We are proud to announce Wayne Carini of Discovery HD Theater’s “Chasing Classic Cars” and his dad, Bob Carini, have agreed to continue as the Grand Marshals of the Klingberg Vintage Motorcar Festival. It was great to have Wayne and his dad share this honor, as we celebrated the importance of families at the 2011 Festival and Father’s Day Weekend and are delighted that it will continue.

An episode of Chasing Classic Cars, produced by Essex Television Group, was filmed at the 2011 Klingberg Vintage Motorcar Festival and premiered December 6, 2011.

Wayne’s passion for cars started when he was a child working alongside his dad on such classics as Duesenbergs, Lincolns, Packards and Ford Model A’s. Then, at just 9 years of age, he experienced a life altering event: he went for a ride in his first Ferrari. This set him on a career journey dealing with all types of vintage automobile collectors throughout the world.

Chasing Classic Cars , now in its fourth season, gives the viewer a look into Wayne’s circle of clients as he searches out and uncovers the world’s most rare and exotic cars. Chasing Classic Cars shows the viewer the world of car restorers and collectors as Wayne buys, restores and sells vintage automobiles.

With a lifetime of experience in automobile restoration under his belt, master car restorer Wayne Carini has a resume’ that includes body and paint work on rare car collections owned by the likes of David Letterman, tennis great Ivan Lendl and the DuPont family. He’s been featured in the New York Times as well as numerous automobile magazines, and starred in two one-hour television specials, for Discovery’s HD Theater Channel: Monterey Week and The World’s Most Expensive Cars.

Wayne and his wife have been married for 25 years and he is a dedicated father of two daughters. The family resides in rural Connecticut, in a log home that Wayne built 34 years ago. An avid supporter of autism research organizations, he helps organize and sponsor car events for the benefit of children and adults with autism. His incentive to find a cure or treatment is his youngest daughter, who was diagnosed with autism at an early age. It is this experience that gives Wayne an understanding of the work with children and families that goes on each and every day at Klingberg Family Centers.

Wayne is also involved in and regularly attends many different car clubs and events to get young people involved in the car collector hobby. He believes that without young people’s involvement, the car collector tradition will disappear. His latest passion is convincing families with special needs children to consider placing collector cars into a special needs trust with the hope that the cars will benefit the children in the future. Wayne supports the Automobile Restoration Program at Klingberg’s Raymond Hill School.

A Trumbull, made in Bridgeport, CT

At the 2010 Klingberg Concours d’Elegance 14 Connecticut-Made Automobiles were on display. We hade all of the Corbins,minus one, several Pope-Hartfords and a Locomobile, Trumbull and Columbia. Since then we have located more and will be inviting the owner to show them at the 2012 Concours.

The history of Connecticut automobile manufacturing is virtually hidden to most of it’s citizens. It has only been through researching many obscure sources, that I have found how prolific the automobile industry really was in our state. Quite a bit of information has been found on the major companies like Pope-Hartford, Locomobile and Corbin where there are still representative automobiles in existence various collections around the world. I found many photographs and advertising brochures which show their beauty and describe their great workmanship. Numerous vintage photographs show these cars in the early 2oth Century Vanderbilt Cup Races, competing against the major European manufactures all to prove the durability of the automobile. In fact, several of the races were won by the CT cars, the most famous  Locomobile,  Number 16.

So, how many other automobiles were manufactured in Connecticut?  My list kept growing as  my research progressed but it was not until I talked with  Tom Tkacz Sr. about the subject that he gave me the most complete list. Amazingly, his list contains 184 Connecticut auto manufactures and including the automobile name, the town and year in which it was built. All made before 1920, most of them before 1910.

 Locomobile, Made in Bridgeport, CT

Most of the CT automobiles are known only by name  but nine makes still have automobiles in existence. They include the Corbin from New Britain; Pope-Hartford, Columbia and Kelsey-Motorette from Hartford; Locomobile and Trumbull from Bridgeport;  Frisbe and Compound from Middletown and the Cameron from New London and Stamford. We had 14 Ct-made automobiles at the 2010 Vintage Motorcar Festival and we expect others to be on display at the 2011 Festival. If anyone has information about these cars please contact me, Mark Johnson, at arkj@klingberg.org or 860 832-5526

The very first  Hartford company to work in the automobile industry was the National Machine Company in 1891. Located at Capital Ave and Woodbine Street, they made motors for Steinway-Daimler, the engine that established the auto industry in Europe. But five years later in 1895,  the Pope Manufacturing Company established the Motor Carriage Department and experimented with gas powered automobiles. Their conclusion was that these cars were very noisy, vibrating,  greasy and complicated to operate. They also believed that  the wealthiest citizens, the only ones who could afford such a vehicle, would not be interested in such a car.

The Pope Manufacturing Company concentrated their efforts into designing and developing electric engines and in 1897 formally offered to the public the Electric Phaeton for a price of $3,000. Henry Cave reports, “Under the direction of the production experts, these handsome vehicles were the first to be made in this country on anything like a substantial basis.’ The Hartford Times wrote,” Its cost of maintenance and operation should be much less than that of a pair of horses…never found anyone so stupid that they could not run the carriage but there are many who can’t handle a horse…6 or 8 inches of snow “no obvious obstacle”".

The Hartford Courant wrote under the title, ” HORSELESS ERA COMES”, the electric vehicle was managed and turned about with as much comfort and success as you would have in driving the gentlest horse…The idea of sitting in a rolling carriage, nothing in front of  the dashboard but space…is something exhilarating and fascinating.”

The first vehicles made were made under the Columbia name. Pictured here is a Columbia Mark III Standhope, an advertising post card produced by the Pope Manufacturing Company. The vehicle was quite simple with four bicycle wheels and seating for two. It had a gong (forerunner to the horn) and four electric lights to illuminate the way at night. One of the first well known owners was Andrew Carnegie.

The Klingberg Vintage Motorcar Festival, June 19th, 2010, featured 14 automobiles made in Connecticut and will feature more in the 2011 show as more have been located.

Last weekend Mark Johnson and Peter Burk from Klingberg’s Development Office brought the Model T down to the 14th Annual Antique Vehicle Show at Mystic Seaport.  Despite the threat of rain, the vehicle fit right in at this especially picturesque show-by-the-sea.  A finishing touch came from Gwen and Parker Ackley, pictured below riding in the Model T’s back seat.  The Ackleys are antique car enthusiasts who often wear turn-of-the-century costumes to match the surrounding vehicles.  And, their willingness to get into character has brought a special nostalgic flair to Klingberg’s own Vintage Motorcar Festival more than once.

Whether it’s at the Governor’s Mansion or a small town car show, the Connecticut Business Expo or the ribbon cutting of a bank, the Model T offers an entry point into conversation about Klingberg and a means of building connections with those who make contributions to to the agency. In the five years this car has been “working” for Klingberg, he has definitely earned his keep.