[78-L] Kovacs (Was: Corvairs &c -- Was: half track tapes)

[Michael Biel]

From: David Lennick <dlennick at sympatico.ca>
> Thought it was unfamiliarity with where the lighter was located,
> since it was Edie's car and it was new.
 
Yeah, he drove to the party in the Rolls Royce (a Studer??) He took his
eyes off the road to light the cigar and the car fishtailed on the wet
pavement.  Heavy rear end or suspension, it amounted to the same thing.

> (Ernie's "Nairobi Trio" theme was on 78s..boy, we're reaching.) dl

Not at all.  He actually did a lot of things on and with 78s.  Remember
the Top Tunes 78s by the Tony DeSimone Trio, starting with his theme
"Oriental Blues", and the one he recorded with them, "Hot Cakes and
Sausage".  They were both reissued on Decca but remember the controversy
we started when we told Irwin Chusid that there was 30 seconds missing
from the Decca master tape he used on the Varese Sarabande CD "The Ernie
Kovacs Record Collection."  On MGM Kovacs did "Hey, Taxi!" on the flip
of the LeRoy Holmes 1957 "Oriental Blues" which I have on a 45 but I
assume was also on 78.  Was it? 
 
Mike Biel  mbiel at mbiel.com  

 Steven C. Barr wrote:
 > ----- Original Message ----- 
 > From: "Michael Biel" <mbiel at mbiel.com>
 >> P.S. Yes I know the rear engine on the Corvair is what killed Ernie
 >> Kovacs.
 >>
 > No...it WASN'T the rear engine! It was an independent rear suspension
 > (also used on VW "beetles," which likewise would have their rear
wheels
 > "fold under" in extreme-cornering situations...either suddenly
turning
 > themselves AROUND, or (worse yet) OVER! Corvairs used this same
 > approach...and the Corvair rear suspension was also used on the
Pontiac
 > Tempest (I owned a '62!)!
 > 
 > Once I figured out how to use this to my advantage...I could drive up
to a
 > "T" intersection at c. 30mph and then turn the steering wheel
suddenly in 
 > the
 > direction I planned to continue! The rear end would temporarily lose
its
 > "grip" and swing outward (called "Drifting" these days?!)...and
hitting
 > "the gas" once I was pointed along the new choice of roads resulted
in
 > the front end of my Tempest taking off down that road, with the rear
of
 > course following!
 > 
 > Sadly, most American drivers were familiar with their over-weight
cars...
 > which UNDERsteered (i.e. tried to keep going in the same direction!)
 > rather than OVERsteered (like Corvairs, my Tempest and VW
"beetles!").
 > 
 > Steven C. Barr