The Rumored 3rd Thayer IV.. The Barn Find Of The Decade!

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Woody Boater and U22-1460 Thayer IV – October 2010

In what is to be the barn find of all barn finds. Woody Boater has been on the trail of finding all the Golden Pond boats used in the film On Golden Pond. This adventure started for us when fellow Woody Boater Ken Miller stumbled across a scrap book of Golden Pond production photos and clippings in a yard sale. The scrap book was from Jim Hendricks the guy that bought one of the boats from Marine Coordinator Pat Curtin.. This all came about on the Chris-Craft Antique Boat Clubs Boat buzz on July 2008… .Folks chimed in and one post stuck in my mind. It was from Wilson Wright on October 14, 2008. Former Executive Director of the Chris- Craft Antique Boat Club and made this statement..


“May depend on which boat you or they are talking about…There were three…One for the surface shots and one for the crash scene that Hendricks bought. The latter is still at the Holiday Inn in Key Largo with the hole in her bow. I’ve heard no more on the other after she went to Minnesota…I guess a call to the guy who took her there might reveal some details. 
Then there was rumored to be a third boat used for the aerial shots which I’d heard went to somebody in Ohio. This boat could be that one….Maybe ??? Maybe not.”

Wilson Wright 
Executive Director Emeritus 
Chris-Craft Antique Boat Club


This is what got my motor running.. A rumored third boat.. That’s the day I started my search… And then.. Dec 23rd 2008.. eBay!  

Image of 1802 from the eBay sale. 

A boat claiming to be one of the Golden Pond boats pops upon eBay.. After some research it appears to be the boat owned by Hendricks the owner of the scrap book purchased my Ken Miller back in July.. But the boat is bought and disappears.. Until last month where its unveiled launched and brought back to its public place in Classic boat history.. Hull number 1802 is now lovingly owned  by Jeff Thom of Minnesota..Restored by Sunrise River Boatworks. More on that tomorrow.


But what about the rumored third boat? Knowing about film, I knew that it only made sense to have multiple boats.. Cars.. Whatever you shoot.. How many Bat mobiles, General Lee’s… Lassies…Rin Tin Tins are out there? So is the third boat still out there? What about the US Mail Boat Mariah? I called Pat Curtin during the eBay boat sale. And he confirmed the third boat right off the bat, in fact there where four….Thayer IV’s… One was the Hendricks boat.. U-22-1802 a 1952 Chris Craft 22ft Sportsman … which has been reported on over the years, ….. One was the wreck scene boat also sold to Hendricks. And a third U22 was also a boat used in the movie.  U-22 1460. It was bought by a family in August1982 along with the Century Raven.. Mariah US Mail Boat. 


So? Are both boats  still in the same family?  Maybe.. No one could know with out digging.. I love to dig by the way… What about the 4th boat? First anyone had heard of this… Dear god, not another one!  I don’t have the energy… Not really…It was bought and never used or refitted with the scoops, ladder.. etc…. So it was sold off and has no connection to the film..not worth another mention… and better yet no digging. Just a great teaser to get you folks to tune in.. Sorry, it was too easy… We knew that the wreck scene boat was in FLA now, the 1802 boat was in Minnesota safe and being taken care of again…the only difference between U22-1802 and U22-1460 was the year of the boat and the steering wheel. 1802 had a two spoke and 1460 a three spoke.. A very tiny detail… Hendricks did not want the ladder or scoops or compass. So he had them removed.. This has been confirmed by Hendricks son and Pat Curtin.. Both boats were restored after the film by Curtin before they were sold.. 


Last week.. after about two years of digging searching and making painful calls to folks that did not either know what I was talking about or did not want to be found. We found the rumored third boat. And what a find it was.. Located in the same family since purchased from Pat untouched.. With all its original movie items on it. With one stipulation… The family does not want there names mentioned or the location of the boat.. Can you imagine all the calls wanting to buy the boat.. I don’t blame them one bit.  But they did want to get the story out to protect its legacy. They had over the years read newspapers stories of the Hendricks Boat, and just recently the story of the restoration of that boat, U22 1802.. It was time, and since we were on the hunt and relentless, they agreed to do a story.  That was the deal.. So here it is.. I will let the photos tell the story.. Enjoy.

