~June 2023~

From the Desk of Darrel Burnett

Executive Director

My first reaction was, “It can’t really be 22 years already?” Sure enough, on the 29^th of this month it will be a full 22 years since one of America’s grand brands closed its doors forever. June 29^th, 2001, Plymouth officially went out of business. Maybe it’s because Plymouth took the smoldering ember route as opposed to going out in a blaze of glory that kept the name in our collective consciousness so long. Most of America had already moved on by the time Plymouth prepared to leave the landscape. Only 41,788 Plymouths made it into buyers’ hands in 2001 with virtually all of those in the form of the econobox Plymouth Neon. Pictured above you'll see the last Plymouth produced.

The fact that the nondescript silver metallic Neon was the very last Plymouth to go out the door June 28^th, 2001, is symbolic of the way the company came in the door 73 years before. In 1928, Walter P. Chrysler and his upscale Chrysler Corporation needed an entry-level line of cars to compete with Ford and Chevrolet. Chrysler employee Joe Frazer, who later founded the Frazer-Nash car company, was the one who creatively came up with the Plymouth name.

This is where the magic of marketing comes into play. For nearly three quarters of a century, we were led to believe that Plymouth was named after the Pilgrims, the Mayflower or something else connected to the virgin territory that became the USA. After all, it was Plymouth that handed us that map of misconception by purposely perpetuating that myth for all 73 years. Plymouth’s logo even featured the Mayflower! I hate to stick a pin in that balloon, but the Plymouth car company was actually named after a binder twine company called the Plymouth Cordage Co. For those of you not raised on a farm, binder twine is what holds hay and straw bales together. Frazer landed on the name Plymouth because farmers were Plymouth’s target audience and farmers were familiar with the Plymouth Cordage Co., the world's largest producer of rope and twine.

By the time the truth surfaced the proverbial ship had sailed on the real story of the Plymouth name. When the 50s rolled into the 60s, a young, hip generation knew Plymouth for its muscle not its Mayflower. Hemis, horsepower and wild colors propelled Plymouth to new heights. The 60s and early 70s represented the pinnacle of Plymouth as sales hit an all-time high of 973,000 in 1973, a mark that the company would never reach again. So what if history was rewritten by Plymouth’s marketing department? What is important is that the ‘Cuda, Road Runner, Superbird, GTX and Duster set a course that the Pilgrims could never have imagined. RIP Plymouth!

Don’t miss Darrel Burnett’s Steering Column coming to an inbox near you on the 15th…



The Fabulous 1961 Plymouth Fury!



If you aren't signed up for it, click HERE (then scroll to the bottom of the page)

As the automobile put horses out to pasture, the name stuck, and dashboards began to combine style with function. Credit Preston Tucker with introducing the first padded dashboard in 1948 on the revolutionary Tucker automobile. 

Today, a dashboard is more often than not a cluster of confusion filled with bells, whistles, widgets, and wonderment. And to think it all started with good old common horse sense!

Cars & Guitars 2023

Have a Father's Day you won't forget by coming downtown Green Bay! We're turning the streets into a car and music enthusiast’s dream with our annual Cars & Guitars fundraising car show and live music! All cars are welcomed - hot rods to the American Classics and everyting in between! Live music by WOGB’s All-Star band starts at 10a while the food tent will be serving brats, burgers, beef franks and cold drinks all day!

Register your car for only $15 which includes your car spot, 2 lunch combos, and the first 250 registered receive a commemorative magnetic metal dash plaque and a can koozie! Day-of registations are $20 so pre-register today!

To spice things up even more this year we’ve partnered with the Alzheimer’s Association in a Drive to End Alzheimer’s to help raise funds for the fight against Alzheimer’s. Show your support…and your car…in a car parade through senior care facitilies lead by Automobile Gallery vehicles. If you would like to participate in The Drive, $5 of every registration goes to the Alzheimer’s Association. All Drive to End Alzheimer’s participants get grouped parking, 2 complimentary lunch tickets, and as part of the car show, if you’re amongst the first 250 registered you also receive a commemorative dash plaque.

Annual t-shirts are on sale too so get yours with your car registration!

Admission into the Gallery is only $5 all day too!

Reserve your spot in the car show today by click THIS!

“Watch” What Happens!



