R.I.P. Vette Magazine 1976-2019

Dateline: 2.25.20 – On December 6, 2019 I received an email from Vette magazine editor Brian Brennan. The title of the email said it all; “Vette is Terminated”. I wasn’t surprised, as I’d been hearing rumblings that the magazine was on thin ice for well over ten years.

Just the same, it was a sad day for me. Instantly I was back in the summer of 1976 when one hot steamy day in southern New Jersey at my local newsstand at the Cherry Hill News Stop at the corner of Haddonfield Rd. and Chapel Avenue in Cherry Hill, New Jersey; I saw a new magazine that stopped me in my tracks. There among the rest of the familiar car magazines was a new title; “Vette Quarterly”.

I had been haunting the local magazine stands for car magazines since 1965 and I was always on the lookout for Corvette special editions, but this was better than any special edition I’d ever seen. Vette Quarterly was “Corvettes-only” and I wanted to be part of this new publication. My favorite car magazine then was “Hi-Performance CARS”; a great east coast publication filled with the kinds of cars I saw on the local street scene and at the Atco Raceway and Cecil County Drag-O-Way where I’d been working as one of the weekend track announcers since 1972.

The icing on the cake was when I saw that Martyn “Marty” L. Schorr was the editor of Vette Quarterly. I was very familiar with Marty’s writing and leadership as the editor of CARS, so I knew Vette Quarterly was going to something special.

I’d been drawing for several car magazines for two years, so I made copies of my best illustrations and wrote a letter asking if I could be a contributing illustrator for Vette Quarterly. A week later, I got a call from Marty. As soon as I heard Marty’s voice, his Big Apple accent told me who was on the phone. Marty said, “Scott, I got your samples, very nice. What would you like to do?” That was it, I was in!

What I didn’t know was that that was the beginning of a 43-year long relationship with the publication. Vette Quarterly went bi-monthly in a few years and then by the early 1980s was a full-fledged monthly, Corvette-only magazine and I was part of it.

In the early ’80s Marty moved on to start his successful marketing and PR business, “PMPR, Inc, Public Relations & Marketing Agency”. As the decades rolled on Vette magazine was sold and bought by numerous publishers and somehow I managed to stay on as a contributing artist and writer.

In the spring of 1997 I pitched then editor, Richard Lentinello a concept I called, “The Illustrated Corvette Series” as a monthly column. Lentinello liked the idea but didn’t have an open page for another columnist, so it was, “Thanks, but no thanks”. A week later Lentinello called me to ask if I still wanted to do a column, as one of his other columnists informed him that he could no longer do his column. Of course, I said, “Yes!” My plan was to cover every year Corvette in chronological order; so maybe I’d have 50 installments. When Vette magazine was shuttered last December I had completed 275 installments and got a book deal from Car-Tech Books in 2010.

So, when I learned that Vette magazine was finished it was a sad day, as I never dreamed that my association with that one specialty publication would last so long. Along the way, in addition to my monthly column, I did a lot of feature stories. All of my feature stories and many of my monthly columns were published on www.SuperChevy.com. To check them out,, just use the search tool at the top of SuperChevy.com’s website.

In 2008 Vette published an interview with Marty Schorr where he shared with our readers how he got into the magazine biz and how and why he launched Vette Quarterly. Then in 2016 I wrote “Happy 40th Birthday Vette Magazine”.

Below are links to the two mentioned stories, as well as the transcript of when I interviewed Marty and Joel Rosen on my “Far Out Radio” show where they shared how they created their Baldwin-Motion Phase-III Supercars.

Will Vette magazine ever be resurrected? The paper publishing world is rapidly shrinking, even for mainstream magazines, so it is doubtful that we’ll ever see Vette magazine on the newsstands again. But, you know that old saying, “Never say never”. Anything could happen. We’ll see. – Scott

Marty Schorr interview for Vette magazine, Pt 1 – CLICK HERE.

Marty Schorr interview for Vette magazine, Pt 2 – CLICK HERE.

“Happy 40th Birthday Vette magazine”, CLICK HERE.

“Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen Interview, Pt. 1, CLICK HERE.

“Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen Interview, Pt. 2, CLICK HERE.


