Vista Cruisin'

Anybody who doesn’t have fond memories of the 1970s needs to spend a little time with Jim Maher. For Maher, a resident of Appleton, Wis., almost every day is an episode right out of “That ’70s Show,” the iconic TV series that made Fez, Kelso, Donna, and the Formans all household names. Maher has a groovy little collection of ’70s vehicles, including a time-capsule 1971 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser wagon that has made him a bit of a local celebrity.

“It’s a really pretty car, and everywhere we go, people love it,” Maher chuckles. “I go to McDonald’s and the girl in the drive-thru goes, ‘Oh, you have the ‘Hello WI’ plate [from the TV show’s theme song] — you are the coolest guy in the Valley!’ And I’m driving this. I’m driving a Vista around and she thinks I’m cool!”

Having any 50-year-old car as finely preserved as Maher’s Vista Cruiser is probably cause for celebration.