Strangers In a Strange Land - Part II

Friday February 15

9:30 AM: Tammi Jo is hacking like a 4-pack-per-day Pall Mall addict, and presents an excuse slip for our next assignment: Operation Los Angeles.   "You go ahead," she says. "Just leave me some money for more matzo ball soup." I comply with her possibly last dying wish, and point the rental Hyundai west. Two hours later I am at the swank home of Coop and Ruth overlooking Silverlake Reservoir in north L.A., which frequently serves as a backdrop for his (caution - Not Safe For Work) photography projects.

Noon: After dropping off my bindlestiff in the guest wing, Coop, Ruth and I hop in his ginchy '65 Falcon and head down Fletcher for lunch. Despite its outward modesty and prim schoolmarmish demeanor, the Falcon packs a 289 and jabs aggressively through lunchtime traffic as Coop hurls invective at other motorists.  At the restaurant we are joined by Mister Jalopy who distributes handsome gift calendars from Valley Friction Materials, which, as he explains, is the one-stop shop for all your 1950 Studebaker brake resurfacing needs. Like the company whose name they bear, the calendars are solid and no-nonsense, bereft of unnecessary italicization and serifs.  Over sammiches,  Mister Jalopy also discusses Dinosaurs and Robots Dispatch, the new online magazine project he recently started with Boing Boing  founder Mark Frauenfelder.

Apres lunch, Coop and I drop Ruth back at their house and head for Burbank. First stop is the famed Autobooks on Magnolia, where we browse the stacks for the latest in automotive literature. After buying a few volumes, we head over to visit our pal Bobby Green at his Old Crow Speed Shop. Out in front, a recent garage find '55 Buick Super belonging to Bobby's sister.
 

The man, his dog, and his cars. Those of you who have read me for a while know that Bobby is proprietor of five of the best watering holes on the West Coast (LA's Saints and Sinners  and Little Cave,  Lucky Tiki in the SFV and The Big Foot Lodges in LA and SF)  who happens to be one of the top hot rod guys on the planet.  In the foreground, a '32 5 window proudly bearing the scars from its previous career as a 1950's dirt track racer in Alberta, Canada.  This one is getting plopped onto a new set of rails, sans bodywork.  In the backgound, a '36 Ford Phaeton which is being converted into an exact replica of George DuVall's California Plating Delivery custom.

Another shot of the shop showing Bobby's red nailhead powered '32 roadster, which some of you pervs may recognize from its use as a prop in (caution: not 100% work safe) adult cinema; a performance for which I christened it "The Money Shot."

Hanging from the rafters in the above photo you'll note a reserve aluminum bellytank from a WW2 era P-38. Those of you who've been reading my blog for a while know that Bobby converted one of these into a vintage-style lakes streamliner dubbed the Old Crow, and piloted it to a World Record in V4/BGL at Bonneville last July.  Coop, Coby, Tim Blair and I were there to record all the fun.

Unfortunately, at the Bonneville World Finals in October, Bobby blewed up the Old Crow's motor real good. But lemons and lemonade as they say; Bobby was subsequently approached by clothing designer Tommy Hilfiger who wanted to use the Old Crow as the centerpiece in his Spring advertising campaign. 

That experience led to a trip to Amsterdam, which you can read about here. Unfortunately the Old Crow wasn't in the shop that day, but there were a few other bellytanks to ogle. The #16 you see here, while not completely authenticated, is believed to be the very first bellytank lakester built by Bill Burke circa 1947. Priceless.

We also had a chance to rummage through Bobby's famous parts pile, which contains some of the most amazing bits of vintage speed equipment you'll ever see. Green envy.

My favorite had nothing to do with cars, tho - how about this free score? The Northrop Flying Wing sign, found in the desert.

After a few hours of beers, bench racing, and swapping stories, Coop and I get out of Bobby's hair and head back to the Silverlake casa in Burbank rush hour traffic. We almost run out of gas before wheezing into a 76 station. Good thing, because tonight is going to be a corker.

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[gabriel]

I had a 64 Falcon Sprint V8 Convertible in High School. I lament the day she departed this earth.