The second we got permission to go see the boat we climbed in the truck and headed North.. Pat Curtin, and Frank Miklos, his brother Bob and Woody Boater Jim Scott, all headed from different parts of the country for a once in a lifetime adventure..
OH -MY- GOD! There she is.. Tucked away in a barn in original condition.. The ladder holders still in place.. Just sitting there.. It’s officially no longer a rumor..

Jim Scott just taking it all in.. We all dream of moments like this.. No, not looking at Jim.. Looking at the boat.. 

We moved it outside and get a look.. Here is Pat Curtin on the left and Frank Miklos on the right. 

There is the odd ball scoop! Originally used to cover a hole from the search light it had.. Who would have thought of such a small thing 30 years later would mean so much. It’s one of the key details that makes this U22 1460 so special. 

The Compass close up

The ladder, found at home.

The location of the original ladder holders on the deck

The 3 spoke wheel seen in many of the scenes of the film. It’s not black. That’s mold from sitting for years.  The boat has not been touched.. Just used and enjoyed.. But mostly tucked away.

The Serial number stamped into the wood.  Matches the Bill of sale issued from Pat Curtin to the family. Sold on August 12th 1982. You can click on these and enlarge. According to Pat. “That boat was not going to be sold. Period. I was holding onto the 1460 boat for myself. I met the person that bought 1460 at the Boston Boat Show.. It was not advertised at the time, the boat at the show was 1802… They were going to purchase 1802.. Made the deal a week earlier –  But the buyer showed up on the same day about an hr after I heard that Fonda had died.. The family really wanted 1460 instead – The two boats were sitting side by side in the shop”… Curtin a friend of Fonda’s was upset and said..”Take the God Damn boat I really don’t care” And that was that.. This boat was sold a year before Hendrick’s bought 1802 according to Hendricks affidavit. Note…I have blacked out the names as promised to the owners of 1460.. Also Note that the typo in the typed bill of sale reads O-22 and the hand written one reads U22.. below.

In the scrap book is this newspaper from the date Fonda died.

The scrap book that the owners of 1460 have. There mother saved everything.. Thank god!

A call sheet for the film, you can click on the image and blow it up.. No not that type of blow up… its safe….

Also in the scrap book, shots of when the boat was bought and shown at a local boat show. Note the dash. The light handle and three spoke wheel.

A photo taken in 1998 on a family outing. You can just make out Thayer IV on the transom

The Hull Card Courtesy of the Chris-Craft Archives at the  Mariners Museum from Newport News reports
1460 as a 1949 or could be a 1950 model.





OK back to the Thayer IV today..

This image by Frank Miklos shows all the goodies together. Note again the Iva-light knob on the dash..

Thayer IV’s original motor, which was rebuilt several years back.

Here is a cleaned up detail call out of the U22-1460 boat – you can click  on it and blow it up

So! Thayer you have it.. yes that’s the last time I will use that bad pun…This family could not have been nicer and helpful. They are extremely private and still in love with their boats.. As you can imagine, how to restore such a boat is critical and also can be very expensive, so right now the boats are in storage for the right time to make that choice. Thayer IV, U22-1460 needs a new bottom for sure, a strip and varnish.. The interior was just dirty. It also looked as if much of the chrome could be cleaned up.. The question is, do you restore it at all, considering that U22-1802 has been restored?  A last note. We realize that the finding of U22-1460 will change the history books Wikapedia and other places that have reported that there is only two U-22’s. We are not reporting here to create drama or be sensational.. But as the two years played out.. The true history of these boats needed to be reported on.. And that became our goal.. It ain’t our usual story on a toilet seat in the shape of a Chris Craft hatch on eBay, that’s for sure… And to be honest, maybe more than we should be reporting on.. But we had the story and access so here we are.. We made sure that all the facts were true and followed up on all of them. Tomorrow…U22 1802, then the US Mail Boat Mariah… Did you know there where 2 mail boats….. Just kidding… Only one, and we have her here for you.. Happy commenting.  
43 replies
  1. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    So this family bought the boat, took it to a boat show (without cleats or ladder and bracket) and than took it home and put those things back on, like your pictures now show. Also interesting how the piece of paper in that boat show photo just happens to cover the compass and additional scoop. Seems a bit wierd to me.

