If you frequently traverse South Grand Boulevard in the area just south of Tower Grove Park, you’ve probably noticed the sleek looking hearse frequently parked out front of the Phillips 66 at Humphrey Street. Maybe you thought it was the mascot for the station, à la the old Sinclair dinosaur, or maybe you thought it was for sale. Maybe one day when you stopped for gas you asked Mark McDonald, the guy working the register, “Hey, what’s up with that hearse always parked out front?”
Well, the hearse is how McDonald gets to work. He’s long been a fan of that specific means of conveyance. He likes that they’re different and he likes their classic, timeless aesthetic. We think he has a point. From Twisted Metal to the Addams Family to the mythology behind the music of Father John Misty, hearses have something going on that Camrys and Impalas don’t.
The RFT caught up with McDonald to ask him what it’s like to have a hearse for a set of wheels. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
How long have you been working at Phillips 66?
How long has it been, 100 years? No, about 19 years or so.
How long have you driven the hearse to work?
About three and a half years. It was my retirement present to myself.
Where did you retire from?
Here. I came back two months later.
How did you settle on a hearse for a retirement present?
Because I like it. It’s a classic. And my dad was in the funeral business for 50 years. We started out in Mexico, Missouri. A little place called Arnold Funeral Home and then we traveled around Missouri before coming to St. Louis, and he started working for Hofmeister.
Do you ever get the sense like it's haunted or anything like that?
No, not this one. Back in the ‘80s I had a ‘63 combination ambulance-hearse. It could be weird sometimes.
How does this one ride?
Like a battleship.
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