New owner of Starr's Corvette would like to see car at Lambeau Field

Green Bay Press Gazette

A 1967 Corvette awarded to Bart Starr as Super Bowl I MVP was auctioned in Indianapolis on May 19, 2018.

Bart Starr's car has a new owner, and he'd like to see the 1967 Corvette returned to Green Bay.

"I thought that car should be at the Packers Hall of Fame or displayed somewhere in Lambeau," said Steve Altieri, who bought the car Sunday from longtime owner Michael Anderson of Thunder Valley Classic Cars. "The deciding factor why I decided to bid on it, I want it to be in Green Bay."

The car, which was awarded to Starr as MVP of Super Bowl I, was included in an auction on May 19 in Indianapolis, but the bid price was less than the established minimum. However, Anderson and Altieri kept talking and reached a deal the next day. The $150,000 sale price was less than Anderson wanted, but Altieri's plans swayed him.

"When I found out he wanted to get it back to Green Bay ... it felt like the right thing to do. Everything just turned out right," Anderson said.

The Packers and Packers Hall of Fame Inc. didn't commit to anything, but appreciated Altieri's idea.

"We'll take a look at it. It was nice to get the call," said Aaron Popkey, Packers director of public affairs. "We're not sure how or if it could fit into things."

The logistics of displaying it — security, space, etc. — could be a challenge, but the car does have historic value, said Tom Konop, president of Packers Hall of Fame Inc.

"Anything that’s related to Bart Starr has value, as far as the history of the Green Bay Packers," he said.

Altieri, who lives in Connecticut, became a Packers fan as the result of a school book report he did when he was 12 in 1969, at the end of the Packers' Glory Years.

"I happened to pick the wrong next 20 years to be a Packers fan," he said. "My kids were born in the 1990s. All they've seen are Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. They think this is great."

Aside from his family, Altieri said his passions are the Packers and Corvettes. He initially thought the car would look great in his Packers-themed garage, but the more he thought about it, the more it seemed right that it should be at Lambeau Field or back in the hands of the Starr family.

"To me, it is such an important part of history, and Bart Starr being the kind of person he is," Altieri said.

The car had been in storage for several years and needed restoration when Anderson acquired it in 1994. He did a sympathetic restoration that dealt with the critical parts of the car without changing its look or historic aspects.

"I could have restored the whole car, but to me, it's a part of history. I think it's cooler it was kept in original form," he said.

Anderson removed the body from the frame to clean and recondition the undercarriage and suspension, and replaced the body mounts, suspension rubbers, u-joints, seals and bearings. The brake system was overhauled and the calipers were upgraded with stainless-steel piston sleeves for durability.

During the restoration process, he uncovered the tank sticker, clearly stating, “Courtesy Delivery: B. Starr," as well as discovering an AFL-NFL World Championship Game ink pen underneath the passenger seat.

He decided to auction the car, which had 48,000 miles on the odometer, through Mecum Auctions of Walworth during a sale in Indianapolis.

"It was hard to let it go. It was part of me," he said.

Altieri is getting a bonus with his Corvette. On the way back to Minnesota after the auction, Anderson stopped in a Wisconsin antique store and came across an Exer-gym set, complete with Bart, Cherry and Bart Jr.'s picture on the box. Exer-gym was workout equipment that Starr promoted.

"I said, 'I just have to buy this.' I'm going to send it to the new owner," Anderson said.