Cold Days, Warm Thoughts
February 12, 2025
Happy Wednesday, everyone! It's our favorite day of the week, outside of Car Show Saturdays, and we're reflecting on the upcoming car show season with giddy anticipation. Unless you live in a warm coastal climate, you've been stuck inside on the weekends like us pining for a warm Saturday so you can head out to a new destination, or perhaps a familiar one, where you can revel among friends and old cars. It's the simple things that make the difference. Now we simply have to be patient.
Please help us grow the Review by telling your friends to sign up so we can grow the newsletter and help keep people happy during their busy week. It's a nice mid-week break to keep your mind sharp while you wait for the upcoming car show season. And remember, to find all sorts of shows across the nation, just go to Car Show Radar! Thanks for reading and let us know what you think!
Upcoming Car Shows
It’s that time of year when people are planning their upcoming car shows and some of them find their way onto Car Show Radar. We don’t want to brag (we do), but Car Show Radar gets more monthly views than most of the other car show sites - by a lot. If you se us on your social media channels do us a favor and help spread the word. It’s the neighborly thing to do.
And don’t forget to send us your best shots from your car show travels, we love to feature them in our Pick of the Pics Gallery. Check the Radar, find a show and get going!
See the shows we recommend this week: Car Show News
Pick of the Pics
Your Car Show Pics
We’re excited to see what our Readers send in this year as we get in gear for the 2025 car show season!
Send us your awesome car show pics and every week we'll show them off in our gallery. Show us what you got and get bragging rights with your car show friends!
View the Gallery: Pick of the Pics
Portraits of the Past
Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History, Springfield MA
The first successful gasoline powered automobile in the country was built in Springfield, Massachusetts. Although many entrepreneurs across the country were attempting to produce a horseless carriage, the brothers Charles and Frank Duryea were the first to actually accomplish the task, test driving the auto on the streets of Springfield on September 21, 1893.
The Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History is known for its local history research facilities, its comprehensive program of changing exhibitions, its diverse educational offerings, and it’s wide ranging collections illuminating the history of the Connecticut River Valley.
This museum is set among other museums with differing displays. There were a lot of firsts in Springfield, Massachusetts, including the first Rolls Royce automobiles built in America, like the 1928 Springfield-made Phantom I pictured below. Check it out!
Learn more: Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield
Have You Seen This?
1969 Hurst SC/Rambler
The American Motors Corporation was known for building reliable, lower-priced cars targeted towards families and those seeking basic transportation. But when you combine a lightweight economy car with a potent V8, you have the recipe for an outstanding performer. This was the case with the 1969 Hurst SC/Rambler, a car built in conjunction with Hurst Performance to be a drag strip terror and look cool doing it!
This is an excellent video from Muscle Car of the Week on the eponymous 1969 AMC Scrambler. Not a lot of people know what this is or have ever heard of it, but for those that do, this was quite a little drag strip devil. The video goes into detail on how it came about and how well it performed, so check it out!
Watch the video: Have You Seen This?
Off the Radar
Fitzpatrick and Kaufman - the Godfathers of automotive advertising art
A beautiful relationship began when two young artists were paired in the Art Department at the Mercury Motor Division in the late 1940s. Art Fitzpatrick and Van Kaufman quickly established themselves as players in the automotive advertising game with their high quality illustrations. In 1953 they were hired by General Motors to work on the new Buick range. Cut to ‘59 and Fitzpatrick and Kaufman had moved to Pontiac, where they would remain until the early 1970s. In that time, they produced a body of work that is often regarded as the high watermark of automotive art.
We've always been interested in automotive advertising, and we've included a few articles on the subject in the past. This article from Raph Tripp and tunnelram.net tells the story of one of the most dynamic duos to ever grace the pages of magazines, brochures, newspapers and more. Art Fitzpatrick and Van Kaufman produced some of the most high quality, lush and emotive Illustrations used by Mercury, Buick and then Pontiac. In-depth information and beautiful artwork really stand out here. We were so impressed with Raph's article, we subscribed to his website. Check it out!
Read the special report: Off the Radar
We hope you like our newsletter
We’ll be posting a new one every Wednesday but you can also follow us on our Facebook and Instagram pages as we try to post daily. We have some videos we did over the years on YouTube, so check those out for a good laugh (the host is a lovable doofus). We’ll be working on new videos this year and will be posting them here as we get them done.
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