Doc Savage and aides motorcars
klko...@hotmail.com
in his adventures. I think I remember reading how he liked
convertibles since they allowed him to see all around, but most of his
stories seem to be using his fleet of armored cars- which probably
wouldn't be convertibles, and would be hardtoped four doors. He
usually semed to use cars that could possibly fit three in the front
and three or more in the rear- maybe someone on the floorboards often
seeming the case. Also were they black nondescript vehicles or flashy
bronze jobs. Monk drove a car that was in shambles - a Ford Model A or
?. What would Ham, Johnny and Renny Drive? Supposedly Long Tom had a
v16 roadster? What kind of cars would you pick for Pat, who named them
after WWII leaders? What type of vehicle would be Doc's signature car?
Like the one in the movie? or a roadster - or a tank -or another fancy
two-door convertible?
I saw this gallery of older vintage vehicles at:
http://auto.indiamart.com/cars/photo-gallery/index.html
I saw some types that fit the time period- Like:
Packard
Pierce Arrow
Bently
Mercedes-Benz
Duessenburg
Cadillac v16
Lincoln
Hispano Sueza
Rolls Royce
other...? or Specific types mention in the stories?
What types would you prefer for each of their cars and the general use
armored vehicles?
Bill Jackson
The car in the movie was a replica of a Cord. The originals had
front-wheel drive, a kind of automatic transmission, hidden radio
antenna, and hide-away headleghts; they didn't have running boards. It
is the kind of car I'd expect Doc to DESIGN. Doc probably used
something big (I mean BIG), like a Lincoln, a Duesenberg, or a
Cadillac. I bought a model Duesnberg 'way back when and painted it
metallic bronze; it fit. The Rolls Royce Silver Shadow I got at the
same time I painted black; it fit. These were the cars I thought that
Doc and The Shadow would use. I had a 1936 Ford panel truck that ended
up metallic bronze also, complete with a little chem lab and a radio.
I don't think Doc would use a Mercedes, although a Packard and a
Pierce Arrow would not be out of the question. I think that Wentworth
guy must have had the concession of Hispano-Suzas. Then again, a lot
of his vehicles may have been non-descript Chevy's , Fords,
Studebakers, Plymouths, or Pontiacs, painted non-descript colors, but
with light armor plate and high-performance engines.
It was Long Tom, I think, that had the "crate" that looked like a
rolling junkheap but had a racing engine under what was left of the
hood. I don't remember Ham, Renny, or Johnny ever having a car of
their own. Gee, maybe I should re-read the entire series and see. If I
had to guess, though:
Renny: big-Packard, Lincoln, Cadillac, Oldsmobile, Crysler Imperial,
Buick
Johnny: utilitarian-Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, Studebaker, maybe a
Chrysler Airflow (for some reason I can see it).
Ham: fancy-Cord, Mercedes, Bentley, anything expensive, but not garish
or ostentatious (okay, maybe a little ostentatious)
Monk: ostentatious as hell-anything fast, fancy, and expensive. He
probably had an old Ford around for those times he was broke.
Long Tom: deceptive-Ford, Chevrolet, Hudson, Hupmobile, Nash, any old
car body he can drop his engine and drive train in.
Funny thing about cars is what happens over time: in the old Avengers
TV show, Steed drove an old 1928 Bentley. Bentley made a good car, but
anyone who saw this car would most likely see just an old car (running
board, separate headlights, flat whidshield). What they might not know
is that it was an old RACING car, and while it might not beat Emma's
Lotus Elan, it would probably still outperform most contemporary
(1960s) cars in the speed and handling.
John Lowe
news:c25f47c8.03101...@posting.google.com:
SNIP
> It was Long Tom, I think, that had the "crate" that looked like a
> rolling junkheap but had a racing engine under what was left of the
> hood. I don't remember Ham, Renny, or Johnny ever having a car of
> their own. Gee, maybe I should re-read the entire series and see. If I
> had to guess, though:
>
SNIP
I think it was Johnny who had the old bomb with the racing engine. Long Tom
had a flashy coupe that was tricked out with electronic gadgets (including
various versions of his bug killing device).
