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Metro Detroiters step on the gas for 10th annual Woodward Dream Cruise.

BILL CARROLL .

Special to the Jewish News

n one of his standup routines,
comedian Jackie Mason
points out that Jewish people
like to own expensive cars,
but don't know very much
about them and are not too mechani-
cally inclined. Quips Mason: "When a
Jew opens the hood and looks inside
at the engine, he says, 'Boy, is it busy
in there.'"
A number of local Jewish car own-
ers will be busy this Saturday, Aug. 21,
the date of the 10th annual
Woodward Dream Cruise. They are
the "Jews who cruise" — people from
all walks of life who own and nurture
expensive classic cars and show them
off at what has become the biggest
one-day automotive event in the
world.
They've been tinkering with their
beloved vehicles, cleaning and spiffing
them up, rounding up family and
friends, and getting ready for cruisin'
up and down legendary Woodward
Avenue.
The 12-hour cruise stretches 16
miles through the nine Oakland
County communities of Berkley,
Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills,
Bloomfield Township, Ferndale,

I

Huntington Woods, Pleasant Ridge,
Pontiac and Royal Oak. This year, the
cruise is expected to attract 1.7 million
people and about 40,000 classic,
street-worthy cars and trucks.
Auto enthusiasts from around the
world come to celebrate the Motor
City's love affair with cars. The focus
now is on family fun with a
lineup of special events, live
local and national musical
performers, children's activi-
ties, refreshments, and, most
important, an amazing array
of classic, hot rod and cus-
tom cars.
The Dream Cruise celebrates the
heyday of the 1940s-1960s, when
Woodward was the heart and soul of
American cruising in the place that
put the nation on wheels. Many
Jewish families joined in the fun then
— particularly the residents of the
Dexter-Davison area, the pioneers of
northwest Detroit and the adventur-
ous suburbanites of Oak Park and
Southfield.
And both the old and new genera-
tions will be there again this year,
many reliving the nostalgia of bygone
days in the cars that made that era so
special.
The cruise has come a long way
since 1995 when a man named

Nelson House launched it while look-
ing for a way to raise funds for a chil-
dren's soccer field. A few hundred
thousand people showed up that year.
Then the news of this motoring phe-
nomenon spread by word of mouth,
and attendance soared through the late
1990s to reach the cruise's current
numbers.
Governed by a special
board of directors, the
lt
organization spawned such
special events and entertain-
ment as amusement park
rides, parades, celebrity .
appearances, charity parties, crowning
of a king and queen, and more. The
cruise became famous internationally
and attracted visitors from around the
world beginning in 2000.
Even last August's big blackout,
caused by a giant power grid failure
affecting 50 million homes, couldn't
dim the enthusiasm of cruisers; the
event became known as "Woodward
Dream Cruise Unplugged." Power was
restored just in time that Saturday and
the show went on.
There's an old saying among auto
enthusiasts: "Thou shalt not love thy
cars more than thy family — just
equal." A number of local Jewish clas-
sic car owners will attest to that.
They're typical car buffs who are

Coy E
STO RY

proud of their old-time autos, spend a
lot of time and money on them, and
many love to show them off at the
annual Woodward Dream Cruise.
Meet some Jews who cruise.

Bernard Glieberman

Builder Bernard Glieberman of West
Bloomfield owns five classic cars,
including a famous green Tucker hard-
top from 1949 -- the only year the
vehicle was produced. He would love
to drive it in the cruise, but he's still
restoring it. Instead, he cruises in his
two-headed, custom-made
Volkswagen.
Glieberman began collecting cars in
1988, and also owns a DeLorean, a
1957 Plymouth and a 1961
Thunderbird.
"The cars of the 1950s and 1960s
had a unique and exciting design,"
said Glieberman, who is CEO of
Crosswinds Communities of Novi and
builder of many homes, condos and
lofts in Detroit and the suburbs.
"That was an era of chrome mad-
ness and a variety of car colors. All of
the automotive designers tried to
outdo each other; some of the chrome
designs were really outrageous."
Besides the Dream Cruise,

CRUISE on page 46

8/20

2004

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