Our first several meetings were at one of the charter member's homes, but due to our age and language of the time, quickly moved to the showroom at Arnold Pontiac on Olive Drive. The dealership was brand new, having moved over the summer of 1964 from 1st and F, across from the Boy Scout Cabin. Those meetings were in the evening, sometimes more than once a week. Not during football season. We would arrange the chairs in a circle, and after some re-organizing of seating arrangements, the meeting would begin. Our meetings were organized with old and new business being discussed. As I remember it, the winter months were more active as many of the members had summer jobs. Some worked at the Johnny"s Chevron station across the street. Some worked at other gas stations, Mel's Flying A, on the corner of 1st and B street. Some at Truffini's station downtown. El Macero Shell was owned by one member's dad so some of us worked there. Arnold's Pontiac was nice enough to employ me for two summers and after school. J.D. Young was their master mechanic. A barrel chested fellow who really commanded respect. Mr. Whitworth was the senior mechanic. Totally blind, was an unbelievably productive and wise mechanic reguardless of his sight limitation. I remember his balding head, always with fresh wounds from running into the underside of cars on the lift. I really wanted to be a mechanic. After our meetings, we would drive our cars around the parking lot, screeching our tires and making one hell of a racket. All around us were new cars, what complete idiots. When Nan Arnold found out what was going on, she came down and read us the riot act. I remember that meeting. She was a beautiful "older woman". Quite a powerful gal who, as an employee later on, you wanted to please as the consiquences might be lethal.. As more members get the idea to add information, we will introduce more history. Come on and help out.
Some of the members of the Rear Ends car club were also in sports. Our Davis Blue Devil's football team kept about half of the club busy from late summer to November. We wore our jackets and sweaters to meetings. Others played basketball, were on the track team and some were wrestlers. I do not know of any member playing tennis. A normal cross population of the studentbody as far as sports was concerned. We were not just car nuts.
Our major source of club funds was from dances. We produced, during 1965 5 dances. We learned that we were dealing outside the law with the first dances. There was a union to work with and all sorts of restrictions due to that. Bill Graham, prior to his fame as a major concert promoter, took on our club to put on the Rear Ends Dances. We will hopefully receive some billboards that have his name on them as time goes on.
Bill Graham, featured in the LA Times article just a few months after promoting the Rear Ends dances. Prior to his status of a world wide Rock & Roll Concert promoter.
After we graduated High School, as I remember it, just a few days later, we took a highly organized trip down to Tijuana. It was one of those events that scared the locals....There are stories out there, some that reveal just how stupid a young man can be. I just remember paying the youngsters to guard our cars from the local hoodlums.
OH my GOD! What the heck happened to us? Comments
For those of you who cannot remember names. Left to right. Joe Johnson, John Wright, Wayne Walgenbach, David Chally, David Aronson, Randy Morandi, Rudy Ziegler, Ken Whitehouse Tom Barrow and Ron Masterson. Missing....Allan Holloway, Doug Arnold (postumous), Sam Domino and Larry Appel.
This picture was taken in August 2021, in Davis, CA. We all gathered for a short meeting to discuss when and where our next dance will take place......That's Rudy in the back, forgot hw to shave......
Thank you to all our contributors. Rudy Ziegler, David Aronson, Randall Morandi and Keri Arnold. Please consider sending me your originals or email what you have. Also your own copy with stories and memories. We would like to preserve as much of the history as possible. Thanks to all. What a blessed life we all have enjoyed being free in America. Prayers for our Country! Peace