Yew, I'm alive!!! Sorry for being such a crappy blogger. I'll have more posts soon. In the meantime, I hope to see some of you at The New England Shake-Up, this weekend. I'll be there all weekend & selling at the car show on Saturday.
See you there!
Rick
Showing posts with label Hot Rods. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hot Rods. Show all posts
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Return To Milltown
Set up shop this weekend at the Return To Milltown Hot Rod show in Sturbridge, Mass. Made decent money, saw some friends & took pics of some pretty nice cars. This show has come a long way, but I really wish those freakin', nasty rat rods would just go away! Just because you can drag a piece of crap '29 Dodge sedan out of the woods, drop a piece of crap F350 diesel motor in it & drop it on a piece of crap Jeep frame doesn't mean you should!!! All you've got when you're done is a steaming pile of crap, NOT a Hot Rod. Ahh! I feel better, now. Here's the pics.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
SEMA & SoCal & The Golden Steer
Tuesday, November 1:
Woke up early & headed for SEMA at the convention center. Stopped in to see my suppliers & got a couple leads on some chrome stuff & a cool line of Rat Fink-abilia. Not a whole lot of traditional Rod & Kustom stuff happening. I think I'll limit SEMA to one day from now on. I did take a few pictures, though.
This is my kinda grocery getter!
Left the show early enough to go visit my buddy, Lenny, over at the SoCal Speed Shop here in Vegas. Lenny & his dad are true traditional Rod & Kustom guys & it's always cool to visit with them & see what they've been up to. A couple roadster bodies arrived when we were there & Dave & I helped the guys unload them. As a thanks, for our help, Lenny gave us a coupla SoCal t-shirts. Whatta guy! SoCal is another must-see for any Hot Rod/Kustom/Rockabilly/Vintage guy or gal visiting Sin City.
Next, it was back to The Orleans to snazz myself up a bit for dinner at The Golden Steer. The Golden Steer is a Rat Pack era steakhouse that has remained virtually untouched since the days when Frank, Dino, Sammy, et al, hung out there. The prices aren't cheap, but the food is excellent & the place just drips classic Vegas cool. There aren't many of these places left, so I encourage you to enjoy & support them each & every time you visit Vegas.
Woke up early & headed for SEMA at the convention center. Stopped in to see my suppliers & got a couple leads on some chrome stuff & a cool line of Rat Fink-abilia. Not a whole lot of traditional Rod & Kustom stuff happening. I think I'll limit SEMA to one day from now on. I did take a few pictures, though.
This is my kinda grocery getter!
Next, it was back to The Orleans to snazz myself up a bit for dinner at The Golden Steer. The Golden Steer is a Rat Pack era steakhouse that has remained virtually untouched since the days when Frank, Dino, Sammy, et al, hung out there. The prices aren't cheap, but the food is excellent & the place just drips classic Vegas cool. There aren't many of these places left, so I encourage you to enjoy & support them each & every time you visit Vegas.
Monday, March 26, 2012
My Last Meal In SoCal
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Well, I reached Trader Vic's in L.A. only to discover that there was a Lakers game right next door. The restaurant was packed & parking was scarce. Rats! Trader Vic's was gonna have to wait til the next trip. Now, I was really hungry & I began to brain-storm for a Plan B. I was not eating at some giant, conglomerate, chain restaurant. This was SoCal. It had to be someplace cool. Then, I remembered driving by this amazing coffee shop, on my way to L.A. from Redondo. I turned the car around & headed back, in search of Pann's. Finally, Pann's came into view. The closer I got, the cooler it looked. OK, this was gonna be a good way to end my trip.


I sauntered in, sat down at the counter & looked up to see a bunch of cool, vintage drag racing photos, on the wall behind the counter. I'm guessing these were regular customers back in the day. How cool is it that Pann's kept these pics up all these years? While waiting for my dinner, I heard the strains of "Little Darlin'" by The Gladiolas coming from the jukebox.! This place was getting better by the minute.

BLT, Potato Salad & a Coke. God Bless America!





After finishing my meal, I figured I had better head for the airport. I had no idea that I was only about 5 minutes away from LAX. Now, I had time to kill, so I decided to do a bit more cruising. As soon as this gourgeous sign for the Academy Theater came into view, my heart skipped a beat. This sign was spectacular & in complete working order. I got closer, parked the car & hopped out to takes some pics. as I got closer, I realized that the place was no longer a theater, but some type of church. Sigh! At least they had maintained this killer sign.


Back towards LAX, I happened upon Randy's Donuts, another Southern California, roadside icon.


