Whippet Kisses

Dan Manning has assembled this humorous and informative collection of stories that range from when his grandfather began selling the first Cadillac cars in a small central Kansas town, to his own experiences with cars from the 1940s to present day. One of the main subjects is a mid-night blue 1928 Whippet 2-door coach that Manning bought from its original owner that has become a member of the family. He and his wife, Betty, had their first date in this car. It would have been used as their wedding's getaway vehicle fty years ago if she had not said they ought to hide the Whippet, or her fun-loving relatives would do something mischievous with it. So, that's how the old car ended up in his dad's care until Dan completed his service in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War, lived and worked in Los Angeles, and moved in the 1970s to the Missouri Ozarks to raise three children in a much better atmosphere.

Dan R. Manning Dan R. Manning has written several scholarly works which have appeared in SouthwesternHistorical Quarterly, and Military History of the West. Other articles have appeared in Texas Ranger Dispatch, Missouri Life, Ozarks Mountaineer, American West, Old Mill News, and Farm Collector magazines. Through research and personal experience, Dan has gained knowledge about 19th century grist milling techniques, early agricultural machinery and methods, including the raising and training of draft horses and mules. Dan's most heart-felt project, which he has spent three decades researching and writing, is the biography of John James Dix, his wife's great, great grandfather. Dan was raised in a Central Kansas farming community, and now resides with his wife, Betty, in the Missouri Ozarks.