One of the only channled Deuce Roadsters that ever grabbed my attention !!!... from the very first time I seen it. So long Fred,... you left a legacy.. That will forever keep your name alive.
Aw man, that really sucks. I remember being a kid of about 12 and I saw his purple Deuce in a magazine. He was in a leather jacket and had a cute girl with him and he just looked so badass and so did the 32. I really hate hearing that. RIP, Fred, you were a cool dude and built a bitchin car. Don
Fred was a piece of work. Larger than life and not afraid to shock anyone to get a laugh. We'll never forget the night he stayed in our room at the Nats in Tulsa in 1976 because he'd made good time getting there and his room didn't start till the next day. He arrived in Tulsa from California with Pat and his daughter in the freshly built yellow chopped Merc with it's brand new Tijuana white rolled and pleated interior. Everything with Fred was a tall tale. For that Merc he'd had the headliner done in Mass as well as the bare door panels. Once in Calif. he took out the seats and door panels and took them to Tijuana for the one day upholstery job. Why? So that if they stuffed his pleats with drugs, at least he wouldn't lose the whole car. And he visited the upholstery shop a couple of times during the day to make sure they only used drug free stuffing. That's just one of the hundreds of Fred Steele stories that will be told for years to come. R.I.P. Fred
I have only seen photos of Fred from the mid 60's with his good friend Eddie Ford, my condolences to all his family and close friends.
Sorry to hear this, I have known of Fred Steele since 1967 when Oz rodder and Publisher Eddie Ford brought out the 1st issue of Australia's Custom Rodder and told of his and a couple of mates adventures with Fred Steele in their trip thru the US..............he seemed to be a guy who enjoyed hot rodding to the full and will be sorely missed........RIP....andyd
Fred was one of the original "Wild Ones" Thinking back to 1970's Sturbridge Village "North East Rod Run" when someone brought ducks into headquarters hotel water fountain! We all cracked up, hotel manager not so pleased. Fred always brought happiness to any crowd & Fred never met a stranger. The world has lost a Great Guy!!!!! RIP
I believe his car was voted one of the 75 most influential deuces. He's a legend around here for sure. God Speed.
Fred will be missed on the East coast and at all events he attended. Fred was the victim of the "Sturbridge Duck story" and not the perpetrator. The headquarters hotel for the NESRO run was located on the shore of a good sized lake with ducks in it. Several of Fred's buddies(?) captured and placed the ducks in the bathrom of Fred's room and locked the doors. The head of security was in the area investigating whether someone was cooking ducks on the charcoal grills as a game warden on the lake had seen people grabbing the ducks. Fred found his room locked and asked that the head of security open it for him and the ducks were discovered. A real mess. This was just one of several things that caused the Sheraton management to ask NESRO not to return to the hotel.
Fred did have a crate of chickens tied to the back of his 1932 Ford Phaeton on his way to a gathering somewere, a friend saw it at a gas stop in Danbury, Ct. Bob
Just saw this & got goose bumps. Fred was quite a character & a New Engalnd legend. We're all gonna miss him. RIP, Fred.
One place was at the Street Rod Nationals in Columbus - Fred had the '32 Phaeton "barn find" car with a chicken in a crate on the luggage rack.
Another cool guy gone..RIP. Australian Chopped-magazine has published lots of cool photos that Fred took years ago.
I always knew who Fred was and when I finally saw him at a ty-rod meet I just walked up to him and started talking to him. He was a real Hot Rodder. Very sad news, but I hope to see him on the other side.
Here is a picture Fred gave me that shows his roadster and phaeton at his farm. The tub went a long time ago, but he hung on to the roadster for a very long time. The last time I saw Fred was at Hershey a while back. There was a '40 Packard convertible, and some guy yelling "hey you bloody rooters" [ask an Aussie]. We looked over and here was a bare ass mooning us and a pair of gonads bouncing off the door sill. Fred was just being Fred.
If you lived in the New England area you either knew Fred or you wanted to , he could bring a smile to anyone's face in a second . One of the most colorful guys you ever could meet . RIP Fred and our thoughts and prayers to his family .
Lot of info on Fred's cars here, including his T that was on a 60s era Ventures LP http://jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=428835&showall=1 I remember Fred handing out business cards for his "car club", THE ROAD FAIRIES I believe the clubs motto was: OUT OF THE CLOSET AND ON TO THE STREET
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