SS Michigan up for another party

Lolita Harper

She is a little rough around the edges but she still knows how to

have a good time.

The SS Michigan is gearing up for her umpteenth summer outing --

sprucing up for the Fourth of July. It is her history in Newport

Beach that shines more vibrantly than any fresh coat of paint.

The SS Michigan has been gallivanting around the Newport Harbor

for more than a half century, carrying her blissful passengers from

bar to bar and party to party.

In 1955 Disney cartoonists Dick Shaw and Virgil Parks found her in

a mud flap under the Lido Island bridge. With a little care and some

bright paint, they transformed her from a raggedy double-ended

Monterey fishing boat into a “tugboat” designed for entertainment in

the harbor.

That same year the men took her on her inaugural cruise. Something

about her vivid exterior and charm made the other boats in the harbor

want to follow her. By the end of that summer, the caravan became

routine and the next summer people anticipated her lead. And so, the

first Summer Boat Parade was born.

When the Chamber of Commerce got involved, the parade really took

off, turning into a massive and patriotic summertime activity. The

date was moved from August to July 4.

Although she was involved in numerous boat parades, the SS

Michigan has been rumored to only have finished one. She has the

habit of springing leaks and sinking, or losing some part along the

way. If she happens to be in good repair, her captains are not and

they would prefer to stop at waterfront parties rather than complete

the route.

One year, somebody was trying to slingshot a beer to a passenger

on the SS Michigan but had poor aim. The full can hit the hull of the

boat and she began to sink.

Now owned by Bill Kelly and Gay Wassall-Kelly, the little boat has

returned to her Newport harbor days. Wassall-Kelly said they don’t

take the boat bar-hopping anymore and are trying to give her a little

more “class.” Bill Kelly is out every weekend working on her.

“It’ll never work,” Wassall-Kelly said. “It’s a waste of time.”

Class or not, many people remember the SS Michigan and are happy

to see her back in the water.

* LOOKING BACK runs Sundays. Do you know of a person, place or

event that deserves a historical look back? Let us know. Contact

James Meier by fax at (949) 646-4170; e-mail at

[email protected]; or mail at c/o Daily Pilot, 330 W. Bay St.,

Costa Mesa, CA 92627.