Graffitti 32. 1984

I found these pics going through some stuff. I took them at Steve Fitch's house in Wichita.

 

I've always loved that coupe! Does anyone know who owns it now?

 

I can remember when he had both car's 55 and the 32 man how cool would that be.....

 

Rick Figari from The Bay Area(San Francisco) owns it now. There's a great story about the purchase. He's got the 55 also, and Rick's Mom worked at the Mel's from the film. There's more, but I'll let someone else tell it. Too bending on my memory.

 

wichita....the saddest place on earth.

 

Am i the only one who thinks that is the ugliest 'Famous' 32 ever??
it has the proportions of a goat buckled up with constipation.

 

I remember that too. He took me for a ride in the 55 a few times. What a beast.

 

Lowsquire, you are the only one. That car is perfect.
Thanks, Seesko, for the pics!

 

lowsquire ... you're NOT the only one ... there's many a HAMB thread on this same topic ... and your opinion is actually in the majority ... but most HAMBers just choose to follow "that rule your mother always taught you" (vice start a bunch of drama in a thread and get it closed or deleted).

... and for all you Milner Coupe lover's ... be sure to checkout the Project THX138 website ... tons of info & pics of the car and the many clones.

 

Thanks for sharing these pictures. The Coupe hasn't been that clean since leaving Kansas, that's for sure. Fitch had that thing in pieces and brought it back to life. Very cool pics.

Sorry Hemi32, I don't buy that most Hambers hate the Coupe, just a few very vocal ones.

 

Who said anything about hate? ... lowsquire called it the ugliest "famous" '32 ever ... and SOHC427 called it perfect.

I don't think you'll find too many HAMBers that will say the car is "perfect" ... but I'd bet that the overwhelming majority of HAMBers would agree that it is the "ugliest" car in the 2007 list of "The 75 Most Significant '32 Ford Hot Rods" (i.e., the 75 most famous Deuces).

This in no way diminishes the importance of "Milner's Coupe" to the history of Rodding ... the Graffiti '32 exposed millions of people to the coolness of our hobby ... and is credited for accelerating the Street Rodding revival of the '70s.

... but let's not get seesko's thread closed or deleted with yet another debate on the topic.

 

No special fan of '32s in general myself, but I got to agree, that has got some oddness going on all over.

Now, that Chevette in the background on the other hand, luv it.

Boy, 1984. What can I say? Not a great time for style of any kind. By 1984 standards, that is a damn good looking car.

 

Funny this came up now. I'll see Paul Lemat this weekend.

 

Alright.

It's cool but only because Milner drives it......

Your not the only one Lowsquire.

I'm with you on that one.....

HC.

 

While it may not be the greatest looking duece or have the "look" it's still cool at hell to me. I think it's the car that sparked my real interest in hot rods. I was 18 when I saw it the first time in the movie in '73. It looked so tough and menacing in certain scenes.
I thought " I gotta get me one of those!" I'm sure the car and movie affected a lot of us the same way.

 

I will second that motion. Horrible waste of a perfectly good 32

 

It's kinda like an old girlfriend - you just remember the good things and live the dream off that. Then when you start really looking at after time, there would be things you change or do different. I'd love to have a duece 5 window. Would I build it exactly like that one? Probably not but it's a very cool icon nonetheless. I even have a diecast of it here at my desk at work.

p.s.: Who WOULDN'T buy it if they had the chance to and could afford to??????? And if they did, they probably wouldn't change one thing!

 

That movie affected me big time. I was into hot rods and kustoms way before I saw the movie but that is the movie that got me into the '50's music.

 

From what I recall about that coupe, It was a real Hot Rod Full Fendered and had a Street pedigree about it, before Lucas's Film depo bought it and painted it and hacked the fenders apart to turn it into the beast that it was for the movie sake. true, not my favorite 32 out there, but it is important for the time period. Fact: it is the most copied Deuce, whioch has to say something. I guess people identify with it, which is cool, or they identify with some charcter in the movie and that happens to get the attention...whatever. (Side note: the floating bumper in the Pharahos Merc is a front bumper from a 1971 Camaro...not "traditional" by anymeans but it worked for the movie and was bondo'd into place.)
Hey, I wouldn't kick it out of my driveway if somebody showed up and handed me the keys.

 

Exactly, the years may not have been kind, but back then you thought she was perfect.....

 

It's like most 'hollywood beauties'. If they weren't famous you wouldn't think they were that good looking. Their legs are kinda short and they have a funny looking nose and the boobs aren't that big.
But when they have the 'aura' of being famous, they're much better looking.

Same with Milners ride. Some funny parts, but a great aura.

 

Not the prettiest, but I'd certainly lower my standards to have it parked in my drive

 

I agree.

 

Jeff Becks was way cooler!!!!

 

Not really, put me down in that column as well.

 

Whoops ... looks like my post may have actually spawned "the debate" ... sorry seesko

 

I don't love it or hate it but that grille shell drives me nuts.

 

cool hot rod because of the movie, but the front end is ugly

 

Where abouts ??

 

The 55 he has isnt the original, its a copy. A guy in New York built it and after Figari bought it he took it to the original builder of the car (Richard Ruth) and had him put the straight axle in it just like the original. The original was in Maryland the last I had heard and was almost unrecognisable from the movie trim.