"Mater" as the name of the tow truck in Cars

 Q: What is the significance, if any, of the name "Mater" as the name of the tow truck in Cars? Is it a reference to the "country" term for tomato?
Jim, Myersville, Maryland 

A [Dave Smith]: The name, Mater, was actually taken from the nickname of Douglas "Mater" Keever, a devoted fan at Lowe's Motor Speedway near Charlotte, North Carolina. Cars director John Lasseter met Mater, and was impressed by him, on a research trip for the film in 2001. Keever had received the nickname as a kid working with "tuh-maters" on his parents' farm. 

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Lowe's Motor Speedway:
http://www.charlottemotorspeedway.com/

Everyday, Disney fans send dozens of questions for Disney Chief Archivist Dave Smith. Here are Dave's answers to your questions. Check back every day for a new post with a new question.

Dave Smith (born October 13, 1940) was the Walt Disney Archives founder and chief archivist which is located in the Frank G. Wells Building at Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. He joined the company June 22, 1970. Forty years later, on July 2010, he retired.

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