I was never much of a model maker. I tried, believe me I tried, but I just didn't had the patience to do it right. It's one of those things I could never do. Anyway, I was checking out Hunt Auctions recent offerings and came across a nice vintage 1962 Revell Lockheed Electra II Dodger model airplane kit, HD-255. See it below.
It is an exact replica, minus the artistic accouterments that you must add yourself (ugh!), of the plane that shuttled the Dodger squad from 1962 to 1970. This particular model is very rare and was only available from the Dodgers marketing arm.
The real plane was purchase by Walter O'Malley in 1961 and was dubbed the "Kay 'O" in honor of his wife, Kay. It was the best there was for traveling nationwide. It was roomy and fast- even allowing them to fly from New York to Vero Beach twice in one day. Piloted by Capt. Harry R. "Bump" Holman, son of Bud Holman who convinced the Dodgers to spend their Springs in Vero Beach, it would soon be retired in 1970 when the Dodgers upgraded to a 720-B Fan Jet. That plane was called the "Kay 'O II." Below is a picture of the real "Kay 'O" from O'Malley's website.
I had seen the model once before during a card show several years ago at the hotel in Hollywood Park. It was a small show with not much to really look at, besides the typical stacks of commonly seen Baseball cards. I was disappointed. Then, as the show was coming to a close, I came across a table with only a handful of photos, cards and unopened boxes on a table and shelf unit. On the top shelf behind the seller was a box, like the one above. Suddenly I became elated as a unique collectible was in my sights. I asked to take a look and closely inspected the box and its contents. It looked perfect. My heart raced as I thought about putting it together- to try my hand at building like a child all over again. Then my memories of my past failures came to mind and I put the model down and passed on the purchase. I walked around some more and soon came to regret that decision. As folks were packing up to go home I walked back to that table only to find the seller had already left. My chance at conquering my model making deficiency had passed.
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