It was 6am on a Friday at a Culver City studio. We were all set up for the shot of the Lamborghini Countach. The car lift was ready, camera and car polishers all set. Ric, the car’s owner, was expected at 6:30 up from Manhattan Beach along the Pacific Ocean south of LAX airport. My agency creative director Dan Katz and I got there exactly at 6:30. As I sipped my first coffee around 7, I asked “where’s the Lambo?” ” It’ll be here”, says Dan. But by 8:00, there was still no car and I was getting nervous. We only had the studio for 5 hours and, in the 80’s, cell phones were not widely available.

The instant success of Alpine Car Audio Systems in the early 80’s was largely because of the great network of high end audio dealers and the exclusive connection with the Lamborghini brand (Alpine was: “Standard Equipment in every Lamborghini made.”).

So finally at 9, the photographer used a land line to call the owner’s home to see what was up. Damn:

No answer.

Then at 9:15 Ric picked up. “Where are you!” we screamed. “Outside.” He answered calmly. “I didn’t hear the phone ring”.

“We need the car. Here!” we shouted even louder!

“I can’t.” He said, again calmly.

“Why not?” we yelled.

Oh. It’s missing, he said.

“Holy crap, we have an important shoot here on a deadline!” We all lost it.

Then I asked, “who took it?”

He said, “oh, nobody. It’s in my garage.”

This was getting crazier by the second.

We said, but you said “it’s missing!”

“No no” he said. Its misting!”

He refused to drive it in the rain, not even in a soft morning coastal mist!

That experience taught us a lot about Lambo owners!

The sun came out at 10. Ric drove it th 7 miles to Culver City. We hoisted up his beautiful car and finished th shoot by 11.

And yet another Lambo poster made history for Alpine and Alpine dealers. Over 2 million Alpine/Lambo posters were distributed to customers by Alpine dealers in the 80’s and early 90’s.