976 Eldorado Convertible
1972 Fleetwood Brougham
1971 Sedan de Ville
1970 de Ville Convertible
1969 Sedan de Ville
1959 Sedan deVille

Ralph Messina CLC 4937

This article was published several years ago in several regional newsletters. It's a bit long for a post but certainly encompasses "fond memories" .

Ralph

Rocky’s Eldorado

I grew up in a section of Newark populated by two family, multiple family and tenement houses. Some had stores / business space on the street level. Rocky and his wife, long time family friends from before I was born, had one such very successful business located down the street from my house. On November 14th 1956 I was 11 years old and certifiably car crazy.  While getting ready for school I would watch The Today Show. Dave Garraway and Jack Lescoulie were about to feature the new ’57 Cadillac and I was fixated on that 17-inch B&W screen. When they showed the new de Ville and Sixty Special, I could not believe my eyes. Compared to the post war models I grew up with, the 57’s had 21 Century styling….flat hood and trunk, integrated grille and bumper, all hardtop styling and interiors like nothing before.

While walking to school I tried to explain to my buddies what they looked like, but they were so different, I had no point of reference to describe them. Then down the street, on my street no less, I saw the grille of a new ’57 and we ran to get a first look. As we approached, something looked strange. There were no rear fender projections and there was a chrome panel surrounding the rear wheel extending to the rear of the car. Our first look at the rear left us stunned. It was completely rounded with two fins projecting up from the rear deck lid. The lower rear chrome panel wrapped around back forming a nacelle for exhaust and lights. The design exceeded anything seen in magazine dream car proposals. It was an Eldorado Seville. It was pale Orion Blue with a black roof. The interior was like nothing we’d ever seen before, or could even imagine: metallic blue leather with black and metallic blue paisley cloth. I fell in love with that car immediately, but knew it would be long, painful love affair before I could afford a car the price of a small house.

The office door opened and Rocky came out. After discovering it was his, we were hoping he’d show us the car in greater detail. He didn’t. Instead he drove us to school. As we silently rolled up in front of the school yard, the kids stopped playing and stared at the Eldorado as we got out. Everyone wanted to know everything about it. We neighborhood kids understood that crime must pay very well because the local wiseguys always drove new de Ville’s and Fleetwood’s. But Rocky had this incredible Eldorado. I concluded that honest work must pay even better.

Rocky kept the car in pristine condition for twelve years. During that time, I graduated high school and college, but I would always cross the street to see the Seville if parked, or stop and  stare as it glided by with exhaust floating from the ports in those chrome nacelles. He sold it to his nephew in 1969. Even as a used car it was out of my reach because I was focused on my profession. I was doing well in my career and I moved from the old neighborhood. The last time I saw the Seville, the front was smashed in, the grille, both fenders and hood were damaged. It was a sad sight, like an aging movie star fallen on hard times.

Fast forward to 1987; I moved on and prospered in life and even bought three new Cadillacs along the way, never forgetting that Seville. One morning while shaving, I noticed gray hair. I put down the razor and thought “It is time”.  I began searching for an excellent ’57 Seville in every car magazine and venue I knew.  That October I bought a Bahama Blue Seville at Hershey and drove it home in a blinding rain storm…..quite an ordeal with vacuum wipers. It was a low mileage car with an interesting history. I intended to take the car to show Rocky. He and his wife were on in years but still lead active lives. First I needed to fix some problems.

I set out to do mechanical restoration, as required only. I wanted a beautiful driver. That soon turned into a complete restoration with the exception of paint. The second owner had a body shop and had done some incredible body and paint work. I had to protect the paint while I gutted and rebuilt the car, which was about as easy as winning a Super Bowl without dirtying the uniforms. Some five years later, the car took a Senior Award at Hershey. I was really proud of that because I’m a hobbyist working in my garage, competing against professional restorations. My biggest regret owning this car is that I waited too long to show it to Rocky. In those 5 years of trying to recreate a new ’57 Seville, Rocky and his wife both passed away. I never got the chance to show them what their car started; the skills that restoration inspired me to learn, or the craftsmanship others taught me along the way. For the first time, I appreciated the fact that life is indeed short……Sometimes we should eat desert first.
1966 Fleetwood Brougham-with a new caretaker http://bit.ly/1GCn8I4
1966 Eldorado-with a new caretaker  http://bit.ly/1OrxLoY
2018 GMC Yukon

