Remembering Strother MacMinn

Story by Jim Sitz
Photos by Strother MacMinn courtesy Bob Ames and Dale LaFollette

After reading Wallace Wyss’s recent article on the Pasadena Art Center, Jim Sitz thought there should have been a mention of Strother MacMinn, who devoted almost 50 years teaching at the Art Center. But MacMinn was also a sports car fan and photographer, and below we include a portfolio of photos from a very early Carrell Speedway event for our readers to identify.

MacMinn by Sitz

As youngster Strother MacMinn (1918-1998) wanted to design speed boats, those wooden jobs with rich wood and brass fittings. But in 1930 a new Mercedes SSK came rumbling down Villa road next to his home and that caused him to make drawings of cars, which he took to the local Pierce Arrow agency to see what they thought about his art. Their kindly salesman, a Mr. Hewitt, sent the lad round the corner to Murphy Coachbuilders to see their chief designer, Mr. Frank Hershey. The future path of MacMinn’s life was therefore determined. MacMinn learned his design skills working with Hershey in his native town of Pasadena.

Murphy closed in 1932 but with those skills MacMinn was able to join the Pontiac studio of GM in 1938 and knew both Harley Earl and Bill Mitchell. His first indulgence was to purchase a Cord 810 convertible in black, the color most of his cars would be in the future. A prewar ride with Tommy Lee in his Talbot Lago Figoni coupe up Outpost Drive where Lee lived, and to Mulholland Drive, may have been the impetus for a love of French car designs.

When war broke out, he was off to England to be an instructor on ground operations. On his return to America, he became a free-lance industrial designer. ‘Mac'(as he liked to be called) and I met in 1951 and were very close for rest of his life. We helped each other through the years and he proved to be a true and generous friend.

Mac Minn and his beloved Jaguar

When I met him he had a Phantom II Rolls-Royce Ascot tourer and 1948 Studebaker Starlight coupe. But two years later acquired his dream car, the recently introduced Jaguar XK 120 and kept that car for almost his entire life.

Funny thing about Mac – he did not want an MG. He had seen cars in U.K. like the Aston and Lagonda. So he was holding out for something sleeker and faster, like the new Jag. But it was $5000 for a new one so Mac got his Jag, 2 years old, from famed photographer Carlyle Blackwell who traded up for a faster one in 1953.

In the summer of 1953 I was working for Dan Post at his automotive publishing firm, the very place I met Mac when he did some marvelous ink drawings for a new Duesenberg book. He had just bought the lovely Jag and came by to show it off—happy as a school boy, so we locked up the office and headed for Dino’s in Pasadena for an Italian dinner to celebrate. He drove that car all over California, especially to Pebble Beach and I was amused that on our arrival he would get bucket and hose to wash it down.

In the 1950s he would contribute to Road & Track magazine and his friendship with the owner John Bond would lead to his being judge at esteemed Pebble Beach concours for many years.

Role at the Pasadena Art Center

In 1948 he began teaching at Art Center College of Design and remained there for 50 years. His influence as an instructor was tremendous. He encouraged his students and helped tutor them; men who went on to careers as designers like Bob Gurr, Bob Cumberford, Pete Brock, Larry Shinoda and Ron Hill, who would become director of school after retirement from GM’s Cadillac studio. According to Pete Brock, “Mac was THE guy who really taught me and others of my generation about design…learning the history and evolution of car design.”

I personally regarded Mac as witty, articulate, a sort of a Cary Grant of the automotive scene in Southern California. Mac was truly charming guy, the ladies all were keen on him but he preferred bachelor status and free to pursue his own interests. We all enjoyed his wit, humor, and articulate manner of speaking.

The last time I saw Mac was on January 2, 1998, in the hospital. Ironically, we didn’t talk about cars. We talked all about his favorite musicians, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn who collaborated with Duke. We joked of our visits to black neighborhoods in South LA to hit the jazz joints, which were never a problem. He reminded me that he saw Billy Holiday in New York club and when I asked Mac what it was like to meet her, he conjured up Cary Grant again and told me, “She was great, and I bought her a drink…” With his death, a great era ended for me.

Other links to Strother MacMinn photos:

Stother and the Bugatti Atlantic

MacMinn and the Delahaye

Our apologies for the lack of car and driver identifications in these great Strother MacMinn photos from Carrell Speedway below. In our earlier article on Carrell Speedway, Phil Hill at Carrell Speedway, we were lucky to be able to identify most of the entrants. However, the MG races proved to be more difficult. Perhaps readers can help. A free copy of ‘Bowtie Ferraris’ to the first one who can identify the event, and the drivers of the cars below. (Contact vack@cox.net for details.)