History Larry Watson's Personal Photo Collection

I just want to publicly thank Rik for the awesome job he does laying out and writing these articles for Kustoms Illustrated. I can honestly say that his enthusiasm and talents have brought the magazine up a couple notches. I know Larry would have been proud to see these photos published for all to enjoy, too. Thank you Rik!
Luke

 

Thank you BOTH Rik and Luke!

 

1963 T-Bird snapshot by Larry Watson. In a lot of Larry's photos we can see Larry's shadow in the lower part of the photo's holding his camera high above his head, for his perfect shot. Not an easy thing to do, but more than likely he used a twin reflex camera held upside down. In this case Larry was shooting a 1963 T-Bird which he had painted a very bright fuchsia/pink candy over a pearl base with silver insert and top. And those silver sections where cob webbed with a darker color. The body was smoothed and the stance was enhances... a very nice ride.








Larry Watson was known for his smooth line painting. He had developed his own technique of taking huge smooth steps when painting a car to assure the smoothest paint jobs. This also shows in his super straight fogged in borders at his panel paint jobs. As well as the free line highlights on the cars he painted like this Studebaker Avanti clearly shows. An odd car to start with but Dana Black added some Custom touches including then popular slotted wheels, thin line white wall tires, dummy lake pipes, an aggressive stance, and of coarse a Larry Watson paint job in a soft metallic gold with butterscotch accents.







This mild customized 1961 T-Bird was hit in the side wiping out most of the drivers side. In this photo the car was towed to Bill deCarr's Artesia Blvd shop for the needed body repairs. Its amazing to see that the twin lake pipes where almost not bend while the rest of the body has so much damage. Bill would repair the body work, and in the process remove some of the chrome and Larry Watson would then repaint this car in a raspberry/red candy apple paint. And the twin lake pipes where reused on the new version... This however is a sad sight.

 

I'm really enjoying this!
Thanks Rik.

Anybody have an estimate how many cars Larry painted?

 

what a great way to start the day. thanks Rik!

 

That is freakin' AWESOME!!

Marty
Marysville, OH

 

Man, I bet the driver of that T-Bird was hurting after that accident. NOBODY wore seat belts back then, and that car took a hit dead-center in the driver's door. The damage is even more extensive when you take a closer look at it. The top looks buckled, and the drivers quarter looks like it's going uphill. That car is bent everywhere. Yikes....

The fact that Bill and Larry saved that car is a true testament to just how good they were.

Rik- Got any pictures of the car after the repair?

 

Anyone know the manufacturer of the slotted wheels? I remember seeing one or two cars with them in 1968-69 but they were not very popular, at least in my part of the world. I noticed them because they were rare at that time. Kind of a cool look if you're going for a late 60's vibe with your custom....




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The Alexander Bros. used them on "The Venturian" as well - As far as I know, they were made by Appliance.

 

Here is another 1961 T-Bird, although not the same as the wrecked on I posted. This one has some mild body work done by Bill deCarr at his Artesia Blvd shop and can be seen here with some fresh primer spots. Most likely ready for a Larry Watson paint job...







I really like this Black&White photo of Larry's 1958 T-Bird taken in front of Larry's most famous Rosecrans Blvd shop. This particular photo is such a wonderful display of graphics The shop wall with its horizontal lines and letters, and the panels and fades on Larry's T-Bird and the power lines work so great together in this hard contrast photo. A dramatic shot...








I think Larry Watson must have been a living night mare for Sports Car Purists back in the 1960's and 70's. Here is a great looking Jaguar E-Type with a really good looking Larry Watson Paint job in Candy dark blue with a lighter top portion in pearl light blue with dark blue cob webbing added. It sure works for me!

 

DAMN! I get so excited every time I see an update to this thread!
Thanks Rik!

 

more...


One of Larry's work benches. I'm nor sure which of his shops this snapshot was taken. But I do really like it. Murano pearl powders, toners, paint guns, sand paper, thinners and some name gravity on the wall. Work place of a paint genius.









