PJ O'Rourke 1947 - 2022 - Writer of one of the first great 308 stories

Very cool story and excellent writing.

 

Yes, thanks for posting. Had not realized my car was such a beast.

 

I read a few of his books in college, I always loved his amusing take on economic issues. RIP

 

He gave a talk at FSU a long, long, long time ago. His topic was humor. He said all humor is based on other people's problems. As proof he put a slide of a cartoon showing old woman slipping in a pool of blood coming from a bank robber who had been shot. If you had been there, you would have laughed.

 

I think it points to the fact that by 1980, it was "over" for sports cars and fire breathing hot rods Made in America.

The 308 was light enough to "get by" on what was left in horsepower, and in the end as we know now, the timeless styling carried the day!
$66 for a 6K Miles Service?

What an amazing thing!

Rest in Peace, sir.....

 

Very sad. He was a great story teller. I loved his irreverent wit.

 

What a fun read...made my morning!

 

I loved his wit and sarcasm. "Eat the Rich" is a favorite non-car book. especially relevant given current politics.
Malcolm

 

Very entertaining writer. RIP PJ.

 

Interesting that at the end of the C&D story, he mentioned the car was used in filming of "Don't Eat the Snow from Hawaii", which of course was the pilot for Magnum P.I. that aired in Dec 1980. That is a real interesting connection I was not aware of. I wonder if there is a way to verify that by the S/N of the car?

 

Thanks for posting. It was an enjoyable read. And here I am < 20 miles from FoNJ and google mapping the route he might have taken wondering if my 308 might be able to retrace the route

 

I always remember the piece he wrote about pickup trucks, and how it was the World's only beer guided vehicle - Hilarious!

 

The connection of Magnum PI to O'Rourke's 308 has been mentioned here quite a few times over the years. This website www.magnum-mania.com has a page with details about the Ferraris used, and mentiones the Car and Driver story (with some details wrong, such as saying that it was O'Rourke's Car and Driver boss who drove with him) http://magnum-mania.com/Articles/The_Ferrari.html

Here's a thread started in 2013 about the Magnum PI 308s: https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/magnum-pi.430369/ - it has a list of VINS posted on the first page

 

I read several of O'Rourke's books in grad school. I also read the article, "Ferrari Reinvents Manifest Destiny" and it ignited in me a desire to own a 308 someday.

In this short video, Hoover Institution fellow Peter Robinson opines that O'Rourke's book "Parliament of whores" is "the best book ever written on Washington."

 

A legend, on top form here, I would say... RIP.