 


The Motion Performance Experience – Part II

An Intimate Conversation With Martyn “Marty” L. Schorr and Joel “Mr. Motion” Rosen – Co-Founders of the Baldwin-Motion Supercars
Dateline: 8.10.17 / Photos:  Martyn L. Schorr & K. Scott Teeters’ Baldwin Motion Magazine Archives, Mecum Auctions, Dan McMichaels, & Google Maps Part one of my 2013 Far Out Radio conversation with Marty Schorr and Joel Rosen is in the July 2017 issue of Vette Vues can be enjoyed HERE. The year 2017 marks the 50th Anniversary of the Baldwin Motion Experience. Before we get into the rest of my 2013 conversation with Marty and Joel I’d like to share an anecdotal story about setting up the interview.

I have known Marty Schorr since 1976, just after he started “VETTE Quarterly”, the first Corvette-only, newsstand publication. I’ve had numerous conversations with Joel since around 2000 and always found him to be polite, but very reserved. When I asked Marty if he’s like to me on my radio program he said, “Sure, I’d be happy to.” When I asked Joel, he said, “Well, okay, but I don’t really have that much to say. How long is the interview?” I told him I did a one-hour show and without the commercials and bumper music, we have around 45 minutes to talk. He said, “Oh… I really don’t have that much to say, Scott. Really.” So, I assured him that if he ran out of things to say, Marty would fill in the rest. When the show started, Joel was reserved, as usual, but quickly loosen up. Before I knew it, he was seriously bench racing! As the host of the show I carefully watch the clock. When I said, “Well guys, we’re just about out of time, Joel said, “What! We just got started!” That’s just what happens when car guys get to bench racing.
Continue reading


The Motion Performance Experience – Part II”


An intimate conversation with Baldwin-Motion Phase-III Chevy Supercar Creators, Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen – Pt.1

Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen set the story straight and tell how the Baldwin-Motion Phase III Supercar Experience came together. (4 Videos)

Dateline: 7.19.17 – This interview appeared in the July 2017 issue of Vette Vues Magazine. Part 2 coming soon! – Marty Schorr is the former editor of CARS Magazine, the founder of Vette Magazine, and is the current editor and chief of CarGuyChrolicles.com, and PMPR, an automotive public relations form. Joel Rosen is the former owner of Motion Performance, on Long Island, in New York, and currently owns and runs Motion Models, a world-renowned, scale military model company in Florida.

In June 2013 I had the pleasure of interviewing Marty and Joel on my radio program, “Far Out Radio.” And now, you get to read the story from the guys that made it happen – Marty Schorr and Joel “Mr. Motion” Rosen. The guys created a legend and we’re still talking about it over 50 years later!

You can enjoy Part 2 of this conversation, HERE.

Scott: Marty, Joel, welcome to the program.

Marty & Joel: Scott, we’re here, we’re here! (laughs)

Scott: Great to have you here all the way from Florida. You never thought it would go this long, did ya? (laughs)

Joel: I never thought I’d live this long!

Marty: (Laughing) We never thought it would go past the 1970s!
Scott: Really? And here you are, my goodness. So, now that I have you both here, I’m curious before we get into the story, have you ever been on a radio program like this together, talking about what you have done?

Joel: Oh yes, we’ve done a few programs and some television shows. A number of television shows.

Marty: Yea, we’ve done it and we’re still not tired of each other, which is amazing. (laughs)

Joel: That’s what he says! (both guys laughing)

Scott: It sounds like you are both soul brothers to me. So, were you guys bench racing over some beers, or which one of you came up with the Baldwin-Motion idea first? How did this all get started? Continue reading


An intimate conversation with Baldwin-Motion Phase-III Chevy Supercar Creators, Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen – Pt.1″


First-Ever 1963 Z06 Corvette Stingray – Dave MacDonald Picks Up, Then Races Z06 #684 At Riverside

The First Z06 Corvette Was a Race Car!

