My Favorite Discussion! WILLIS!

[Haines Garage]

I have brought this up on other pages, I am going to do it again here because...well I can ;D!

We all missed the Happy Birthday wish to the late John North Willys, whom was born in Canandaigua NY, October, 25th , 1873. I used to live there How COOL, and my wife was born there..Even Cooler.

The Name is pronounced WILL IS!!

So where and how does will ease get introduced, that is the question for the evening..............

Lets figure it out once and for all...I know this card has been played many a time...settle up now, and call it RIGHT!

[Deleted]

Well Mr. Haines, I usually go the other way on this as you WELL know ;D, but tonight I will side with you . I have spent most of the weekend in the garage doing what I like to do, not what I have to do for a change, Had a few manifolds to look over, and cut some louvers out of a drivers side fender, and did a lot of straightening up prepping for winter, many thoughts of my Dad passed through my head, and my dad always said "WILL-IS", and often corrected people using the other pronunciation ;D (Yes, a man with you own heart) so I am now a "WILL-IS man all the way .................

Lee

[Deleted]

As long ago as I can remember, my Dad has always pronounced the name "WILL-IS" and I can remember him correcting people on it. He still pronounces it that way, but I think he got tired of correcting people. I pronounce it that way, because whatever Dad says is right, right? I don't correct anyone though, unless they try to correct me, or make some other remark about it. TS

[Deleted]

Oct 27, 2013 23:07:08 GMT -5 @brucew said:

As long ago as I can remember, my Dad has always pronounced the name "WILL-IS" and I can remember him correcting people on it. He still pronounces it that way, but I think he got tired of correcting people. I pronounce it that way, because whatever Dad says is right, right? I don't correct anyone though, unless they try to correct me, or make some other remark about it. TS

Brucew, we have never met in person, but the more I get to know you through this forum the more I like you . Dads are always right, I typically do not correct on this topic either, I like to poke fun at the Haines just like I did my dad,,,,,,,,,but from here to the end it's all "WILL-IS"...............Not that it matters, ; but my dads name was also Bruce ;D

Lee

[Haines Garage]

When I say something, its because I feel it in my Gut....Bruce W is "The Stuff" it makes me so happy that Sir Bruce took that Title on...GOOD LORD CAN HE DRIVE THAT OLE WILL-IS!!!!! ;D ;D ;D

[Haines Garage]

Spoke to Sir Turocy today on the phone, He said Will-Is ;D ;D ;D.
just saying..............

[Deleted]

The ONLY reason I said it today is b/c I have read this post and I see how wadded up all of your panties get over this. Will-ease! There, I said. I like that version best! However, in the quest to not offend you souls on this forum, let it be known forever more that I will only refer to it as an MB! ...as in my MB...that looks almost as good as my GPW! Take that, Haines!

[Haines Garage]

Its Will-IS you silly nillis, ;D ;D ;D, and the MB you keep in your garage for me, baby sits that GPW ;D ;D ;D ;D.....Who loves you Sir Moosester

[Deleted]

You have to go with the majority! You must NOT discriminate! Bad! For instance: Is it Porsh or Porsh---a? (Porche) Is it: Jag--E--are, Jag---U--are, or Jagwar? (Jaguar) Now, them thar locals where I'm from say Willease! Die Hard Bruce is for sure Willis. So, if you spell Willy, it sounds like Will---eeee. Add a s, so plural would be Will---ease. Makes sense now right? John

[Deleted]

Oilleaker...holy cow...FINALLY somebody around here is making sense! Now that definite signs of life and intelligence has made itself known, I think I'm going to frequent this forum a bit more! Haha...especially if that there HG says he is backing his castellated nut off a bit! ;D

I bet Haines says Pee-Can pie, too.

[Deleted]

...and HG...when you want that MB, just let me know. I've got some GPW parts on that sucka that I need to strip off before selling it. ...nothing major...just the engine, the transfer case, both axles, a seat, couple other negligible bits and pieces.

I wonder where all of the Will-ease parts went? Broken, I guess.

[Deleted]

I want a GPW! HG better get a move on. One more item of proof: The windshield, and two sides of the hood on a CJ2A DO NOT!!! have a raised boss that says WILLIS, it says WILLYS. End of Discussion!

[Deleted]

Soooooo Mr. Oilleaker, Knowing your a diehard Chevy fan, right, do you pronounce it as Chevrolet as stamped on trucks for the better part of 100 years, OR chevrolay as everyone calls it . I well understand your call it as you see it but there is right and wrongs in this world , so I will remain a WILL-IS guy for the same reason I call a Chevrolet not a chevrolay,,,,,,,,,,,it's the right way to pronounce it , LOL, and just because everyone pronounces it wrong does not make it right!. So [shadow=red,left,300]WILL-IS[/shadow] all the way

Lee

[Deleted]

Hey Moose, just because you wear "Panties" that are wadded up , do not assume the correct pronunciation speakers of the world do the same ;D, I wear gender correct, mens underwear (unwadded or pinching) and I say WILL-IS LOL.

Lee

[Deleted]

Lee, I thought that was a abbreviation that meant "shove it or leave it". I do own Chevvies though! John

[Deleted]

Nov 16, 2013 18:24:49 GMT -5 @oilleaker1 said:

Lee, I thought that was a abbreviation that meant "shove it or leave it". I do own Chevvies though! John

LOL John, I have never owned one, have wore out a few as company vehicles, my wife has one, I made her title it

great fun, this site,,,,,,,,enjoy the fun poking very much

Lee

[Haines Garage]

OK....Here is Comes BlamB!! Ka Pow!!

