New Here - Transplanted So. Cal to Kansas (Don't laugh)

Dig the Site! I grew up in Azusa, Ca. - my dad owned a Paint and Body shop - The Martinez Bros. My dad, Paul and his younger brother Johnny were The Martinez Bros. My brother and I hung out at the Shop everyday and seen lots of *****en work being done by my dad and his guys. Around 1964, 65 my dad started getting hooked up with Drag Racing. They painted the Little Red Wagon candy apple red, Kohler Bros. King Kong Anglia, Shores - Hess Skippers Critter, Meguiars Mirror glaze special Anglia, Bad Bossa Nova, Chuck Poole's Chuckwagon, Fireball Shores Anglia, Revell Mustang Kit Car, also the Stone, Woods and Cookie Swindler A - they painted that one candy blue. I believe that had the gold stripe on it. The C-O willy's truck and Agitator were a couple more.
It was fun hanging around the shop seeing all those drag cars coming and going. Any of the drag cars painted by The Martinez Bros. that were made as models was a bonus for us. We would get a case of models from Revell or whichever company made them of each car. I remember seeing lots of stuff at the body shop. I was 8 years old in 1971 when my dad was killed. We (brother, sister and I) moved to Orange County with our mom after he died
(he was married to a different woman in Azusa) and our lives changed forever. Over the last couple of years I have looked for pictures of cars my dad had customized/painted. Finding this website has been a blessing. I have found pictures of Drag Racing cars, Trucks and Wheelstander's with my dads mark - Martinez Bros lettered on the body - somewhere. It's given me a chance to share his history with my brother and sister, our kids and grandkids too! You have no idea what that means to us. When he died in 1971 it was under very su****ious cir***stances. Moving to Orange County with our mom - we were no longer in touch with the Martinez side of the family and we were not given even One picture of my dad or pictures of us as little kids from our stepmom.
If there are any other pictures of cars or stories some of you may have about The Martinez Bros. Azusa it would be Great if you could share them with me. I seen a couple members, hotrod 1120 and 1stGrumpy talking about The Martinez Brothers shop , posted Aug 7 2016. That was Awesome to read that!
Thanks for having this site. It's kick ***!
Rich Martinez

 

Great intro, Rich, and welcome to the HAMB. Sorry for the loss of your Dad so early in your life. Him and your Uncle left you an incredible legacy though. Enjoy your time on here..........Don.

 

Welcome from ga!!

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk

 

Welcome to the HAMB, hopefully you can find some more information about your dad here.

 

Welcome Bigrich... I knew your Dad and Uncle, I was in there shop often back in the mid '60s. Very sorry to learn of his death.
A good friend of mine, Richard Batista, had a lot of work done there on his '58 Impala. Since you were around 8 years old, you may remember it. Chopped top, extensive body mods and small frenched antennas in the dash for door poppers. Top was painted purple metalflake and the bottom was purple tinted primer.
I left the area in '68 ( I think) and lost contact with everyone. I have often wondered if Richard,your Dad & Uncle ever finished his '58.
Again, welcome to the h.a.m.b. and good luck with your search.

 

Don - thanks for replying and your very cool words. As excited as I have been to get my word out and hook up with so many cool people - I have been a bit apprehensive for some reason. You were the first to reply and I was pretty stoked. Been out of town sorry I took so long to hit you back. . . . Rich

 

Thanks ga! Just getting any reply was way cool!

 

Thanks elgringo 71, I appreciate your welcome and the SWC willy's pic was a nice touch. Dig the Carolinas, had some offices in Charleston, Columbia and Charlotte years back, dug it! Love the beach. Take it easy. . . . Rich

 

1stGrumpy! I've wanted to talk to you since I seen your Post from August 2016! I have never met or talked to anybody that knew my dad. The Body Shop was a blast! Azusa and the San Gabriel Valley seemed like a different world after moving to Orange County. My dad was from Delano, we went there quite often with him on weekends. Pretty radical lifestyle out there. He was one Tough mexican! He was super cool though, a great dad and very loyal and loving to his family and friends. Cars were his p***ion though - and I heard he was a great driver. Back in the day you could out run the cops! I remember him taking my brother and I to school in his 63' split window Stingray kickin *** down hill by the old Miller High Life plant in Azusa. Is your buddy Richard still around? How long you been in Ak. Big change from Azusa. Oh - I remember your buddy's Impala - because of the color. Even as a kid I really dug the chopped tops, shaved handles and hydraulic's. It is so cool to hear from you - somebody who rub shoulders with my dad, my uncle Johnny and The Martinez Bros. Very Cool! Different cir***stances and I would be spraying some mean rides! Thanks bro! It would be great to visit some more. . . . Rich

 

Rich... Very cool that you still remember Richards '58, especially since it was 50 years ago! It was a very unique car with, at the time, a lot of unique modifications. It was one of the 1st cars in the Azusa, Baldwin Park, Covina area to have hydraulics. I don't know what became of Richard, when I decided to move to Phoenix ('68) it was a very rapid decision and my girlfriend and I left almost immediately.
As far as your Dad and Uncle, I really don't remember a whole lot, you have to remember that this was 50 years ago, Southern California and it was the sixties!!! That's all I'll say about that.
As I said, I left in '68. My girlfriend, who later became my wife, had family in Phoenix and I needed to make a clean break from that lifestyle. Spent about 25 years there and then moved to Arkansas, been here ever since.
Any time you have questions, though I may not have the answers, or just want to shoot some bull, give me a shout! Later... Jim

 

Jim, I had limited time with my dad but my memory of those times are so vivid! I am thankful for that. I remember when they started doing hydraulics, chops, shaved handles - all of those things seemed so advanced back then - and they were! They did really good work also. As a young kid - nothing was cooler than pushing the ****on under the front wheel well and . . . Wow! the door pops open! My dad really dug doing that custom work. I see - you moved out of there in 68' - probably a smart move for you. The San Gabriel Valley is a different Animal - for sure. Great place and era for cars, customs & racing in the 60's. Your buddy, Richard Bautista , his name sounded really familiar to me - but that was a long time ago. As much work as he had done on his 58' at the shop - he was a familiar face around there. In 68' - sometime during that year - my dad was sent to SQ for a couple. Still - what a trip how our lives just briefly intertwined many years ago. Sounds like your decision to leave the lifestyle and the area was the best thing for you and your girlfriend/wife. Still married? Just to clue you in a little - I grew up in Brea (by Fullerton, Diamond Bar) , did good in school and sports (wrestled in college), been married to a girl from Brea for 32 years, I do Advertising for car Dealerships. This is the first time Iv'e ever participated in a forum on line of any kind so I don't know if certain things are off limits or what is private or not etc. For now I just want to say thanks and I look forward to shooting some bull with you! Take it easy! . . . Rich