  2. WoodyBoater
    WoodyBoater says:

    Wow, great catch! I looked at the shot closer again and just spoke with Pat… The sign says Eastern Classics on the card. This was shot before the sale right after the restoration and before all the hardware was installed. The compass and scoop were on there at the time.. It's just the ladder..

  3. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    I heard that Pat usually has an answer for everything. Cleats are gone too so it's not just the ladder.

  4. WoodyBoater
    WoodyBoater says:

    My mistake.. Here is what PAt said exactly..

    "that was the winni boat show they asked me to bring the boat there this was before the owner took delivery of it and I think before he bought it the sign was an add for eastern classics not to hide anything and that was the best place for it, I didn't put all the hardware on the boat until it went to the new owner I never thought that 30 yrs later Ii would have to explain this.

  5. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    But, I have to say, after looking at all of the photos, there are numerous differences. First, the brackets from the ladder appear to be missing. It's not that they could not have been removed, but if they were, they were removed in such a manner to leave no trace that they were actually there. No witness marks, screw hole bungs, etc.

    Second the cheapo modern day Perko cleats on either side of the windshield, and the aft deck seem to be missing in the boat show boat, Again, a marvelous job of removing the movie provenance, without a trace.

    As the prior poster says, why would one remove a ladder, taking the effort to totally hide that it was ever there, only to reinstall the brackets later.

    And I wonder why Mr. Curtin chooses to not to discuss boat number four in countless prior interviews?

  6. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    If nothing else, I think you found all of the accessories from 1802. I also don't think they were on 1802 when Mr. Hendricks looked at the boat because they were clearly not on 1802 when Mr. Irwin and Pat were pictured with it in the Spring of 1982 (Brass Bell). The boat in that article is clearly 1802 as there is a 2 spoke steering wheel and you can see no 2nd scoop. We now know what Pat did with them……. If there was another set of the items (ladder, compass, scoop, cleats) where are they? The way Pat saved things from the movie, I can't imagine he would have gotten rid of them??????

  7. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    So according to this the boat was redecked? C'mon, you can't remove those items without a trace that they were ever there.

  8. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    In the February of 1982 issue of the Brass Bell, Pat Curtin made it clear that there was a “1950 Chris Craft Sportsman” and a “sacrificial old Chris hull, prepared by Curtin”. There was no mention of any other movie U22’s anywhere in that article.

  9. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    The bill of sale signed by Mr. Curtin doesn’t do anything for me either. He has been a part of every contradiction related to this story.

  10. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Wait a minute. We have a piece of paper signed by Curtin and pictures of the boat. Isn’t that worth something?

  11. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Are there any credible witnesses to the actual transfer of the boat to whoever now owns it? When I talked to MN owner, at show, he had affidavit from Jimmy Hendricks Jr. that was there when Curtin delivered 1802 to his father.

  12. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    If you look closely at the photo from Classic Boating posted on Boat Buzz, you will see a Thayer IV with stars on board, with numerous cleats, fender cleats and other non-original junk all down the side of the covering board. It's also interesting that in this particular shot, the steering wheel has been removed in order to get better view through the windshield. In total there at least six pieces of hardware all along the starboard side covering board, none of which are seen in the above show photo. Again I find it hard to believe that all of this was patched up to this point. The rear cleat and the ladder bracket locations are right in the foreground in the show photo. No evidence at all.

