Automobile journalists, those all-knowing critics, tend to make fun of the now defunct slogan "it's not your father's Oldsmobile." Actually, it was a good line at the time but GM's historic brand lacked standout products to back the claim. But when the phrase first appeared as an ad headline I was annoyed for an entirely different reason. Because, you see, I liked my father's Oldsmobile.

It was a 1937 6-cylinder 90 hp 4-door sedan and it was the first car that I, as a kid, could relate to in any memorable way. Each Sunday Dad would take a drive in the country and on the way back to Toronto's Beaches district he'd take a shortcut along Kingston Rd., which would often be traffic-free on a Sunday afternoon. There was one long, slightly downhill stretch where he'd attempt to reach 100 mph, although the actual number was probably less than 90, speedometers being rather unreliable in those days. When the needle touched 100 he'd back off and I was absolutely thrilled.

Slotted a notch above Pontiac and one below Buick, Oldsmobile stood proud and the styling reflected its character. Robert McLellan obviously feels the same way although his most memorable Olds is a 1956 model. He relates the tale of this and other vintage Oldsmobiles in an article from The Automotive Chronicles, the weekly newsletter of McLellan's Automotive History. I always enjoy Robert's comments and, of course, the catalogs and other literature as seen above. My father's Oldsmobile, indeed!