A 1965 Studebaker station wagon once owned by Dan Truhitte, who played the German officer Rolfe in “The Sound of Music” in 1965, caught fire in Oak Ridge on Friday. Above Oak Ridge Fire Department firefighter Steven London, left, sprays water on the bottom side of the four-door wagon. At right is ORFD firefighter Sandra Sila-Massengill.
A classic car once owned by an actor in “The Sound of Music” movie caught fire in Oak Ridge on Friday afternoon.
Oak Ridge resident Glenn Bell, who now owns the car, smelled gas as he left a doctor’s appointment at Jackson Square Plaza in the green 1965 Studebaker four-door station wagon early Friday afternoon. Bell decided to head home.
As he turned onto Tyler Road from Oak Ridge Turnpike, he saw smoke under the hood and dash, and he jumped out. The car rolled a short distance to the intersection of Tyler and Talmeda roads.
The Oak Ridge Fire Department was able to quickly extinguish the fire, which was reported at about 1:30 p.m. Friday, but it’s not clear if the station wagon, which was insured, will be totaled, Bell said.
Bell said he bought the Studebaker from Dan Truhitte in 2006. The actor, who played the German officer Rolfe in “Sound of Music” in 1965, is from California but now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he still performs, Bell said.
Above, Oak Ridge resident Glenn Bell, who now owns the car, talks to Oak Ridge Police Department Lieutenant John Kelly after Bell’s 1965 Studebaker station wagon caught fire Friday.
Sila-Massengill sprays water in the engine compartment of the Studebaker.
Leave a Reply