February, 1991
My mother learned to drive a car in Nauvoo, Ill, when I was a baby. Soon after we moved to St. Louis, I don’t think mother drove the car anymore. Of course, most families only had one car and the husband usually drove it to work. After I married and moved to L.A., I observed that my-mother-in law did all the driving. Your Dad said his Pop used to drive when Dad was a little boy.
When I reached the age of 16 I went with my father to the Richmond Heights City Hall in St. Louis County. All one had to do back then was prove your age, pay the fee, and sign the license. No written or driving tests were required. When the USA entered WWII gas and tires were rationed and parts were impossible to acquire, so my father never let me drive the family car. When my brother returned from the war, he bought a car and sometimes let me drive it. I remember having to learn to shift gears when starting up from a stop on a steep hill.
For a graduation present, Mike was given a new car by his parents. We selected a Studebaker which we ordered in St. Louis and picked up in L.A. (Prices were cheaper east of the Mississippi.) We were able to get an apartment in Hollywood. During his internship at County General Hospital Mike drove the car while I usually took the convenient bus or trolley. One streetcar used to enter the city via a short subway. This ended at the Terminal Annex and I’d shop downtown – no suburban malls then.
My friend Lois planned a visit to California. I wanted to be able to drive her around to the various tourist attractions, so I was forced to get a California driver’s license. I really studied the test booklet prior to my written test and got my learner’s permit. I practiced driving with Mike as teacher, then we went to the DMV in busy Hollywood for the big test behind the wheel.That little Studebaker was a faithful friend. We sold our first car to the Martinis when Mike was shipped over to the China Sea. I went back to stay with my folks in St. Louis. My dad and I picked up a new Studebaker at the plant in South Bend, Indiana.
When we moved to our second house in Pacific Palisades, we became a two car family. Some of the cars you children might remember were the various chevies, the famous Karman Ghia (also known as the Boom Boom car), and the nine passenger Ford station wagon.
We drove the wagon to Oxnard to break it in. Little did we guess how close to our family history Oxnard would become.
Elaine's Memoirs 
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