There
isn't a striper or customizer on the planet who hasn't been influenced by
the work of George Barris. For more than half a century, Barris has been
a pioneer in the field of automotive customizing. Not only has he created
thousands of unique customs (he quit counting in the 1950s), but his work
has appeared in countless magazines, books, television programs and motion
pictures. From the original Batmobile to the latest James Bond car, the
custom creations of George Barris have become an integral part of American
culture.
Though he says he's in semi-retirement, at age 71, Barris is still one of the hardest working men in the business.
He makes dozens of appearances at automotive events each year, and is currently working on several motion picture projects, including a film on James Dean, a remake of The Love Bug, and preliminary work on Batman IV.
Barris is preparing for this summer's grand opening of his Star Car Museum in Gatlinburg, Tenn., which will feature many of his famous movie cars.
He's also developing a special exhibition of his work for the 50th anniversary of the Grand National Roadster Show in 1999.
All this in addition to several book and toy deals.
Despite his tight schedule, the King of the Kustomizers took some time with
us recently to reflect on the past, and also make some observations on the
current state of automotive customizing.
Bond: Customizing was basically unheard of when
you started in the early 1940s. How did you get into this line of work?
Barris: I just liked cars. When I was
going to school my parents gave me a hand-me-down '25 Buick and my brother
Sam and I proceeded to customize it. Customizing at that period of time
was going to the hardware store and the five-and-dime and picking up mud
flaps, fox tails, antennas and paint for scallops. That's what we did to
the '25 Buick.
When I went to high school I hung around a body shop and learned how to weld.
I just started right into customizing -- setting taillights and license plates.
I had to pioneer those things because no one else was doing it at the time.
When the kids at school saw what I did to my little '32 -- which was one of my first ones -- they said, "How about doing it for me?" It was better than a paper route.
Bond: How did your early relationship with Robert
Petersen help spark the public's interest in custom cars?
Barris: In 1948, Peterson co-produced
the first hot rod show at the L.A. Armory. At the time he was a PR runner
for the studios.
My '41 Buick was the only custom car there and it was really advanced for its time, with full fade-away fenders, plastic taillights, chopped-down Cadillac grille. Everyone just jumped on me once they saw it, and it escalated from there.
When Petersen started Hot Rod magazine, I started taking pictures of all these cars, along with Pete. That was really big because suddenly people all across the United States could see what we were doing.
Bond: You've been associated with 17 of the
cars that have won the America's Most Beautiful Roadster title. What makes
a winning custom?
Barris: It's the whole package. You've
got to have something that looks good, has good workmanship and great detail.
You have to have it all, or it just doesn't gel.
Bond: How do graphics fit in with customizing?
Barris: To me striping and graphics are a very important part of finishing a custom. A plain custom -- just bare -- is like the old cars in the '40s that had plain black paint and small hubcaps, and that's it. The striping and creative artwork is what gives a custom that final touch.
Bond: What current styles do you like or dislike?
Barris: What I find a bit backwards today is that the hot rods are all beautifully engineered, high-tech -- but they don't look like anything. They look like a stock '32, a stock '29 or a stock '34. They don't have the design of the Ala Kart or the Emperor. There's nothing original.
The customs today are the absolute opposite. They're creative, the workmanship is beautiful, the color samples are way out.
They try to emulate what we've done, but they also have a lot of creative ideas of their own.
Bond: Give us your opinion of the 1996 production
models.
Barris: We had a bad lull there for a
while, where the American domestic car lost its feel for design. It wasn't
because of the designers -- our designers were the greatest -- but they
weren't given the freedom to do what they wanted.
Now they finally have it. Some good examples are the Camero, the Trans Am, the Mustang, right on through to the Chrysler products.
Look at the Viper.
Today our domestic cars are way stronger than the imports. It just proves that our guys can really make great looking cars, given the opportunity.
Bond: What's your opinion of the Plymouth Prowler?
Barris: The Prowler's great, but to me
that's not a production type car. It's like the Viper, it's a toy. It's
a good attempt at making that type of car accessible to the public.
That's tough, because of what you have to do for a car that you're going to sell to the consumer.
You have to put those big, ugly bumpers on there, and the first thing they're going to do is yank them off.
But the Prowler shows what should be done to roadsters -- more styling. And to offer it to the public is great.
Bond: What's the most cost-effective way to
customize a new car?
Barris: Visually there are three things.
The first thing is paint and graphics. The second is wheels and tires. Then
you go into the ground effects -- air foils, air dams, running boards, spoilers.
You make some major bolt-on changes.
From there you cross the line and go into customizing. That's where you start whacking into the fenders or start chopping, sectioning and channeling.
And then you become a custom.
The first way is the quick way, and it gives you something you can enjoy, and have fun with, and drive. And you can afford it, because you go down to the dealer and finance $5,000 worth of customizing for $30 a month.
Bond: Explain America's fascination with the
automobile. Why is a car more than just transportation?
Barris: It's a way for people to express
themselves. You go to a cul-de-sac street and you see the Browns, the Jones,
and the Smiths. They all live on the same street, but each one has an individual
car.
It's an expression of themselves, and it's got to be different.
They're all trying to say, "I did better than the guy next door because I've got directional chrome wheels."
The best part about it, I'm going into my sixth decade of customizing cars, and I don't see an end.
Bond: What advice can you give to all the 18-year-olds
out there who want to pursue a career in customizing?
Barris: Learn to be a craftsman. Whether
you want to be an artist, a designer, a fabricator, a customizer -- learn
to be the best you can. And if you're going to go into the retail or consumer
area, learn to make your customer happy.
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| GEORGE BARRIS |
George Barris the King of Custom Automotive.
What sets George apart from the other customizers is his sense of production
and practicality. Barris has been employed to build some of the finest
customs and movie concept cars.
He has also been envolved in helping some of the major auto manufactures come
up with ideas for production concepts. Today's aftermarket graphic packages and
ground affects have their root in the barris shop.
If not in the design but in the marketing of aftermarket automotive accessories. |
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Interview by Bob Bond
Photos by Marshall Spiegel |
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| Barris is still active in the industry,
though today he spends much of his time on the telephone. Behind him you
can see part of his famous collection of movie and TV memorabilia. |
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| Barris and the stretched '68 Pontiac GTO he built for the Monkeys television series. |
| George Barris Links |
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