I`m looking for info on Al Morris Jr. He passed away last Sept. He owned M&M Speed Engineering in Sacramento, built engines for the likes of Gary Ormsby and built and maintained Bill Harrah`s Miss Tahoe hydroplane`s allison engine. The reason I need any info you may have is he was the owner/driver of Little VIP `27 roadster #353 at the Detroit Nationals in `59. The Canepa family now has it -1 of the many finds from Don`s estate. The family wants to restore it back to it`s original state and help would be appreciated.
bump for techteacher. yo tim, you should think about doing a proper intro. folks get kinda testy up in here on newbies.
hi bebe, it's nathan stewart. i was the first feller you contacted you. pretty neat to see this coming together.
BeefStew/Nathan, Thanks for putting this all together. I love that it was built by a Shop Teacher, sold to a Shop Teacher and resurrected by a Shop Teacher. This story is going to turn out so cool.
Also, Tognottis is just 1/2 a block from Kuni's where I have to take my truck in this week. I'll stop in and see what I can find out. Tognotti's bought Al's company.
I encourage all you to keep an eye on this post - it`s gonna get huge. Anyone who has any info big or small throw it out to us. This never would have started if it wasn`t for guys like Don and Al - not to mention Bebe and Nathan. Major props to you two.
At the time I worked at M&M his boy was probably around 12-13 I can't remember His proper name 'cause everyone called Him "Pugsley" because He had a pug nose I hated when he would visit as he had a collie named "Ruff" and when I would come in of the morning there was dog crap every where.I left in mid '78 and moved to Manteca when the shop was open Bill Bishop was shop foreman.The Spiegel Brothers were Al's #1 & #2 man at USW (see car pic below) Al's fiance at the time was a gal named Sue who He later married,I ran into them in the early 90's at a restaurant and we talked while we waited in line.Sue's Mustang is the one out front in the M&M picture parked next to Al's orange Chevy pickup,never saw Him after that as we moved to Phoenix in '94.One of the other shops around at the time was Hall Bros when it was on Folsom Boulevard,Lee Hall ran that for a while Lee and family are still active in the Sacramento area(Google Hall Bros) may be able to give more info.I was there when Al put in the HUGE computer it covered an entire wall it looked like something out of a 50's science fiction movie LOL.
Man, you guys have really come through, lots of good info. Anybody have any pics of Al or or the 353 car?
I did some reading on Ormsby last night, Lee Beard was his crew chief.. Lee seems to have quite the career as a crew chief, and he is still around. He could also be a source for more information on Al Morris. http://www.competitionplus.com/2004_11_18/beard.html
More Info, Alvin Lawrence "Al" Morris Jr., has a Son - Dean L Morris Jr and a Wife Marjorie. I can't get the full Obit from SacBee from 2007, but apparently they had moved to Sparks NV at some point.
..... this is getting exciting..... could be a reality show..... cept sissy and i don't generally scream at eachother.... we'd have to get characters to play the drama queens.
been following....maybe time to ask my uncle in Sac...he goes way back ....but doesn't remember everything....
After the shop closed a couple of the machinists went to Rex Hutchinson to work,Rex's son is running the shop now from what I hear, if you could touch base with Rex Sr. you may learn a little more info too.Put Dean L.Morris in www.zabasearch.com and you may be able to track Him down and locate Sue Al's widow.As far as info on the roadster if you could locate one of the Spiegel brothers they may know more about Al from the early days.
Found out Monday from one of Al`s auto shop students that the 353 car was built in Al`s auto shop class at El Camino HS in Sacramento. I lived in Sac. many years later and went to Mira Loma HS, pretty close to El Camino. Got the Admin. all bent out of shape but did it anyway - my kinda guy. I hear a group of the original students are going to Auburn to check out the car. Built in an auto shop class and will be restored 60+ years later in an auto shop class. Quite a story.
Obit SACRAMENTO, CA -- Al Morris founder of United Specialty Wholesalers (USW) passed away in Sacramento, CA, on Sept. 27. Morris was born on Jan. 15, 1935 in Oakland, CA. In 1957 he graduated from San Jose State with a B.S. degree in Industrial Education. From 1957-59 Morris taught Vocational Auto and in 1959 went to work at Aero Jet General as part of the design team of the Titan engine project. In 1964 he started M&M Speed Engineering, an old-fashioned speed shop combined with a then state of the art machine shop that built engines for drag racing Champion Gary Ormsby and also did work for Bill Harrahs Allison aircraft engine-powered Miss Tahoe race boat. In 1968, Morris started USW with 10 jobber accounts and a like number of vendors. USW grew to serve 700 jobber customers with 75 vendors until Morris retired in 2003. His industry accomplishments include his involvement in the development of the initial computer software for the Performance Warehouse Association (PWA). Morris involvement with PWA started with his attendance at PWAs formation meeting in Chicago and he went on to serve three terms on PWAs Board of Directors. He also worked with industry legends such as Jack Harris, Ben Sigmund and Don Raleigh on the PWA Handbook that is now known as the PWA Book of Recommendations. His active participation within his community includes two terms as president of his local Rotary Club, four years as trustee of the Rotary Foundation, four years on the Board of Directors of Sacramentos Better Business Bureau and two years for the Boy Scouts of Americas Golden Empire Council of Northern California. In honor of Morris work on behalf of PWA he was named its Pioneer Award winner in 1998.
Finally tracked down the Hall Bros per JeffB2 (they're local) and left a message at the shop and on FB page. The guy who came from the Auto shop class was Gary Matrenga. Super nice. Seeing the car brought a lot of memories back for him. He verified it was absolutely Al's car that they built in Auto Shop at El Camino High in 1957. Apparently he did more than race it on the drag strip, it was a lakester too which is why there are 2 axle slots. We have most of the parts together now for the build. Waiting for the final go-ahead from Tim.
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