Tommy Ivo once played opposite Boris Karloff (Frankenstein) and Margaret Hamilton (the Wicked Witch of the West). He could sing and tap dance at age three. His big break came at age seven when his two front teeth went missing. He bought a house at
The history of rods and customs is dotted with legendary pinstripers and custom painters – Von Dutch, Dean Jeffries, Art Himsl, Larry Watson, to name a handful – who garnered widespread fame and publicity. Add Rod Powell to the list. While he kept a lower
Every car guy older than 30 knows (or should know) the name Offy. It’s shorthand for Offenhauser, the last name of Fred H. Offenhauser, and the moniker of the all-conquering four-cylinder engine that dominated the Indianapolis 500 during the mid-20th Century. Among the many legendary
The story of hot rodding in America cannot be told without telling the story of George Barris, the most well-known kustom kar kraftsman of his, or any other, era. Author Tom Wolfe, astute chronicler of art and culture, chose Barris as the focus of his
She’s been feted by Congress, immortalized by Hollywood, and awarded slot number five on NHRA’s 50 Greatest Drivers List. She blew open racing’s gender barrier, survived life-threatening injuries, and landed in the same honorary society as Eleanor Roosevelt. She won nearly 20 NHRA events and
Up to this point, our Legends of Hot Rodding have all been members of the four-wheel community – you know, hot rodders. But occasionally a talent from the two-wheel world is so renowned that they crossover into hot-rod legend status. Such is the case with
Ed Pink is a study in contrasts. Slight in stature and soft spoken, words escape from between his graying mustache and goatee with a humble gentleness. This understated manner belies the volume sounded by his accomplishments, for Pink, now 88, is perhaps the most renowned
Foose. It’s a name as essential to the history of hot rodding as Parks, Petersen, Roth, Shelby, Barris, and dozens more. It’s the purpose of this column to chronicle these giants, the icons who created the hobby we enjoy today. Foose is just such a
Hot rodding has always had an inter-generational component to it. Sure, some of the earliest hot rodders were likely rebelling against their parents, but in the decades since, countless car enthusiasts have been inspired by fathers who let us help in the garage, showed us
Anyone with even a passing interest in drag racing has heard the name Keith Black. He is arguably the most famous non-driver in quarter-mile racing history. Yet there’s irony in that descriptor, for he learned his early engine-building chops tuning powerful Ford Flatheads for speed
