UPDATE: You Could Have Seen The Ark in Person at World of Wheels…

UPDATE: Well, the event has been cancelled to to all the germy germs and stuff. But what the heck I decided to let this run anyway. Laurie took some nice pictures!

March 20th through the 22nd would have been when the World of Wheels car show in Boston would have been held, but is now defunct-at least until next year! I’ve never been, but I’ve heard good things. Anyway, my pal Laurie Kraynick will be would have been there, and The Ark, her gorgeous aqua 1970 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham, will be would have been there too. To say she is was excited would be would have been a massive understatement.

Deep into detailing and prepping last weekend. With a rum and Coke, naturally.

As she related:

“World Of Wheels, can you phucking believe it? Been going to that event since I got my driver’s license, now, I’m an exhibitor, with THE ARK. Just can’t believe it, so blessed, so happy. And I believe WOW is *SOLD OUT* for exhibitors, outstanding. This is gonna be a blast, what a bucket list check!”

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1970 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham: Ahoy Polloi!

I’ve always loved Cadillacs. It goes way back. As a kid, watching Magnum, P.I. and various and sundry 1970s movies like The Enforcer and Magnum Force, I was more interested in the bad guys’ Cadillacs chasing Magnum or being followed by Harry Callahan in his Custom 500. Starting with its inception in 1902 and continuing more or less through the Sixties, Cadillac produced well-built, well-finished, impressive–and expensive–cars.

Inside and out, wherever you looked you saw chromed, die-cast metal, leather, fine fabrics and extensive gadgetry. Smooth, quiet, powerful. That was Cadillac. Increasing safety regulations, increasing sales of Cadillacs (and the need to speed up production accordingly) meant that some of that very visible quality and integrity went down, just a little bit. But in 1970, Cadillacs still looked good, and provided proper motivation if one felt the need to mat the accelerator pedal.

The 1970 Cadillacs were mildly restyled versions of the 1969 models. In my opinion, the 1970 Cadillac is that uncommon event when a facelift actually winds up looking better than the original version.

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Summer Approaches: The 2019 Shirey Cadillac Show

Yesterday marked the fifth year I have attended the Shirey Cadillac show in Oak Lawn, Illinois. It is unique in that most of the cars there are interesting and not common show fare. Sure, on occasion there is a hot rod, Mustang or 1957 Chevrolet, but they are a small fringe element to the Broughamage that is usually on display.

1977 Cutlass Supreme Brougham. All original with 24,000 miles.

And it’s always nice to see my fellow Chicagoland Cadillac club friends. I interact with them all the time online, but only see them 2-3 times in person per year.

Oh, and the dealership grills lunch for everyone, gratis. So. I get to eat, yak with my fellow Brougham aficionados, gawk at the cars, and take approximately 250-300 photos each year. What’s not to like?

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