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© 2005-2006 ChristineCarClub.com -- Web site designed and created by Jeff Pozniak
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As we head into our second newsletter, I have some important news to announce.
I would like to bid a fond farewell to our long-time members and people very dear to us all, Jim Garvie (Coach) and his son, Derek. In case you missed his post, Jim sold his precious Christine to a buyer in Florida, and the deal is for sure closed on Wednesday when the car is picked up for transport to her new owner. It is very sad news indeed, but Jim will be able to stay home full-time now and focus all of his attention on caring for his son. Christine may be off to a new owner, but Jim and Derek will always be family here at the CCC.
Regarding our apparel orders: Please spread the word to your family and friends who may be interested in a shirt.
ChristineCarClub.com has been updated and we are now accepting submissions to the new Member's Rides section. Please refer to the "Member's Rides" thread in the CCC forum for instructions on how to post your Christine on the site. All members are encouraged to show off their ride!
In closing, I would like to put out one more friendly reminder. In order to keep our newsletter alive, we need input from all of our members. I would love to hear from you with news, events, ideas, questions/answers, etc. to add to our newsletter to make it a better read. Everything emailed to us will be considered. Feel free to send us an email if you have any questions.
Wayne DeGeorge (Bloodhound1941) - President
Ed Rees (I hath no Fury) – Vice President
Gwen Cairns (ggcairns) – Secretary/Treasurer
Jeff Pozniak (Furyous J) - ChristineCarClub.com Webmaster
Until next time, “Let’s Motivate!”
And now for our next featured member: Martin Sanchez aka “Moochie Chaser”.
Hello fellow Plymouth and classic car fans. My name is Martin Sanchez, also known as "Moochie Chaser" on the Plymouth Central web site. I was born in 1964 and raised in Orange County California. I grew up primarily in Anaheim not far from Disneyland and down the street from Gwen Stefani of the group "No Doubt." Although I did not hang out with her, I did see her around here and there. She was an interesting individual in her own little world. I was one of those guys that kept a small circle of friends, kept to myself, quiet, but not too much. I am the oldest of 7 with 2 brothers and 4 sisters. I have a beautiful wife who is also named Christine and shares a lot of my same passions, including our new little puppy "Roxie". My father raced at Riverside raceway back in the 50's and was a major car enthusiast. He received his calling 3 years ago. Dad: wish you were still with us, we miss you very much. I followed in his footsteps disassembling and fixing everything and anything I could get my hands on while growing up.
My parents had some financial misfortunes when I was just getting into my teens. I decided I wanted a lot more out of life after a few years of hand me downs, etc. I went to work at a young age and focused on my studies. I had several paper delivery routes in the city and hired local boys to deliver my papers and I repaid them by using my skills by building dirt bikes and motocross bicycles for them. I would also do car repairs as well. I learned to realize that hard times can happen when one least expects it and you have to be prepared. I continued my education and used it to build a future for myself. My love for the automobile and its industry landed me a career as a Market Analyst for Kelley Blue Book which has the # 1 automotive web site in the world, www.kbb.com. I have been working there for 16 years now.
At 13 I found my first car while taking a short cut on my way to school, it was buried up past its door sills in dirt and overgrown grass in a backyard. I felt the need to climb the fence and go into the yard to check her out. She was a 1969 Pontiac rag top with a 400 engine and factory tri-power that had been damaged and forgotten long ago. After 2 years of pestering the owner he finally sold her to me for 100 bucks. I experienced a lot of good times putting that old car together. I loved that car so much that it got nicknamed "Christine" when the book came out. My auto shop teacher told me I should read it since I am so obsessed with my car, lol. I was already reading it and absolutely loved it already so I began my search for a 58 Plymouth 2 door hard top since I thought it was cooler looking. After picking up some original Plymouth brochures from the swap meet I found I was in awe of the designer’s forward look creations. I could not find a 2 door hardtop anywhere. I guess I had a little competition with John Carpenter, lol. When Christine came out on film I was blown away at how it mimicked a little bit of my life. The Pontiac I had loved so much was severely vandalized in high school by a bunch of idiots. "Shitters" After seeing that awesome Plymouth I was quickly possessed by her! A new obsession was born.
