Tom Stimus, Car Dealer and 80s TV Icon, Dies at 79

BRADENTON (970 WFLA) -- A car dealer who made a name for himself with flamboyant commercials, signs off for the last time.

In the 1980s, it was hard to escape ads on Tampa media, featuring Bradenton used car dealer Tom Stimus. He was always proclaiming himself number one, often with the help of pro wrestler Dusty Rhodes. 

Stimus also offered a bounty on the head of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, and offered to let the Shah of Iran stay with him after he was deposed in 1979. He shut down his last dealership in the 90s after falling on hard times. 

His son says Stimus died Monday at a Sarasota nursing home, at age 79. 


Video of a Tom Stimus commercial from MorrisonAV on You Tube. 


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