The "first" flamed version was a hoot, but when he upgraded to a barely streetable 427, that roadster was unbelievable!!!!
I seem to remember it was finished and featured in SRM. There was a thread awhile back wondering if his 32 4 dr. that was chopped, channeled, and sectioned was ever finished? It was a series feature in SRM and, IIRC had work done by Dick Dean. Mc Mullen seems to have been a very interesting "out there" dude. Would probably make a good book if anyone ever wanted to put the work into his bio.
Do any of you Buffalo/Niagara Falls, NY guys remember Corvette Rosie and The Wild Rose? If memory serves me right that's her standing in the roadster. Lee
Hi All, I recently got the word from a very good source that Tom's Roadster will be the next Hot Rod Series offering from the Danbury Mint. Murph
Tom was also into off roading and developed a line of unique products that are still being manufactured today. Tom also had a great knack for surrounding himself with really good people.
Tom worked for Beckman Instruments, in Fullerton, Ca. The 1963 Hot Rod cover shot was taken on the "front lawn" of the Beckman headquarters. The lady in the roadster was Tom's secretary, who later became his wife. I believe she was always a California girl. I worked for Beckman for 22 years - after Tom left the company.
The young lady would be Rosie Gennuso from Rochester, NY. She was a well known drag racer who campaigned, if memory serves, a 1961 Corvette that had the name "Wild Irish Rose" painted on the side. Her father was the service manager at Cool Chevrolet and a good source for her long list of go-fast parts. The 'vette was a very fast car and Rosie was frequently TE at the local drag strips which were Niagara, Spencer Speedway and the Monroe County Fairgrounds. The Fairgrounds was a particularly interesating venue in that the track was DIRT! Yep, it was part of the roundy-round tack. But it was local and a lot of fun. Rosie met Tom at the Bonneville Salt Flats where Tom had her jump in his roadster and make a pass or two. At least that is the story that I've been told. Thereafter, they were married and lived happily ever after - until the divorce where poor old Tom got cleaned out. I don't know where Rosie is now. Anyone???
I got to wondering the same thing not to long ago and googled Rose Gennuso and Rose McMullen. The only thing that showed up was a link to some sort of Animal Shelter in California that she supports, so I guess she's still on the Left Coast. Larry T
Murph You are correct, and I have a better source --- me. I work for Jorge and took all the pictures ( many, many pictures) for Danbury Mint. Ron
Very cool that people associated with the car past & present over the last 50 years have added in here. As a kid that car just had me HOOKED! Tom ran stories about it when I was growing up in the '70s and I KNEW I loved the '50s and '60s way more than the current day. I wanted to go back to those days sooo bad and see what I missed. So many chapters to this one car. I left out the part when it was redone in the eighties as just another solid black hiboy "street rod", before nostalgia and restoring old hot rods had begun- it was heart breaking. Like graffiti on a DaVinci painting- just hurt to see that car nutuered like that. I was SOOOO happy when it was finally restored- and to the level Roy Brizio took it with a gigantic ammount of research and precise accuracy. It's terrible when a car gets redone without all the correct pieces, but that's NOT the case with all the cars Roy restores- total 100% accuracy!
Here's a pix of Tom & Deanna with his new "MOSHER" motor at a rod run (Visalia?) in 1976, when we were cruising the area, from my LAR scrapbook. Oh Yeah!!------I have MANY stories on Tom from back then!!-------Don
Thats the SECOND car I believe, it lives about 30 minutes down the road from me now. The Mosher is out of it but there.
I used to kid Tom about how loud that motor was, especially when we would be cruzing inside tunelled areas, Itold him "Sounds like a CEMENT MIXER"!!!!
The two best known features, PHR and HRM, are interesting reads because they cover the car before and after the switch from early Ford running gear behind the Chevy to 4 speed and '55 Chevy based Klentz rear. There were excellent chassis shots. I have another feature somewhere in some minor small mag...can't remember details. I think Tom's first manufaturiing product was an early 1960's hot rod wiring kit...a pioneering piece of work, but a disaster for me as a 14 year old following some deeply inadequate instructions.
Can someone post the picture of Tom's roadster that was in the 2nd or 3rd Street Rod Pictorial.Great Picture. Thank's
I remember seeing the second car, with the twin cam smallblock, coming out of the fairgrounds at Tulsa in '76 with water erupting everywhere. Tom didn't look too happy, as he was trying to duck around the steam and see past the crowds to find the road.
Saw him pop the chute on Whittier Blvd. in front of Bob's Big Boy about 1 in the morning one Saturday nite. Must have been sometime in the late 60's. Alway s saw the roadster parked outside Bectall in LaHabra about the same time.
Tom's nickname was 'Tweets' on the east coast before he went to Calif.The last time I got to talk to him was in 1993 When he came to a local cruise In in Kettering Oh.At a Hail & Hearty in his little school Bus.He had to leave early because one of the guys with him got sick.Never knew it would be the last time I would get to see him and his wife.Tom was one of a kind.
Great thread, Jim. Really enjoy reading about the hot-rodding icons. Some interesting history. Hope more folks chime in with additional stories of Tom and the Roadster......Don.
The roadster pu in this pic is a HAMB members car and the same guy still has it ,I believe.Who is that guy?Cool car and a great picture.
When Tom had it for sale in Hot Rod in 1970 for $5000 I called him and wanted to buy it.He said send me a thousand and I will hold it for you.Well by he time talked my dad into loaning me the other $2000 I needed he had sold the motor & trans. to one guy and the rest of the car to another guy.I'm still sick over that after forty years.I got to drive it once back in the 60's and fell in love with it. It's still my dream car after all these years.I still collect everything I can find about it.
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