Larry Watson's 1962 Cadillac sitting in a Car dealer showroom which was located across the street from the MGM studio's in Culver City. Larry had hoped the location would get his Caddy sold fast, but after three month he took the Caddy back home again and repainted its first Black Platinum pearl in a black nitro and salt and pepper flake top. But I really like this subtile Black Platinum Pearl color on this car. With its Buick wire wheels and triple tread narrow white wall tires of which Larry blacked out the center white thread. Bill deCarr had removed the door handles and smoothed the body.










Larry Watson's 1961 Ford Econoline "Wine-O" Polaroid snapshot at one of the inddor Custom Car shows in the mid 1960's (most likely the 1965 Tridents Car show in Long Beach). Larry Used 13" Corvair accessory wire wheels on his truck. Body work was as usually done by Bill deCarr. Bill completely smoothed the body , added the tubular grille, and modified the headlights to quad units among many other features. Larry added the Salt & Pepper Metalflake on the main body and silver accents around the windows.

 

One of my favourite threads many thanks Rik

 

So far, I think this is my favorite car in the lot.

 

I love this thread!!

 

The bikes are incredible ! ! !

 

Love all the pics. Thanks for sharing.

 

Another Econoline built was this 1961 Pick Up called "Space Age" Larry built this wild custom pick up together with his good friend Bill deCarr, but unfortunately it never got finished, and more than likely it ended up being crushed. This Polaroid snapshot show the car in its early stages when Bill sectioned the cab, and he had just removed the top portion of the cab.








I wish I had a color photo of this really great looking 1956 Chevy Custom done by Larry Watson. The photo was taken at Larry's home, I think the one on at California Ave. The car, unfortunately without an owners name looks really fantastic with the addition of the 1957 Pontiac side trim on the rear quarters, and the outline paint in a contrasting color with light pinstriping following the contours...








Saint Vesquas 1950 Chevy had been customized by Ed Schelhaas. Ed molded a 1953 Chevy grille surround and installed a 1955 DeSoto grille in the opening. He added the Cadillac headlights and 1956 Packard Taillights. He also chopped the windshield 4.5 inches and installed a one piece Olds windshield among many other Custom body mods. The car was painted Titan red, and Larry Watson pinstriped it in gold. In this version Saint showed the car for some time. He even got on the Cover of Car Craft magazine, but after a while it was time for an update. Larry painted the grille surround and some scallops on the hood in gold, and Saint showed the car like this again. Then in 1957 it was time for another update.
Larry outlined a wild scallop design on the car. And his team of helpers taped of the rest of the body in the parking lot of Larry's 1016 E Artesia shop. This photo of the Saint Vasquas Chevy was taken in the parking lot after most of the the car had been taped of.

 

most inspiring thread on the planet, keep em coming!

 

A really great black&white photo of Dave Kyte's wild Watson painted 1955 Mercury. I guess the photo was taken around the Artesia blvd shop somewhere in 1960. And I also guess that the black and white photo was just done to save our eyes. Both Dave's and Larry Watson's Custom in this photo have such wild paint jobs that seeing these in bright color might have just been to much. Dave's Mercury was just fresh out of the paint booth at Larry's shop. The rear bumpers had not been put back on the car yet. I have always liked this way over the top chopped Mercury. It was kind a strange for the time. Most of the cars where only mildly customized and had a wild paint job. But this car had it all. Chopped and other major body work and to top it of a very wild Watson paint job in lime, white purple and orange.






I have shows several photos of this unidentified Larry Watson painted 1957 Pontiac before. And I always get people to ask me if there are more photos of it. Well yes there are. And here is another one, one that I really like. I guess that the girl in the photo is either the owner of the car, or perhaps the owners girlfriend or wife and she was asked to pose with the car in the photo. This photo I particular like because of the setting the back round the light, just everything is perfect in this snapshot. Later on Larry added a contrasting dark burnt orange with some line graphics inside the side trim. This car is really a perfect sample of the Custom Cars from the late 1950's and early 1960's. And show that with minimal means a perfect looking custom could/can be created.






