Frost & French Picture

[r1lark]

Can we put names with these faces at Frost & French?

[WinM1895]

Can we put names with these faces at Frost & French?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]78877[/ATTACH]

Bob Moss - Unknown - Jerry Young - Maldonado - Unknown - Bill Wood

Pic taken at former hotel parking garage on S. Berendo Street. Frost & French moved here in 1973, after losing their long time building at 230 S. Western Ave.

Both StudeRich and I were parts guys at F&F when they were on Western, I worked there twice. Bob Moss was the parts manager.

StudeRich may be able to ID the unknowns.

[StudeRich]

Definately after You and I Bill were there at the long time location, 230 S. Western Ave.

I will never forget some of them like Jerry Young, who could practically rebuild a Twin Ultramatic, Detroit Gear or Flight-O-Matic in his sleep, blindfolded!

People sent those Ultramatic's on Pallets from all over the Country, because he was one of the few who could do them right.

I am not sure about the unknown's, but I think the 2nd. Guy from the Left is Eddy, Mr. Meldonado's partner in E & L Automotive that they started in Downtown L.A. after Frost and French moved the Parts Warehouse to Alvarado St. and later to Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, 80 Miles North of L.A. they ended Studebaker Packard Service work then after something like 56 Years.

Ya gotta wonder where Paul in NC, got this Old pic though?

[studegary]

Definately after You and I Bill were there at the long time location, 230 S. Western Ave.

I will never forget some of them like Jerry Young, who could practically rebuild a Twin Ultramatic, Detroit Gear or Flight-O-Matic in his sleep, blindfolded!

People sent those Ultramatic's on Pallets from all over the Country, because he was one of the few who could do them right.

I am not sure about the unknown's, but I think the 2nd. Gut from the Left is Eddy, Mr. Meldonado's partner in E & L Automotive that they started after Frost and French moved the Parts Warehouse to Lancaster in the Antelope Valley 80 Miles North of L.A. they ended Studebaker Packard Service work then after something like 56 Years.

Oliver Bonnerworth (sp ?), Oliver's Auto Clinic, Wappingers Falls, NY was the east coast equivalent/expert on Ultramatics. His business/garage was on a corner where the side street sloped down from the road in front. He could pull cars in the front and remove and work on the transmissions on the lower level with access from the side street. He had a separate storage property with MANY (probably over 100) 1955-1956 Packards. Probably the best 50 were bumper to bumper side to side in a large Quonset hut. He also had a large number of cars at his main property. My ex BiL bought a '37 Oldsmobile coupe and a '40 Ford coupe from him.

[WinM1895]

Definately after You and I Bill were there at the long time location, 230 S. Western Ave.

I will never forget some of them like Jerry Young, who could practically rebuild a Twin Ultramatic, Detroit Gear or Flight-O-Matic in his sleep, blindfolded!

People sent those Ultramatic's on Pallets from all over the Country, because he was one of the few who could do them right.

I am not sure about the unknown's, but I think the 2nd. Guy from the Left is Eddy, Mr. Meldonado's partner in E & L Automotive that they started in Downtown L.A. after Frost and French moved the Parts Warehouse to Alvarado St. and later to Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, 80 Miles North of L.A. they ended Studebaker Packard Service work then after something like 56 Years.

Ya gotta wonder where Paul in NC, got this Old pic though?

Packard dealer list on packardinfo.org has this same pic, but there's no pic of F&F's long time location on Western.

After F&F moved to Lancaster, Bob went home one evening, found his wife dead. Wasn't long after that Walter sold the parts to the Thoms Bros.

[r1lark]

Packard dealer list on packardinfo.org has this same pic

That's where I got it.

[53k]

Can we put names with these faces at Frost & French?

