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John Wayne surprisingly generously gave Richard Boone a luxurious Rolls Royce.In addition to being an excellent actor, ...
12/27/2025

John Wayne surprisingly generously gave Richard Boone a luxurious Rolls Royce.
In addition to being an excellent actor, Wayne was also an impeccable gift-giver.
Boone once recounted a story about Wayne's gift to a friend and fellow Flagler professor, Tom Rahner. Years later. Rahner recalled that Boone had made a very brief appearance in Wayne's film, The Alamo. Boone played Sam Houston, a character with a real-life counterpart that lived from 1793 until 1863.

Because the role was smaller, Boone had refused outright compensation for playing the character in the film. However, Wayne wouldn't let his actor and friend leave empty-handed and surprised him with an incredibly generous gift.

Rahner stated, "When Boone arrived back home after the shooting, a brand new Rolls Royce, a gift from Wayne, was in his driveway!"

Still, despite his fame, Boone never let celebrity get to his head. Rahner stated, "Dick talked about his career, as might have been expected, but not to excess. He was proud of his accomplishments, but I would not characterize him as a braggart.

Tony Dow Reunites With His First Car After 50 Years, A Beautiful Full-Circle MomentTony Dow, beloved for playing Wally C...
12/27/2025

Tony Dow Reunites With His First Car After 50 Years, A Beautiful Full-Circle Moment
Tony Dow, beloved for playing Wally Cleaver on the classic 1950s series Leave It to Beaver, was known not only as the Beaver’s older brother but also as a lifelong car enthusiast. What many fans don’t know is that Dow’s passion for cars ran deep, and it eventually brought his very first vehicle back to him half a century later.

Dow’s connection to the automotive world was strengthened by his long friendship with Fireball Tim Lawrence, a Hollywood concept artist behind more than 400 iconic movie cars, including the 1989 Batmobile and vehicles from The Avengers, Starsky and Hutch, and The Fast and the Furious. Lawrence later featured Dow in one of his automotive-themed coloring books.

Despite becoming a familiar face on Leave It to Beaver, Dow originally landed the role of Wally almost by accident. The first actor cast appeared too mature, and producer Harry Akerman remembered Dow, who had little acting experience, something he later said worked in his favor.

Cars occasionally played key roles in the show, and even future drag racing legend “TV Tommy” Ivo appeared in a couple of episodes. Dow himself loved tinkering with engines from a young age, even building makeshift neighborhood cars using lawnmower motors, a story that eventually inspired a script for the series.

During his time as Wally Cleaver, Dow drove a variety of cars on the show, including a 1953 Chevy he bought for $220 and his father’s 1963 Plymouth Fury. But the first car he ever owned in real life was a 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Spyder.

Dow sold the Corvair in 1965 to a Universal Studios prop man named Al. When Al fell ill decades later, he passed the car to a friend named Marty along with strict instructions: if Tony Dow could be found, the car must be returned to him.

In 2015, that promise was fulfilled.

“After 50 years, my first car has returned to my garage,” Dow shared. Although now painted black, the Corvair still wears its original license plate and a frame quoting Ralph Nader’s famous line: ‘Unsafe at any speed.’

It was an emotional full-circle moment, one that reunited Dow not just with an old car, but with a cherished piece of his youth.

Living the dream: Florida heavy hauler follows family tradition as third generation truckerBubba Branch grew up surround...
12/26/2025

Living the dream: Florida heavy hauler follows family tradition as third generation trucker
Bubba Branch grew up surrounded by trucks. Long before he could drive, he was already sitting in the cab of his grandfather’s rig in Florida, shifting gears and pretending to log miles without ever leaving the yard. Trucking wasn’t just a career choice for Branch; it was a family legacy.

Both his father and grandfather spent more than four decades on the road, and Branch proudly followed in their footsteps. Of seven siblings, he was the only one who caught the trucking bug, riding along with his dad whenever he could and cherishing time spent with a grandfather who could do no wrong in his eyes.

