Public radio listeners may well remember the bluegrass music, Boston accents and gut-bending laughter coming from their devices when Tom and Ray Magliozzi came on the air to shine some insight on all-things-automobiles.
The Magliozzi brothers introduced themselves as “Click” and “Clack,” the “Tappet Brothers.” While I was a listener for years, it was only today as I write this that I discover what a tappet is. (That’s a component in an internal combustion engine, by the way.)
Car Talk was a witty take on automotive problems and mixed in long-form riddles, letters from listeners and compelling banter with callers from all over the country.
Original episodes of the show ended in 2012, but stations still play repeat broadcasts from its national run from 1987 and beyond.
If you’ve never heard them, I highly recommend you listen to one of their episodes here
Tom Magliozzi was 77 when he died due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease in 2014.
Other than my late father-in-law, I may have learned more about how to work on cars from these guys than from any other source. YouTube how-to videos notwithstanding.
The end credits of each show may have been a favorite of mine. They were partial to their law firm, Dewey Cheatem and Howe. There was also their Russian cheauffeur, Picov Andropov.
Here’s a partial list of who ‘contributed’ to each week’s production:
| Alignment Inspector | Lou Segusi |
| Anger Management Coach | Kirsten Hollered |
| Collections Specialist | Colin Duboise |
| Conflict Resolution Specialist | Hugo Origo |
| Disciplinarian | Don Fuller Round |
| Exhaust Manifold Specialist | Manny Burns |
| Head of Front Desk Security | Constance Noring |
| Nomadic Studies | Roman Hunt |
| Second Shift Meteorologist | Claudio Vernight |
| Sexual Harassment Trainer, Frankfurt Office | Hans T. Josef |
| Termite Inspector | Luke Underwood |
| Undergarment Inspector | I.C. London |
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Charlie Haldeman 