My '32 Story Part II ('48 to '60 w/pics)

This is a follow-up for a previous post I made titled "My '32 Story". You can take a gander at it here:

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=251884

It has the pictures from the '60s to the present. From that post, I got a good tip from hambers Asphalt Outlaw Hero and lkphoto to check out Marshall Robilio. Come to find out, John in the first post was Marshall's cousin. My uncle was slightly incorrect on who owned the car, although John was around it and is in some of the old pictures. Heck, that was pretty close considering it was about 50 years ago. I do good to remember stuff from 2 years ago. I could not have met a nicer person in Marshall Robilio. He had a wealth of knowledge about the car and drag racing in the '50s. He was there with Joe Lunati (cams), Vernon Walker(radiators and NSRA), Ray Godman(Tennessee BoWevil), and a host of others from 'the day'; around Memphis.
The story from Marshall on the '32:
A sailor had driven it from California to Memphis in 1948. At the time, there was (according to the big sign in our hometown) 'The Nation's Largest Inland Naval Training Base'; the 'Memphis Naval Air Station'; in Millington, where I grew up, just north of Memphis. Marshall saw the car and kept after the sailor to sell it to him, but the guy didn't want to let it go. Then, low and behold, the sailor gets his papers to ship out. The car was down at White's garage in Memphis, with the engine and transmission out of it. The sailor and the garage were at a standoff about the money on the repairs. They had it apart and were kind of holding it hostage (haven't heard of that before, hmmm...) The sailor called Marshall and told him he would sell him the car, but Marshall had to go pick it up at the garage. Well, not his first time 'round the block, Marshall says he'll take it, but the sailor had to go with him to the garage to get everything ironed out.
They had the pow wow at the garage, with money getting split between the garage folks and the sailor, with Marshall coming away with the car. He and his buddies had to put all the parts in baskets and haul the whole shootin' match home.
Marshall got it back together and got this shot of it. It was black metallic with red leather interior, Kelsey Hayes wire wheels, Harley fenders on the front, channeled, radiator set forward and the hood lengthened 3 inches. If you notice, there was a stud put in the center of the spindles for the fender supports, mounting them just like a motorcycle. This was about 1948, Marshall in his finest Sunday-go-ta-meetin' outfit.

Another picture of it in front of the Robilio's produce store.

Here's some pictures from 1952 (on the license plates), outside a service station in Memphis. That's Marshall and a kid that hung around the station.


As hot rodder's will do, off with the fenders, hood, side panels, and top. On with some cool decals like the Wynn's Friction Proofing. I still have the Stewart Warner gauge panel. As you can see, the eye brows around the rear wheels have been removed and it's running split bones, which are still on it today. It has aluminum finned heads on a '48 Merc' motor. The ol' sailor had come to town with a pretty nicely modified roadster. I can see why he hated to sell it. This was in the early '50s.

Here are a couple of photos I got from Phil Woodford after he saw this post. Some great shots from Halls.

Another picture I came across was in the Sept. 2010 issue of Hot Rod Deluxe. They did an article on HR photographer Eric Rickman, posting some of his random shots. This one from Halls, Marshall behind the wheel. (must have been wet somewhere...)

He briefly sold the car to a Mr E.J.(or BJ, Budgey) Haley, in Memphis, with the stipulation that if the car was ever up for sale, Marshall would get first shot at it. Mr. Haley decided to sell and Marshall promptly bought it back. Mr. Haley still lives in Memphis also. Marshall talked to him while I was there.
While Phil had the car, it got to be in Rod & Custom, July 1954 issue. Great stuff from the little pages.

