Flamboyant Fliers, Race Cars of the ’60s

Text by David Carl Peters

For nearly a half-century, one thing that set drag racing apart from other forms of motorsports was the show and go aspect of the sport. Hot rodding had its beginnings in the late ’30s, but it became popularized after World War II, and by the mid ’50s, rock ’n’ roll and hot rodding had become a cultural sensation among the U.S.’s younger set and returning veterans.

In the beginning, hot rods may have been crudely fashioned, but this crudeness quickly disappeared as more effort and craftsmanship went into the creation of these uniquely built cars, which would soon come to be regarded as works of automotive art. Along with the birth of hot rodding in the ’50s came the start of organized drag racing and the world of custom car shows. By the late ’50s, hot rodding had found its new home with two parents, the custom car show and the drag strip’s Big Go. The show and go industry was born.

THE ’60S SHOW & GO

There were some beautifully painted cars in the late ’50s. Larry Watson had developed the art of paint fades and shading around the edges and Ed “Big Daddy” Roth and others would soon incorporate the look into their own rides. However, it wasn’t until the ’60s that custom-painted drag machines took hold of our imagination, and it all started with something called metal flake. Tiny bits of metal, glass or plastic were added to transparent lacquer pigments to produce a sparkling effect. Dean Jeffries is credited with the first flaked paint job, and for the custom car show guys, nothing would sparkle more under the spotlights than the flakes. Soon drag racing cars were painted in every shade of metal flake you could imagine.

Besides metal flake, candy colors and pearls were also the rage. In 1965, one car that really changed the game was “Big John” Mazmanian’s candy apple red ’41 Willys. A candy color was simply a transparent pigment sprayed over a gold or silver under-base. Candies were nothing new in the custom car show circuit, but when Big John rolled his candy red Willys into the sunlight, people’s jaws dropped. It was the first time many had seen a candy color in direct sunlight, and it was truly a remarkable sight. Remember, this was the age of black-and-white television and grandstands packed with spectators all wearing the same white T-shirts. Even Detroit had exchanged the happy pastel shades of turquoise, green, yellow and red of the ’50s for earth tones. It seemed we lived in a drab world, and seeing one of these candy-colored creations within its muted surroundings made it look like a piece jewelry flashing brilliant color. Color seemed to breed excitement.

After Big John’s candy apple debut, the race was on, and custom paint jobs were now a must-have on any drag racing machine. Stone, Woods & Cook followed suit and repainted their cars candy blue, and the Gasser class became the new canvas for custom paint jobs. Candy colors became the paint of choice, along with paint fades, tape shades, fogging, cob-webbing and lace-patterned designs. All of which were an offshoot of the show car circuit. On weekends away from the drag strip, a number of the big name drag cars could be seen at custom car shows. The shows even had classifications for the Dragsters, Gassers, Competition Coupes and Roadsters. For many racers, showmanship was as important as performance; hence the phrase, “show and go.”

In the ’60s, Top Fuel was the king of the sport, and the king of custom painters was George Cerny Jr. It seemed George painted nearly every Top Fueler, along with many memorable Funny Cars and vehicles from other classes as well.

George Cerny Sr. was a well-known custom car builder who opened his shop in Long Beach, California in 1942. George Jr. acquired his painting skills from his dad, took them to the next level, and by the late ’60s Junior’s painting abilities were unmatched. He set the drag racing world ablaze with his colorful psychedelic paint jobs.

The who’s who of drag racing lined up at Cerny’s door, all waiting for one of his masterpieces. All Cerny needed to hear from the owner was, “I like blues,” or “I was thinking red,” and he would take it from there, creating something straight from his imagination and applying it to the car. Many paint jobs were just pure experiments in technique and application, and you simply got whatever Cerny dreamed up. Fortunately for the drag racing world, Cerny was a natural master of color balance and form. He was also smart enough to recognize talent in others. As soon as a car was painted it was hauled over to sign master Tom Kelly’s shop for pinstriping and lettering.

it wasn’t until the ’60s that custom-painted drag machines took hold of our imagination, and it all started with something called metal flake.