Dateline: 8.30.15 – The original Z06 was Duntov’s “racer kit” for the then-new 1963 Sting Ray. Unlike modern Z06s, there was no flash to the first Z06, it was strictly hardware designed for the racetrack – no badges, special body panels, or designations at all! But considering the official “we don’t race” policy of GM, 199 1963 Fuel Injected Corvettes with heavy-duty brakes and suspension, wasn’t anything in GM’s big picture. But, if you wanted to race your Corvette in ’63, it was everything, and Duntov made sure you got what you needed.
1963-MacDonald-Z06-Side
Thanks to the SCCA rules that allowed the 2000-pound Cobra to race against the 3100-pound Corvette, even with the Z06 racer kit, the Vette was at a serious disadvantage. Continue reading


First-Ever 1963 Z06 Corvette Stingray – Dave MacDonald Picks Up, Then Races Z06 #684 At Riverside”


Wil Cooksey’s 2013 Interview on Scott Teeters’ Far Out Radio Program

Wil Cooksey shares his life story and career in GM and building Corvettes.

Wil-Cooksey

Dateline: 8.29.15 – Yesterday we told you about the 2015 Corvettes at Carlisle show and that Wil Cooksey is one of the special guests for the event. Actually, ever since Wil put on that stunning, explosive burnout display back in 2007, he’s become an almost permanent fixture of the Corvettes at Carlisle show.

On April 5, 2013 I had the pleasure of interviewing Wil Cooksey on my Far Out Radio program. The YouTube version of the program is below.


Continue reading


Wil Cooksey’s 2013 Interview on Scott Teeters’ Far Out Radio Program”

NEW!!! Corvette License Plates Art Prints Series

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Corvette “License Plate” Art Prints 1953 to Present. A Limted Series of these new prints are now available from artist. K. Scott Teeters Continue reading “NEW!!! Corvette License Plates Art Prints Series”

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT – Dynamic New Series of Corvette Prints

Dateline: 4.23.12

Our New Partnership With FineArtAmerica.com

Don’t miss the new prints slide show below!

We are very happy to announce our new Corvette art prints enterprise with FineArtAmerica.com. But first, I must give credit, where credit is due. My lovely wife and business partner Karen, discovered FineArtAmerica.com about a month ago. Partnering with FineArtAmerica.com allows me the freedom to create Corvette art print layouts in any proportion. FineArtAmerica.com allows customers to order my Corvette prints in sizes to fit their budget needs! The optional matte and framing service allows customers the freedom to choosing their color matte and frame style to suit their decor needs.

By offering our Corvette prints through FineArtAmerica.com, customers can order prints as small as 8” x 2-5/8” up to 48” x 16” for our 1×3 proportion layouts and 8” x 8” up to 48” x 48” for our square proportion layouts. Every print can be produced on either archival matte paper, photo paper, watercolor paper, or canvas. Then, if you want, you can have your print custom matted and framed. There are dozens of matte colors and frame styles. You can design your framed print to match your home decor. The possibilities are staggering!

Continue reading “SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT – Dynamic New Series of Corvette Prints”

Corvettes Unlimited of Vineland New Jersey’s Glass & Steel Show

Dateline: 10.26.11 (This is our 200th post!)

Corvette & Classic Car Autumn Fun in New Jersey

(Check out to six slide shows at the bottom of this post!)

Autumn in New Jersey makes up for Summer in New Jersey. If you can live in Jersey, you can live almost anywhere, as we get it all – LOTS of snow in the winter, below freezing temps in the winter, 100-degree temps with 95% humidity in the Summer and an occasional huricane. But when October rolls around, it’s PERFECT! And a fantastic time for a car show.

Corvettes Unlimited of Vineland, New Jersey changed their venue for their annual car show from Wheaton Village, in Millville to the Michael Debbie Park in Buena Vista. To draw more attendees, the club opened up the show to classic and muscle cars, hence the new name for the show, “The Glass & Steel Show.” While it turned out there there was more steel than glass, it was a delightful show just the same. I for one enjoyed the steel side as much as the glass side.

I took LOTS of pictures, so we have several slide shows to share with you below. Enjoy! – Scott

The People's Choice Award went to: Michael T. Cafarelli, of Minotola, N.J. - 2006 white coupe. The Best of Show Award went to: Gary & Patty Rickets of Salem, N.J. - 1965 silver & red Sting Ray coupe.

