What got you hooked on A-Bodies anyway?

My father was always a Chrysler guy. When I was a kid we had a '51 Dodge Coronet and a '56 Plymouth Savoy. In 1960 my dad and his friend both decided to buy one of the new compact cars. They heard the Valiant was the best, so they both went to a Plymouth dealer to buy one, but my dad was a tough, stubborn bargainer and couldn't reach agreement with the salesman on a price, so he went to the Mercury dealer and bought a Comet instead. His friend bought a Valiant Suburban with the 170 engine. That Valiant could run rings around the Comet. There was just no comparison between the power and handling of the two cars. Then at 46K miles the Comet lost compression and needed a ring job. (The early Falcon engine had a metallurgy problem with the rings, and Ford had to consult with Chrysler metallurgists to figure it out.) I bought the Valiant wagon from my Dad's friend when I got my driver's license, and it went for about 200K miles without an overhaul. I've been a Chrysler guy ever since.