Spring and summer bring the historic cars out on Long Island. Almost every week there’s a rally of classic American or European cars, and they always bring back some scarcely-repressed memories for me. Here, like ghosts from the past, I can visit some of my favorite fantasy cars, with polished engines and proud owners standing by to tell their stories. These road antique shows, as we might call them, sometimes include vehicles I once drove myself, now restored like new and placed on a pedestal to be admired. I like to think that, because these old machines have become so valuable, I myself may have acquired some value with age, and may perhaps even be admired for my sturdy, antique design. A car of my vintage, a 1939 Jaguar SS Roadster is on sale for a quarter of a million dollars. It was a good year, 1939. There were some quality products. Everything went downhill after that. These old cars are beauties – the bright color, the lavish chrome, the swooping lines, and the great staring