Bill Young

On October 7th. 1969 my Mothers 48th. birthday she traded in her 1966 Calais 4 door hardtop for a Silverpine Green 1968 Cadillac DeVille Convertible with a Sandalwood interior and Sandalwood top. It had Climate Control , Six Way Seat , Tilt and Tel. AM FM Radio with a Craig Stereo 8 -8 track player with 4 chrome speakers 2 in each kick pad and two in each rear armrest as well as Controlled differential. My Mother used to drive around with me in this car and impart her philosophies of life and we discussed everything together. She and I were very close. About 1979 my Mother had the onset of Progressive Supra-Nuclear Palsy , a debilitating muscular disease that by 1985 had her in a wheelchair and by 1989 she could no longer talk. She died in September 1991. I had been Married in 1980 and had 4 children. My oldest a Son after September 11th. 2001 signed up to the Marine corps. in 2002 and was killed at age 19 in 2003. Not long after my Wife walked out and left the other 3 with me. One night I fell into a deep sleep and dreamed I died and Mom drove up in the Green '68 and pushed open the passenger door and all the interior lights came on and said " Get in Son , the pain is over , you are coming home now ". Unfortunately I woke up. Things are better now but at that time they were not.

wrefakis

tragic story
mine is nothing so bad
we were broke
I loved Cadillacs being broke the only way I could drove one was to steal it or go into auto business
by the time I could afford one in 73 they were garbage
never did get to own a car I really wanted

no big deal in the bigger picture, just ironic that to this day I can drive any car on the road and there is nothing I want to own, except a Cadillac that is long gone

Quentin Hall

53 Eldo #319
53 Eldo #412.
53 Eldo #433
57 Biarritz
53 series 62 conv
39 Sixty Special Custom
57 Biarritz

Mike Josephic CLC #3877

I grew up in a working class town east of Pittsburgh.
The Westinghouse plant is what made the town and
Cadillacs were few and far between.  It was the early
60's.

Only two people in town owned one that I ever saw.
One was Father Gillen, the head of St. Regis parish
Catholic church.  It was a black (of course) 1964
sedan DeVille.  The other was 1963 convertible
owned by the local mob guy who ran the "numbers
business".  Funny now when I think about it -- two
extremes but they both had identical good taste!

As for our household, Dad's first car was a 1963
Chevy.  It was an Impala, but had zero options
even radio delete.  I hated that.  Once I got my
drivers license in 1966 I added a radio.  You
couldn't take a girl on a date without any music!

I bought my first Cadillac, a red Eldorado, in 1973.
With tax and all it totaled $10k, which just happened
to be my annual salary at the time.  My Dad's comment
was priceless:  "Only guys who make at least $25k per
year can afford Cadillacs -- you must be nuts."

Yes, I still have that Cadillac.  It's original and unrestored
with 49K miles.  I used it in dating my wife Karen and it's
in our wedding pictures.  That was in 1976.

Mike

1955 Cadillac Eldorado
1973 Cadillac Eldorado
1995 Cadillac Seville
2004 Escalade
1997 GMC Suburban 4X4, 454 engine, 3/4 ton
custom built by Santa Fe in Evansville, IN
2011 Buick Lucerne CX
-------------------------------------
CLCMRC Museum Benefactor #38
Past: VP International Affiliates, Museum Board Director, President / Director Pittsburgh Region

Quentin Hall

So Mike, we are to take it that the am/fm signal seeking radio won your bride to be over?
53 Eldo #319
53 Eldo #412.
53 Eldo #433
57 Biarritz
53 series 62 conv
39 Sixty Special Custom
57 Biarritz

Mike Josephic CLC #3877

Hi Quentin:

Funny you should ask.  The first time she sat in the
car she noticed the stand up crest on the hood.  She
asked "what are those "horns" on the hood -- did you
live in Texas once?" 

She came to love Cadillac's as much as myself and we
went to more than 20 Grand Nationals over the years.

