The Milner Coupe 2011 - Hot August Nights

Cousin JP was in Reno last month during a hot August day and found the Graffiti Bunch alive and well and the Coupe looking spanky clean.

The real Milner Coupe

Pretty awesome site. Looks like a Paradise Road re-dux!

Rick Figari's Falfa tribute is probably alot nicer than the real deal. Haven't heard it run yetthough.

Candy Clark is way too popular to get a proper lunch break.

Paul LeMat looking fit and ready to race. He's always accomodating to Graffiti fans.

Popular Bo Hopkins is always a blur at these fan functions.

Aloha!

The Milner Coupe 2011

The Milner Coupe 2005

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The Milner Coupe 1979

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The Milner Coupe 2011 (Part 2)

The Milner Coupe - 2011

The one and only American Graffiti Coupe as still owned by Rick Figari (despite recent heinous rumours to the contrary obviously started by jealous un-desireable types) at the 2011 Sacramento Autorama in northern California.

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*** It Was April 1st, You Fool, You Fool ***

The first hint was in the headline. As is common practice with pranks of this sort, a clue via an easy to find mistake such as a spelling error was prominently placed. We could have written Sails, but that would have been too easy. Any editor worth his salt would have corrected the banner to read "Figari Sells American Graffiti Coupe! Also, referring to our self in the story as "one of the worst offenders" hopefully pointed to what would have been a terrific coincidence of luck (or ego) since our blog was also the venue for this huge breaking story.

As April Fools jokes go, this was a terrific success. Within moments of posting and sharing on Facebook, traffic at My Dinner With Milner spiked and my phone lit up with all sorts of Graffiti buddies from across the country. I wasn't able to answer all the calls, but those who asked (all of them) were told of the story's origin and set straight. We certainly meant no harm and it seemed that everyone enjoyed the spirit of the prank.

We of course did not hear from Rick Figari or thankfully, his attorneys. And for the record, during the time we spent together at the recent Sacramento Autorama, he was very gracious and most accommodating. He was also extremely complimentary toward the Naked Milner and had absolutely nothing bad to say about the clone builders. Okay, that's a lie, he hates a couple of you. But he really was a nice guy and we thoroughly enjoyed our many conversations with him. In fact he was so impressed by our efforts with our bare metal tribute that he told us that when it becomes time to sale the Graffiti Coupe, he will give us first and last offer. Okay, see that's another lie, he actually reiterated to us very strongly that he will never sell the Coupe. And that's the truth.

Aloha

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Figari Sales American Graffiti Coupe!

'Keeping the flame alive' says new owner
Popular car to receive upgrades
By Seth Berlestein
AP NEWS WIRE RERVICE
Although quoted many times over the years as saying he never would, Rick Figari of San Francisco, CA has announced that he has sold the 1932 Ford 5W Coupe that stole the hearts of so many car enthusiasts in the 1973 movie American Graffiti. The little yellow hot rod that is credited with reviving the hobby of hotrodding has been under the care of Mr. Figari since he purchased the car in 1985. After using the car as a daily driver while in school, he partnered with actor Paul LeMat and put the car on display at car shows all over the world. This proved so popular with the fans that Figari purchased a replica of the 1955 Chevy that the Coupe raced at the end of American Graffiti. "I figured, why not give the people what they wanted. Seeing these two icons together is always a thrill. Even for me after all these years." But the road eventually took it's toll on Rick and his actor friend.
Attack of the clones

"It was a lot of work for very little money" Figari now says. "But it was worth it. In the beginning the fans were so appreciative, but then around 2005, it seemed like every other car show attendee was building a tribute (copy)" He says that a particular group of hardcore clone builders made his life a living nightmare. Phone calls at all hours, sneaking into the arenas after hours to photograph the famous Ford, these builders were relentless. "They built websites, traded pictures, cloned parts, I even caught one guy trying to steal parts" he sighs. But even with all the headaches, the Graffiti caravan continued on bringing happiness to thousands of fans. But after showing up at a recent car show and being parked next to one of the worst offenders, Figari came to a realization, it wasn't ever going to stop. "I made up my mind then and there to part with my dream car". He has received many solicitations to buy the car and he says he kept them all. A particularly lucrative offer had come from a businessman in Japan. "It's a long ways away, let those clone builders chase it to the far east" laughs Figari. Discretion keeps him from disclosing the sale amount, but he did reveal it was in the eight figures. "That guy really wanted it, and I was fed up" hey says. Will he regret it later? He hopes not. Will we ever see Milner's car again? We can only hope. AP INTERNET 2011