  13. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Regarding the value of Pat Curtin’s signature, it depends on who you talk to. He has left many impressions.

  14. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Its hard to believe that the barn find owner really thought it was a boat from the movie. If they did, wouldn’t they have taken better care of it?

  15. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    John Rothert posting as anonymous AGAIN,
    Well, I never saw the movie, thought Jimmy Hendricks was a guitar player, and as close as I get to giving a rats patoot about any of this is my lust for Kate Hepburn….but I have to admit this a great story and Matt is bird dogging it for all it is worth!!!!! love it.
    Best controversy since Joe whats-his-name got banned as a topic on the "other site".
    LOL! John in Va

  16. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Another inconsistency in all of this. As I understand the various Thayer IVs one of the most obvious differences is that many of the tight shots with Hepburn and Fonda on board show a Deluxe style steering wheel, not a two spoke, white painted Sheller style wheel. 1802 allegedly had a Sheller style wheel and that fact alone was being used to discredit 1802.

    Yet, in a photo published many years ago in Brass Bell, one can clearly see a newspaper clipping of Jim Hendrick shaking hands with Pat Curtin, in front of what is being called hull 1802, clearly showing a Deluxe style wheel.

    Makes me think that right before delivery Pat said, "Hey Jim, do you mind if I take that wheel? I think I can sell it separately and bring in more money."

    See: http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1WOk99

  17. Chad
    Chad says:

    It's history as a Chris Craft should be just as important, if not more, than it's movie credits.

    After it's been monkeyed with, it's just another boat with a storied past, and should be valued as such.

    IMHO, it should be restored to hull card specs and put back in the water and enjoyed.

    It's only original once.

  18. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    This is an interesting story and thanks for doing it but please be careful, Matt. Pat may have some ocean front property in AZ and I sure wouldn’t want you to lose any money.

  19. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Just a quick Google search found an article from the New Hampshire Business Review (May of ’82), showing Mr. Curtin with two boats. It explains and shows the crash boat, that the article calls the “stunt boat”. It shows another U22 with Mr. Curtin in it and further states that “Pat Curtin sits aboard the “Thayer IV,” the mahogany Chris Craft he restored for use during the filming of “On Golden Pond.” These are the only 2 U22’s he talks about. Why should we all of the sudden now believe differently? You can’t tell me this story is not really SUSPECT.

  20. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    I have written before as I was one of the unsuccessful e-bay bidders last year. So let me get this straight. In the Spring of 1983 Mr. Curtin put and ad in the Brass Bell, stating the following: FOR SALE: ON GOLDEN POND boat used in film. 22’ CHRIS CRAFT Sportsman, Thayer IV, all original as used in film”. He also put an ad in the Wall Street Journal. When Mr. Hendricks bought 1802, the Laconia Evening Citizen did an 8/4/83 article. Mr. Curtin is shaking the hand of Mr. Hendricks next to the boat and the caption says “the boat which Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn used for their excursions on Golden Pond.” The article goes on to say that Mr. Hendricks saw one of Curtin’s For-Sale ads. Each of us readers now have to determine if Curtin was telling the truth then or now. Thanks for clearing this up!!

  21. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    As I should have put in my last post, the fact that there were only two U22’s was also supported In a July 1982 article in the Laconia Evening Citizen. The article clearly states that after the filming, “Curtin purchased all the boats used in the movie, including the Thayer IV, a beautiful mahogany 22 foot Chris Craft Sportsman”. “Other crafts used in the film a U.S. Mail Boat, the Mariah, a canoe, a small outboard, and a replica of the Thayer IV used as a prop to smash into the rocks in the film.” No mention of other U22's by Pat here.

  22. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Why would the anonymous owner of this barn find and Curtin not be proud of their purchase and sale? Curtin got publicity for everything he did so this is unusual. There is a lot of gray here but 1802 has my vote. I also like the fact that it now shines, floats and runs.

