History Info of trad. rod on negatives early 1940ies

Hi Guys,
i`d like to share these negatives with you and wonder if anybody might be able to help regarding any information on the car in the pictures and possibly the owner or the people shown ?
Aparently the photos were taken late 1930ies or rather early 1940ies in Los Angeles, California, I would consider them definately prewar:

I gather the following from the negatives:
1929 Ford model A roadster
ca. 1938 or later 24 stud flathead
Single carb intake
Kelsey Hayes bend spoke wheels
Antenna on both sides
Headlights ?
Trumpet Horn on the cowl- love it !
Dual exhaust
No number plates

The rod is, what i would think, a truly classic early trad. hot rod build. Unfortunately there are no speed parts visible.

From the scene the following incident might be possible:
The car got compounded or inspected or noticed by police, of which the officer had a photo taken with himself and his girlfriend. The size of the neagtives and the roll film would suggest that a police photographer camera was used not a private camera with smaller size slotted film.
Iam sure a car like that, at that time on a public road, would have raised eyebrows and not even been allowed to drive. My parents would have surely called the cops to remove that hoodlums heap of scrap from their drive way !

It is also possible the rod belongs to the police officer, his age might just be right to be invoved with hot rodding, after all he removed the top and sat in the car.
However, i doubt that any state employed police officer would want to be seen on the road in a car like that in private. Although i might be wrong. Maybe the law was still very loose in those days and too little cars around to be really concerned.

In the right top corner is some sort of 1920ies bus. The area the photo was taken seems to be rather posh.

Id appreciate your help, or ideas. The car might be known to some of the historians on the forum.

Calling Rik Hoving for comment on this one.
Thanks Randolf

 

DO NOT COPY? HRP

 

Ahead of its time with a filled peaked Model A radiator shell. Gas fill smoothed.

 

Your title led me to believe you had some issues with someone's car. LOL!!!

 

Suicide knob......laid back windshield...........I don't think stock exterior door handles.
1st pic the lad has short sleeves. Oh wait, on closer inspection....that's her at the wheel.
I think he is young enough to be the owner and is pretty proud of it!
More likely, he borrowed a police camera for better pics.

Cops had Hot Rods then.

 

I just got the "negatives" - sorry about my wording - no issues with anybodys car HaHa ! - the previous owner scanned and put the restriction on them ! Iasked if i could use his scan to share, since i own the originals now - but no scanner. Wanted to share them immediately !!
Well observed and i thought i had it figured, you teached me, cool!
I should have said no READABLE license plate, must be a registered car.
Id be looking like him, with double the smile, if it was my car. My wife would not be that happy looking though ! Youre right, must be his car and babe.

 

Cool

 

I like the delivery truck in the background.

 

VERY COOL!!! That top is tasty.
Neat roadster, cutie girl friend. Perfect!

 

Not sure about LA. If it is, it's a real old neighborhood; two story houses and the trees just look a little off to me. May be up in the foot hills like Pasadena?
Great looking roadster- very short skirt!

 

The cops name was bookem. He was a very well know badass cop and he built the hotrod as a undercover car. It's not a horn under the hood it's a siren. He chased the Pasadena boys all around and of course they all always got away because he didn't know shit about a hotrod. Everyone that always worked on it for him messed with everything so they knew for sure he couldn't catch them. The girl was also under the covers Late 30s early 40s he was out and about.

 

Oh yea and that's why there's 2 antennas. For the 2 way radios.

 

Some very nice and interesting photos you posted Randolph, thank you. To me it looks like the car
belongs to the officer, judging from his body language, and smile. I think the car is under re-construction,
the shell is peaked and re-plated, but it doesen't have any webbing on it for the hood. I'm assuming it has
a hood because of the chrome hood latch. The left rear tire is low, and has a flat spot at ten o,clock, they
probably pulled the car out of the drive way for the photo shot. Don't know if he pulled the fenders to
paint, but the back of the car is feather sanded. That top is really nice, and the windshield is layed back
about as far as you can, without the corners sticking out.

The motor (like you said), is probably late 38, or 39, generator has a cut out, 38 was the last year for that.
The headers are not stock, and the fire wall looks re-worked at the bottom. This sure looks like a pre war
car to me, as far as the location I would have to agree with ModelASteve on Pasadena. The curbs in Burbank
and Glendale were really high. The head lights are Chevrolet, my Dad ran a set of those on his 32 in Burbank
before the war. Oh' and a lot of the cops back then were really cool, much like today, they love their Hot Rods.
Richard

 

I've gone a different route and looked at what she was wearing. In the mid to late 1920s it was fashionable for women to look boyish, however in the 1930s women's dress became more conservative. During World War II it was necessary to save material so skirts were shorter with clothes rationed until 1949. Say 1942-1948?
Couldn't work out much on dating officer BOOKEM's uniform.

 

Man, that thing is beefy looking with the large front tires and the splash aprons! I like it!

Dave

 

Great looking car, are you guys sure that guy isn't a fireman? Bob

 

Firemen don't usually have a pistol strapped to their hip.
Not sure but I'd say during WWII or just after. Officer has same swagger my uncle did in that time frame and the gal has the same dress length that my cousin's mom did in the photo in the left. Even my grandmother had the same length skirt then.

Guy could be a WWII vet who had a job with the local police force and was able to put together a nice Model A roadster. And before the boneheads diss on law officers I have several cop friends who are stone car freaks.

 

I'm going to say it's postwar probably 1945, 1946 or 1947. It could be a little earlier or even a little later but not by much.
It just has the feel of post war. I think the ladies dress and hairstyle tell a lot.
His police uniform...looks wartime or post war to me I'm not getting the late 30s vibe in anything those two are wearing.
The car with a flat tire.....could be just out of wartime storage. Many of those boys did not return home until well after 1945. Wartime and Police training may explain the status of the car.
The aprons may not be a style....the car may simply be unfinished.
The large film is likely from a Brownie type box camera that used large film. This style was very common well into the 1950s. The compact 35mm really became popular in the mid 30s with makers like Argus. Still though the larger awkward Brownies continued to be popular.

 

are there any more of this guy? (or the GF )

 

And don't forget his Dick Tracy wrist watch!

 

hollywood actor?

 

Looks like a nice neighborhood, somebody with some time should see if the houses are still there today. Bob

 

Here's how perceptive I am. I didn't notice he was a cop until I read the OP's post. The top caught my eye right off. Bill

 

You know the splash aprons struck me as odd, I noticed it has no running board braces. Did he cut them off,
or was he going to bolt a set on and run fenders and boards?

 

Yea as in Don't build a hotrod just like that one.

 

The headlights are '35-'36 Chev Master, & the aprons are intact because the body had to be lifted to remove them.

 

Door handle is replacement, maybe 36+

That WWW is so uneven, maybe it's painted?

 

Cool pic's. Thanks for posting. Houses look like the ones in my neighborhood in Redlands,Ca.

 

split front and rear bones too....