James Thomas Northcutt

Jim was born December 27, 1931 in Ruidoso, New Mexico. Jim came to California when he was 9 years old, with his 11 year old sister, Edith, and his Mom, Eva Mae Grice Northcutt (Nannie to her grandkids). His Dad, Jesse James Northcutt, had come to California first to find a job and a home for them.

In his teens, Jim worked at a grocery store in Keystone, CA (now Carson). Later, he worked with his Dad as a mechanic at Great Lakes Carbon Corporation in Torrance (which makes diatomaceous earth). Then he went to school for automatic transmission repair. He owned Jay’s Automatic Transmissions in Torrance from 1961 – 1987, when he sold the shop and retired at age 56.

When Jim was a child, his Mom worked at a logging mill, cooking for the loggers. She had all her freshly baked pumpkin pies cooling on the shelves. Jim climbed the shelves and got in trouble for stepping in some pies.

Jim was about 8 when he was playing ball with a friend. The friend’s ball fell in the hole in the outhouse and he wanted Jim to hold his hands and lower him down. His friend sunk into the muck more than they expected. Jim couldn’t lift him back out, so he ran to get his friend’s Mom. She pulled him out with a rope and put him in the stream to clean up.

Jim met Carolyn Jane (Evans) in Redondo Beach, CA in the summer of 1950. They married 6 months later, January 11, 1951. Carolyn passed away 2 days short of their 72nd anniversary in January 2023..

Jim is survived by three daughters, Jeanie, Judy, and Beverly, and his son, Jim. Also seven grandchildren, Monica, Robert, Shaun, Jessica, Sean, Casey, and Courtney. Plus ten great- grandchildren.