The Steven Shuman story as told by his loving wife Sandy.
Steve Shuman started the 1965 Buick Skylark Gran Sport Directory in 1977, but his passion for cars, and the 1965 1/2 Buick Gran Sport, began years earlier. Steve was in 6th grade when his mother asked him to choose the next family car from a Buick Brochure. He picked a red 1965 Buick Skylark Gran Sport; he wanted a convertible, not a hardtop.
After his mother passed away in 1972, Steve inherited the car. He began researching the GS and discovered it was introduced on December 29, 1965 and was a limited production. His car now had 95,000 miles on it. Everything was original, except tires, minor painting, exhaust extender, which he liked, and the top radiator hose that needed to be replaced and was hard to find. A friend noticed Steve’s interest in cars and encouraged him to join the Columbia Chapter Antique Automobile Club of America in 1974 and he did. Two years later Steve was elected president.
In May 1977 Steve entered his first local car show and walked away with a second place trophy. He joined the Buick Club of America and entered the National Meet in Cleveland, OH. Two weeks before the meet, Steve pulled the engine in his GS. A few hundred dollars, 30 man hours, and one pint of GM engine paint later, Steve hoped he’d made his mother’s car a showpiece. He got the engine back in the car, and the next night won second place in his class at the National meet. Steve was hooked on the 1965 1/2 Buick Skylark Gran Sport.
Steve continued to learn about the GS. He’d met a GS owner at the National Meet and decided to contact the other GS owners. By 1978 he located 12 more people in the United States that owned a 1965 GS. Advertising in Hemmings, The Buick Club of America, and the Antique Automobile Club of America, Steve requested 1965 GS owners to contact him if they wanted to be part of the directory. He also contacted Buick Motor Division and General Motors Corporation to get as much information as possible about the GS. He wanted to know how many Skylark Gran Sports were produced, how many different models were made, operation and performance options and interior and exterior colors. He passed along the information to other GS owners, which led to more GS owners contacting him and so the directory came into existence.
Hopefully it has helped people locate parts, restore their Gran Sports and enjoy them as much as Steve did. I am so glad that GS lovers are keeping the directory alive. I know Steve would have wanted it. Thanks to Anthony Gatta for taking over the directory after Steve passed away and to John Egel for keeping it going and good luck to Chris Horn bringing this directory into the internet age.
Sandy Shuman