Now it was time to turn in the rental & take the shuttle over to the terminal for the long trip home. My first trip to California had exceeded all of my expectations & the people were amazing. I was very impressed with the hospitality of everyone I came in contact with. I felt so at ease with everyone I met everywhere I went. I hope, someday, I will have the opportunity to relocate to SoCal. I've really had it with New Engalnd winters!
Well, I reached Trader Vic's in L.A. only to discover that there was a Lakers game right next door. The restaurant was packed & parking was scarce. Rats! Trader Vic's was gonna have to wait til the next trip. Now, I was really hungry & I began to brain-storm for a Plan B. I was not eating at some giant, conglomerate, chain restaurant. This was SoCal. It had to be someplace cool. Then, I remembered driving by this amazing coffee shop, on my way to L.A. from Redondo. I turned the car around & headed back, in search of Pann's. Finally, Pann's came into view. The closer I got, the cooler it looked. OK, this was gonna be a good way to end my trip.
I sauntered in, sat down at the counter & looked up to see a bunch of cool, vintage drag racing photos, on the wall behind the counter. I'm guessing these were regular customers back in the day. How cool is it that Pann's kept these pics up all these years? While waiting for my dinner, I heard the strains of "Little Darlin'" by The Gladiolas coming from the jukebox.! This place was getting better by the minute.
BLT, Potato Salad & a Coke. God Bless America!
After finishing my meal, I figured I had better head for the airport. I had no idea that I was only about 5 minutes away from LAX. Now, I had time to kill, so I decided to do a bit more cruising. As soon as this gourgeous sign for the Academy Theater came into view, my heart skipped a beat. This sign was spectacular & in complete working order. I got closer, parked the car & hopped out to takes some pics. as I got closer, I realized that the place was no longer a theater, but some type of church. Sigh! At least they had maintained this killer sign.
Back towards LAX, I happened upon Randy's Donuts, another Southern California, roadside icon.
Now it was time to turn in the rental & take the shuttle over to the terminal for the long trip home. My first trip to California had exceeded all of my expectations & the people were amazing. I was very impressed with the hospitality of everyone I came in contact with. I felt so at ease with everyone I met everywhere I went. I hope, someday, I will have the opportunity to relocate to SoCal. I've really had it with New Engalnd winters!
Barris Kustom City
Thursday, February 2, 2011
I woke up Thursday morning, knowing it would be my last in beautiful Southern California. I had a midnight date with a red-eye flight back to that frozen hell I live in. I got up, packed my things & checked out of the motel. Cash was at a premium, so my day was going to have to be on a low budget. That was OK. At least I could spend the whole day in SoCal. My first stop of the day was Barris Kustom City in North Hollywood. I arrived around 11:00 AM to find the door still locked. I peered through the windows, trying to get a peek at what was inside. I didn't realize anyone was there, but George's daughter saw me & came over to unlock the door. She let me in & graciously told me to feel free to roam around & take pictures. She then went back to her work & I noticed George sitting behind the counter, eating his lunch. I had met George several times & decided I'd just look around & let him eat his lunch in peace. There was not much of the rich, Barris Kustom history on display, but I was pleased to cast my eyes on the original TV Batmobile. I poked around a bit, took a few pics & then headed out to explore a little more of my Mecca.
The beautiful Southern California sky & landscape that greeted me Thursday morning

Barris Kustom City




The Munster Coach






Batmobile #1 aka the Lincoln Futura concept car.



I woke up Thursday morning, knowing it would be my last in beautiful Southern California. I had a midnight date with a red-eye flight back to that frozen hell I live in. I got up, packed my things & checked out of the motel. Cash was at a premium, so my day was going to have to be on a low budget. That was OK. At least I could spend the whole day in SoCal. My first stop of the day was Barris Kustom City in North Hollywood. I arrived around 11:00 AM to find the door still locked. I peered through the windows, trying to get a peek at what was inside. I didn't realize anyone was there, but George's daughter saw me & came over to unlock the door. She let me in & graciously told me to feel free to roam around & take pictures. She then went back to her work & I noticed George sitting behind the counter, eating his lunch. I had met George several times & decided I'd just look around & let him eat his lunch in peace. There was not much of the rich, Barris Kustom history on display, but I was pleased to cast my eyes on the original TV Batmobile. I poked around a bit, took a few pics & then headed out to explore a little more of my Mecca.
The beautiful Southern California sky & landscape that greeted me Thursday morning
Barris Kustom City
The Munster Coach
Batmobile #1 aka the Lincoln Futura concept car.
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