John Willys
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2009)
John Willys
JohnNorthWillys.jpg
John Willys, c.1918
Born October 25, 1873
Canandaigua, New York
Died August 26, 1935 (aged 61)
The Bronx, New York
Nationality American
Engineering career
Significant advance automotive
John North Willys (/ˈwɪlɪs/; October 25, 1873 – August 26, 1935) was an American automotive pioneer and statesman.
Born in Canandaigua, New York, as a young man he began selling bicycles in his hometown and within a few years eventually expanded into manufacturing his own line of bicycles. In 1897 he married Isabel Van Wie and a few years later entered the automobile retailing business in Elmira, New York. His very successful car dealership sold the Overland brand of automobiles. However, in 1907 supply problems with the Indianapolis, Indiana Overland factory led to John Willys acquiring the company. He proved an astute operator and quickly turned the company's sagging fortunes around. In 1909 he acquired the Marion Motor Car Co. of Indianapolis, Indiana and a few years later shifted operations to a production facility bought from the bankrupt Pope Motor Car Co. in Toledo, Ohio.
After changing the name to the Willys-Overland Motor Company in 1912, the next year John Willys acquired the Edwards Motor Co of New York which gave him a license to manufacture the patented Knight "sleeve valve" engine. Success saw his car company become the second largest carmaker in the United States and in 1915 he built a seven-story headquarters in Toledo, Ohio that was the most modern of its day. Before the end of the decade, one-third of the city of Toledo's workforce was employed either at Willys-Overland or at one of the numerous small businesses providing parts and supplies. His automobile empire offered the consumer the choice of an Overland, Willys or Willys-Knight vehicle, each relative to a specific type of engine or price range. Through his holding company, in 1918 John Willys acquired the Moline Plow Company of Moline, Illinois, which manufactured the "Universal" brand of farm tractor and a line of Stephens cars. The following year he acquired control of the Duesenberg company primarily to get his hands on Duesenberg brothers' factory in Elizabeth, New Jersey where he planned to produce a new six-cylinder car.
Labor difficulties began to emerge at the Willys-Overland Toledo plant that resulted in a violent strike in 1919, shutting down the plant for several months. Willys hired General Motors vice-president Walter Chrysler to run the Willys-Overland operation at the then astonishing salary of $1 million a year. However, Chrysler tried to oust John Willys with an attempted takeover bid that backfired when the shareholders resisted his move and Chrysler left in 1921 to go into business for himself.
Although very profitable, John Willys' businesses were highly leveraged, expanded and/or acquired through massive borrowings. In 1921, Willys' nervous bankers forced him to consolidate in order to limit their exposure. To raise cash for debt reduction, the Willys-Overland plant in New Jersey was sold at auction to William C. Durant as was Willys' "New Process Gear Company," in Syracuse, New York. With debt under control, Willys once again began expanding and in 1925 bought the F.J. Stearns Co. of Cleveland, Ohio that made a line of luxury vehicles. In 1926 Willys introduced the "Whippet" model line that sold in the U.S., Canada, and Australia.


The mausoleum of John North Willys
Well respected in the business community, John Willys was a strong supporter of the United States Republican Party who had been an Ohio delegate to the 1916 Republican National Convention. Following the election of Herbert Hoover to the Presidency of the United States, in March 1930 Willys was appointed the first U.S. Ambassador to Poland, serving until May 1932.
The Great Depression of the 1930s saw numerous carmakers go out of business and the Willys enterprises went into bankruptcy reorganization in 1933. The following year, John Willys and his wife of thirty-seven years divorced. He soon remarried but died in 1935 of a heart attack at his home in The Bronx, New York.
John North Willys is interred in the Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York.
References[edit]

How John Willys Built up a $200,000 Business on a Start of $50. The Magazine of Wall Street, Volume 19. Ticker Publishing Co., 1917
External links[edit]

Portal icon Biography portal
John Willys at Find a Grave
"John North Willys, Automotive Pioneer" by Curtis Redgap
"The Automobile as a Civilizer" by John North Willys in 1909
Categories: 1873 births1935 deathsAmerican businesspeopleAutomotive pioneersAmerican founders of automobile manufacturersPeople from Canandaigua, New York

[Deleted]

Very interesting, I had no Idea he owned New Process gear

Thanks for posting

Lee

[Haines Garage]

Seem like we shall all be practicing saying Will-Is!

[athawk11]

Sorry, I know I'm wrong, but Willeeeeeeeezzzz for me!!! I just can't help myself. Maybe it's a cultural thing. ;D

Tim

[Deleted]

Tim, It may take Haines and I some time, BUT we will get you converted .

Lee

[Haines Garage]

Nov 19, 2013 21:48:06 GMT -5 athawk11 said:

Sorry, I know I'm wrong, but Willeeeeeeeezzzz for me!!! I just can't help myself. Maybe it's a cultural thing. ;D

Tim

At least you admit you have a problem....and that is the first step ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

[Deleted]

No one where I'm at will know what I'm talking about. They will think of the movie Die Hard. I don't know of anyone driving a Willis Jeep. ;D I sure enjoy driving my Willys Jeep though! I've called my Jeep that for 47 years. You aint going to change me ! John

[Haines Garage]

I guess that if you had your will-is that long, you can call it what you want.

[Deleted]

Thanks, I feel better now! John