Marshall got it back and here's a color shot of it from Halls from about that time. (Marshall's Jag on the far side)

Here are some pictures from the mid '50s at a car show in the Merchant's Building in downtown Memphis. (pre-convention center days...) It was painted a 1946 Frazer color. A kind of a sky blue, cerulean blue as Marshall remembers. The placard on the cowl says:

Marshall Robilio
1932 Ford Roadster
Full Race 1948 Mercury Eng.
Regional Drag Champion
104.8 MPH in 1/4 Mile On Gas​

​

Marshall actually gave me one of the trophies from his collection. It is the Regional Champion trophy, 1955, NHRA sanctioned. You can see it beside the car in some of the show pictures.
Unbelievable. Super nice guy.



continues below, after 5 replies

 

Wow!!!!!

 

It's great to see so much documented history on one car.

Wish we knew as much about all of them.

JH

 

nice read.. thx for posting..

 

Great story! Thanks for sharing more of it with us.

Nice to meet ya in Austin, too!

Malcolm

 

Bitchin'!
Thanks for the follow-up.
I love hot rod history!

 

At another show, it has a Chrysler hemi in it. Roland Raffanti had built the motor and wanted it to be in the show, in the roadster. Nothing doing but pull the flathead and in with a decked out hemi. It would have been hard to let that thing come back outta there. But, it could have been part of ol’ Roland’s sales plan. You know, like the ol’ ‘Take the puppy home and play with him and pet on him. If you don’t like him, bring him back......" Yeah, right! The info on the sign with the car reads: (trophy is 4th from rt.)
1954 Chrysler
Built by Roland Raffanti
Bore: 3 15/16
Stroke: 3.678
Disp: 354 Cu.Ins.
Comp: 12 to 1
Max RPM: 7000
ISKY CAM

He even still had, and gave me, one of the arrows pointing out the features of the car.

Now this racing thing starts to get a little more serious, in goes a small block chevy. He made his own adapter to hook it up to the Ford transmission. I believe it still has the banjo rearend at this time, but I’m not sure. Here it is at Halls Drag Strip gettin’ a check out run. Nothin’ like ‘the boys’ hangin’ at the drag strip. Halls was north of Memphis, actually a spare runway at The Dyersburg Air Base. Note the nice concrete everywhere. Gotta love them tax dollars at work. He had the original louvered hood back it, but not painted yet. I still have the hood.

Got the car lookin’ nice by now and turning some pretty good times. There is also a shot of the roadster at the starting line in the March 1959 Hot Rod magazine, a column on drag racing. Here's a shot of that...

More shots from Halls. (good thing these fellas liked to take pictures...)

Notice the number on the car, B/R 43. That came from when it ran at the NHRA Nationals in 1957 and/or ‘58. If you look at the post that Hemi32 put up about his 5-window, the entry number went on as the car number. On the first page of entries, in the program, entry number 43 is Harass (the roadster’s name), with Bill Williams (friend of Marshall’s) driving, from Memphis.
Hemi32 post with the car # and 58 program:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=265313
1st page of entries list, #43 Harass, Bill Williams driver

Here is a shot of the cover of the program and the schedule/map flyer. Marshall still had these and gave 'em to me.

And the schedule/flier...

In the film clip that Norm Jones shot at the 1958 Nationals, that Ryan posted on the JJ, you can see the car in living color at the 2:24 time mark on the film. It is coming back on the return road with the old Dodge panel push truck right behind it. You can see the ol’ Dodge in some of the other shots at Halls. Do some stop action on the film and check it out. If there’s any way anyone can hook me up with that clip, PLEASE PM me. It’s the only live shot of the car that I have seen, in color at that! PLEASE!
Ryan's Norm Jones '57 nats (actually '58) post on JJ:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/?p=2254

Update 7/2017 , I did get to copy Norm's video (Thanks a MILLION Norm!!!) Here are still shots from it.

Marshall still had the time card from that weekend, and gave it to me to keep with the car. How awesome is that! Here it is:

And a color picture of it from behind Marshall's house, from about that same time period.


More from Halls Tn...

Next to Raymond Godman's first Bo-Weevil...you can see Ray just over the hood of the roadster.


Marshall sold the car, sometime about 1959, to Howard Hughes of Memphis. He changed the color to a metallic copper. I talked to Howard about the car, but he couldn’t remember a whole lot about it. Come to find out we had some really good friends in common(good ol’ team ropers!) Here’s a couple of shots during Howard’s time with the car.


