Interesting story here. I'd not found it before.
Gone at 49.
Western Washington, USA
Gone at 49.
Western Washington, USA
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It sure was an interesting story. I knew I liked the guy, never knew he was a Marine. He's my Studebaker hero, and if ANYbody could have dragged Studebaker out of the dumps it was him. It surely is a sad deal that he passed so young....quote:Originally posted by tomnoller
Interesting story here. I'd not found it before.
Gone at 49.
Western Washington, USA
Sonny
http://RacingStudebakers.com
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Yes indeed... a big "what if" had he been able to remain at the helm for a longer period of time.
<h5>Mark
'57 Transtar Deluxe
Vancouver Island </h5>
Mark Hayden
'66 CommanderComment
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Wow, great story. It is too bad that Egbert wasn't given the resources he needed to get the job done.
It's also an example of how far we've come, as a nation, from the days of self-sufficiency and self-reliance that used to characterize America. Back then, if you were poor, you didn't complain about it or expect the government to come to the rescue - you did what you had to do to survive. I wish we hadn't lost that.
[img=left]http://members.cox.net/clarknovak/lark.gif[/img=left]
Clark in San Diego
'63 F2/Lark Standard
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quote:Originally posted by showbizkid
Wow, great story. It is too bad that Egbert wasn't given the resources he needed to get the job done.
It's also an example of how far we've come, as a nation, from the days of self-sufficiency and self-reliance that used to characterize America. Back then, if you were poor, you didn't complain about it or expect the government to come to the rescue - you did what you had to do to survive. I wish we hadn't lost that.
Hey Clark, I'm still there!!! NT
[img=left]http://members.cox.net/clarknovak/lark.gif[/img=left]
Clark in San Diego
'63 F2/Lark Standard
Neil Thornton
Hazlehurst, GA
'57 Silver Hawk
'56 Sky Hawk
'51 2R16 dump truck
Many others.
Neil Thornton
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Thanks Tom,
Great article!!!!
Claude Chmielewski
Studeski
Fillmore, Wisconsin
47 M-16 Truck
62 GT Hawk
63 Lark
64 Commander Wagonaire
50 Champion Regal (parts car)
[img=left]http://www.studeski.com/62hawk/dakota01.jpg[/img=left]
"One after another they volunteered how in their families and in their
communities they were expected to be responsible for their behavior, how
honesty was assumed to be the rule, not the exception. They also talked
matter-of-factly about the sense of duty to their country, a sentiment not
much in fashion anymore."
1936 Dictator
1950 Champion Regal 4 dr parts car
1953 Commander Regal HT
1953 2R5 Pickup
1947 M16 Truck
1960 Lark VIII Convertible
1960 Champ 5E7 step side short box
1962 Champ 7E5 no box
1962 GT Hawk
1963 Lark VI 4 dr
1963 GT Hawk R2
1964 Daytona Convertible
1964 Commander Wagonaire
“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” ~ Abraham LincolnComment
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What Sonny said. Egbert was my hero, too. [8D]BP
We've got to quit saying, "How stupid can you be?" Too many people are taking it as a challenge. 
G. K. Chesterton: This triangle of truisms, of father, mother, and child, cannot be destroyed; it can only destroy those civilizations which disregard it.Comment
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Does anyone know of anything else written about Egbert's life? This sounds like a heck of a tale for a movie script!
Miscreant Studebaker nut in California's central valley.
1957 Transtar 1/2ton
1960 Larkvertible V8
1958 Provincial wagon
1953 Commander coupe
1957 President two door
No deceptive flags to prove I'm patriotic - no biblical BS to impress - just ME and Studebakers - as it should be.Comment
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Sir Biggs, that WOULD be a good movie! Coppola did it for Preston Tucker.
I live a little over an hour away from where he was born and drove through it once. I don't think much has changed in all those years. I couldn't even find anyone to ask where I could get info.
Western Washington, USAComment
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He was (along with his Avanti) perhaps Studebakers last chance for continuation.
But having read here and in Turning Wheels about the state of the firm and the fact that the corporation wanted to end car production, I'm afraid he couldn't have done it.
The only chance would have been new products, but there was no money for new products...
(Let's face it, the neglect of the line was awfully appearant by 63...look at the model line...Studebaker was the master of reworking the old parts they had and turning them into something "new").
Even the "last best hope" the Avanti was drubbed in the car press for having a warmed over 53 platform. Other cars...the Lark and GT Hawk were long in the tooth.
And IMHO, the Champ pickup was an embarassment...the company wouldn't even fund a rework to make a bed that fit it.
No, it would have taken more than Sherwood to save Studebaker.
In the end, the corporation itself didn't want to save the car division. I'm not sure anyone else (the union and workers) did either.
63 Avanti R1 2788
1914 Stutz Bearcat
(George Barris replica)
Washington State63 Avanti R1 2788
1914 Stutz Bearcat
(George Barris replica)
Washington StateComment
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Among Egbert's long-time hard-core fans, the debate is not about saving The Old Firm, but whether, if he'd lived, he'd have become President of the country.Comment
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[quote:Originally posted by comatus
Among Egbert's long-time hard-core fans, the debate is not about saving The Old Firm, but whether, if he'd lived, he'd have become President of the country.
] AMEN, Mike! 
BP
We've got to quit saying, "How stupid can you be?" Too many people are taking it as a challenge.
G. K. Chesterton: This triangle of truisms, of father, mother, and child, cannot be destroyed; it can only destroy those civilizations which disregard it.Comment
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The die was cast before Sherwood, one of my heros ever took the role as president. He however, was always the optimist and go-getter who know how to get it done and done well. While much of qhat he did was correct and right he had no backing from the spinless (IMHO) Board of Directors who had already made up there minds. Some fault those in company who produced the CHAMp but many in the public loved it and it gave Studebaker the wide-box bed it needed to compete. The amazing thing about the whole Champ project was the cost, a $100K approximately for the tooling and installation in SB and another $25K for the redesign of the truck in 1960. Add to that the ingenuity of chief truck engineer (whose name escapes me at the moment) and WOW a new truck was born. Tge Avanti with the inherant problems at MFG was another issue. I again believe that there is more to this piece of the story than we will ever know since they were aslo producing Corvette bodies at the same time. If tese problems had no occurred what would have been the outcome? I guess we will never know.
As too to other published pieces on Egbert, I have a piece from PLayboy and a resulting letter from an irrate stockholder. I'll try to post in a few days.sigpicSee you in the future as I write about our pastComment
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"add to that the ingenuity of chief truck engineer"
Otis Romine?
1957 Packard Clipper
1958 Golden Hawk
1963 Daytona Convertible
1963 R2 Daytona
1963 R2 GT Hawk
1963 R1 Wagonaire
1963 R4 Avanti
1964 Champ
1966 CruiserComment
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