More good news for Amazon Prime subscribers (U.S. and U.K.) . . . THIS IS LONG BEACH is now available! https://www.amazon.com/This-Long-Beach-Cavaliers/dp/B07J1RVT2K Head over, give it a watch. . . and, if you like it leave a review (it will help get this title in front of other gearheads). Thanks for the continued support! . . . p.s. you can also catch THREE MILE on Prime! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F1R26JZ
Hello, Being from Long Beach in that time period, we did see a lot of cars with the Cavaliers Car Club bumper plaques in the area. When we were in the 10th grade, I made friends with an older guy named Ralph Thomas in the Metal Shop/Automotive Shop Classes at Long Beach Poly HS. He was the toughest guy on campus and had the reputation of the guy no one wanted to push or go up against anywhere. I am not sure the guy in the film called, Ralph Thomas was the same guy from our old high school. He was a couple of years older than me. But,it was nice that he was my friend from classes. (If it is the same Ralph Thomas from my classes, what a small world and coincidence. You have aged quite well... Hey Ralph, how are you after all of these years?) What was funny during that time was that I was the athlete and new guy to clubs and sports. But, the classmate girls always asked me why I was walking around with that “Ralph” guy. For them, reputation was the big thing, tough guys were scary. Nahhh! The football coach wanted this guy to be a varsity football linebacker with those punishing skills. But to no avail. Those times during 1959-62 high school years were really something. There were tons of characters all over the campus and some melded or crossed the “blurry” lines between the different groups. Some were met with disdain, while for others, it was just friendships in the teenage turbulent years. Jnaki The movie “THIS IS LONG BEACH” hits home as we were there during that time period. Probably knew some of the other guys in the film. (One of my friends married a girl with the last name of Esslinger.) The film was fun to watch and listen to those great, historical stories/expressions from those days in the late 50s, early 60s. The characters and their stories seemed to have aged well. It was fun listening. The old vs new stories of this generation were interesting. But, of course, that music ruined the whole idea of the history of this old car club. That music was out of place. That music definitely was not around in 1958-60. Maybe it fits into the new age hot rodders, but it was painful to hear that music and listen to the whole story. The storyline should have been the most prominent, not the loud, interfering music. (clashing of generations was not good.) The music was not my cup of tea and no flaming please…Out of 5 stars: 5 for historical content, but 2 for the story and that awful music. Take the music out and the film is definitely a 5 star movie. It would have been enjoyable, historical, and So Cal local. No, even those “oldies that we all listened to back then” would also have ruined a good story. No music would have been better in this case. We all like listening to history and how it comes into play during the current era. Listening to the words and history rolling out of the film and its local characters should be experienced without outside interference. The sound of the motor accelerating away would have been so much better…YRMV
Thanks for all of the kind words from everyone who enjoyed the movie. It was a labor of love for all involved. From the current Cavaliers allowing us access into their lives, to them putting us in touch with the original, founding, members of the club. It was great to sit with these guys and hear their stories. . . I'm honored to be the one who has the opportunity to share them with the rest of the world. Brad Masterson was gracious enough to let us use his shop to film the chop of Tony's '47 Ford. . . and Andrew Kohler (hot rod builder and musician) was kind enough to give us his music to use in the film (I like to support other people in the scene whenever possible, and let's face it. . . the guys a great musician). If you liked the movie, please take a moment to leave a review on Amazon Prime. Positive reviews help move these kinds of movies up through Amazon's algorithm and put it in front of other gear heads like us. Thanks for the continued support! P.S. If you don't have Amazon Prime, THIS IS LONG BEACH is available on DVD here: www.AtomicHotRods.com
I personally liked the music. And I also think some of the old guys may like telling "tall tales" , but otherwise I liked it.
The Jalopy Journal
