History Ken Crawford Color Photos from 50s & 60s Drags

Jimmy B ... fantastic stuff ... thanks for sharing!

Any more info on this awe-inspiring rear-engine dragster? ...

 

nice!!!!!

 

I have seen it before but can't remember where, I thought it was featured in a mag back in the 50s.

a sneak peak

 

Those are Freakin' GREAT pics Man!! What a goldmine!!

 

Cool, man would I dig that wall in my garage!

 

cool pics

 

wow amazing pictures! love it. thanks (god i wanna build a hilborn motor)

 

I like the gocart with the Chrysler Hemi

 

Fantastic pics. Thanks a bunch.....you just made my day!!!

 

Great pics! The Nelson twin flathead was something I haven't seen before.

 

great photos thanks

 

a few famous rods

Ike Iacono's '34 coupe


The former So-Cal Speed Shop '34


Charles "Scotty" Scott's Ardun powered '23 T


Speed Sport Special


Tony Nancy's Nailhead powered 22jr A roadster

 

I don't know much about art...but I know what I like!

 

Both of Crawford's cars feature a real attention to detail. I never saw the orange car, but the 64 era version with the Jack Ewing body work was used in several Wilson Cam ads back then. The little beauty won C/FD (jr fuel) title at 64 Bakersfield meet. Wilson touted its product by noting the cars victory.

 

I must correct myself here. It wasnt the Kretz' car who was used asa spokeman for Dempsey Wilson Cams, I confused it with another car. Along that subject, the Lions Drag CD series shows several of these little screamers racing their blown counterparts and giving them a run for their money.

 

WOW.....THANKS Jimmy and a BIG THANK YOU to Ken Crawford! A great time for drag racing! The old SoCal Coupe was owned by Richrad Stricker at the time of this picture taking, the lettering on the hood "Automotive Speciality" was Jerry Eisert's shop in Whittier. Jerry went on to build Indy & Sporte cars. I worked for Stricker's machine shop when I was 16 and in high school, at that time the coupe sat in the back of the shop with a tarp covering it, I used to go back and uncover it and dream about it sitting in MY GARAGE, Rich wouldn't sell it to me because he was afraid I'd get hurt racing! That was 50 years ago and the first one that got away! Rich sold it to Jim Travis many years later. Rich's '55 Ford push truck had a blown Cad for power as did the 34. cw.
.

 

Great stuff Jimmy, thanks!

 

No worries Nic!

 

yep....that brightened my day.....more please...

do you need me to carry your bags in August?

Cheers,

Drewfus

 

Yeah, you're welcome to tag along

 

bttt

 

Great pics, thanks for posting. I love how different the cars were, it is not like the cookie cutter stuff at drags today.

 

Pure awesomeness. I don't even care that's not a real word. Thanks.

 

Super cool!!!
Old drag pics are great.

 

JimmyB, Thanks for sharing these great pictures. You don't see too many pictures of the Greer-Black-Prudhomme car when it was painted the tomato color.



I want to say that I read a little blurb on this car in a Rodder's Journal that said this car has been restored and resides somewhere up in the Northeast. I'll have to dig through my back issues.

 

My mistake I was thinking of this car:

But after looking at the car in question again, I'm positive that the car was in one of Don Tuttle's Hot Rodding Potpourri The Way It Was videos. Don was a track announcer at Santa Ana. I've got them all on vhs, don't know if they're available on dvd.

 

awesome pictures. thanks for posting!

 

Great stuff there! Thanks for posting them.

 

Glad everyone is enjoying the pics