What a Great Drive! What an Amazing Museum!

Photos by Jon Milledge and Chuck Robertson

On March 17, local BMW enthusiasts had our first outing of 2012, a trip to the Nethercutt Museum in Sylmar at the north end of Los Angeles.  There was light rain throughout the day, but we encountered only one cloudburst heading East from our brunch stop in Fillmore. 

The Nethercutt Museum is housed in two buildings, with most of the car collection housed on the west side of Bledsoe Avenue.  This is the main entrance where 125 cars are on display, most from the 1920's and 1930's.  They can be viewed any time the museum is open, 9:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. Tuesday through Saturday.  There is also a small side room with half dozen modern classics like as an early 1950's Mercury coupe and a 1976 Porsche 930 Turbo. 

  The Special Collection is housed in a 4 story building across the street and accessible only by guided tours at 10:00 and 1:30.  It houses another 35 cars, with 15 of the finest in a "grand salon" setting on the second floor.  On the fourth floor is a collection of mechanical musical instruments, most of them orchestrions from Europe.  They are the equivalent of our nickelodeons, and very entertaining as each is demonstrated.  The grand finale' is a short concert by the Wurlitzer theater organ, one of the largest anywhere.

 The Nethercutt is the pride of the Nethercutt family, founders and owners of Merle Norman Cosmetics.  Merle Nethercutt Norman started the business in her Santa Monica home, and was joined by nephew Jack B. Nethercutt who eventually bought the company.  It has stayed in the family and is run by his son Jack II, who was active in sports car racing in the 1950's and 1960's. 

  One more thing - admission is free, with not a single word about donations.  A tip of the cap to the Nethercutt family for preserving and sharing their collection of timeless classics. 

Chuck Robertson Photos Below