There's a scene in THE RED TERRORS where Johnny and Long Tom give a bunch
of reporters the slip in a "sleeper" car; the fact that Johnny is driving
leads me to think it was his car. I'll have to do a little more searching,
but I'm pretty sure there are other references to Johnny's car.
John Lowe
FurlRoman
ruling out Rolls, Mercedes, etc. This would reflect the American financial
attitude at the time.
klko...@hotmail.com
> had a flashy coupe that was tricked out with electronic gadgets (including
> various versions of his bug killing device).
>
> There's a scene in THE RED TERRORS where Johnny and Long Tom give a bunch
> of reporters the slip in a "sleeper" car; the fact that Johnny is driving
> leads me to think it was his car. I'll have to do a little more searching,
> but I'm pretty sure there are other references to Johnny's car.
>
> John Lowe
plane engine or perhaps jet engine? Maybe this was from PJF's
Apocalyptic Life. I wonder if they could have had a steamer, I
remember seeing Howard Hughs trying to develop a steamer in a film or
documentary, maybe they could have had designed their own prototype.
I thought I remebered Monk having a shambling jalopy, and Ham laughing
one time as he stepped out of it and a fender fell off or was it the
bumper or some other part.
Since they used them in the stories so much, I wonder what type of
Taxi's they had back then, where they plain black taxi's or did they
have the yellow checker cabs then. I wish knew what kind these yellow
checker cabs were- I've still seen some cherry old checkered cabs
driving around but with private owners. I guess they're really
reliable.
ANIM8Rfsk
<< Also note that in the stories, Doc's cars were described as American made,
ruling out Rolls, Mercedes, etc. This would reflect the American financial
attitude at the time. >>
The Tom Swift Junior books did something similiar. Tom himself drove a 2
passenger foreign make low slung sports car, but Bud drove an American made
fire engine red sports convertible that seated 4 (it's what they took on double
dates). I always found that sort of intriguing. I imagine that behind the
scenes the authors had specific cars in mind and generalized them for print.
But I never quite got the point of saying one car was American made and one
foreign made (as they both had sports cars, so that wasn't the
differentiation).
___________
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FurlRoman
Bill Jackson
> I said v16 in my previous post- but now I recollect something about a
> plane engine or perhaps jet engine? Maybe this was from PJF's
> Apocalyptic Life. I wonder if they could have had a steamer, I
> remember seeing Howard Hughs trying to develop a steamer in a film or
> documentary, maybe they could have had designed their own prototype.
>
> I thought I remebered Monk having a shambling jalopy, and Ham laughing
> one time as he stepped out of it and a fender fell off or was it the
> bumper or some other part.
> Since they used them in the stories so much, I wonder what type of
> Taxi's they had back then, where they plain black taxi's or did they
> have the yellow checker cabs then. I wish knew what kind these yellow
> checker cabs were- I've still seen some cherry old checkered cabs
> driving around but with private owners. I guess they're really
> reliable.
You may be thinking of a V12. My mother says that my grandfather had a
V12 Lincoln, and isists that you couldn't fill the gas tank when the
engine was running. I did see a V16 Ferrari once...
klko...@hotmail.com
found said there were around forty, but it looks like more.
I'll include my current compiled list for any of those interested.
I think most of the entries with denoted with ** are foreign, some
of the listed manufacturers and/or models may be after '40's.
I'm trying to par it down to just American pre '40's. And also put
models under their major manufactures and try to eliminate double
listings.
Such as General Motors: manufactured all LaSalle, Cadillacs and
Buicks?
Any Others?
Ford?
Chrysler?
Chevrolet?
Foreign only?:
Volkswagon
Citron or Citroen?
American makes(not completely verified)?:
A.C.