Here are the winners. All of the Corvettes in the show can be seen in the below slide shows.

Stock: 1963-1967 – 1st. place: Ole Olson, Northfield, N.J. – 1966 Red Convertible
Stock: 1968-1973 – 1st. place: Joe Biaselli, Vineland, N.J. – 1973 blue convertible
Stock: 1968-1973 – 2nd place: Louis Rodolico, Aston, Pa. – 1976 red coupe
Stock: 1968-1973 – 3rd. place: John O’Brien, Egg Harbor Township, N.J. – 1973 orange coupe
Stock 1974-1982 – 1st. place: Oscar Pierce, Bridgeton, N.J. – 1978 red coupe
Stock 1974-1982 – 2nd. place: Richard Thomas, Pittsgrove, N.J. – 1982 silver coupe
Stock 1983-1996 – 1st. place: Joseph Burrell, Williamstown, N.J. – 1984 red sport
Stock 1983-1996 – 2nd. place: Wayne Wright, Little Egg Harbor, N.J. – 1996 silver convertible
Stock 1983-1996 – 3rd. place: Jon E. Bowen, Pennsville, N.J. – 1994 dk. red coupe
Stock 1997-2004 – 1st. place: Carmen Petrongio, Vineland, N.J. – 2002 blue coupe
Stock 1997-2004 – 2nd place: Linda & Lou Deman, Nesco, N.J. – 2003 red convertible
Stock 2005-2012 – 1st. place: Dennis Enoch, Cherry Hill, N.J. – 2008 black convertible
Stock 2005-2012 – 2nd. place: John Ormsby, Glassboro, N.J. – 2008 red convertible
Stock 2005-2012 – 3rd. place: Buster Petonglo, Newfield, N.J. – 2009 blue Z06
Modified 1953-1967 – 1st. place: Paul Rickets, Pennsville, N.J. – 1966 blue convertible
Modified 1968-1975 – 1st. place: Bill& Dawn Merola, Egg Harbor Twp., NJ 1973 red convertible
Modified 1976-1982 – 1st. place: Bill & Sandy Ward, Mullica Hill, N.J. – 1982 grey coupe
Custom 1953-2012 – 1st.place: Gary & Patty Rickets, Salem, N.J. – 1965 silver coupe
Custom 1953-2012 – 2nd. place:  Jonathan Settrella       Bridgeton, N.J. – 1976 red coupe
People’s Choice: Michael T. Cafarelli, Minotola, N.J. – 2006 white coupe
Best of Show: Gary & Patty Rickets, Salem, N.J. – 1965  silver coupe

To access the slide shows and Continue reading “Corvettes Unlimited of Vineland New Jersey’s Glass & Steel Show”

Vette Polls: Would You Buy A New, Factory-Built Retro Corvette?

Dateline: 10.20.11

If Chevrolet offered brand new C1, C2, and C3 Retro Corvettes, would you buy one?

Imagine if you could buy a NEW one of these babies!

Take our Poll at the bottom of this post.
The other day I posted a story featuring a collection of make-believe Chevy billboards titled, “Billboards We’d Like to See”
. (check it out HERE) Without really thinking deeply about it, my subtitle was, “If Chevrolet was to make retro Corvettes, would billboards such as these help sell cars?” The subtitled popped into my head because as I was looking at the mocked up Corvette billboards, I was struck by just how beautiful the C1, C2, and C3 cars were.

Now this would never, ever, ever happen – but it’s fun to imagine. The basic idea would be this. Start with two Corvettes from each of the first three generations. Let’s say a ‘57 and a ‘62 for the C1 group, a ‘63 and a ‘67 for the C2 Sting Ray group, and a ‘69 and a ‘78 for the C3 group. The idea would be to take the original designs and update the drivetrains, wheels, tires, and brakes, safety requirements, and interior materials and creature comforts. Aside from modern paint colors, wheels, and tires, they would look very much like their original counterparts. They need not be quasi race cars, loaded to the gills with hi-tech hardware. Just brand new, modernized, old-style Corvettes. Sound interesting? So, let’s look at each component.

You could get modern kicks, on Route 66!

