Thread by @iowahawkblog

Happy Mother's Day from #DavesCarIDService!*

*let me get this out of the way, right up front: please, I am begging you, for the love of comedy, take your all your "birthing person" jokes to some other tweet thread

Yes kids, long before KITT there was My Mother The Car, with Jerry Van Dyke and Ann Southern voicing his mom, reinCARnated as a "1928 Porter."

Even in a sitcom landscape of talking horses and flying nuns and Martian uncles, it proved a premise too far and was quickly canceled.

But the car ID stickler in me is compelled to note Mom is NOT a 1928 Porter; she is a 1923 Ford Model T touring, originally built as a 283 Chevy powered hot rod by my late great pal Norm Grabowski- who also built the iconic "Kookie T" for 77 Sunset Strip.

You can see the early version of the car in such cinematic masterpieces as Sex Kittens Go To College (with Norm as "Woo Woo Grabowski") and Disney's The Monkey's Uncle (with Norm as "Norm"), and on the Les Baxter full dimension stereophonic bongo beat album "Teen Drums"

Anyhoo, in 1965 it was acquired by the show producers and modified into the "1928 Porter" series star car by Norm Breedlove, dad of land speed legend Craig. A second series stunt car was built by George Barris, whose TV cars are too numerous to cite here.

Incidentally, Craig Breedlove is the subject of the Beach Boys song "Spirit of America." FWIW, the Beach Boys also backed Annette Funicello on the title song of "Monkey's Uncle" in the aforementioned Disney flick featuring Norm Grabowski and the earlier version of the "Porter."

I should really charge tuition for this kind of top shelf information, but it's time to get to the car ID requests. I will cheerfully attempt to respond to your requests as long as you respect the guidelines:

No better way to kick off today's IDs than with this brand new mom and daughter, and what looks like a brand new 1963 Dodge Dart 4 door sedan.

https://twitter.com/dxturner/status/1391048131656265731

Here's a cool and poignant mother & child photo: mom dreams of escaping the drab Soviet drudgery of her 1980ish Lada 1500 sedan, to do the Super Bowl Shuffle with the Chicago Bears.

https://twitter.com/dimaspivak/status/1391016517421109248

Keep On Truckin', Mom! Her retired driver's ed vehicle is a 1926-29 International.

https://twitter.com/BL_Abba/status/1388485639113306118

Grandma here (ht @TheSUNGlassKid) is relaxing on the running board of a Cleveland-made 1927 Chandler Model 31 roadster. Chandler was actually a fairly popular car pre WW1, but this was one of their last model years before they were merged into Hupmobile.

https://twitter.com/BillinPortland/status/1386467672309878790

Awww. Mom's beehive is an absolute marvel of 1960s Aquanette hair engineering; the two visible cars are a 1965 Ford Mustang (L) and a 1962 Chevy Biscayne.

https://twitter.com/indiucky/status/1385960697335623688

A bit of a challenge here but as best I can tell, this very fertile mom is loading her offspring into a 1926-27 Buick sedan.

https://twitter.com/davan555/status/1388573987777617921

Sadly this seems to have exhausted all the mom-centric ID requests in my queue, but I guess Frank Zappa sorta counts as a Mother; here sitting in a 46-48 Ford Tudor (cc: @ARTofCOOP)

https://twitter.com/ConservativeLA/status/1391380201469317126

*confirmed; photo is an outtake from The Monkees TV series episode 57 "The Monkees Blow Their Minds" with guest star Frank Zappa. Here's Zappa & Monkees guitarist Mike Nesmith fixin' to smash up "Travelin' Mood." Note the ginchy window dingo balls.

Here's the complete episode, featuring Zappa as Nesmith and Nesmith as Zappa. The Monkees & Zappa would later appear together in the even stranger Jack Nicholson-produced movie, "Head" (1968) which also featured (wait for it) Annette Funicello.

As long as we're on cosmic connections, Jack Nicholson's "Head" also featured Dennis Hopper with whom he would appear in Easy Rider, and a young Toni Basil with whom he would appear in Five Easy Pieces. You may remember her from the 80s mall anthem "Mickey"

yes, the inside of my skull is sometimes a frightening place

Let's get this thread back on car IDs before it goes completely off the rails. Great photo/story here but afraid I don't have enough visual for any solid IDs except for the circa 1913 Cadillac fire department ladder truck.

https://twitter.com/Kenneth_St_Cyr/status/1385964615142625284

These Future Negligent Drivers of America defenestrated the Volvo dealership with their canoe-hauler 1962 Chevy II/Nova station wagon.