I'm not totally sure if I have posted this photo before or not... I think I did, but then it was a much worser scan in another thread.

Anyway great photo of Ed Roth working on his Rotar at the Bill deCarr/Larry Watson Artesia shop. The Rotar was painted in white, could be primer, but I think its a white base that will be followed by red and blue. The starts are already taped off. On the right we can see the rear portion of the Johnny Zupan/Bettancourt Mercury and a WWII Jeep with white wall tires.

 

Rik one of my friends said today " Roger I've seen Larrys pictures, But I really like the way Rik is letting them out. I mentioned the future project, And I think he will pester me till it happens. Dave Kyte's , was he from Santa Barbarbra. I knew you would find out.

 

Oh and we think the paint bench is thr rosecrans shop.

 

(Rik one of my friends said today " Roger I've seen Larrys pictures, But I really like the way Rik is letting them out. I mentioned the future project, And I think he will pester me till it happens. Dave Kyte's , was he from Santa Barbarbra. I knew you would find out. QUOTE)

Is the future project a book of all these pictures? I hope so...

 

Roger,
I was told - after I did show the photo on here - that the paint bench was at Larry's Paramount on Lakewood Blvd shop.

 

I would give my left nut for that Jag.

 

But then you'd have to shorten your name to just "Nad"...

 

I'll see your nut and raise you a little finger...
(Boy, that sounds weird!)

 

Could be they are less than 1/4 mile apart. I plan to talk to McNaught (opened & worked) the rosecrans shop with Larry, And with Pork Chop who worked the Lakewood shop. I was At Genes Muff a lot but I couldn't be positive about the bench. But when the time comes I will Know. The older I get the less I remember. Roger

 

Nice black&white photo of Jim Griepsma's 1957 Ford Ranchero with flames by Larry Watson. The photo was taken at Larry's 1016 E Artesia Shop in 1958, so the car was still as good as brand new. The body on Jim's Ranchero was near stock. I think only the hood ornament was removed, but the rest was as it came from the factory. Larry added the elegant flames/scallops in a metallic gold with red fades. Lake pipes, Dummy spots, slight nose down stance and some 1957 Plymouth hubcaps are the only real custom car touches. The interior was white and red, same as the custom made tonneau cover. This photo is very interesting because in the background we can see Duane Steck's Moonglow in silver with the white to blue fading scallops added by Larry. Jim Griepsma was from Dutch origins... just like many other Custom car owners in the late 1950's and early 1960...








Calvin Wiekamp's 1955 Mercury "The Snake Wagon" painted by Larry in a pearl lavender/roze with wild silver and fading purple scallops was not only nice on the outside. This black&white photo, part of a magazine photo shoot shows the nicely upholstered trunk. Oil and gas tank all the way in the back. But it looks like Calvin was still in need of a fully chromed set of tools to store in his car. I have to say that I had never really seen the "spades" shaped detail on the rear fenders of Calvin's Merc before I saw this photo.








Roy Abendroth's 1955 Buick the "Busonic" photographed in fron of the Bill deCarr's Artesia Shop in the early 1960's. By the time this photo was taken Larry had already been moved out of the shop, but since bill and Larry where like brothers they hung out a lot. Possibly Larry was looking at the Busonic to get some inspiration while the car was at Bill's shop getting ready for Larry to put down his first of two paint jobs on this mild but wild Custom Car.Soon after this photo was taken Larry would paint the car in a wonderful hue of bronze red, with light copper accents. In Larry's Photo collection there are only a few photos of Bill's shop showing the Bill's Body Shop sign. I think Bill was in the shop for quite some time with the old Ed Schelhaas sign still on it.

If you like the Busonic, then click the photo below. It will bring you to a folder on my site with all the photos of the Busonic from the Larry Watson Personal Collection.