Engine & Drive Train: Each car could be powered by an LS3 engine, coupled with a 6-speed manual or automatic transmission. Suspensions should use essentially the original design layout, but with modern shocks, correct anti-sway bars, bushings, steering, etc. The frames should be patterned after the originals, but strengthened in all the known areas of weakness and modified to accept wider tires.

Wheels, Tires, & Brakes: The modified frames could accept tires with modern widths. The wheel diameters should stay at 15-inches so that the wheel/tire proportion looks period correct in the wheelwells. Wheels should be spun-cast aluminum and period styled. C1s could get 15×8 Halibrand styled wheels. C2 and C3 cars could get 15×8-inch spun-cast aluminum Rally wheels or finned knock-odd-style wheels. Brakes should be modern C6 base model brakes.

Could there be such a thing as "too sweet"? This might be it!

Interior: The dash layouts should stay true to their original design, but with upgraded electronic gauges, Bose sound system, airbags, modern leather bucket seats (the original C2 and C2 buckets are really just narrow bench seats), A/C, electric windows and side mirrors, and Nav system. These are cruisers, so the emphasis is on comfort and amenities.

Body: The C1 and C2 cars should get small ‘67-’69 Z-28-style chin spoilers. The C2 cars need a slight forward rake to keep the front end down at higher speeds, All of the cars need to be slightly lowered too. There should be optional hoods. Headlights should be modern LED units but styled in period correct housings. Continue reading “Vette Polls: Would You Buy A New, Factory-Built Retro Corvette?”

Corvette Pace Car Files: 1986 Indy 500 Pace Car Corvette

Dateline: 10.7.11
A Look Back at the Most Common and Overlooked Corvette Pace Car 

1986 was a banner year for Corvette fans with the return of the roadster. The ‘70s was an awful time for performance cars and “fun” cars in general. Between new strict emission controls, sky rocketing gasoline prices (all the way up to 50¢ a gallon! in ‘73), reduced performance, and increased safety concerns, it was not a good time. Convertibles also went down the drain too. Beginning in the Fall of ‘75 with the ‘76 model, there were no more Corvette roadsters. After 22 years, the Corvette Roadster was dead.

So in ‘85 when it was announced that the roadster would be returning, Corvette fans couldn’t be happier. But unlike the olden days when a convertible Corvette cost LESS than a coupe (the ‘75 convertible cost $6,550 and the coupe cost $260 more than the roadster!), the ‘86 Corvette convertible cost an additional $5,005! Unlike the C2 and C3 chassis and body structure, the C4 was not originally designed to be a topless car. Coupe to convertible conversions usually have the characteristic cowl shake and sometimes ride more like wiggle wagons where the driver can actually see the dash shake on bumpy twisty roads. The solution for the C4 was to add a large X-brace to stiffen the chassis.

The second piece of big news for ‘86 was that a Corvette would pace the Indy 500 for the second time. Retired General Chuck Yeager was enjoying celebrity status as a result of the book and movie, “The Right Stuff.” But Chevrolet was still smarting from the heavy criticism over the ‘78 Corvette Pace Car debacle and seemed to go in the opposite direction. Rather than producing a set number of pace car relicas, ALL ‘86 Corvette convertibles were designated as a “Pace Car Replica” and came with dealer or customer applied decals for the doors. Many said, “Why bother.”

By the end of the year, 7,315 of the 35,109 Corvettes were convertibles (20%), all considers “pace cars” regardless of the color of the car. The actual Indy 500 Pace Cars were all yellow and 732 yellow convertibles were sold for the year. No special embroidery, wheel centers, stripes, spoilers… just a set of decals. Consequently, of the six Corvette pace car replicas offered from ‘78 to ‘08, the ‘86 model is the least valuable. Most of the ‘86 Corvette convertible “Pace Cars” never had their decals applied. Continue reading “Corvette Pace Car Files: 1986 Indy 500 Pace Car Corvette”

Corvette Timeline Tails: Happy 99th Birthday Semon “Bunkie” Knudsen

Dateline: 10.2.11

One of the Unsung Heros of Corvettes & High Performance Chevrolets

Within the machinations of a big corporation, to get things done, it’s good to have an angel. Zora Arkus-Duntov had several angels. We’ve talked about Duntov’s relationship with Chevrolet honcho Ed Cole. But one angel that doesn’t get much attention was Semon “Bunkie” Knudsen.

