History What Ever Happened to..........?

What Ever Happened To..........? number 113.

1950 Chevy Bel Air "Champagne Delight"
Owner: Jim Putts
Rensselaer, Indiana

This week's custom is one that shares the same story as so many other customs covered in this thread. The owner was very active in the early 80s, and then suddenly without warning, the car and owner seem to vanish into thin air.
It seems that Mr. Putts (pronounced "puts") was a regular at the Leadsled Spectacular as I was able to find many appearances in videos over the years. He took his little hardtop Chevy to the Spectacular in Springfield, Ohio in '83, to Des Moines in '84 as well as in Springfield, Illinois in '87. There is a good possibility that he was there in other years as well, but sometimes there were so many cars in the videos that it can be easy to miss a car that was probably there.
Jim was interviewed by one of Rowdie's gals at the Spectacular in Des Moines '84, and he gave a quick summary of the modifications on the car. The paint was a very mild baby blue with typical modifications, featuring mild striping and "Champagne Delight" lettered under the quarter windows with a few champagne glasses painted on as well. The interior and trunk were painstakingly re-done and I'm sure it took a lot of time and effort to complete. It was white and purple button tuck vinyl with intricate stitching on the door panels featuring musical notes on bars of music. In the trunk the upholstery is done in the same style, featuring a full bar for a nice drink at the show. There were some great shots of the interior on the videos that I've never seen anywhere else. The car really was a show piece.
As far as the car being featured in books and magazines, I found very little. There was a small four shot group of pictures that were featured in Custom Cars by Hot Rod Volume 1 number 5 from 1983 on page 65. They are some good detail shots, but unfortunately they are all in black and white. This magazine was a great place to have your car pictured in or featured in though, as this series of magazines has become iconic in coverage of customs in the 80s. I went ahead and scanned page 65 for all to see.



I searched through a lot of magazines for a feature on this car, and if it was ever a feature, I couldn't find it. I don't recall ever seeing a feature on it.
Photo searching turned out to be even harder than my search for the car in print as I wasn't able to find even one picture of the Chevy. There has to be more shots of it out there.
After the '87 Spectacular, this car seemed to fade away into custom history. The trail of it stopped very quickly. It makes you wonder if it was put into storage to save for "someday". Was it destroyed in an accident? Maybe it was sold and re-done like so many customs were from those days.
What ever the case, if it is still around, I'm sure that the W.E.H.T. regulars will figure it all out!
Well, that's it for this week. Until next time, stay cool..........E

 

Here is a pic from Des Moines in 84. . It almost appears white. You can see Truman`s Merc in the background at the Headquarters Hotel(Howard Johnsons). My dad took this one. It might be faded a bit from being on his wall in his garage for years. More pic`s to come later.

 

It's hard to believe that you've kept this thread going for over two years now.
Great job, and thanks for your dedication.

 

Hey E, does this look familiar


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W.E.H.T. #113, I seem to recall a feature on this car in a early to mid 80s street rodder or custom rodder magazine. I'm away from home this week and unable to look through my collection but I do remember an article on this car. My older brother had a 50 Hrdtp at the time and liked some of the features on this car.

 

@Moriarity that's funny stuff.

Got home late last night and started the search, come up empty so far. I will try some more today.

 

Just found Mr. Putts' obituary. RIP James
"James "Jim" Fredrick Putts, 76, passed away Sept. 27, 2016. He was a resident of Rensselaer. He was born Dec. 12, 1939 in Rensselaer to the late Louis and Reba (Hawkins) Putts.
He is survived by his children, Brenda Dolan (Larry Hand), Scott Putts, Karen Horrall, and Pamela (Andrew) Matlock; grandchildren, Colleen, Jack, Molly Dolan, Calei, Paige, Sam Putts, Riley and Reba Horrall, and Drew and Joe Matlock; three great grandchildren; brother, Bob Putts; sister, Anita (John) Gagin; and former wife, Sherry Putts.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Patricia Putts; daughter, Lori Lynn Putts; brothers, Joe and Dick Putts; and sister, Rita Marie Putts.
Jim owned and operated Jim's Radiator Shop for almost 50 years. He was a member of JC Cruisers, the American Legion and V.F.W. in Rensselaer, and the Newport Hill Climb Club. He enjoyed antique cars and was a volunteer fireman for the Rensselaer Fire Department.
You are invited to the American Legion in Rensselaer on Saturday Oct. 15 starting at 2 p.m. to have a drink in Jim's memory.
Memorial contributions are suggested to JC Cruisers or the charity of the donor's choice."