Adler**
Alfa Romeo
Alvis - Speed 20, Speed 25, and 4.3 litre
Amilcar**
Armstrong-Siddeley**
Aston Martin - '27-'39 - All
Auburn - All 8 and 12 cylinder
Austro-Daimler
B.M.W. - 327, 328, 327/318 and 335
Ballot**
BANTAM
Bentley
Benz
Blackhawk
Brewster - All Heart Front '113-300'
BROCKWAY TRUCK
Brough Superior**
Bucciali - TAV 8, TAV 30, TAV 12 and Double Huit
Bugatti - All except type 52
Buick - '31-'42 - 90 Series
Cadillac - All 12's and 16's,'25-'35-All,'36-'48-All 63, 65, 67, 70,
72, 75, 80, 85, 90 Series, '38-'47 - 60 Special,'40-'47-All 62 Series
CHALMERS
Chenard-Walcker**
CHEVROLET
CHEVROLET TRUCK
Chrysler - '25,995' '26-'30 80. Imperial
80E-'28/80L-'29,'31/37-Imperial CG, CH, CL, and CW, Newports and
Thunderbolts,'34 CX,'35 C-3,'36 C-11,'37-'48 Custom Imperial, Crown
Imperial C-15, C-20, C-24, C-27, C-33, C-37, C-40.
CLEVELAND /FARM TRACTOR
CONTINENTAL
Cord - '6,749'
Cunningham - '800' Series V6, V7, V8, V9
CROSLEY
Dagmar - 6-80 '100-155' 1925: 93, 1926: 61, 1927: 1
Daimler - All 8 and 12 cylinder
Darracq - 8 cylinder and 4-litre 6 cylinder
Delage - Model D-8
Delahaye - Series 135, 145, 165
Delaunay Belleville - 6 cylinder
DESOTO
DEVAUX
Doble - '15'
DODGE
DODGE TRUCK
Dorris - '23' '23/25
du Pont - '386'
Duesenberg - '725'
DURANT
ESSEX
ESSEX TERRAPLANE
Excelsior**
Farman
Fiat**
FN**
FORD REO
FORD TRUCK
Franklin Nash - All models except '33-34 Olympic
Frazer-Nash**
GARDNER
Georges Irat
GMC TRUCKS
Graham - '30-'31-Series 137
Graham-Paige - '29-'30-Series 837
Hispano-Suiza - All French models Spanish models T56, T56BIS, T64
Horch
Hotchkiss**
Hudson - '28/31 L '29
HUDSON TERRAPLANE
Humber**
HUPMOBILE
INTERNATIONAL
Invicta
Isotta-Fraschini
Itala
Jaguar - '46-'48 - 2-1/2 litre, 3-1/2 litre (Mark IV)
JEFFERY
Jensen**
Jordan - '5' Speedway Series Z, '29-31 Jordan 8, model G, 90 and Great
Line 90
Julian - '1-6'
Kissel - '25-26, '27-8-75, '28-8-90 White Eagle '29 -'31 8-126
LASALLE
Lagonda - All models except 1933 - 1940 Rapier
Lanchester**
Lancia**
LaSalle - '27-'33
Lincoln - All L, KA, KB, and K '41 - 168 H '42 - 268 H All
Lincoln-Continentals
Locomobile - All models 48 and 90, '27-'29 - Model 8-80, '29 - 8-88
M.G. - '35-'39 SA '38-'39 WA
MACK TRUCK
Marmon Tatra** - 16 cyl.'25-'26-74,'27-75,'28- E75,1930-Big 8,'31-88
Big 8
Maserati**
Maybach
MAXWELL
McFarlan - TV6 and 8 '390-777'
Mercedes
Mercedes-Benz - 230 and up, Benz built prior to merger,'26-26 10/30
h.p., 16/50 h.p. Sport. K., S., S.S., S.S.K., S.S.K.L. Grosser and
Mannheim
Mercer - '6'
MERCURY
METZ
Minerva - All except 4-cylinder
MITCHELL
N.A.G.**
Nash - '15,940' '30 490,'31 8-90,'32 9-90, Advanced 8 and Ambassador
8-'33/34
OAKLAND
OLDSMOBILE
OVERLAND
Packard - All 12 cylinder models,'25-'34 All sixes and eights
PAIGE
Peerless - '25 67,'26/28 69,'30/31 Custom 8,'32 Deluxe Custom 8
Peugeot**
Pierce-Arrow
PLYMOUTH
PLYMOUTH TRUCK
PONTIAC
R & V KNIGHT
Railton**
Raymond Mays**
Renault - 45 HP
Reo - 1931/34, All Royale 8-cylinder
REO TRUCK
Revere - '27-100' 1925: 21, 1926: 6.