If you think it is about time that the car show season is officially underway then we invite you to a show that really is “about time!’ Join The Automobile Gallery & Event Center team at the Watches, Whiskey, and Wheels Cruise-in this Sunday, June 4^th, at the Diamonds & Gold jewelry store from 11 AM to 3 PM Central Time.

Gallery Visitors



The Distinguished Gentlement's Ride visited the Gallery last month for their annual motorcycle ride dressed in dapper attire, riding classic bikes. We're a proud sponsor of this group's charitable work supporting men's health.

Well done, good fellows!

Festa Italiana

May 20^th was a gorgeous day on many levels at The Automobile Gallery & Event Center. We couldn’t have asked for a better day for our first Festa Italiana event as the sun was shining and the temperature was a perfect 75 degrees. More than 800 guests of all ages strolled among more than 80 exclusive Italian cars of all makes and models ranging from supercars to “super rare” Italian antiques from the 1930s.

The delectable smell of Italian food filled the air along with Italian music. Our team from The Automobile Gallery & Event Center would like to thank everyone who made Festa Italiana a day to remember.

Motion Products, Inc.

Diamonds & Gold

Landmark Resort - Egg Harbor

Vyper Industrial

N-Tech Consulting

Oley's Pepperoni and Cannoli

Captain's Walk Winery

Bountiful Boards

Nicolet National Bank

Steigler Electric

Kuehn Printing

Discover Green Bay

If you missed it, we have great news, Festa Italiana

will be back in 2024!

Corvettes of the Bay at Road America



The Automobile Gallery & Event Center was honored to sponsor Corvettes of the Bay at legendary Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI on May 11^th. It was quite a showstopping scene as 54 Corvettes snaked their way through small towns and the beautiful Wisconsin countryside on their way to the track.

The Corvettes were treated to four laps on the newly paved 4.048-mile track at Road America and attendees capped off the evening with a wonderful dinner at Road America’s Tufte Center where Steve Rohr’s name was drawn to receive an official team jacket from the Gallery’s Executive Director Darrel Burnett.   

Gallery Event Schedule

(per event details to come soon if not psoted)

June 17: Cars & Guitars Car Show

September 14: Cruisin' the Classics, Daddy D's Production

September 30: AUTOberfest (German car show)

November 9: Patriotic Salute, Daddy D's Production

December 2: Old Fashion Chrismas, Daddy D's Production

If you have specific questions on an event, please reach out to Inquire@theautomobilegallery.org

GET INVOLVED!

Opportunities at the Gallery



If you or anyone you know would like to be involved with the Gallery, we have opportunities available:

**NEW** zSpace Operational Support: set up, monitor, and tear down zSpace laptop system during student sessions

Volunteers to staff events, maintain the vehicles and Gallery, and educate guests



If interested in any mentioned role, please email Megan Lehmann at MeganL@theautomobilegallery.org

Google Reviews - We'd love yours!

The Automobile Gallery & Event Center is already on most Top 10 Lists for great things to do in Northeastern Wisconsin, now you can help even more visitors find us by giving us a great Google review.

CLICK HERE to leave your review.

It's that easy! Thank you for your time and review - it means a lot to us!

The Automobile Gallery is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization dedicated to the enjoyment and enrichment of our visitors and community. Becoming a member of The Automobile Gallery helps support its mission, which in part is to educate, inspire and sharing the passion of the automobile with others. Through the generosity of memberships, donations, admissions, and event income, the Automobile Gallery will continue for generations to come as one of the finest galleries of its kind in the country.

You may support The Automobile Gallery by making a gift to our endowment fund. This endowment will provide funding in perpetuity for the Gallery to serve the community through various educational programs, exhibits, and interactive learning environments to teach the history of the American Automobile.

Grant De Broux

Joe Griffiths & Family

Michael Sullivan &M2Logistics

Keith Obermiller & Family

Tom & Dawn Olejniczak

Jeff & Cheryl Tyndall

Ashok Rai & Family

Bob & Joylce Rupp

Joyce-Lyn & Steve Altieri

Brent Baker

James Bednarowski

Christopher Boland

Ann & Steve Bradford

Kaleb Cieslewicz

Joel Hensley & Bridget Kelley-Hensley

David Loppnow