 

From a 2010 article:


http://www.newsbug.info/rensselaer_...cle_9108f3d6-82e6-5ba2-b246-10d3c929329f.html

 

Thanks for posting the color pic, Jim. When I wrote about Mr. Putts' Chevy last night I almost mentioned that the car was such a light blue it almost looked white on the video. I'm glad that someone else thought the same thing as saying a car was baby blue but almost looked white makes a guy sound crazy! E

Thanks @Mo. Appreciate that! E

Sorry @chryslerfan55, doesn't ring a bell right off. Any other pictures of it? E

Thanks for the information @Sancho, appreciate your search efforts!
Here's another one of those kick in the gut posts. I'm glad we now know about Mr. Putts passing, but finding out another one of those early leadsled guys has passed away always depresses me.
I did some quick math and if Jim was still with us he would be around 78 years old. That means in 1984 when he was at the Leadsled Spectacular and was interviewed, he was around 44 years old. That is younger than I am now.
It makes you think about how fast life goes by and that we should all enjoy it before it's gone.
That's why we should go to shows and meet people and see old friends and enjoy the "custom lifestyle" as much as possible since none of us know how long we will get to be here..........E

 

So very true.....

 

None that I have myself. Though I could’ve sworn I saw a picture of it in the Kustom blues thread a while back. @chryslerfan55.


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Are you maybe thinking of Jim Noble's Sh-boom?

 

Funny you posted that Sancho. For a brief second when chryslerfan55 posted the Merc, I thought the exact same thing. Must be the paint colors and style and the hubcaps. E

 

Well now, I didn’t realize that until now.


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Here you go ED. This is out of Mike Keys Book Leadsleds. Light Blue. But look at the fence behind the car. It also appears to be kinda light blue, but it`s white. Still more pic`s to come. This also came from the Des Moines show, but in 82.

 

Here's a little side-note: I received more pictures from Garrick Morris II of Gina's Jewel along with Jim Noble's ShBoom. He wasn't kidding when he said these guys were always together.

First is a cool beach shot at Daytona. The Jewel following an earlier version (not yet chopped) of ShBoom.

Here is a shot of ShBoom with a bobcat! The Jewel is to the left, behind the tree.

And here are the two later on, back in Daytona:

Thanks Garrick for passing along the photos. It's very cool to see them through the years.

 

Whatever Happened to Bill Killbergs "Little One" '40 Ford Tudor Sedan? I had several photos of the car from a search done a few years ago. I was told that the present Owner was rest oring the car. Anyone? Thanks

 

Here is a pic from Classic and Custom from the 83 Leadsleds in Springfield Ohio. Read the caption. Notice the car in the rear, a former feature car on this thread.

 

"....a fine 'milk' custom." You don't suppose that should read "mild" custom, do ya?

 

Those are some great pictures, Sancho. It sounds like Mr. Noble and Mr. Drushel were very good friends. They sure put a lot of miles on those sleds--they drove them everywhere!
In the picture taken on the beach, check out "ShBoom". Look how low it sat. Can you imagine DRIVING a car that low from Ohio all the way to Florida!?! Hardcore! E

Great pic, Jim! In the caption it mentioned that the car was lavender. I wonder if it was primed or painted lavender before it was baby blue. I don't think it was lavender at the '83 Spectacular because in the '83 video it was baby blue. The photographer might have been a little color blind, or it was another typo like "milk" custom that @Mo caught. They also misspelled Rensselaer.
Also, good eye Jim, the car in the background is Hank Schlueter's '51 Ford Coupe (W.E.H.T. #24). E

 

Here`s another pic from Mike Key`s book. It shows more of a side view. To bad the photographer didn`t take a pic of it with the sun behind him. This also is in the Hotel of Howard Johnsons. It might be in the same spot (3 rows from the rear) that my dad took of it. Which meant it was 83 when he took a pic of it. Just noticed that the name had not been added on the car yet.