The summer of ‘83 I was a supervisor of a valet parking company. I met the man who helped me later find Christine during an argument over parking in the hotel red zone. Apparently my valet had threatened to tow his vintage autos if he left them in the red. I quickly quelled the situation, introduced myself as the supervisor, and allowed him to leave them there if he allowed us to retain the keys. This man was Al Newman from the company "Classic Wheels of Anaheim". They were in the classic car business, movies, restorations etc. Al was so grateful that he invited me to his shop for a tour and to see Eddie Munster's chain bicycle as well as the "Munsters" mobile they were working on. His shop was awesome, almost like Darnell's with old cars and parts everywhere. I asked him where I could get a 58 Plymouth 2 door hardtop. He laughed and said, "Christine fan huh"? Yes, to the extreme. We talked for hours about how he helped with some of the car coordination; they supplied a couple of the cars, including the one in Lebay's yard. By the way, that car was actually found like that. Hollywood did add their magic though.
He mentioned that they were all to be crushed after filming but he would make some calls. A few weeks went by and I got a call from Al stating that he had found a 58 Plymouth. He mentioned it was pretty bad but running on its own power and I could have it for 900 dollars but it had to be flat bedded. I ran to the bank to get the funds and paid for her. When I was paying Al he says, "Oh, did I mention it was one of the Christine cars from the film? Holy s%@ I shouted, no way! Another 2 hours go by and he told me all about the car and what role it played in the film but he did not know the condition. I didn't care at that point.
Saturday morning came around and she was delivered to my house. Oh my God! Was I ever shocked at the condition. There was no way I could ever get this car back together again. My parents were not too happy, lol. I went to Al’s and asked for help. It needs everything! What is with all the rubber moldings, metal braces and muscle 2 labels? "That was the # 2 stunt car used in the Moochie chase scene I told you about", “She's yours now”, Al says to me with a chuckle. Seeing the look of disappointment on my face he gave me the number to Bill and Ed’s auto wrecking and told me to give them a call. Make sure you let them know you bought a Christine Plymouth. That is where they all were sent to be scrapped after the film wrapped. I was there the next day and was allowed to roam the yard picking through all the wrecked Christine's. I picked up doubles, triples of everything I could. It was awesome. Aaron and John: I thank you for not taking everything, lol. I could not afford to build a show car so I just put her back together as “Christine”.
She became my daily driver through the early 90’s and was put into storage soon after. I only took her out once in a while but not often. I really never took her to any shows because no one really appreciated her. The “Offspring” band asked if they could use her in their video once and she made the cover as well. It was after seeing the Barrett Jackson promo “Christine” sell for 167,400 that I decided to bring her out of hiding and back into the world. So that is me and my story. Back then nobody cared about this fine finned beauty, which made it easy for me to find parts. She was brought back to life using parts donated by her sacrificed sisters all for our enjoyment on the silver screen. I think, had it not been for this film, these cars would still be sitting in fields and barns rotting away to oblivion. “Christine” increased awareness of these finned Forward Look era cars and stimulated huge interest all over the world. I am glad I kept her all these years and never parted with her.
Going forward, Club T-Shirts
are available at the permanent price of $33.89USea.....This includes shipping and PayPal should you chose to remit payment in that fashion. Those who have already payed and ordered shirts are "grandfathered" in and you will receive them soon.
Production is about to start.
Sizes are Small, Medium, Large, XL.
Please remit payment as
follows:
PAYPAL to:
gmcairns@tds.net
OR via certified check or
money order (no personal
checks) to:
Gwen Cairns
6975 County Rd. V V
Cassville, WI 53806
Yes...make payable to
Gwen. Look under the other CCC apparel thread to see
the design...The shirts are solid black. The shirt has the CCC
Club Logo on the Left front chest with the Large Logo...Car Pic...and Website address on
the rear. To clarify, the above
shipping cost includes tax and shipping to you per order up to 2 shirts.
Also…Please be aware that
The one time membership
Fee for all members is due.
Please see the CCC Forum
For instructions on remitting
Payment.
JANUARY 29, 2006 ISSUE 2
ISSUE 2