Cerny customers included Tommy Ivo, Tom McEwen, Don Prudhomme, Marvin Schwartz, Larry Dixon, Bernie Osborn, Pete Robinson, Beebe & Mulligan, Kuhl & Olsen, Crietz & Greer and Roland Leong’s ’67 and ’68 cob- webbed dragsters. Even Don Garlits had Cerny spray one of his traditional black cars red. Big Daddy Roth’s Yellow Fang dragster was repainted with one of Cerny’s psychedelic treatments. He also painted some unforgettable Funny Cars, including McEwen and Prudhomme’s first Hot Wheels cars, Tim Beebe’s Fighting Irish Satellite, Candies & Hughes’ ’Cuda, Jerry Ruth’s Mustang, “Hippie” Mike Mitchell’s multi-colored ’Cuda Flopper and Tom Conel’s Mister T Corvette. Some of Cerny’s best paint jobs were the immaculate and beautiful lineup of cars for Keeling & Clayton (K&C). Their California Charger front-engine Fueler is known as one of the most beautiful Dragsters of all time. Cerny also painted K&C’s rear-engine dragster, as well as their string of Funny Cars.

There were certainly other painters of note in the ’60s. One of the standout Funny Cars of the time was the ’67 Flying Dutchman Dart of Al Vanderwoude, a Dennis Ricklefs creation. When I asked Ricklefs what inspired his (very different at the time) multi-hued aqua Dutchman creation, he said, “Custom car painter Larry Watson inspired it.” Watson pioneered the art of using one color and exploring its many different shades and tonal values from dark to light. This was an old trick in the custom car circuit, and Ricklefs said he simply wanted to bring some of that style into the racing world. The attention-grabbing Flying Dutchman gold-leaf logo was the work of talented sign man Dennis Jones. Jones was also responsible for the beautiful gold-leaf signs on the Stone, Woods & Cook ’41 Willys. Ricklefs also painted the beautiful blue Keeton’s Cougar for Dee Keeton, and Roger Lindamood’s rainbow-topped Color Me Gone Charger and Challenger. Ricklefs recalled, “There was no money to be made in those days. When I painted the first LA. Hooker Charger, I did it for an engine tune-up and a new set of tires.”

Not all painters were having such a hard go of making ends meet. In the Chicago area, Dave Puhl had made quite a name for himself. The customizing bug bit Dave early on. He opened his first shop in 1960, and his creations were show winners from the start. That same year, his customizing was voted into the Top 10, and in 1961, he won the AHRA Custom Sweepstakes, and in 1962, he grabbed the NHRA Custom Sweepstakes. Later, in 1962, Puhl started working with Darryl Starbird, together they developed memorable cars for Monogram Models such as the Big T and Big Deuce. Puhl started work for himself again in 1964 opening a new House of Kustoms paint shop. We saw his paintwork on Arnie Beswick’s ’67 Tiger GTO, Don Schumacher’s first Stardust Chargers, as well as the Shue’s first Barracuda Floppers. Puhl also painted Ron Pelligrini’s Buick- bodied Funnies, and the memorable ’69 Chi-Town Hustler Charger.

In the ’60s, Top Fuel was the king of the sport, and the king of custom painters was George Cerny Jr.

There were other standout Funny Cars in the late ’60s, Doug Thorley’s red lace- painted Corvair done by custom paint wizard Tom Watson and “Lil’ John” Lombardo’s psychedelic Corvette roadsters, which he painted himself. For me personally, the prettiest paint job to ever hit the asphalt was the ’68 Imperial Kustoms Charger co-owned by Nelson Carter and Ron Perau. The Charger was painted at Perau’s Imperial Kustoms shop in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It featured a cob-webbed metal flake gold roof, multiple graduated candy green tape shades, lace-painted sides in lime gold, topped off with a beautiful gold-leaf Imperial Kustoms logo by Tom Kelly. Later that same year, Carter bought out Perau’s partnership in the Charger, and a name-that-Funny contest was held to rename the car. Super Chief was chosen because of Carter’s Oswego tribal heritage, and the name replaced Imperial Kustoms on the Flopper’s flanks.

The best was yet to come, as the wonderful world of color was about to get a major facelift as we entered the ’70s.

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