AUTO BIOGRAPHY: 'A little piece of Russ' — Ottawan kept first car his whole life

Typically, the wood name sign would have been the focus of the dedication May 22 of the Russel P. Mammen Memorial Basketball Court at Ottawa’s Lincoln-Douglas Park.

But the attention was shared by the glossy black 1957 Cadillac that Mammen used to own, which was parked next to the sign.

Mammen was 58 and retired as the city’s parks department supervisor after 30 years of service when he died of cancer in 2013.

“This was Russ’s first car,” said his sister, Joni Burke. “We brought it out here as a tribute.”

The 1957 Cadillac was designed by legendary car stylist Harley Earl (1893-1969) and features his trademark tail fins and wraparound windshield. The 5,000-pound car is powered by a V-8 engine reported to get nearly nine miles per gallon. (Gas was about 26 cents a gallon in 1957.)

Mammen purchased the Cadillac when he was in high school from Everett Smith, who was from the South Side, Burke said.

“People will tell you different, but I’m pretty sure he paid $600 for it,” she said. “Anyway, he always said he was going to keep the first car he ever owned, and he did.”

Mammen had no wife or children, Burke said.

“So after Russ passed, all the siblings decided what went where.

“He used to give our sister (Lori Van Aken, of Ottawa) a ride to school but he never let her sit in the front side with him,” Burke said. “She and a neighbor girl always had to ride in the back seat. So we all decided that Lori should rightfully have the car because she was chauffeured in it for so many years.”

Burke gave the Caddy a wistful look.

“It’s another little piece of Russ we all get to hang on to,” she said.