Pics From "The Pete" - Petersen Automotive Museum

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ocdart

ocdart

Inland Mopars Car Club
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Yesterday, Inland Mopars Car Club monthly activity was a visit to the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. If you haven't had an opportunity to visit, you're missing one of the great museums of both automotive history and of our hobby. If you have been there before as an individual, you really need to try to set up a group tour so you can get one of the museum docents to fill you in on so many details you may miss on your own.
We were very fortunate to have Bill Wildman lead our tour. His stories and details about the museum's ground floor exhibits add so much to the experience.
Plus, your group gets discounted admission, special parking on an upper level of the parking garage where your rides are both safer and more secure than parking with the general public, and free parking if you arrive in the brand vehicle of your club.
Here's some pics from our visit yesterday. Give me some time to add all of them as there's about 60 or so. Enjoy:

There was a Corvair club in attendance yesterday. I haven't ever seen this many Corvairs in one spot.
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This is a re-creation of the blacksmith shop that the first automobile ever made in Los Angeles came from - and this is the actual vehicle. The maker later obtained his Engineering degree and worked for the Dodge brothers.
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An American underslung - great example of the early "two-box" design. Unfortunately, the design had terrible weight distribution with the engine behind the front axle and the passengers sitting directly on top of the rear axle.
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Cool. Great club activity and getting a docent really "makes" the event.

Did you have lunch or dinner afterwards nearby? There's some cool places to eat around there.

I drove by there in my Barracuda around 5:30pm Went to the Hot Rod Cruise In in El Segundo in the afternoon and stopped off at my parents. My elementry school is a long block away from the Petersen Museum (old Orbachs dept store).
 
 
Great example of some '40s L.A. architecture influenced by the impact of the automobile on society. This was a hot dog stand. You may have seen pics of other examples like the Brown Derby restaurant, the giant Doughnut, the giant Tamale and others. Since I've lived here in SoCal all my life they just seem normal to me, but one of our club members asked me, "Was this an L.A. thing?" She's originally from the midwest and had never seen anything like it.
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Remember the Stutz?
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Re-creation of an early custom shop doing a 'lead sled' '50 Merc.
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Some SoCal contributions to open wheel racing
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Re-creation of '40s stores catering to the automobile society - you could pull right up, park, and run in to do your shopping
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1936 Plymouth
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This Packard was Juan & Eva Peron's parade car in Argentina
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Still one of the most beautiful early fuel cars ever built - the Greer-Black-Prudhomme top fuel dragster.
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The "Pete" is continually featuring rotating specialized exhibits. The current one is Scooters.
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One of our club members has just finished a recent restoration of two Salsbury scooters like this one. They were locally built here in SoCal in Pomona. One of the most stylish of the early scooters.
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This monster scooter is over 13-feet long - the "party scooter" for you and your friends.
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The scooter in the foreground on the bottom is foldable. The one closest is open and ready to ride, right behind is the same model all folded up.
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This is a very rare 3-wheel Salsbury
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The Chrysler Turbine car...
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And what automotive museum in SoCal would be complete without some cars from Hollywood movies and actors?
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This is from one of the James Bond flicks. The Jag in the background belonged to Steve McQueen
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Belonged to Fred Astaire
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Here's some Millar "CarToons" that were on display. Always some favorites...

Sticky slicks
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Exploding dragster
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Little Red Wagon
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Dream Garage
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Some great pedal cars!
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Check out this early 5th-wheel RV setup!
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Only from Hollywood....."That's all folks!"
 
autoxcuda said:
Did you have lunch or dinner afterwards nearby? There's some cool places to eat around there.
Click to expand...

Hey, Steve. We grabbed some burgers at the Johnny Rocket's inside the 'Pete'.
You're right - great club activity. I just wish more of our members had made the drive from the Inland Empire to enjoy it. It was my 3rd visit, but the best so far.
 
This thread is one of many that I enjoy seeing setting here at home ocdart :cheers:
I am not sure if I will ever make it to the museum but I seen things here on your day I have never seen before :D:D
Thank you for the history lesson with pictures
The officer peeking around the corner made me think of Barny Fife :toothy10:
 
dartfastback said:
More details on that old RV . Way cool!!
Click to expand...

Here you go:

This ultra-streamline Reo tractor was specially built to tow a Curtiss Aerocar, on of the earliest production fifth-wheel trailers. Custom built for Dr. Hubert Eaton of the Forest Lawn Memorial Parks, its innovative cab-forward aluminum and leatherette body was constructed by Standard Carriage Works of Los Angeles, a coachbuilder that specialized in bodies for trucks and other commercial vehicles. It featured a large storage area, sleeping quarters for the driver, and a separate four-cylinder engine for auxilliary power. A Williams air-brake and dual rear-wheels accommodate the permanently attached 10,000 pound trailer. First equipped with a flat-12 White truck engine, the Reo tractor was fitted with a 300-horsepower Cummins 6-cylinder diesel in 1953 when the original engine wore out after more than 250,000 miles of use.​

The luxurious and expensive Aerocar trailer was built by Curtiss of Coral Gables, Florida, a firm also known for motorcycles and pioneering aircraft. Nicknamed "Vagabond" by Dr. Eaton, it was outfitted for hunting excursions and to transport company executives on trips to inspect various real-estate holdings. Special features include a self-contained restroom and kitchen, comfortable seating for eight, cup holders, and an observation deck equipped with a speedometer, compass, and intercom for communication with the driver. Though currently set up for day travel, the interior can be modified to sleep up to six passengers. The dramatically styled rig was in regular use until retired by Forest Lawn Memorial Parks in 1991.​
 
!!THAT!! is some cools stuff. Turbine looks weird what with a factory igntion coil and the tail end of a flanged Torqueflite being the only two things that "look automotive"
 
Very nice Ken thank you for all your effort I really enjoyed your pictures looks like I missed out.
 
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