  23. Rick
    Rick says:

    I'm willing to sell an original Mona Lisa, one of 3 painted. Ignore any numbers showing through the paint, which should almost be dry.

  24. Ken Miller
    Ken Miller says:

    Anonymous said: "…..Wait a minute. We have a piece of paper signed by Curtin and pictures of the boat. Isn’t that worth something?"

    Anonymous said: "…..Are there any credible witnesses to the actual transfer of the boat to whoever now owns it? When I talked to MN owner, at show, he had affidavit from Jimmy Hendricks Jr. that was there when Curtin delivered 1802 to his father"

    Anonymous said: "…..He [Curtin] also put an ad in the Wall Street Journal. When Mr. Hendricks bought 1802, the Laconia Evening Citizen did an 8/4/83 article. Mr. Curtin is shaking the hand of Mr. Hendricks next to the boat and the caption says “the boat which Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn used for their excursions on Golden Pond.” The article goes on to say that Mr. Hendricks saw one of Curtin’s For-Sale ads. Each of us readers now have to determine if Curtin was telling the truth then or now."

    *************************************
    I own the scrapbook that was once part of Jim Hendricks's collection. Included was a hand-written note from Dorothy Curtin to Jim Hendricks identifying his boat as "the" movie boat and specifying details of the upcoming October delivery of the boat to his home in Key Largo, Florida. Also in the collection is the "boat show" photo above, as well as several other photos of hull 1802 which only add veracity to the points listed above questioning the provenance of hull 1460.

    From Jamison Kohout, the ebay seller, I received the paperwork proving 1802 was the hull which Hendricks purchased. From the Hendricks album is the proof that 1802 was advertised in the Wall Street Journal (actual masthead and article clipping), represented, and then sold to him as 'the' movie boat. The photos in the collection speak for themselves as to the deck hardware. And from Kohout came the proof that the ebay boat was the Hendricks boat.

    I find the above comments from others to be on the mark.

  25. Paul H.
    Paul H. says:

    I have but a passing interest in this story, and I confess to never even watching the movie. Perhaps the issue is insoluable, but Matt is advancing the debate, as are other contributors to this apparently passionate discussion.

    I am troubled by one thing concerning the general discussion itself – the high number of anonymous posts which contain stridently espoused viewpoints. Matt, Curtin, John, Ken and a few others are willing to go on record, lay themselves open for criticism or challenge, and in general to be held accountable for the positions they variously hold. Many others are not, and the cloak of anonymity clearly debases the credibility and perception of the points asserted by these individuals. Why not have an open debate and identify yourselves?

    I have no historical knowledge of this particular story at all, and therefore can scarcely hold an informed opinion. However, views of either dissent or support would be more interesting and valuable to me, as a bystander, if they could be ascribed to someone who was actually prepared to stand by his views through public association.

  26. Bill Basler
    Bill Basler says:

    I think it is pretty clear that there were two floating, running movie boats. This is playing out here is it has been recounted many times over since 1982. This is not really "new" news.

    The one new revelation is that the boat other than U-22-1802 now has a hull number, U-22-1460. In looking at the photos of this boat, it appears to be legit. But I think it is disturbing to try to establish one hull as "More of the Thayer IV than the Other." Both boats have been modified and there are enough inscon

    It is pretty clear that these boats were heavily modified from factory original. Otherwise they'd both have blue interiors, marble gray linoleum and so on.

    So, in effect, they have lost some of their provenance as true, running, preserved, and original collector boats, only to have this original provenance replaced with Hollywood provenance, ie: "the actual steering wheel, varnish, upholstery, and flooring that Fonda and and Hepburn touched" Which is more valuable? It's hard to say really.

    The point is that either of these two boats, to have had all of the Hollywood provenance left, absolutely in tact, should have never have been touched. This is not intended to be a dig on Pat Curtin, as things were much different relative to antique boats in 1982. But for me, I would have left those "dents and scrapes," as noted on one of the newspaper clippings. And I would have left those goofy cleats, fenders cleats, bimini top brackets and so on—in hopes that Ms Hepburn left her DNA on them.

