Courtesy photo Shown in the photo with Dorothy the car are Ernest Carr of Tampa, Florida, the owner now, and Michele (Jones) Fries of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, who was the car’s second owner. She is the daughter of former Blair County Commissioner Colson Jones Jr.

A 6-cylinder 1966 Mustang Coupe with Altoona roots will be featured on “Dorothy,” an upcoming episode of “All Girls Garage” on Motor Trend TV at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.

Now owned by Ernest Carr of Tampa, Florida, the car’s original owner was the late Roy F. Thompson, former Altoona mayor and founder of WRTA Radio. Thompson purchased the car for about $2,500 from Jack Beasley Ford, 1901 Margaret Ave., for his wife Dorothy — even though she didn’t know how to drive.

The show will be available on most cable outlets or online at Motortrend.com. The 1966 Mustang painted in Tahoe Turquoise Metallic, has an “interesting back story,” according to Matt Allegretti, director of “All Girls Garage.” That back story included how Carr connected with Michele (Jones) and Stephen Fries of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, who were the car’s second owner. Michele is the daughter of former Blair County Commissioner Colson Jones Jr. and granddaughter of the late Dorothy, and Colson Jones Sr. Years after Dorothy’s first husband died, she remarried to Thompson.

The family is thrilled that their car is going to be a featured on the show, Fries said noting her father and mother, Colson Jones Jr., 90, and Mary Ellen, 88, still live in Altoona.

“The journey to ‘Dorothy’ being on the show began with an application back in January 2018. It was kind of a pipe-dream,” Carr said. The “All Girls Garage” team borrowed the car for two weeks in March.

The producers selected the Mustang because of Dorothy (Jones) Thompson and her granddaughter’s sentimental attachment to the coupe, said Bogi, one of the show’s three hosts.

“Cars are what unite us in our culture,” Bogi said. “When you go to car shows it’s just not for the cars. It’s the people and their stories about their cars that make it fun and enjoyable. Plus the car was so well-preserved. You could tell she’d been loved and well-taken care of.”

From 1967 to 1975, the Mustang resided at Dorothy (Jones) Thomp-son’s Florida home and was used by her visitors. In 1975, Michele and her mother retrieved the car from Dorothy (Jones) Thompson’s home and drove it back to Pennsylvania. Grandmother Dorothy titled the car over to Michele as her wedding gift in 1976.

“My dad, Colson Jones, was an only child and he had five daughters,” Michele, 65, said. “I’m second oldest and just happened to need a car when my grandmother decided she didn’t need it in Florida anymore. I was getting married and she decided to give it us as a wedding gift in 1976.”

The Fries restored the coupe in 1984 and it remained with them for sentimental reasons until 2006 when they sold it for $6,000 at the Carlisle Auto Auctions. Tucked inside the glove box were all associated paperwork, including maintenance records. The documents remained with the car through two additional owners.

In March 2016, Carr purchased the car for $14,000 from a Pennsylvania owner and had it shipped to Florida.

It is Carr who named the coupe “Dorothy” after Fries’ grandmother — the car’s original owner after hearing about her when Carr tracked down the Fries thanks to the extensive paperwork retained in the coupe’s glove box.

For Carr, owning a 1966 Tahoe Turquoise Metallic Mustang Coupe fulfilled a pledge he had made himself during his childhood in the mid-1970s. Diagnosed with cancer for the third time in 2014, Carr accelerated his search for the Mustang and with the help of a friend in New Jersey purchased the car of his dreams.

Mirror Staff Writer Patt Keith is at 949-7030.