Mike
1955 Cadillac Eldorado
1973 Cadillac Eldorado
1995 Cadillac Seville
2004 Escalade
1997 GMC Suburban 4X4, 454 engine, 3/4 ton
custom built by Santa Fe in Evansville, IN
2011 Buick Lucerne CX
-------------------------------------
CLCMRC Museum Benefactor #38
Past: VP International Affiliates, Museum Board Director, President / Director Pittsburgh Region

Glen

In the late 40’s Dad drove a Hudson Terraplane.  After a minor accident and at the investigating officer’s suggestion dad adjusted the brakes.  The brakes on the car were mechanical, not hydraulic.  He took it out on the Boulder Denver turnpike, got it up to speed and hit the brakes.  The front axle broke off and the car went over the axle, leaving skid marks on the underside. 

Dad went to the local used car dealer and said he wanted a GOOD car.  The dealer told him to come back later and he would have the car for him.  When dad went back, he found a 1938 Cadillac 7519 that the dealer brought up from the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs.  Dad bought it and kept it the rest of his life. 

My earliest memory of the car was from when I walked away from home with my wagon (I was about 3).  Dad found me and put the wagon in the back with all 4 wheels on the floor.  Then he put me on the back seat with my legs between the wagon and the seat.  Lots of room in that car. 
In 1951 he was called up for the Korean war.  My parents bought a house trailer and the ‘38 took it and us to San Antonio.  From there we traveled all over the country working for Bendix Radio.  The ’38 pulling the trailer.  Many memories riding in that car and mom’s 1946 series 62 that pulled the baggage trailer. 

About 1963 dad bought a 1956 Sedan Deville as the ’38 needed a lot of work.  Mom ask, “Why does the big strong man get the car with power steering and the woman still has manual steering?”  She got her own ’56 Sedan Deville.  His was two tone blue and hers was green with a white top.

After I got out of the Navy in 1968, I bought my first car a white 1961 Coupe Deville.  In 1973 I bought my 1968 Eldorado. 
Glen Houlton CLC #727 
CLCMRC benefactor #104

STS05lg

In the county seat where I grew up there was a military boarding school and in the fall (move in day) and spring (move out day), I use to go down on my Montgomery Wards three speed bike to watch the parents come drop off or pick up there children. There were always an broad assortment of Cadillacs parked in the traffic circle in front of the main building when the students parents were on campus. It was always a treat to see the late 1950's and early 1960's Fleetwood's and Sedan deVille's lined up under all the century old oak trees.

I remember the first time I got to ride in a Cadillac. I was 8 or 9 years old and road my bike down to the river and I had a flat tire. It was 4 or 5 miles back to town and I was pushing the bike along the shoulder of Rt-60 and one of the limos from the Greenbrier came up behind me. The driver slowed down, put the passenger window down, and asked me if I needed a ride back up the hill to Lewisburg. I said yea. He got out of the car put my bike in the trunk and let me ride in the front of the car to town. It was the first time I had ever ridden in a car with power windows and with air conditioning. The driver dropped me off at the Pure 66 station in town and told the guy at the pumps to see if he could patch the tire for me. The driver was so nice, and the car was unbelievable to me. From that point I said someday I was going to have a Cadillac like that. However, I have never have had a Series 75 Sedan but have had lots and lots of other Cadillac models.

veesixteen

In the fall of 1948, dad bought his first car: a 1934 Chrysler CB6 convertible sedan. So, aged 9, I got immediately hooked on big American cars. At Xmas 1955, I saw in Nat. Geo. an ad for the 1956 Cadillac Sedan de Ville. I got hooked again; I wanted one. I got it 11 years later - at Xmas 1966 ... the same day I saw my future wife, Gita (she was across the street, aged 16, alighting from her dad’s 1960 Chevy Impala; it would be another 6 years before we would “meet” again ... and get married. In the ensuing years, we acquired 3 children, 4 grand-children and enjoyed 8 more Caddies (1976 Coupe de Ville, 1976 Seville, 1964 Sedan de Ville, 1964 Series 60 Special, 1960 Eldorado Seville, 1960 Eldorado Biarritz, 1959 Coupe de Ville and 1942 Fleetwood, style 7519F 5-pass. Limousine. Now we drive an 11-year-old Honda Pilot. All good things come to an end!
Yann Saunders, CLC #12588
Compiler and former keeper of "The Cadillac Database"
aka "MrCadillac", aka "Veesixteen"