The stories were outrageous and often true, one of the more famous being about the time he bought his Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud. He walked into the dealership in Toronto dressed in jeans, cowboy boots, a windbreaker, and with hair to his shoulders. He walked up to the car and kicked the tires. The sales, man was horrified. "How much?" asked Hawkins. "I doubt if you can afford it," the salesman sniffed. "This RR on the front here, guess that stands for Rock 'n' Roll, right?" The salesman nearly collapsed. "Is that dashboard real wood?" Hawkins asked. "Of course it's real wood," snapped the salesman. "Is there a termite warranty?" asked Hawkins. The salesman was edging him toward the door. "I'd sure like this Rock'n' Roll car, I'll be back later."
He went to Honest Ed's discount store, got a shopping bag. Then he went to his bank, withdrew $18,500 cash. Then he went back to the dealership. The salesman turned white when he stomped in. "How much is this Rock'n' Roll car again?" he persisted. "Eighteen thousand, five hundred," the salesman sighed wearily. "Fine," said Hawkins, "I'll take 'er." He dumped the bag of money on the floor. The salesman's jaw dropped, his eyes popped. "Tell me," said Hawkins to the sales manager, who had come running up at that point, "how much commission would your salesman normally get on this deal?" The sales manager swallowed hard. "About $1,500," he said. "Good," said Hawkins, "then I'll just take back $1,500." He reached down, scooped it up and moments later drove the Rolls out of the showroom.
