In the year 2000 I was honored to be asked to join the re-formed Satans Angels Custom & Rod Club.The club had a long history in the Northen California area. I soon became the unofficial club historian and began collecting club memorbilia.Thanks to long time member Frank Livingston for a large part of the collection. The Satans Angels were formed in 1948 but really hit their peak in the 1950's. In the 1957 Oakland Roadster Show the club had 12 cars on display! Many of the cars were award winners and featured in the custom car magazines of the day. The builder of choice for these guys was local customizer Joe Bailon.A lot of these pictures have been seen before but I thought it would be cool to see them as a group. Take a look at a premiere Custom Car Club of the 50's........ Oakland Roadster Show Club Display Frank Livingston 1949Chev Sonny Morris 1950 Merc Duke chavez 1953 Merc Stan Medeiros 1950 Chevy Jerry Sahagon 1951 Chevy Bob Johnson 1951 Olds I'll post more if you guys are interested. R&C RON
Here is another photo of Bob Johnson 1951 Olds from my collection... The car parked next to it at this 1957 Oakland Roadster show is most likely Stan Medeiros 1950 Chevy.
Man,that shot of all the guys stood by their rides was my desktop wallpaper for the longest time. Thanks for starting this awesome thread, I've subscribed and looking forward to more if you got it. Thanks again Paul
Thanks for posting these. Love the history lesson. At a time when many guys and clubs were just slapping on the latest J.C. Whitney or Honest Charlie bolt-on goodie, these folks were doing some very serious modifications. Great stuff......Don.
I keep coming back to this thread it's like a magnet!But I think it's fake. I mean everybody knows that 50s cars were flat black, satin or primer, right? Paul
It would be interesting to see how many of these then young men still survive and are any of them on the HAMB. I'm sure there are some great stories to be told about the cars and the club activities.....Don.
Great pics of some really cool cars, please post more. One thing I don't understand, why do they not wear black converse high tops, Dickie shorts, stupid hats and covered in tats. <g>
It's interesting to see how young this group is. It looks like most are under thirty. To have a finished car done by a professional shop would take a good job and or real dedication to complete. I would like to hear the stories of some of their backgrounds and later success. deChrome.
I think looking back retrospectively, not everybody that drove in the 50s was a "diehard car guy". Just like today the vast percentage of people that drove automobiles only had an interest in them as far as a method of getting from a to B. Yes, a lot of guys worked on their own vehicles, because it was cheaper and less complicated back then, but it seems to me a huge gulf between what guys like the Satan's Angels did and routine maintenance on a beater that just got you where you needed to be when you need to be there. I remember my old man doing stuff on our car and hating every minute of it. I think this could go a long way to explaining the fad for 50s beaters, patina and rust that some people have come to regard as "traditional". Just because all that stuff was around back then didn't necessarily make it cool. These guys on the other hand, were obviously true, dedicated car guys, not just youngsters who happened to own automobiles. Just my thoughts Paul
Just saw Frank and the guys a couple of weeks ago at the Hayward swap. Their still doing it! I'm always interested in locations of old pictures. Because I grew up in Oakland it would be interesting to know where the group outside pictures were taken.
Thanks for sharing. Definitely one of the coolest custom clubs from the yesteryears. I mean if Hirohata was in it....well say no more.
I notice from what I can see is that the cars didn't seem to run their car club plaques. At least in a highly visible location. Wonder why? I have one of these plaques. It may be a repop. I am not sure. It could be for sale to the right person. Maybe someone involved with the Satan's Angels or relative. Here is my pic. Coolness comes with a price though.