See sample pages from this book at Wink.
I was initially reluctant to order this book unseen, given the high list price, but once I had it in my hands I was completely won over. This profile of George Barris is a highly enjoyable feast for any fan of cars, movies, TV shows, pop music and culture. Clearly a labor of love, this hefty, nearly-500 page book was written by George Barris’ son Brett.
The embossed and shiny spot-varnished cover perfectly embodies the King of Kustomizers and his creations: bold, glitzy and over-the-top. The hundreds of color and black and white photos inside lovingly show Barris’ astounding automotive output, which includes early hot rods, dragsters, customized cars for the stars, TV and movie vehicles, corporate promotional cars, wild buggies for musical groups, and more. The list of his clients is a who’s who of mid-century Hollywood: The Beach Boys, Elvira, Sonny and Cher, The Boogaloos, The Munsters, Beverly Hillbillies, Farah Fawcett, Bob Hope, Elton John – far too many to list them all. The Batmobile on the cover may be his most famous car, but the scope of the book will amaze you. And not just Hollywood: if you were a company like Lipton, Vox amplifiers, ToysRUs, Coppertone, or Big Boy and needed a custom car to promote your brand, George Barris’ shop Kustom City was the place to go for that head-turning vehicle that literally embodied your product. You get page after page of kooky kustom cars!
It’s no surprise that Barris was as brilliant a businessman as he was a car customizer. With a little help from his friend actor/director/photographer John Derek, Barris turned his interest in photography into a synergistic sideline: he repurposed the in-progress and reference photos he took of the cars he was customizing and sold them along with the article about them to the popular car magazines, which then in turn became nation-wide promotion for his customizing business. The book contains many of Barris’ own historic shots of his most famous cars. See the Batmobile being made. What’s hidden in the back seat of the Munster Koach? Is that a REAL coffin on the Dragula? All is revealed!
But wait – there’s more! Barris the businessman designed toys, assembly model kits, boats, car accessories, bicycles, and on and on. If it was FUN and had wheels, Barris did it. How much fun would it have been if your dad drove the Munster Koach home from work and parked it in your driveway? It’s easy to see why Brett Barris says in the foreword that he felt like the luckiest kid in the world. This book is a real blast from the past for any baby boomer.
– Bob Knetzger
Note: A collection of Barris' kustom creations will be on display in Los Angeles at Galpin's annual car show this Sunday, September 20th. Click here for details.
September 17, 2015
King of the Kustomizers: The Art of George Barris
by Brett Barris and Douglas Nason
Last Gasp
2015, 496 pages, 9 x 11.5 x 3 inches
