SO LONG, CHUCK THE ONCE-PROUD KING OF SNEAKS HITS THE END OF THE LINE AS CONVERSE THROWS IN THE TOWEL ON ITS SHOE BUSINESS.(LIFE & LEISURE)

Byline: DOUG BLACKBURN STAFF WRITER

They've pulled the plug on the family Olds. Now, they're taking away our Chucks.

What's next? Levi's?

Converse All Stars, the shoe that was The Shoe almost a half century before Nike or Addidas or Reebok even existed, announced recently that it was getting out of the shoe manufacturing business.

A cultural icon to rival blue jeans or Big Macs, Converse shoes have been part of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History's collection for more than 50 years. The museum is trying to hunt down business documents from the North Reading, Mass.-based company now that the once ubiquitous shoes may become extinct.

Ciao, dear Chucks, as so many folks affectionately refer to the canvas sneaker that …