[DeTomaso] Fwd Al Axlerod tribute....

[Mike Drew]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: wallace wyss 
> Date: May 6, 2015, 12:06:07 PDT
> To: 576103 <MikeLDrew at aol.com>
> Subject: for POCA
> 
> Remembering Al Axelrod, dead at 80 plus…
> By Wallace Wyss
>  
>   I was introduced to Al Axelrod, master mechanic, way back in the early ‘70s by a used car dealer employee who said Al could divine the mysteries of any foreign car that wasn’t operating up to snuff.
>    For twenty four years Al had a shop in West Hollywood in the same building that once housed Lance Reventlow’s Scarab works.
>  He specialized in British cars, from Austin Healey to Rolls Royce.
>    Al was a taciturn guy, a small man, but with a big heart.
>  He had graduated from Cal State LA on the GI bill.
>    When I first met him, and right up to his late ‘70s he was a good skier and went as far as the Grand Tetons to find a good slope.
>    He was a car collector as well, and during his years in business owned MGs, Jaguars , an Aston Martin and a Pantera, which he owned to his dying day.
>    He had a daughter, who became a stained glass artist, and a psychology industry professional, and a son, Aaron, who operated a window cleaning business in suburban Denver.
>    One of the joys of his life was attending Pantera club
> Conventions with Aaron, where they both got to show off their well-maintained  car and  join other owners in the events.
>    Al, for a guy from the mean streets of Chicago, was kind of shy. I remember I took him to the Monterey car week to assist me in my reporting, and I’d be talking to Phil Hill, or Stirling Moss and Al would be right there but not want to meet the person, not wanting to appear to be a fanboy, I guess.
>     I also saw him as a judge at a concours, a role both he and I were wary of, for getting in arguments over “what’s original.”
>    We even competed for a car now and then, I bought a Ferrari GTC/4 I found in his shop, a car that belonged to a movie producer. Al had failed to buy it but I, trying after that, succeeded and never brought it to Al for service, fearing he would be grumpy about it.
>    One of the things he seldom talked about was being at LeMans in ’55, while on leave from the US Army, and volunteering, after the Mercedes SLR went into the crowd, helping stack up the bodies (81 people were killed).
>  After he sold his shop in the trendy West Hollywood area, he became a forensic vehicle inspector, not an easy job with cars becoming so computer controlled.
>    Brian Winer and I were able to rope him in on writing a book on the ’05-06 Ford GT and he pitched in and read the manuscript, correcting our mistakes and even volunteered to drive the ’05 test car for a couple of days. I think he was proud to have his name on a book cover.
>    His last few years were spent in a town called Centennial, nearby Denver, where he enjoyed still investigating accidents and hanging out with hot rodder Neal East (Al had some sort of ‘30s Ford pickup truck). I remember he and Neal went to a hot rod meet and I got a kick out of picturing that—two hot rodders, both in their 80s, cruising out to an event in a hot rod able to tell the youngins there what it was really like in the '50s.
>   His son Aaron lived nearby and in Colorado Al could enjoy skiing.
>    He died of pancreatic cancer, surrounded by his loved ones.
>  
-------------- next part --------------
   Begin forwarded message:

   From: wallace wyss
   Date: May 6, 2015, 12:06:07 PDT
   To: 576103 <[1]MikeLDrew at aol.com>
   Subject: for POCA

   Remembering Al Axelrod, dead at 80 plus...

   By Wallace Wyss


     I was introduced to Al Axelrod, master mechanic, way back in the
   early `70s by a used car dealer employee who said Al could divine the
   mysteries of any foreign car that wasn't operating up to snuff.

      For twenty four years Al had a shop in West Hollywood in the same
   building that once housed Lance Reventlow's Scarab works.

    He specialized in British cars, from Austin Healey to Rolls Royce.

      Al was a taciturn guy, a small man, but with a big heart.

    He had graduated from Cal State LA on the GI bill.

      When I first met him, and right up to his late `70s he was a good
   skier and went as far as the Grand Tetons to find a good slope.

      He was a car collector as well, and during his years in business
   owned MGs, Jaguars , an Aston Martin and a Pantera, which he owned to
   his dying day.

      He had a daughter, who became a stained glass artist, and a
   psychology industry professional, and a son, Aaron, who operated a
   window cleaning business in suburban Denver.

      One of the joys of his life was attending Pantera club

   Conventions with Aaron, where they both got to show off their
   well-maintained  car and  join other owners in the events.

      Al, for a guy from the mean streets of Chicago, was kind of shy. I
   remember I took him to the Monterey car week to assist me in my
   reporting, and I'd be talking to Phil Hill, or Stirling Moss and Al
   would be right there but not want to meet the person, not wanting to
   appear to be a fanboy, I guess.

       I also saw him as a judge at a concours, a role both he and I were
   wary of, for getting in arguments over "what's original."

      We even competed for a car now and then, I bought a Ferrari GTC/4 I
   found in his shop, a car that belonged to a movie producer. Al had
   failed to buy it but I, trying after that, succeeded and never brought
   it to Al for service, fearing he would be grumpy about it.

      One of the things he seldom talked about was being at LeMans in '55,
   while on leave from the US Army, and volunteering, after the Mercedes
   SLR went into the crowd, helping stack up the bodies (81 people were
   killed).

    After he sold his shop in the trendy West Hollywood area, he became a
   forensic vehicle inspector, not an easy job with cars becoming so
   computer controlled.

      Brian Winer and I were able to rope him in on writing a book on the
   '05-06 Ford GT and he pitched in and read the manuscript, correcting
   our mistakes and even volunteered to drive the '05 test car for a
   couple of days. I think he was proud to have his name on a book cover.
      His last few years were spent in a town called Centennial, nearby
   Denver, where he enjoyed still investigating accidents and hanging out
   with hot rodder Neal East (Al had some sort of `30s Ford pickup truck).
   I remember he and Neal went to a hot rod meet and I got a kick out of
   picturing that--two hot rodders, both in their 80s, cruising out to an
   event in a hot rod able to tell the youngins there what it was really
   like in the '50s.
     His son Aaron lived nearby and in Colorado Al could enjoy skiing.

      He died of pancreatic cancer, surrounded by his loved ones.


   [cid:7D54EC68-EDA7-4E1B-BCB6-9B379834BE1D]

References

   1. mailto:MikeLDrew at aol.com
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