I can't place names on any of the men in the picture, but I sure remember the suit-and-tie-gentleman. He showed me around the Western Avenue facility while the shop did some work on my transition model '64 Avanti. I had bought the Avanti from a former Studebaker dealer in Hayward. The deal included a 30-day 50-50 warranty. When I realized that the car had a bad rear main leak I took it to him and he said they would have to pull the engine and such. So, with my good experience a year or so earlier, I decided to drive down to LA and have Frost and French fix it instead. The trip down was eventful to say the least. I turned in to a small town along I-5 and when I got to a stop light and pressed down the clutch, nothing happened. So, I killed the engine to stop. Then when I started up again I put the tranny in 1st (4-speed) and started the engine again in gear then shifted by synchronizing engine speed with each shift. Got back on I-5 and went the rest of the way to Western Avenue without having to stop or shift. However, turning on Western was another story. I caught every red light going to Frost and French. So, I was in the "shut off the engine mode" at the red lights then started in 1st gear each time and pretty much stayed in 1st to the next light. Finally Frost and French appeared on my right and I turned off and stopped in their service entrance. They wrote up a shop ticket and sent one of the mechanics out to drive the car in. He didn't understand that he had to start in gear and that was a near disaster. However, everything worked out fine and they did a great job of fixing things for a very low cost. They even gave me a '56 President Classic to drive around while they worked on the car.
The reason I remember the gentleman was because he showed me the very fine cars in their showroom and on the lot. I couldn't get over the number of new or almost new Studebakers in their stock. He explained that they had traveled all over the west buying cars from dealers who wanted out.

[WinM1895]

I can't place names on any of the men in the picture, but I sure remember the suit-and-tie-gentleman. He showed me around the Western Avenue facility while the shop did some work on my transition model '64 Avanti. I had bought the Avanti from a former Studebaker dealer in Hayward. The deal included a 30-day 50-50 warranty. When I realized that the car had a bad rear main leak I took it to him and he said they would have to pull the engine and such. So, with my good experience a year or so earlier, I decided to drive down to LA and have Frost and French fix it instead. The trip down was eventful to say the least. I turned in to a small town along I-5 and when I got to a stop light and pressed down the clutch, nothing happened. So, I killed the engine to stop. Then when I started up again I put the tranny in 1st (4-speed) and started the engine again in gear then shifted by synchronizing engine speed with each shift. Got back on I-5 and went the rest of the way to Western Avenue without having to stop or shift. However, turning on Western was another story. I caught every red light going to Frost and French. So, I was in the "shut off the engine mode" at the red lights then started in 1st gear each time and pretty much stayed in 1st to the next light. Finally Frost and French appeared on my right and I turned off and stopped in their service entrance. They wrote up a shop ticket and sent one of the mechanics out to drive the car in. He didn't understand that he had to start in gear and that was a near disaster. However, everything worked out fine and they did a great job of fixing things for a very low cost. They even gave me a '56 President Classic to drive around while they worked on the car.
The reason I remember the gentleman was because he showed me the very fine cars in their showroom and on the lot. I couldn't get over the number of new or almost new Studebakers in their stock. He explained that they had traveled all over the west buying cars from dealers who wanted out.

That was Bill Wood, a long time salesman who also was the cashier, telephone operator and office manager.

After Studebaker "folded the tent," F&F went around and bought the remaining new cars from former dealers in LA LA Land.

A bit of F&F history that I got from talking with Frank French.

Jack Frost & Frank French were doughboys in WWI, after the war ended, they went to work for J. A. Nadeau, a Ford dealer on east Slauson Avenue in L/A

In 1925, they opened their own Ford dealership, Frost & French at 5457 Crenshaw Blvd., then within a year, another at 750 S. LaBrea in L/A, that was named Jack Frost Ford.

In 1936, Frost died of a heart attack while on a train heading from Chicago to L/A. Walter Bibens, the business manager who went to work for F&F in 1930, bought out Frost's interest. The LaBrea store was closed.

In 1941, a Ford rep stopped by F&F, told them to remove some bumper brackets from a wall on the 2nd floor of the parts dept that were visible from the showroom. When French said no, the Ford rep began climbing the stairs, was thwarted by French who grabbed his collar and seat of his pants, threw him out the front door into the street.

F&F then cancelled their Ford franchise, signed on with Packard and after the war, moved to 230 S. Western Avenue.

btw: The opening sequences of the 1932 Paramount film "If I Had A Million" starring W.C. Fields and Alison Skipworth was filmed at Jack Frost Ford.