Semon’s father was former GM president, William S. Knudsen. While this was helpful for the younger Kneudsen’s career, things weren’t handed to Bunkie – he had to work for what he accomplished. Like many teenage boys of his generation, Semon was interested in mechanical things. When he asked for a car, his Dad gave him one… in pieces for the young man to out back together. During his college years, Summer break meant a stint working at GM… on the assembly line. Upon graduation, Knudsen got a job at Pontiac in 1939 and quickly rose up through the management ranks. By 1956 he was the general manager at Pontiac.

The main job of every general manager is to increase sales. Like Chevrolet, Pontiac had a stogy public image. Bunkie assembled a team to jazz up the line and brought in Pete Estes from Oldsmobile, and John Z. DeLorean from Packard to create high performance version of his best -selling Pontiacs. Thus began the era of the “Wide Track Pontiac.” (Remember the ‘60s jingle, “Break away, to a wide track’n, Pon-tee-ack…”?) Within a few years, Pontiacs were a force to be contended with in NASCAR racing. Bunkie’s makeover of Pontiac put the division in third place in the industry and his reward was a promotion to head of the Chevrolet Division in 1961. Continue reading “Corvette Timeline Tails: Happy 99th Birthday Semon “Bunkie” Knudsen”

1996 LT4 Small-Block Chevy – The Finished Classic SBC?

Dateline: 9.30.11
Forty One Years of Classic Small-Block Chevy Success and Power!

When the Cadillac-derived Small-block Chevy engine first arrived in 1955, I’m certain that Ed Cole and his team of Chevrolet engineers never imagined that their efforts would have such a profound and long lasting impact on the automobile industry. The little 265-cubic-inch engine had just 162-horsepower. By 1970 the 350-cubic-inch LT-1 engine was packing 370 gross horsepower. Beginning in 1973 Gm started rating their engines in “net” figures making it look as if the legs had been cut out from under all of their motors. While it’s true that there were emissions restrictions and reduced compression, the “net” power ratings were in real-world terms, closer to reality. From ‘73 to ‘96 it was a long slow slog, but the last SBC to use the basic original design was the 330-horsepower LT4. So, what would be the ”gross” horsepower rating of a ‘96 LT4? That would be anyone’s guess, but somewhere close to or over 400-horsepower would be a good guess.

Since Spring ‘11 I have been asking the question in my Illustrated Corvette Series VETTE Magazine column, “What’s the best _____?” for each generation Corvette. ICS No. 174 takes a look at the 1996 LT4 Corvette and asks, is this “The Finished Classic SBC?” let’s get into the details. Talk about going out with a roar! Enjoy – Scott

Illustrated Corvette Series No. 174: 1996 LT4 Small-Block Chevy – “The Finished Classic SBC?”

The ‘97 C5 Corvette was introduced to the press in November ‘96 at Road Atlanta Raceway, in Georgia and went on sale at Chevrolet dealers on March 7, 1997. Not only was the body, interior, chassis, and suspension all-new, there was a totally new engine and transaxle. The splash the new C5 created, followed up with roadsters, Pace Cars, hardtops, race cars, and a Le Mans win in ‘01, was so huge that the highlights and achievements of the C4s quickly faded. While the jewel-like LT-5 that powered the exotic ZR-1 still stands as the high watermark of the C4 generation, there was a quieter high watermark that took place. Had the LT4 engine option arrived a few years before, there would have been another Chevy legend.

The C5 program was an on-and-off-and-on again project due to GM’s financial troubles in the early ‘90s. Initial sorties began in ‘88 with the intention of an all-new C5 a ‘93 model. Corvette chief engineer, Dave McLellan was given a budget of $250 million, but that number turned into a roller coaster ride with the C5 being pushed back year after year. GM’s miracle of the ‘90s was that there even was a C5 Corvette. All of this makes the LT4 even more amazing. Continue reading “1996 LT4 Small-Block Chevy – The Finished Classic SBC?”