At 18, Branch earned his CDL and landed his first job driving a worn-out 1970s GMC Brigadier for a Central Florida company. The truck was rough, full of fumes, and patched-up floorboards, but Branch took the opportunity without hesitation. That determination carried him through the early struggles and into a successful trucking career spanning more than two decades.

Today, at 44, Branch and his wife, Krystal, own and operate Atlas Heavy Haul in Lakeland, Florida, hauling heavy equipment across the country. One of his most demanding jobs involved transporting a 200,000-pound electrical unit from Miami to Pittsburgh, a journey that took nearly two weeks to complete.

When he’s not hauling freight, Branch pours his passion into his show truck, a custom-built 1996 Kenworth W900 known as Just a Phase. Repainted red and rebuilt from the inside out, the truck features extensive custom work, much of it done by family. His son Kolt painted the dash, while his wife handled many of the accent pieces. Powered by a CAT 3406E engine and an 18-speed transmission, the truck has already earned awards, including Best Chrome and Best Engine at the Shell Rotella SuperRigs event.

Branch’s pride doesn’t stop with trophies. His greatest hope is that trucking remains a respected profession for the next generation. Kolt, one of his three children, already shares his father’s passion and rides along whenever possible, dreaming of one day taking the wheel himself.

While Branch acknowledges challenges facing the industry, especially the lack of safe truck parking, he remains deeply grateful for the life trucking has given him.

“I’m doing what I love,” Branch says. “I’m thankful to be a truck driver, and I respect everyone out here doing the job.”

For Bubba Branch, trucking isn’t just work, it’s heritage, pride, and a lifelong dream still rolling down the highway.

1949 Dodge Power Wagon Restomod. 😱
12/26/2025

1949 Dodge Power Wagon Restomod. 😱

Dad Gave up Prized 1965 Corvette to Start Family, So Son Surprises Him With One 50 Years LaterMore than 50 years ago, Ro...
12/26/2025

Dad Gave up Prized 1965 Corvette to Start Family, So Son Surprises Him With One 50 Years Later
More than 50 years ago, Ron Farrell bought the car of his dreams, a brand-new 1965 red Corvette with a black interior and soft top. Fresh out of college and climbing the corporate ladder at Northern Natural Gas, Ron was a young man with a passion for classic cars. But when he and his wife welcomed two baby boys in the late 1960s, the two-seat Corvette no longer made sense. With reluctance, he sold it and replaced it with a practical family car.

The story became a cherished family memory and a long-running joke between Ron and his second son, Brent Farrell, who grew up hearing how he was one of the reasons the Corvette had to go.

That joke eventually turned into a dream.

Brent, now 55 and owner of a construction company, never forgot the sacrifice his father made. Since receiving his own first car, a powerful 1985 Mustang GT from his parents, he had always hoped he could repay his dad in the same unforgettable way.

For decades, Brent kept an eye out for a Corvette like his father’s. Then, in 2022, he spotted one at an auction, a fully restored 1967 Corvette, nearly identical to the ’65 model Ron had owned. Unlike many cars he’d seen, this one had been rebuilt from the ground up: original engine, transmission, carburettor, and rear end. Safe, reliable, and pristine.

Brent won the auction and quickly brought the car home. After a final inspection by a Corvette specialist, he and his siblings planned the perfect reveal: a surprise during their mother Alice’s 80th birthday celebration.

When the family arrived at Brent’s house, the Corvette sat in a neighbour’s driveway with a fake “For Sale” sign. Ron immediately recognised it, “This looks just like mine!” he said, full of nostalgia. They coaxed him and Alice into the car, reminiscing about the old days.

Then came the twist.

Brent pulled out a “car write-up” from the glove box and asked Alice to read it aloud. At the bottom were the listed owners: Ron and Alice Farrell.

In that moment, everything clicked. Ron threw his hands in the air and shouted:

“Hallelujah, I’m in Heaven!”

The couple was stunned, overjoyed, and overwhelmed that after more than half a century, Ron once again had a Corvette just like the one he’d sacrificed for his family.

In the weeks since, Ron has enjoyed driving the car around town and even took Alice out for a special spin, just like old times.

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