 

Here is a pic of his car at the KKOA show in Springfield Illinois in 87. Also is a pic of Jimmy Vaughn`s Chevy taken at a KKOA show a couple years later. See how similar the two are. Jimmy`s was bassicly done style wise since at least in 81. But not painted until later(88 or so). We do know it is not white. I think Jim`s car is a pale lavender like Jimmy`s Remember, the interior is done in purple and white. .

 

From the November 1983 street rodder which also has coverage of the 3rd annual leadsled spectacular. But I still recall another article on this car but can't remember the magazine. I haven't dug out my custom rodders or trend setters yet. I know it's not in any classic and customs other than what's already been posted. I've seen this car in person twice, it's a nice ride, hope someone still has it. Thanks E for featuring another old memory.

 

What Ever Happened To..........? number 114.

1948 Pontiac
Owner: Hank Stupprich
Cincinnati, Ohio

This week's custom is one that I remember seeing in the "Later Iron" section of the Fall 1992 issue of Custom Rodder on page 83. I've always liked the slope back GM cars of the 40s so it has always been hiding in the back of the old memory bank. Something about those GMs..........



After a while, I kinda forgot about Hank's car until many years later. I was watching my newly arrived copy of the 1993 Leadsled Spectacular filmed in Springfield, Ohio. I managed to find it on Ebay and I had to buy it. As I was watching the DVD for the first time, this great looking pink and white sloper Pontiac goes cruisin' by the camera. As soon as I saw it I thought to myself, "I've seen that car before". I grabbed my remote and stopped the machine and went back a few frames to watch it again. I thought it might be Mr. Stupprich's Pontiac, but I couldn't be sure since the only picture I'd ever seen of it was in black and white. I wrote myself a note for future reference and continued watching the DVD. A few days passed and eventually I forgot about the Pontiac again..........
About a year ago, I managed to find another KKOA Leadsled Spectacular video on Ebay. This time it was the 1994 event filmed in Huntsville, Alabama. As I was watching it, I saw the Pontiac again. This time I made another note and decided to start in earnest to find out more about this clean sled.
Well, that turned out to be harder than I thought. Aside from seeing the car in the '92 Fall issue of Custom Rodder and seeing it on the '93 and '94 DVDs, I didn't have much luck researching this one.
A few weeks ago I did have a little luck. I found one other picture of Hank's Pontiac on Carnut's website that I believe was taken at one of the James Dean Runs--and it was in color!



As you can see in the picture, it is very mild as far as customs go. It leans towards the classic "bomb" style since it has all of the original chrome, but it does have a few custom mods that lean towards leadsled. Aside from the obvious lake pipes and Cadillac hubcaps, in the DVD appearances I could see frenched '59 Caddy taillights and dual frenched antennas in the driver's side front fender. I'd say the Pontiac is a very nicely done mild custom.
After the '94 DVD, I couldn't find any more of the car in video. I did manage to find the car in the first KKOA book on page 144, but it was the same photo from Custom Rodder and pretty much said the same thing as well, so I didn't post it. That's all I found in print. Also, aside from the Carnut picture I came up empty searching for photos.
So there we have it, where is Mr. Stupprich and his fine Pontiac? I hope we can find out!
I hope everyone out there has dusted off their sleds and have been doing some cruisin'! Drive 'em!
See you next week! E

 

Thanks for posting @DANSLED, great article!
Nice that you remember the car from the good ol' days. Thanks for stickin' around! E

 

In the DVD it looked like a pretty small show. Long way to go for so few cars, huh? I think the Huntsville show was the beginning of the change in the KKOA. E