    Unfortunately, that would have meant these boats should have gone to a museum back in 1982…and to my knowledge no museums stepped forward willing to pay the going rate.

    Now it's all hindsight. Great boats. Great history. On one hand we have U-22-1802 which has undergone a recent restoration. She is currently running and floating. Did she lose provenance? Not much more than she lost in 1982 after THAT restoration.

    And on the other hand, there is hull number U-22-1460. Does she have a leg up on 1802? Not in my way of thinking. She was sanded down, faired, restained and revarnished back in 1982 as well, with all of that goofy aftermarket hardware removed. A great deal of her Hollywood provenance got sanded away. The only difference is that she is in a much uglier state today.

  27. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    If facts are posted anonymously and backed up with supportive information, wouldn't they still be facts?

  28. Chad
    Chad says:

    Don't forget "Gertrude", the canoe that was used in the movie. It was sold at auction in 2004 to Wayne Newton for $19,200.

    I just dug that up on the net.

  29. Paul H.
    Paul H. says:

    Debateable, in my view. Theoretically, any information must be challenged and verified before it can be deemed to be fact in any debate like this. It helps to know the source of the data, as that is an intergral part of assessing its' validity or viability. I am certainly not going to consider information "supportive" of any particular viewpoint, or even accurate, simply becase an anonymous individual states it to be so on an internet chat forum.

    A reader must always consider the source as they qualitatively evaluate almost any information. For instance – Pat Curtin appears to attracted some incredulity here, but would an anonymous person who made the same claims as he has attract these same questions? It seems that previously held views of Mr. Curtin have helped some contributors form the opinion that this information is suspect, and therefore the conclusion of WB is suspect. My point is that this would be less likely if the source was not known to be Curtin, and that knowing his identity has clearly assisted these folks in the formulation of their opinions. But – it is also possible that knowing the identity of these same individuals would help others arrive at their own conclusions concerning the veracity of the various claims, but this is not possible when a person conceals themeselves.

    There is likely a reason that science holds theories to account through peer review and testing, that courts do not function (except in rare cases) where anonymity is allowed, so what is to gain on a lightweight topic like this by staying anonymous? In my view, anyone who wishes to be taken seriously must present some form of verifiable evidence, and assume responsibility for his personal opinions. If a person does not have the strength of conviction to associate himself with his own public statements, how seriously should he be taken?

    Kind of a deviation from Matt's topic, but anonymity tends to degrade the value of much of what we read and hear today. I don't know who is right in the debate over the various Thayer's, and I don't really care. At least Matt and his cohorts are advancing the discussion to the point where there may finally be an end to it.

  30. traceybarrymore
    traceybarrymore says:

    WELL…Isnt this all great…We have alot of anonymous people…Sounds Like THE OWNER OF THE 1802….ADDED MUSCLE,…the friend attorney, and someone else who doesnt like the truth or the suprise….. There needs to bee an open Forum for all interested partys and involved..Be more constructive..Its a God Damn Boat Who F**kin cares to this extent…Get all the FACTS

  31. WoodyBoater
    WoodyBoater says:

    Well, there you have it, we get to end the days comments on a high note.. Not sure of the curse word here. Sorry to all of you regarding that.. I will moderate out any more from this. So please be creative in your use of the english language.. And of course I dont give a crap about spelling..

  32. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Is Woody Boater Really who he says he is??? Has anyone ever seen his hull number? All people with wood boats are on some level suspect. I blame the illness.

  33. WoodyBoater
    WoodyBoater says:

    HA, that's it.I liked your use of creative cursing.. I will be using that in emails from now on..

  34. Frank Miklos
    Frank Miklos says:

    Back when the Thayer IV was on EBAY I said to myself that it was not the main boat… Due to little things the main one was the deck vent…
    I wondered which one of the four boats it was… (I have known that there were 4 since 1992. That is when I worked on "Striking Distance" with Pat Curtin…) At that time he told me that there were 4 boats bought for the movie but only 3 were used in the movie…
    First Unit…
    The second unit boat…
    And the Crash Boat….

