Mel Farr (Finding Aid)

Mel Farr

1944 -

Favorite Color: Yellow

Favorite Time of Year: Spring

Favorite Vacation Spot: Bahamas

Interview Length: 131 minutes

Interview Date(s): August 20, 2002

Interview Location(s): Mel Farr Motors, Ferndale, Michigan

Abstract

Automobile dealer and former professional football player Mel Farr recalls growing up in Beaumont, Texas, where he recalls parents dedicated to providing a better life for their two sons despite the institutionalized segregation and racial tension that sometimes turned deadly, such as in the case of a man from a nearby town who was dragged to death, and in the infamous Beaumont race riot that had broken out a year before Farr's birth in 1944. Farr describes himself as an ambitious and goal-oriented boy, who decided at age twelve to become a professional footballl player, and spent the rest of his youth in a dedicated pursuit of that goal. Automobile dealer Mel Farr talks about playing football in high school in Beaumont Texas, and comments on the many top football players from that area. He recalls his experiences at UCLA both on and off the field, and then talks about being the Detroit Lions first draft pick in 1967. Successive injuries plagued his career and he began to plan for life after football. Automobile dealer Mel Farr recalls his retirement from professional football in 1973 and looks back at some of the other great players of the Detroit Lions team. He discusses his subsequent career as an automobile dealer including the founding of the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers and his own rise to become the top African American-owned business in the country by 1998. Automobile dealer and retired professional football player Mel Farr discusses his choice to concentrate on selling inexpensive vehicles to urban dwellers. He expounds on his belief that providing access to transportation will help people lift themselves out of poverty, and he discusses the controversial technology to ensure that his low-income customers will pay their car note--a device that will not allow the car to start unless the weekly payment is made. Automobile dealer and former professional football player Mel Farr talks about his business endeavors in automobile retail as well as his finance company and a bottling company he owned for several years. He urges the need for African Americans to reinvest in urban neighborhoods. Finally, Farr looks back at his accomplishments, credits his parents, and considers his hopes for the future.

35 Stories (See Ordered Story Set)