RICKENBACKER
Roamer - '474' '25 8-88,6-54e,4-75,4-85e,'26 4-75e,4-85e,8-88,'27/29
8-88,'29/30 8-120 2 Roamers were built in 1929, a coupe and a sedan
Rochet Schneider**
Rohr**
Rolls-Royce - '1,874' Springfield Mass. production only, starting Jan
'25.
ROOSEVELT
Ruxton - '300'
SEYERS SCOVILL - S.S. Jaguar'32-'40 S.S. 1, S.S. 90, SS Jaguar and SS
Jaguar 100
Squire
Stearns-Knight
Stevens-Duryea - '3' most before '25
Steyr**
Studebaker - '28 8, FA & FB President, '29-'33 President except Model
82
STUDEBAKER TRUCK
Stutz - Bearcat
Sunbeam - 8 cylinder and 3 litre twin cam
Talbot - 105C and 110C
Talbot-Lago - 150C
Triumph - Dolomite 8 and Gloria 6
Vauxhall - 25-70 and 30-98
Voisin
Wills-Sainte Claire
WILLYS
Willys-Knight - '25/30 Series 66, 66A, 66B
The notes are my abbrebiations of another reference of classics-
mine are just spurious and are not intended to be official or complete
authorized classics compendidum.
Please feel free to add any comments, corrections, or additions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
mavericstallion8
Dave
The MArvel Comics cars were artist's composite, you're right. Lots of Dusenburg, Caddie, Rolls, Bentley touches. Those would have been DOC's cars. It wasn't until post-World War II that the average US car gets really big; most standard models in the 1920's and '30's were not large
Dave
Tim.B...@redbridge.gov.uk
> I almost thought the NG was alive again, until I realized most of these posts are over 10 years old.
Tim.B...@redbridge.gov.uk
Alfa Romeo and Bugatti are Italian.
BMW is German, as is Benz.
zath...@gmail.com
Doc: 1936 Cord 810 convertible coupe
Renny: Bugatti (presumably the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic)
Ham: Mercedes-Benz (presumably the 1936 Mercedes-Benz 500K or 540K roadster)
Johnny: DeSoto Airstream (presumably the 1936 DeSoto S1 sedan)
Long Tom: Hupmobile (presumably the 1936 Hupmobile 618 G Touring Sedan)
Monk arrives in a "war wagon" disguised as an ice truck (presumably the 1936 1936 Studebaker 2M225), from which Doc & Company equip themselves with black lights and goggles.
Ravage
> FWIW, the unproduced script for George Pal's "The Arch Enemy of Evil" (20 Apr 1974) specifies the vehicles of all of Doc's aides except Monk as the race to join him at the Warfield Drug Store at Ashcroft and Third.
ThePulp.Net editor
> I had forgotten that! You given me some momentum to pick up that script and read it again. I got mine off the internet, never knew if it was the actual script for the sequel.
published a series of the Doc Savage movie scripts, including all of the
unproduced ones. I don't see them listed on their website, but they are
available on their eBay store:
< http://www.ebay.com/sch/fantompress/m.html >
- Bill
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