Ok, here's a better play by play on my clock display:
(a bunch of play on words there)
USA bicentennial display^
The BFG ashtray is a 1976 issue
The eagle is a vintage cast aluminum item
The pewter tray is a bicentennial one.
(I remember what a big deal it was at the time, I even had a 1975 Chevy Impala Spirit of '76 version for a while)
The '65 Chevy Impala(one of my all time favorite hoopties) is resting on a Pennsylvania brand tire
And The can coolie is from The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey (Bruce Springsteen, one of my favorite recording artists has played there)
(
Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. is the debut
studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen)
In the rear we have a HJ Heinz delivery truck. (Heinz was originally based out of Pittsburgh)
I remember using the alleyway behind the plant to cut about ten minutes of my ride to work because Rt.28 was often a parking lot in the morning)
(I lived about 7 minutes from there when there was no traffic but some days it took about a half an hour to get there)
The other truck is a Carnation canned milk truck.
(my late uncle worked for them)
The tires are Goodyear, Firestone and another Pennsylvania that the '34 Ford is resting on.
M&M peanut are a favorite candy of mine
(Two more of those confounded tires again)
The M&M NASCAR pit crew
(it is actually an animated dispenser that drops M&Ms into the tray when you close the hood)
Behind it is a Goodyear tire and a NASCAR racing slick
This is the beginnings of my tribute to my friend the late John Brodak.
John was one of those outstanding and special individuals you meet along the path of life. He was instrumental in renewing my interest in U-controlled model aviation.
John had a model airplane factory and a hobby shop and a museum dedicated to our sport.
John set out to buy every defunct model aircraft company as he possibly could to gain the rights to all of the design work.
From there, each kit in his vast array was reproduced, not in worn out crappy die-cut wood, but by laser so they were nearly perfect right out of the box.
The commemorative hat, notepad and laser engraved balsawood button were handed out on the grand opening of the museum.
The newspaper article was about what we had first thought was the last AMA sanctioned fly-in on John and his widow Buzz's property.
At the memorial at the fly-in last summer, Buzz told us it would continue as long as her health would allow it.
I had the honor of becoming the last member to join John's Flying Circus U-controlled flight club, so all of his legacy was topped off by knowing that.
His legacy lives on as a family member took on the role of the new owner of the factory and the hobby shop.
Brodak's name if known worldwide in the U-controlled flight circuit for his achievements in AMA competition, the factory and his fly-ins held on his property.
My Brodak P-40 B kit in my yard:
In the future, the stuff on this shelf will be a part of a much bigger display highlighting my interest in the vintage side of our hobby.
Just a small part of my Jim Walker American Junior Aircraft collection:
(the American Junior airplane in the image is the same build featured in Walker's 1940 patent drawings for u-controlled flight)