Howard had a nice Willys drag car at one time too. I have some more black and whites of Marshall and the boys around Memphis that I’ll try to get up some time. This story is gettin’ long as it is. They went on to race some really good cars.

Here’s a few shots at Marshall’s house a couple of weeks ago. I took the car up to Memphis to have him check it out and take it for a spin. He said he had often wondered what had ever happened to it. He was happy to see it and really had the smiles goin’ when he took it for a drive. Note the grins all around.


Marshall had just had his 80th birthday a week or two before this. Weather permitting, he rides one of his motorcycles (8 or 10 BMWs, all different vintages) to work everyday. (that’s right, he still works). He makes it to bike night every week and works on motorcycles in the shop behind his house. He is definitely an inspiration and an example to us younger folks. The hot rod world could use more ‘Marshalls’.
Well, that’s the story on my ol’ ‘32 (including the other post). I feel like I’m not doing it justice not having paint and an interior in it now. I do like being able to look at it see something from all of the different stages of its life. It’s hard to have it both ways, I don’t know.
Thanks for reading and thanks to the HAMB. I hope you enjoyed the old pictures, I never get tired of any of them. Y’all post ‘em when you can. Sorry if I got long winded, you know how it is when you get to talkin’ ‘bout these ol’ rides! TP

60's to present:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=251884

 

wow man, that is really cool! You made that old timers day, and I gotta say he looks great for 80!!

I like it the most in it's /sky blue/flatheaded' days, but from what you've posted there isn't an 'era' of this car that doesn't look great!

 

Wow, very cool post, thanks! I like these.

 

Great write up and pic. Thanks for the post. I just love cars with history, you just can't buy that.

 

very cool story!

 

NEAT STORY ...

Thanks for sharing it.

.

 

awesome story and thanks so much for sharing with us

 

What a cool story and picture line....thanks for sharing it with us
Skot

 

Awesome story.. its truly what its all about... Do you plan on ever restoring it to its earlier
configurations??

I'm so diggin this


and this




Man it wouldn't know where to begin.... cool that you got it and respect it...

thanks for posting!!

evel

 

Good stuff! Thanks for taking the time to post this story. It's always nice to learn more history. These kinds of stories are the backbone of what makes the HAMB great!

 

what a fun read!
great history

 

What a great story.

 

Thanks for posting part two. You and your car are too cool. Knowing the history of your hot rod and having pictures to support that history is priceless! Good on you for visiting Marshall and giving him a spin, I bet he LOVED it!

 

Speechless! Too cool!

 

Great story & pix!!----I'm only 75, a little younger than the old timer!---But having put about 300,000 miles in my 32 roadster, I still like to chase those lines!---When the weather is good---Traveled too many miles in the rain going across the USA 5 times-----in my younger years tho!!---I've had my roadster since 1962, wish I knew its previous history!----Don

 

Evel -
I AM lovin' those early days. I'm definitely goin' one o' those ways, one o' these days!

 

I'm so glad I could help out in this!! You did some great leg work. I remember those days at Halls.Marshall is as lively now as I hope to be yesterday. Those shots in 48 are great.

 

great stuff my friend !

 

This (and your previous) post makes slogging through all the drama posts worthwhile - it's what HAMB was intended for, IMO ! Thanks SOOOO much for posting it.

 

This truly is what I look for on any website. Great stories about real, and humble, people and the real life experiences that the pioneers of this hobby have provided. Great work and I admire the effort taken to share the experience with the older gentlemen that were there when the car was young. If you look at the smiles, it is still 1950.
I think all of us, at one time, were that little kid that hung out at the store or gas station. Wonder where he is today.

 

WOW.....................cool.............

 

Great Story thanks

 

Cool story and great pictures . Thanks for sharing.

 

Tim - just amazing! Thanks for putting this out for us to see.
Tony