BigM; I have a question about the flames; For the movie, the car received "The California Kid" lettering along with some funky cornstalk looking licks after the name on the upper quarters. In post movie photos, those extra licks are gone. Were those painted on with the lettering or temped on with easy to remove paint by the studio and were they removed to improve the looks??? FWIW, I think the car looks better without the extra licks...
I remember seeing some photos of the California Kid with chrome reverse rims. I googled it but nothing poped up but I do remember seeing the photo like 30 some years ago.
still cringe when I see the side pipes, but still love to hear the tune of the car driving through the hills.
Nope....Michelle Phillips, of the Mamas and the Papas....Mackenzie Phillips' mother. She's a beauty! I fell in love the "The Kid" when it debuted on TV, too! If I was ever to own a hotrod, it would be pretty similar to this one.
Michelle Phillips in "The California Kid" And Mackenzie Phillips in American Graffiti,.... I always thought that was pretty cool !
I talked do Pete about the side pipes. He hated them also. Seems that the producer insisted that they be installed teh day before filming began. They were a big deal on Corvettes at that time. Couldn't talk him out of it. Came right off as soon as the movie was done. And yes, the car survived all of the practice and filmed slides in the gravel.
Finally got to see it tonight...first time in decades since I saw it as a kid on tv. great to finally see it in color. The Kid looked and sounded awesome...got to watch out for the 57 plymouths! The music soundtrack's pretty brutal but everything else was pretty damn cool. Dang , now the gear's are turnin for a 33/34 once the 32 is done .
. I always wanted to build a T bucket. That changed when I saw the California Kid! I was a teenager when it came out. I did build a t bucket, but it was for my teenage son in 2002. The closes thing I have now is a 33 Chevy 5 window coupe. For me it's close enough!
A pal has been wanting me to sell him the project I showed in post #19 when he raises some money,....... But I keep coming back to this thread and thinking about How I had planned on that car being a daily driver but got sidetracked by a Deuce Roadster. Between the fact it's a Coupe, Full fenders, built like a tank and has a 6" longer wheelbase..... The 33 makes more sense I suppose. Watching "The California Kid" again along with keeping an eye on this thread is really making me feel like jumping back on this car again.......... So, I guess i will have to give it some serious consideration.
Look in the Q & S Forum. There are several Threads explaining how to post pics. Also, do an Intro and fill out your Profile.
No disrespect George,..... but totally disagree with you,. I personally feel the two best original flame jobs of all time were on Tom McMullen's Deuce Roadster laid out by our ol' Pal Ed Roth, and The Flames on Pete's Coupe laid out, shot and striped byManuel Reyes (who posted earlier). But when they flamed Pete's coupe, Hot Rodding/street rodding was a wash of resto rods with subtle colors and black fenders, it was sacrilege to have a chopped top....... Manuel's flames on the Kid was something that had been missing for a long time from Hot Rodding,... they were exciting and fit the attitude of the car perfectly. I truly beleive Manuel's flames on the California Kid was the catalyst for reigniting the interest and popularity of Flame jobs again. ( Pun intended ) I love the look of the car .
michele phiefer was in hollywood knights. tony danzas girlfriend riding in the yellow project x '57 chevy.
I remember seeing the movie on TV as a kid. I remembered the entire plot, and always wanted to see it again. Well it was finally released to view again. I couldn't believe it though. It was in color! I wondered how I could have remembered it all wrong. Turns out I watched it on a black and white TV. The dopey disco music that sounded straight off of Chip's kinda sucked. But the plot was strong. Still one of my favorite cars.
ive had that pic hanging on my wall for about 10 years or more mine is a trifold out of a hot rod magazine dont remember the year though
My wife and I were at Pete and Jake's the 2nd week of June this year. It was quite a trip down memory lane. Like someone else said, Jerry Slover also told me to get in each of the cars and have my wife take pictures of me. I've related to friends since, how many owners of famous cars would be so gracious and quick to tell one to get in the Cal Kid or Jake's coupe? Man, what a day that was. A very special 3 hours. BTW - I just read several postings on this thread telling how young they were when they saw "The California Kid" when it first came out on TV. Sheeeessh...that makes me how old? See you all later. Dave in James Dean, IN
I will never forget my reaction to seeing Pete's Kid come across that bridge in the movie. I built the clone of the Kid mentioned earlier. This was an effort that could not have happened without the help of Jerry and Jason Slover. If you have ever met them you know they are very cool classy guys. Jerry is the one who first made me aware my coupe was chopped sitting next to the original kid back in the 80's to get the chop the same. This is what started my project. In my opinion Manual Reyes' flames are timeless. On the back of the original he signed, "Reyes '53" paying homage to the styling of Tommy the Greek if he had done them in 1953. On my car we put "Hudson '73" paying homage to Manuel's original work. Here is a pic of Jason and I at the Street Rod Nationals. Owning this car has been an awesome experience and one I hope to share with the younger generation that sees it at car shows. I am in hopes it will inspire some of them as it did us when we first saw the original kid. If you have been to Pete & Jakes you probably saw the bronze statue of the kid that was made back in the 80's also. These were created by the famous automotive sculpture Stanley Wanlass. Only 18 of these were produced. Due to my building this car, I have been fortunate to obtain one of the bronze' which have been all sold for some 30 years. Here is a couple shots of what it looks like. To me it captures the essence of the fun, beauty and coolness of the Kid that has given so much inspiration to so many over the years. Cheers! Mickm
Sorry,I can`t go there ! No more perfect grille than a 34 except for a 33. I cant figure for the life of me why Jake put that grille on his car.
Customcory, Do you remember what they were asking for the bronze? It may have been a great investment if the price was right. Cheers! Mickm
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