https://twitter.com/yoursap/status/1385966813729730561

A lot to unpack in the carelessly parked lot of the Brown Pig, but I can tell you all 4 photo-central cars are 1939-40 Ford sedans. In pic 2 is a 1951 Studebaker.

https://twitter.com/Artdyst/status/1386009558477271048

correction: 1939-41 Fords

These blue collar fashion plates are hauling a canoe & moose head on the Topper of a 1968-72 Chevy Cheyenne pickup.

https://twitter.com/smithcp1/status/1386017001684946948

The moonshiners and scofflaws of Old Hamtramck rode to the hoosegow in style, in this 1929-31 Dodge Brothers paddy wagon.

https://twitter.com/crfpeters/status/1386028684872765442

This took a bit of research, but I believe this is a slightly modified circa 1914 Xenia Cycle Car, made in Xenia OH. Not sure what the "ROCKET" meant but the father of US rocketry, Robert Goddard, was from Worcester MA (tho probably an unknown in 1914)

https://twitter.com/meateaterrr/status/1387461785733713921

Always delighted to lend a hand to the indispensable @TracesofTexas, and the finned beauty to which he refers is a 1957 Plymouth convertible.

https://twitter.com/TracesofTexas/status/1388133495919288324

A neat montage from the equally indispensable @alisonmartino. The All In The Family cars included:

Jean Stapleton- 72 Plymouth Duster (!)
Carroll O'Conner- 72ish Mercedes 280SE
Sally Struthers- 73 Chevy Monte Carlo
Rob Reiner- 69 Mustang

https://twitter.com/alisonmartino/status/1388280358647451649

Aww. This swell Mom's Day photo includes a 1965 Ford Mustang wearing Story County (Ames) Iowa plates; either 65 (if dark blue) or 66 (if dark red). Bikes are a bit fuzzy but I think Suzuki S150 and Suzuki T20.

https://twitter.com/SpeedandSport/status/1391416429937790979

Now onto various street / junkyard spottings: this is a 1960-66 Chevy pickup wearing late 60s Chevy rally wheels. My pal & busy mom of 3 toddlers Emily can be forgiven for not keeping up with her truck studies.

https://twitter.com/emzanotti/status/1391413222134231051

hmmm. I believe a circa 1950 Dodge WC-57, probably originally equipped as a fire dept or rescue truck (due to lack of top), now getting somewhat hot rodded.

https://twitter.com/ewrobinson1/status/1386382532963233793

a 1980ish Zimmer Golden Spirit, an example of the 70s-80s "neoclassic" fad with 70s Detroit innards but styled to look vaguely like a 1930s Duesenberg or Benz. I'm not a big fan of the genre.

https://twitter.com/0351USMC/status/1386343066840227846

1954 Lincoln Capri

https://twitter.com/Gardrail/status/1385946196934549504

I occasionally dabble in trucks, and am pretty sure this is a 1939-47 Dodge 2 ton with I think a well drilling rig on it.

https://twitter.com/HeloFlyNavy/status/1385639677881892866

Pretty sure a 1936ish Rolls-Royce 25/30 Sedanca de Ville town car

https://twitter.com/j_smitty111/status/1386013569674891266

Bit of an eye test here, but I believe the vinomobile in #1 is a 1931 Chevy or GMC truck; #2 I think is a 46-49 International.

https://twitter.com/sideoutpar/status/1386687400261439489

1956 Olds 88 and 1961 Ford Galaxie 500 Starliner 2 door hardtop, one of my favorite rooflines.

https://twitter.com/sideoutpar/status/1386688275931348994

An out-to-pasture 1962 Ford Fairlane sedan.

https://twitter.com/chuck_finney/status/1386762161591046148

1965 Pontiac GTO wearing red stripe tires and very desirable Hurst 5 spoke mags.

https://twitter.com/FrankyMacDonald/status/1386860281922572288

These Brooklyn hipsters are a 1955 Plymouth Belvedere, and a bitchin' 72 Chevy Camaro with big block hood and ass jacked up sky high, righteous 70s-80s high school dirtbag style.

https://twitter.com/minhagim/status/1387541331833131008

1933-34 Dodge or Plymouth 2 door sedan.

https://twitter.com/CalebDerrick/status/1387582558913929220

oooh daddy likey. 1959 Pontiac Bonneville.

https://twitter.com/MamaLava6/status/1388133218071814145

Afraid that's it for today folks, back next weekend for more car ID fun. And a special shoutout to the mother of my kids, the delightful Mrs B, currently in Reno NV tearing up the town with her sister on a wild Mom's Day weekend.

Happy Mothering!