Krazy Painting a New El Camino

My favorite cars are the unexpected ones—the ones you see tucked away on a side-street or out cruising while you’re running errands. When you go to a car show, you know you’re going to see custom cars. When you go to the drag strip, you know you’re going to see competition cars. It’s good to know what you’re getting yourself into, but there’s something special about being surprised. Today’s subject falls in that category.

At this point, I feel like I have a pretty good grasp of who was competing at the 1960 NHRA Nationals in Detroit. There was “Ohio George’s” in his ’33 Willys, the Ramchargers with their “High and Mighty” Plymouth, Walt Knoch’s with his infamous “Walt’s Puffer II” Fiat, the “DCB” coupe out of Texas, the list goes on. Sure, these were the machines that were winning trophies and showing up in all the big magazines, but what about the other vehicles in the pits? Many of those are new to me.

Earlier this week, I came across a photo (or possibly an 8mm home movie screen-grab) that I had never seen before from the ’60 Nationals. Despite the awkward crop, it showcases a scalloped 1960 El Camino in front of a hand-painted “DETROIT” banner at the track. The lettering on the door left no question as to who was responsible: Paul Hatton.

Hatton was one of Detroit’s top custom painters during our sport’s golden age. Best known for his flames, scallops and lettering, he worked with everyone from the Alexander Brothers to Connie Kalitta. When he wasn’t painting, he was racing his “Wild Wagon”—a 1958 Ford station wagon with a 427 SOHC. (You can read more about it here.)

Before the wagon, there was this El Camino. The story goes that Paul bought it new and proceeded to customize it with chrome-reverse wheels, whitewalls, scalloped spotlights (much like those on Dave Jenkins’ bubble-skirted ’57 Chevy) and his signature paintwork. It served as his shop truck, rolling calling card and—judging by the cooler and the gas can in the bed—a great tow vehicle for the drags.

While searching for additional information, I discovered that the El Camino was scrapped years ago. In a strange turn of events, Paul’s son, Brian, still has one of the doors, complete with custom paint, pinstriping and later lettering.

Would I usually be drawn to a mild custom at a drag race? Probably not. But this is a special case. Hatton was a master of Krazy paint, and a brand new El Camino was a prime platform to showcase his skills. Don’t you think?

—Joey Ukrop

 Photos from the Hatton Collection