    I figured that the boat on ebay was the second Unit boat… it had a different steering wheel and did not have the odd vent on the front deck… Then I thought someone may have rebuilt the crash boat which also had the other steering wheel… I forgot about it until I talked to both Matt("Woody Boater") and Pat a few weeks ago…

    They told me they found the 1st Unit boats from the movie The 1950 Chris Craft U22 and The 1963 Century Raven 19' ("Mail Boat"). They invited me to meet them to see the boats…

    I talked to my wife and she said go it sounds like fun… 9+ hr trip…

    We actually drove to Long Island the day before to pick up a Century Arabian. We took that back to a friend’s house in Wilks Barre PA… On Thursday we drove from Wilks Barre to the location of the boats… My brother Bob and I Met up with Matt, Jim Scott, Pat Curtin and the owners of the boats.. We walked across the street to the barn… There the Century Raven sat under shrink wrap… but we went inside the barn to see the Chris Craft… Thayer IV… Everything on this boat matched the main movie boat… Starting with the goofy vent on the front deck, steering wheel, the Iva lite handle, the cover snap location and line of the snaps. They all matched the movie boat… Also the Mail boat is there with the name and everything else matched the boat from the movie…
    I am convinced that these two boats I saw last week are the main boats from the movie…

    In my opinion ebay boat looks to be the second unit boat…. ("full throttle reverse shot") maybe others…

    Both boats were used in the movie…

    The funny thing aboat all of this is that I thought all of the "Chris Craft world" knew that Three boats were used in the movie…

    I had a fun day got to Meet Mat and Jim… Got to see Pat Curtin for the first time since the "Stiking Distance" Premier in 1993. And I got to go through the two main boats from "On Golden Pond"…

    Thanks Matt and Pat.

  35. Frank Miklos
    Frank Miklos says:

    Back when the Thayer IV was on EBAY I said to myself that it was not the main boat… Due to little things the main one was the deck vent…
    I wondered which one of the four boats it was… (I have known that there were 4 since 1992. That is when I worked on "Striking Distance" with Pat Curtin…) At that time he told me that there were 4 boats bought for the movie but only 3 were used in the movie…
    First Unit…
    The second unit boat…
    And the Crash Boat….

    I figured that the boat on ebay was the second Unit boat… it had a different steering wheel and did not have the odd vent on the front deck… Then I thought someone may have rebuilt the crash boat which also had the other steering wheel… I forgot about it until I talked to both Matt and Pat a few weeks ago…

    They told me they found the Main boats from the movie The Chris Craft U22 and The 1963 Century Raven ("Mail Boat"). They invited me to meet them to see the boats…

    I talked to my wife and she said go… 9+ hr trip…

    We actually drove to Long Island the day before to pick up a Century. We took that back to a friend’s house in Wilks Barre PA… On Thursday we drove from Wilks Barre to the location of the boats… My brother Bob and I Met up with Matt, Jim Scott, Pat Curtin and the owners of the boats.. We walked across the street to the barn… There the Century Raven sat under shrink wrap… but we went inside the barn to see the Chris Craft… Thayer IV… Everything on this boat matched the main movie boat… Starting with the goofy vent on the front deck, steering wheel, the Iva lite handle, the cover snap location and line of the snaps. They all matched the movie boat… Also the Mail boat is there with the name and everything else matched the boat from the movie…
    I am convinced that these two boats I saw last week are the main boats from the movie…

    The ebay boat looks to be the second unit boat….

    Both boats were used in the movie…

  36. Anonymous
    Anonymous says:

    Oh Matt! What a hornets nest you have stirred up this time. But, all of the clues are there. The pictures taken at just the right angle, the diagram, the stories, it's perfect! You are a master!
    WoodyGal

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