F&F also bought all the parts from Earle C. Anthony Inc., the former Packard Distributor at 1000 S. Hope Street in L/A...when they closed in the early 1960's. Bob Moss told me it took weeks to put away all the parts that were piled on a lot behind the dealership.

[tsenecal]

I enjoyed both post #7, and#8. They give some interesting history of Frost and French, and how they chose to do things.

[coyote]

I can't add anything about the identity of the people in the photo, but I sure remember F&F as a little kid. I used to go there with my Dad to get parts for his Avanti. One of those weird memories that never goes away is seeing a long row of emergency brake handles stacked on a rack above the parts counter. Must have been a hundred of em. This would have been in the mid 60's.

[StudeRich]

In 1970 we had a Pallet of 1959 Lark Tail Light Lenses 4 X 4 X 4 Ft. High and one full of the 1960's, they sold for about $2.25 ea. Retail List and sold like Hotcakes!

Even the Wrecking Yards came in to buy them, because so many customers asked for them and all the Used ones in the yard were smashed.

[PDT5k]

Second from the right next to Bill Wood is Raymond Albert Gries. Navy motor machinist 1 class, my grandfather who passed away in 1992 after living in Fayetteville, NC since 1979. He was under his Studebaker every single day I can remember and he had 2 of every part for it. He chose a collector in Fayetteville and sold his hawk and all parts when he was no longer able to care for it some 30 years ago. I have fond memories of riding in the back seat of that chocolate brown and chrome hawk, with burgundy interior and those little floor vents you could open to get air on your feet. I still have an original of this photo.

[Buzzard]

Thanks for this most informative post. My only connection to F & F is that circa 1971, I was building my R4 Clone(in Canada) and I had somehow located a 288 degree Avanti camshaft at F & F . Kindy my camshaft guru, (Bill) Racer! Brown, also located in greater LA, drove to F & F and purchased this camshaft before performing his magic which resulted in nothing short of awesome.
Talk about great service!
Bill

[StudeRich]

That was hard for me to recognize that Man as the Ray Gries that Bill W. and I knew well and worked with. Maybe he needs his White Shop Coat that he wore as Service Manager!
It makes me wonder just WHAT the Date of that Photo was.

I don't recall that Signage behind them either, it was probably at Alvarado St. not Western Ave. and the 2 Mechanics 2nd & 4th. from Left, I don't believe were "Long Timers" there like all the rest, so I would guess early to late 1970's.

I do remember your Grandfather well, and his "Hawk" was a Bermuda Brown Metallic 1964 Gran Turismo Hawk ordered with a "Power Shift", floor shift H.D. Flight-O-Matic Transmission, 289 V8.
It had Factory Air Cond. and I think it had the Avanti R1 High Performance Engine Option as well. It also had the "Sport Roof", White Vinyl front half Roof option.


A few years ago when I found these Pics on an eBay Ad, it reminded me of Ray and his Hawk, even though it doesn't have the White Vinyl Roof Option, looks like it might have a Black one.
There were very few Hawks in Brown.

Ray lived in a Southwest of L.A. Suburb; Hawthorne, CA where I grew up.

Are YOU going to carry on your Family's Tradition and buy a Stude. ?
Many of us here have "Extras"!

[PDT5k]

Unfortunately you guys are in a league of your own when it comes to owning Studebakers. Even If I still had that hawk I wouldn't know how to work on it. Seems like grandpa was always under it changing the seals and gaskets on that flight o matic transmission. A term I had not heard in decades and brings back fond memories of the garage Ray built for the hawk and the chevy camper truck, outside of Fayetteville, NC. He moved here in 1979 when I was born and he built a nice place in the countryside with a big garden and garage. He passed at 82 in his sleep, around 1992.

[52 Ragtop]

Studerich, I seem to remember going into F & F on Alvarado st, maybe 938? Bob & Walt Bibens. Always had a great time speaking with them. I "think" Bob, knew every part number in his head!

Jim