Blast from the Past, Jeff Mulliken

[Bill Murphy]

It has been hard to get contact with our old friend, Jeff Mulliken. His job and his Cobra have seemed to keep him away from Parker and PGCA activities. I had a Jeff sighting a year or so ago when I passed the Cobra on the road to our gun club. I turned around and accosted him, but after a short conversation, never saw him again. However, HOWEVER, on the news tonight, a reporter here in Montgomery County, MD was interviewing Jeff and inquiring about his uniform of the day, which was shorts and not a lot more. He answered the reporter by saying that he was from Michigan and the 9 degree temperatures didn't call for much more than shorts for a walk to the supermarket. Jeff, we would love to hear from you.

[Dean Romig]

I always enjoyed Jeff's posts.

[Kevin McCormack]

Bill:

Yeah, I'd really like to hear from him too; after repeated phone messages left and numerous unanswered e-mails sent to him, I was left to work through my Browning A-5 addiction completely on my own, the afterward forced dispersal of my rarest guns (short-chambered 16 ga. w/ 25.5" solid rib and CYL barrel; A-5 Special for Pigeons), and rehab program all on my own with no help from him. He lured me into the pre-war 2 9/16 chamber genre, then bunkered down and dummied up for more intricately detailed technical info on the wonderful guns. The only way I came out of it without drugs was ordering the 1929 A-5 shop manual, which allowed me to school myself on the complete disassembly and subsequent assembly of the mechanism. Once I could do it twice in a row and have no parts left over, I knew I was good to go. Incidentally, I never bought off on the new job responsibilities and the Cobra replica car as the reason he went mute; my money's on him having found an FN A-5 Grade 5 32" solid rib 3" Magnum straight grip gun. (Jeff, if I'm right and want to be forgiven, bring it to Baltimore).

Dean: All 4 of them?

[Dean Romig]

Kevin, on the old forum he was a frequent poster.

[Kevin McCormack]

And he had the best close-up pics of how to tell an original short-chambered 16 ga. A-5 vs. one that had been modified from 2 9/16" to 2 3/4". Thanks, Jeff!

[Larry Stauch]

Murphy, did you get my PM?

[Bill Murphy]

Yes, and I replied. Thanks.

[Destry L. Hoffard]

Jeff had some very serious health and family issues. I talked to him last about two years ago. His health was improving but his interest in guns and shooting had waned drastically. Glad to hear he made the news and is doing well.

[Phil Yearout]

Destry, did you get my PM question about your call lanyard?

[Bill Murphy]

OK, so it's an old thread. Jeff moved to New Hampshire, lived in a wilderness cabin way back off the road. After a few years there, his health got worse and he passed away recently. He was quite young, finished building the Cobra, still had the Trident, but time caught up with him.

[Destry L. Hoffard]

Wait a ninute.......

Jeff died?

[Kevin McCormack]

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/mykeenenow/name/jeffrey-mulliken-obituary?id=57901000

[Bill Murphy]

Regardless of what was stated on his obituary, none of his "closest" in Maryland were invited to any celebration of life in New Hampshire. We missed him and the celebration.

[Destry L. Hoffard]

That's some sore news.

I still had occasional email traffic with him till my old original email got hacked and never recovered.

I always assumed he was still out there somewhere cooking, drinking good booze, roaring around in that car, and fly fishing in the streams of New Hampshire.

Last time we had a conversation of any length he had tracked down "the redhead" from much younger days and they'd rekindled their long lost romance. I hope she was as much fun as she sounded.

I still have that 1st year Magnum A5 with the 32 inch solid rib barrel and straight stock he gave me years ago. I'll have to get the "Cairo Special" out of the moth balls and take the ol' girl out duck shooting. I'll be in Virginia after Christmas, that might be just the place for it, or maybe a trip to his beloved Northern Michigan? One or the other, it will see some action soon.

RIP my good friend.

[Bill Murphy]

Destry, my shooting buddy and fellow gun club member, Joe Reid, visited with Jeff and went on Canadian fishing expeditions with him after he moved to New Hampshire. Unfortunately, Joe and I only shared interest in clay target shooting, not fishing, so I never accompanied him on his visits with Jeff. Forty years with Marriott would have easily made even a dishwasher a multimillionaire if he had taken even the least of advantage of employee stock options. Jeff and I discussed our Marriott "advantages" over the years, but he never admitted how much stock he held. What a guy.