MYRNA LORRIE....our own home grown beauty.....Do you remember?

This is a post I have wanted to do for some time now.  I remember Myrna when she sang her first song "Are You Mine" here in our own home towns of Fort William and Port Arthur, Ontario and she is still entertaining us all to this day.  Since I remember then most of you should too.  I did attend high school with Myrna's brother John when her career took off.
An added note:  Be sure to click on "comments" at the end of this post for more data from followers.

A very young 14 year old recording "Are You Mine" with Buddy DeVal in 1954

Here is the cover of the Abbott Label.  The following print photo shows the lyrics and the next piece of script is a bio of Don Grashey who helped launch Myrna's long standing career. 
Be sure to click on all the photos and printed parts to enlarge them for better reading.

Click this link and turn up the volume to hear the original recording...... 

The above two photos are of a very young Myrna, the first a promo photo and the second during a recording session at CFCJ-TV in Port Arthur, Ontario

The above two clippings are of Myrna when she entertained along side recording star Joyce Hahn of "Cross Canada Hit Parade" at the local Lakehead Home Show back in 1959 at the Canadian Lakehead Exhibition Auditorium and Coliseum.  Click on them twice to read.

Here is another photo of Spartan Records recording star Joyce Hahn with a short bio below.

This is a photo of Myrna on the right and her sister Linda singing for CJLX radio at the grand opening of the first A&W restaurant on 10th Ave off Memorial Ave in Port Arthur Ontario in 1958.

Entertaining at the "D" Room

Myrna's Discography file....click to enlarge



Myrna Lorrie and David Essig at the Mariposa Folk Festival in 1976.

Here is another video clip of Myrna and Tom Bresh on their TV show "Nashville Swing" from 1980.

These last two photos of more current pieces for Myrna.



The funny part of this one is where they say
that she was from Thunder Bay north, a remote
Canadian City.  Click above.

Thank you Myrna for all the memories.  We will
remember you for where you were from....how
about a tour back home??

My Friend Clarence Merko passed away today Sept 19, 2013....

We are filled with anguish and pain on hearing this sad news…he meant so much to so many!  Our condolences to Pat and the entire Merko family.

To read more about Clarence please click on each of the two following links.

- http://hotrodsandjalopies.blogspot.ca/2009/07/mister-c-himself.html

- http://hotrodsandjalopies.blogspot.ca/2013/06/do-you-locals-recognize-this-guy.html



R.I.P.  "Merk"

THE BARBER CAR....It was right here in our home town back in 1975....

This is one of those "do it now before you forget" posts.  The Barber Car in this very first photo was taken by yours truly here in Thunder Bay at a car show in the Coliseum building in 1975.  I was compelled to do this post after reading a most incredible book by "Hot Rod" writer Pat Ganahl called "Lost Hot Rods".  It is a must read for all you gearheads out there....thanks for the loan Dennis.
THE BARBER CAR.

As it looked at the CLE Coliseum in 1975 here in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

While it might be hard to keep a razor steady at 150 miles-per-hour, this vehicular barber shop is fully functional and capable of such neck-nicking speeds. The bizarre Barber Car is one of many curious and wildly expensive cars in the vault below the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles.

The Vault, which stores around 150 vehicles that are in between exhibitions or just don't quite fit anywhere in the museum, was closed to the public since the museum opened in 1994 (although VIPs, along with someone who got in with an old Volvo key, got to see the subterranean auto treasure trove). It opened for the first time for tours in late 2012, and, due to high demand (people were lining up outside), the museum recently announced that these tours would be going on indefinitely. Along with the Barber Car is a Mercedes-Benz that belonged to Saddam Hussein, a bullet resistant car that was commissioned by the White House just a day after Pearl Harbor, President Clinton's golf cart, a 1925 Round Door Rolls-Royce recovered from a New Jersey junkyard, and a 1957 Jaguar owned by Steve McQueen.

The Barber Car was imagined in 1969 by car customizer Joe Bailon, who invented the popular Candy Apple Red paint and also designed the totally bizarre and fanciful Pink Panther Car.



This is how it looked in the Vault - I don't know what's with the one wheel in the rear!

 At the time, there was a custom car craze for wilder and wilder vehicles for car shows, and the Barber Car delivered with twin antique barber chairs positioned between two authentic barber poles that worked as turn signals, as well as a porcelain sink equipped with hot and cold water. The whole interior was upholstered in red velvet and even has a stereo, and installed up front is a 400 horsepower Corvette engine. Perhaps someone could use the Barber Car to stage a rollicking road trip version of Sweeney Todd?                                                                                                                                           

As shown in the Peterson Museum - California.



 

Did we build this kit?....Was one ever made?

 

Lovely in black and white ☺

 

This is how it looks in Pat Ganahl's book.

 Since I can't legally copy the whole story from Pat's book....be sure to pick it up and read it yourself...once more....It's called "Lost Hot Rods".....and I think even though it's pretty bizarre....it was pretty cool to see it right in our own home town back in the 1970's.  You've gotta love it!



LAKEHEAD STOCK CAR CLUB 1953 PROGRAM - by special request...

60 YEARS AGO this summer was when thousands of fans would flock to the CLE fairgrounds in Fort William Ontario to witness an incredibly entertaining weekly event.  It was 1953 and as stated above, a fan of Hot Rods and Jalopies blog requested that we print an entire program for all to see.  This one was chosen because of the 60 years and also because it was the largest program ever produced by the Lakehead Stock Car Club.  The actual measurements of the program are 5 1/2" X 8 1/2".  I do have a couple of originals of this, and it was also copied and used as a giveaway for the "1985 Pit Stop Reunion" that was held at the Coliseum building at the Canadian Lakehead Exhibition grounds.  This will surely stir up some memories of all the names and also the old advertising.
The title page and last page are posted larger and the inner pages should be read from left to right.  You can however, click on each pair of pages to enlarge them for better reading.
Enjoy!

We hope you enjoyed the program and if you have any comments, please add them to this post.  Thanks, Dave