History Dickie Flippens (Chrisman Inspired) Coupe

Bttt Lets see some more info on this car and some more pictures.

 

I really love that car too, its awsome, i have a 32 chev 3 window that im going to build someday the TRJ article kinda stuck in my mind when i found the chev body.

JEFF

 

No, thats Dickie Hamilton...

 

Absolutely incredible job you did with the model build....Hope you guys can get this project done sometime down the road, whether a re-creation or rebuild of the original car. It would be quite a sight to see in person...Don.

 

Not sure how many of you fellows still follow this site, but I had a couple of things I thought I might add to this thread. Dickie Flippen went to John Marshall High School here in Richmond Va with older friends of mine. I knew of some of his car antics before I eventually worked with Dickie at two different local machine shops. I have visited Dickie at his shop beside his house and he helped me with some tips on building Go-Kart motors. Dickie had gotten into lay-down Kart racing running absurd speeds at certain larger venues normally saved for NASCAR events. My recollection of his Chrysler powered '32 Chevy was that this car was originally built here in Richmond, at lease one of the earlier versions, and Dickie moved to Arizona to work for Mickey Thompson, taking the car with him. The car at some point held a track record at Lion's Dragway running as a Competition Altered or something of the sort. I believe it may have been after he returned to Va that he took the car to a variety of Eastern drag strips and tested his mettle. Other than what info is found in the magazine article I don't recall what kind of E.T's or speeds the car was capable of.
I last talked with Dickie about 5-6 years ago at a local car show. He and his wife had a '34 Ford coupe street rod entry (I think) and Dickie was suffering with some form of dementia then. Dickie passed away later that year and his wife died about six months later. Dickie Flippen was an innovator. He was a very capable machinist and fabricator. He could also tell tales that were quite entertaining, and if he thought for a minute that you believed what he was telling you, the story would get better....and more unbelievable.
Back when we worked together Dickie would take off every year to attend speed week or month at Indianapolis. He always had a pit pass as he was friends with Lloyd Ruby. A.J.Foyt was also a friend and Dickie's idol. Dickie always wore cowboy boots to work and changed once he arrived. His yard displayed cactus, skeleton deer head and large rocks in a neighborhood of green grass lawns.
I have the same pics as found here from the magazine article, but also a couple of poor quality snapshots taken at Emporia Dragway in '63, and one from years ago before the car became a full blown drag car.

 

back up

 

I take it that Dickie Flippen Coupe was never found? I recall somebody posting pics of it up on a Steel Rack in some warehouse some where? Where can I find those pics again? Joey do you still have that cool model?

 

Hello, I am Dickie Flippen's daughter. Daddy sadly passed away 11/14/13 from Alzheimer's at the age of 77. My Mom, Joyce, passed 2 months after Dad on 1/15/14 from congestive heart failure, 72 years old. Both my brothers have passed. Bruce at 20 years old from an unknown hit & run driver; Michael, died at 63 from the same as Mom. So it's just me now to recall the stories.
Daddy was into so many adventures; drag racing, car shows, go-cart racing & building them, fishing & teaching kids to fish, Scout Master in Boy Scouts, hunting praire dogs in Wyoming, photography, CB & ham radio, car clubs. I think that covers it, but could be more. The #1 thing about him, he was a darn good Daddy! We never went without.
Reading some of the post, I have to correct one thing. We never lived in AZ. It was Orange County, CA. We moved there in Oct '62 & returned to VA July '63. Daddy did work for Mickey Thompson. He got the wheels for the coupe from Mickey. The story was, Mickey told Dad if he ever wanted to come back, the job would be there for him. Mickey had high respect for Daddy.
I have a couple of copies of the Rodders Journal. A friend of my Dad's, Bobby Kee, took one of the magazines & gave to a guy in Chesterfield who was building a coupe like Dad's. Bobby couldn't remember who it was. And Bobby has since passed, also from Alzheimer's. I have many pictures of the coupe, from it being a chicken coupe to it's last glory days. Also I have a picture of the coupe painted on velvet. If anyone wants to see them, pm me. I'm on Facebook under Cathy Flippen Reeves.
Thank you all for your kind words about my Dad. They truly touched my heart ❤️

 

Welcome Cathy, Please share with us all .Your Father was quite the innovator ,one of my all time favorite cars.

 

...Welcome, Cathy. Thanks for joining in on here and filling in more of the information about your Dad and your Family. Hope you can stick around and maybe post some of your pictures.....Don.

 

Welcome! Wow this is tremendous. Hello Cathy! I am excited to learn more about Dickie's coupe then what's already been Posted! . I would hope you could learn how post up some pictures here. Please refresh my mind, What number issue is your dads coupe in again? I have the Complete set to this point! Ok so in going back to the Begining of this Post by Jeffery James I read it is in THJ issue #33. The HAMB is such a nice Platform compared to FB in my opinion.

 

The RJ Daddy was featured in is issue #33. Below are pics from the article. Plus pic of the coupe painted on velvet; items he had in his home (books, nic nacs, trophies, model cars, etc.) Then one of the last portraits Daddy & Moma had made. Moma's passion was doll collecting. She had 191. My husband said if I pass before him, he will use the dolls as target practice. And Moma & I WILL haunt him!
Daddy & Moma are buried at Gethsemane Church of Christ cemetery, along with Bruce, in Mechanicsville, Rt 360. Michael was cremated; his wife's doing
I am sentimetalistic, not materialistic, so after they passed, I couldn't part with many of their things, i.e. the Drakkar, his comb & Moma's Sand & Sable perfume, shown in the portrait. Not sure what I'll do with all his things before I join them. Maybe donate them to Daddy's car club.