Jive-Bomber submitted a new blog post: Film of the Week: Andy Southard Jr's Home Movies Continue reading the Original Blog Post
It was 2009, and I found myself strapped to a phone line for over two hours, caught in the orbit of Andy—a man whose dedication to the craft of photography bordered on religious mania. The call was supposed to be prep for some interview feature, but it turned into a freewheeling symposium on obsession, artistry, and sheer unrelenting grit. Andy was a *******ed dynamo. And I needed to know: how the hell did he take so many photos? What kind of lunatic workflow powers a man like that? His reply was simple, almost unnervingly so: “I carried a camera with me at all times. If I was going to dinner, I took my camera. If I was going to the store, I took my camera. My camera was just an extension of my hand for much of my life.” An extension of his hand. Like a six-shooter for an outlaw, or a drink for a dying man. That camera was him, and there was no separating the two. I could feel his conviction crackling through the receiver. “I try to do that,” I confessed, “but I get jaded. Lazy. And sometimes… well, I feel self-conscious about it. Like, I’ll have this camera swinging around my neck, and I catch people looking at me like I’m some kind of tourist in life, you know? It feels ridiculous.” Andy didn’t hesitate, didn’t indulge my neuroses for even a second: “No. I don’t care about any of that. All I care about is getting the shot.” That was Andy. A dude. A real dude. No pretenses, no excuses. Just raw, unfiltered drive to capture the world exactly as he saw it—one frame at a time. Dedicated, thoughtful, relentless. I really don't know if there was anyone more important to this thing of ours than Andy Southard.
Andy Southard Jr. was a family friend since the late '60s . . . My father was also a professional photographer / hot rodder . . . Dad a always used to say that Andy was "the Automotive Photographer's Automotive Photographer". I think it's absolutely wonderful that @SpeedandKultureTRENT Sherrill is preserving Andy's archives . . . and making them available to the public (and helping Andy's widow Patty).
Awesome video! Random detail I noticed, I never really thought about hoodies being a thing back then, but there they are on a chilly morning, wearing them under their car club jackets.
I remember seeing a lot of those cars in magazine articles from when I was a kid. Can even recognize the people in the pictures.
Great video. Look at all the multi carbed. motors, and they drove them. So many experts today saying multi carbs are too much trouble. It would be interesting to see negative comments on all the things wrong with those rods.
Incredible footage and the lives those folks were livin back sure looked glorious. Different world. As watched the video hoping to recognize a a particular hotrod aside from Flat-Top Bob's Cusey Roadster, around 9:51 in the film, BOOM!! there it is in color, the Bill Marshall '32 Roadster with the white top and white upholstered running boards, that now luckily resides in my garage untouched, looking exactly like it did in that film in 1961.
Just went back and watched it again. Amazing! I was just a kid in Nor Cal at the time, but hoodies were standard outdoor wear near the coast. I kind of forgot that over the years, and didn't like the modern connotations of the return in popularity. The movie smacked that bias upside my head.
This is all so amazing. Having the history on this car is still so intact. So much of the artifacts related to the roadster are still with it. Trophies, dash tags from all the roadster round ups, original photos, record covers and more.
Please remove this photo andf video links. Please be advised that Mr. Sherrill is no longer curating the archive. Furthermore, the family has retracted authorization for these materials to be shared digitally; therefore, archive contents are not permitted to be hosted online at this time. We appreciate your prompt cooperation in removing these items and updating your records.
@Kevin Bennett The links are broken, so that should satisfy that part. I will click on the Report ****on for you, so this is seen by the moderators of the forum. I would imagine that they will take action as they see fit. I did grab a screen shot and posted it in a thread here. I will track it down and delete it. While I do not want to cause any further friction with you, and do not need to hear anything about concerns between the family and the past curator, I am curious if these materials will be available in the future. I enjoyed the few I did catch before they were removed.
This is sad. Incredible footage like this no longer being shared with the small group of people that still care to see it....
I have very strong opinions about historically significant archives, and there are not many that matter more than Andy’s. I believe, without hesitation, that an artist has the absolute right to do whatever the hell they want with their own work. Sell it. **** it. Trash it. Burn it in the backyard at midnight if that is their mood. And when the artist dies, those same rights transfer cleanly and completely to the family. End of argument. What I cannot stomach is historical gatekeeping after the archive changes hands. That part makes my skin crawl. Ironically, that exact subject was the last thing Andy and I ever talked about. We were in total agreement. The artist, or the family, should be the only ones who ever profit from the work. After that, the rest of us should benefit through education, access, and a clearer understanding of history. Knowledge, not control. As I understand it, Kevin is working directly with Andy’s family. If that is true, then by my rules, and by any honest set of rules, they have every right to do whatever the hell they want. Full stop.
God Bless Andy for capturing the perfect "framed time" for all of us followers, dreamers and posers to continue this Hot Rod and Custom Car legacy.
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