*** UPDATE***UPDATE***

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The Milner Coupe - 2009

2009 Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show

Yokohama, Japan

Here are some terrific photos we found on the net from the Coupe's trip to Japan last year. The Japanese really gave it the star treatment and the Coupe never looked better. Owner Rick Figari looks justifiably proud as his cars sit in front of a great Mel's Drive-in back drop.

The Milner Coupe - 2005 (Part 7)

2005 Seattle Roadster Show
Seattle, WA

When we took these photos of the American Graffiti Coupe's undercarriage, we were shooting blind. Not able to actually get under the car, we set the articulating lens at a 45 degree angle and shoved our camera under as far as we could. Clicking pictures in a sweeping 'second hand' motion, we hoped to get as much visual information as possible. We had to work from the drivers side as that was our only access without violating the roped off boundaries. We rationalized that as long as our feet did not enter the area, we were still playing by the rules. Upper appendages didn't count. A slight liberty? Yes, but we could live with it.

Once the pixels were uploaded on the 'ol computer, we were pretty surprised (horrified) how cruddy it all was. Sure it was dirty. That wasn't unexpected seeing as how unpolished the engine had been. But the loose bolts, leaky seals, ragged cuts and popcorn welding took us back a bit. We knew the Coupe was no trailer queen. Owner Rick Figari had used it as a daily driver for years. That's cool, but show or no show, this car was seriously un-babied. And this characteristic brought up new questions as to how close were we going to build our tribute. I mean, where do you get that green gunk dripping off the tranny?

The Milner Coupe - 2005 (Part 6)

2005 Seattle Roadster Show.
Seattle, WA

Our leisurely visit (fireman and movie stars take long lunches) with Milner's Coupe in the Great Northwest continued as we zeroed in on a few details on the firewall. The bell crank throttle was of special interest. We had not yet identified what car it was off of. These photos helped with that. The condenser also came into close view. We got a great look at the fuel filter although that was an addition added after the original film. Considering most of these were taken at arms length and out of reach to the viewfinder, it was lucky we got what we did. These close-ups provided countless hours of study material and debate topics. Not to mention years of ebay battles.

The Milner Coupe - 1976

Studio City, CA

Not really sure where these pictures originated. Doug Bjorn sent them to me about five years ago. They've been the subject of countless debates and extreme scrutiny as all of us gleaned them for any possible information about The Coupe. We knew that the photos were taken between films but exactly when and where remained a mystery.

This year it came to light that a scene from the old television series Emergency! was filmed in this garage with the Coupe as background. In the story, a garage mechanic was injured while mounting one of the cheater slicks onto the wheel. In the show the car was turned around and the tire changer was closer to the door. And if anyone is curious as to what became of the original slicks, well unfortunately the tire was shown with a huge hole in it to tie in with the story. Yikes.

Anyways, that episode, entitled "Captain Hook', was filmed and aired in 1976. The two young ladies may or may not have been extras in the show as they are dressed in what appears to be nurses uniforms. Of course they could have been studio commissary workers as well in those get ups. Regardless, they were obviously cool enough to recognize the real movie star in their midst.

The Milner Coupe - 2005 (Part 5)

2005 Seattle Roadster Show.
Seattle, WA

Continuing with our Emerald City tete-a-tete with the star of American Graffiti. Had plenty of time so we could focus on various details like the front wheels, backing plates, spindles and shocks. We were just firing at will trying to get everything. This was early in the research game so we didn't really know yet what we didn't know. Ya know?

The Milner Coupe - 2005 (Part 4)

2005 Seattle Roadster Show.
Seattle, WA

"How The Hell Do You Know What My Tranny Mounts Look Like?" (Rick Figari to a 'da
Hui member in 2007)

Our second visit with the Coupe proved more fruitful than the first. A little wiser after learning of the owner's distain for any close scruitany of his car, we made sure to avoid any appearance of special interest. At least while he and the gang were in the house. Lunch time was a different story. We took our time and shot until out of space.