EP.05 - Interview with Mike Kay and Tony Vallelunga

This is the first in the bonus episodes that include people who worked with or knew my father outside of my own life experience with them. Richard Gargano was Employee #2 at the John Z. DeLorean Corporation and has some very interesting information to share with us about how he began to work with my father and the beginnings of the DeLorean Motor Company. He worked with my father at JZD Corp beginning in 1972, yes you heard me correctly, 1972. His story is fascinating and contains many bits of information I had never before known. I hope you enjoy.

This episode is the introduction to why there was not an Episode 2 and what will be contained within all episodes that have this title. These episodes will be special bonus episodes that don't quite fit into the narrative timeline but contain interesting and amazing information about my father and his history outside of my own experiences with him. Going forward, any episode you see labeled Ep 2.0, 2.1, etc will contain these bonus episodes. Episode 2.1 will be a special interview with Richard Gargano, Employee #2 at JZD Corp. I hope you enjoy!

This episode begins the tale of what it is like to be me. A whirlwind of a life with stories you can't make up if you tried. This one is wild, a bit tragic and was difficult for me to record. It marks the beginning of the stories that will take you deeper into the world of John DeLorean, who he was and the people who surrounded him in his life. The next few episodes I will interview people who knew and worked with my father closely. I will start to capture some of the moments and individuals I need to in order to preserve his legacy, regardless of their order, all will add context to his life. Thank you for coming on this journey with me. I enjoy having you along.

In this episode we talk to Mike Kay and Tony Vallelunga, two individuals who worked with my father on the original DMC-12 and are now working with me on the model JZD. We learn about how they got into fabrication and what it is like to work in the automotive industry doing what they do.

In this episode I discuss how we started with a single, one-off car and how Tony Vallelunga and Mike Kay became my first inspirations for expanding into something more.

In this episode I interview Angel Guerra and ask him about his journey into automotive design. After getting to know Angel, we discuss how he came into my life and what our DeLorean Legacy Project means to him.

We begin my journey, at the end.  This episode begins of the story of how I met Angel Guerra of Angel Guerra Designs and his 40th anniversary tribute to my father.  I delve into what I am doing with DeLorean Next Generation, how we got here and set the stage for my next episode in which we will interview Angel himself and dive deeper into the story as well as get to know him as an incredible human.  This journey has been a wild ride, jump in with me while I take the wheel and show you what it means to live life as the daughter of one of the 20th century’s greatest minds, and most misunderstood heroes, John Z. DeLorean.

The reality of my life is a harsh one, it was not one of glistening snow and horse drawn carriages, but rather the story of a father who lost everything and went to jail, a mother who was left humiliated, a genius who never graduated high school and a family facing financial ruin once again.  The road I took was not the one I ever imagined I would, the destination I arrived at is not where I nor my parents imagined my life would lead me, but the story I have to tell is one I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world.