Vanderbilt Cup Races

The Great Neck Record reports on "a 1937 "Chrysler's Chrysler" and a 1909 Alco 6 "Black Beast" among the 100 cars to be featured at this Saturday's Great Neck Plaza AutoFest and Street Festival.

Enjoy,

Howard Kroplick

28th Annual Plaza AutoFest And Street Festival

By Great Neck Record Editorial Staff
Tuesday, September 4th, 2012 12:00 AM EDT

A 1937 “Chrysler’s Chrysler” and a 1909 Alco 6 “Black Beast” are among 100 cars to be featured

The Great Neck Plaza Business Improvement District (BID) announces that the 1937 Chrysler’s Chrysler will be added to the BID’s 28th Annual Great Neck Plaza AutoFest and Street Festival’s vintage automobile lineup on Sunday, Sept. 9 (rain date: Sunday, Sept. 16).  The 1937 custom-built Imperial Model C-15 town car is making one of its first public appearances on Long Island since being purchased by Mr. Howard Kroplick in January 2012.

“We are very excited to add the Chrysler’s Chrysler to this year’s lineup,” said Jay Corn, Great Neck Plaza BID vice president and AutoFest committee chairperson. “The AutoFest and Street Festival is Great Neck’s premiere annual event attended by thousands of families and antique car enthusiasts and we are thrilled to be able to add another vintage vehicle to the AutoFest line.”

The custom Chrysler’s Chrysler was built for Della Chrysler, the wife of Walter P. Chrysler.  The seven-passenger town car was designed with an art deco theme. The vehicle’s LeBaron aluminum body is painted black and features a pristine leather interior, upholstered seats and scripted name plates. The one-of-a-kind Chrysler was reportedly seldom driven which is reflected in the current odometer reading of under 26,000 miles.

In addition to the Chrysler’s Chrysler, the BID announced that the famous and extremely popular 1909 Alco 6 Black Beast vintage racer will return to the AutoFest and Street Festival for the fourth consecutive year.  Built in 1909, the Alco 6 racer participated in the inaugural Indianapolis 500 race in 1911 and was victorious in the 1909 and 1910 Vanderbilt Cup Races, run on Long Island.

The Black Beast’s prolific history was enhanced even further as it was one of seven vintage race cars to participate in a ceremonial parade lap at the 2011 Indianapolis 500 as part of the commemoration of the race’s 100th year anniversary.

Over 100 vintage vehicles are expected to be on display at the Great Neck Plaza AutoFest and Street Festival including Model A, Model T, and other classic American and European cars.

The Great Neck Plaza Business Improvement District’s (BID) mission is to foster and promote a positive and vital business community through various initiatives including consumer awareness programs, media/advertising campaigns and sponsorship of many events including the Annual Great Neck Plaza AutoFest and Street Festival.  The day-long event draws a crowd of tens of thousands and features live entertainment, rock climbing walls, a petting zoo, carnival games, inflatable bouncers and showcases the sights, sounds and tastes of Great Neck Plaza. Log onto www.shopgreatneck.com or call 829-1301to learn more about the Great Neck Plaza BID and this year’s AutoFest and Street Festival.