Old-School Tennessee Mechanic Celebrates 95th Birthday Working at the Shop

Old-school Tennessee mechanic John Larkin marked his 95th birthday working at USA Motor & Machine in Nashville, Tennessee, underscoring a decades-long commitment to engine work. Known as “Papa John,” Larkin said he enjoys the job, keeping his mind occupied and out of trouble. Born in 1931, he has worked as a mechanic since 1955, when early Tri-Five Chevrolets and the Ford Thunderbird were new. Larkin is connected to motorsports history, having been inducted in 2016 into the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway Hall of Fame. He rebuilds five engines a week and recently showed a freshly rebuilt V8 headed for a Camaro. After his wife died in 2014, he has two daughters and a granddaughter, plus colleagues who brought lunch and cake.