Dick Bertolucci Speaks! August 22

I help organize a speaking series in Sacramento called The Living Library. In August we'll have legendary customiser **** Bertolucci in a talk with local auto enthusiast and historian Bruce Woodward.

The event is FREE and will take place in Sacramento at Time Tested Books on Sunday August 22. We originally had it scheduled for the week before, but **** will be at Bonneville!

Bertolucci will speak about the early days of Sacramento's kustom and racing auto scene, including his ***ociation with Harry Westergard and George and Sam Barris<!--EndFragment-->. Should be a super interesting evening!

 

Some pics, plus a link to Rikster's crazy Bertolucci file:
http://public.fotki.com/Rikster/11_car_photos/beautiful_custom_cars/bertillucci_custom_cars/

 

That is to cool, will the event be taped? Slim

 

That's a good question. The local public-access cable station has taped some of the other ones- I'll see about getting this one filmed if they're not going to do it...

 

Sounds Kool lets roll some Kustoms out and support.

 

BTT for the afternoon crowd! Street parking is free in Sac on Sundays, so could be a good opportunity to bring out some cool kustoms!

 

Bttt

 

What time does this start?
All I see on your post attachment is the infamous red X..

 

Starts at 7PM sharp... and here's a flyer

 

So this is only 5 days away! Any Sacto-area HAMBers going to this?

 

Hey,

If he's taking any questions from the crowd can someone ask him from whom did him and Harry draw their ideas from in the early days of kustoms? There were no real shows, no magazine coverage and just not to many built prior to WWII.

" Humpty Dumpty was pushed "

 

Great question! They will be taking audience questions so I'll try to ask this if nobody else does. See some of you on Sunday!

 

Tommy the Greek will be mentioned, he started in '44, I think...some serious customs.
Also, Rootlieb (in Turlock: Rootlieb's T Hood Works) Rootlieb Senior converted a '34 Ford sedan into a cutaway-door short ****pit roadster! Light green in color, it was very popular at the Lodi shows in the early '70s. (kinda 'M.G. like', with a pretty little 'hump back'...)
Another car **** B. might mention is the 'Apache', a handformed sport type with flathead engine, early frame. Think he did that one, too.

 

Hey,

Thanks, Mr. Bertolucci is one guy on my list of "living kustom legends" i'd like to meet. He's a real metalman, not a ''puttyflinger'' and kustom god!
Him, Jimmy Summers & Roy Hagie set the footings for what would become the kustom car world. Today few know their names!

" Meanwhyle, back aboard The Tainted Pork "

 

Btt........... If you are around don't miss this.

 

I´m SO interested to know of how the event was,, any info?? I WISH I could have been there ,, seeing and meeting this customizer Icon ,, Was it an good turnout,,I do hope so !

 

Mr. **** Bertolucci and Mr. Harold "Buddy" Ohanesian were there basically being interviewed by Bruce Woodward (local deuce hoarder and great guy)

The rest can only be described as priceless
Everything from **** starting out w gas powered model airplanes to... his first car (he and his dad built) to.... street racing... to customizing to.... drag strip and salt flat racing to.... family- friends and present day body shop . Plus many funny story’s and best of all some story’s about what Harry Westergard was like. Also cool slide show / photos from the 40's.

Iv hoped for years that someone would start do***enting Mr. Bertolucci’s story’s……..he’s about the only one left and a true craftsman and great person.


Im real glad I was there and yes the room was full.
Greg

 

On that subject **** said that Harry had his own ideas about how things should look and could litaraly “build anything out of anything……he was the best metal man he ever saw or knew”
Sounds like he was the original to me.

 

More please....

Did anybody take photos of the slide show?

I met **** Bertolucci in 2009 at the Sacramento Autorama Merc Gathering, and had a really wonderful time with him. I talked to him several times over the weekend. What a nice man.
I would have loved to be at this event, sounds like a really great time.
Would have loved to hear all about his days with Harry Westergard, and the Barris Brothers.

 

Rick
People were videoing (don&#8217;t know them) possibly it may turn up on Utube???

All the photos id seen before sep for a very few.

 

It was William Yee.. That was one of the many special moments of the evening..

It was a great crowd of true car guys. The owner of the book store mentioned that the crowd for **** was bigger than for both mayors of Sac combined!

A friend of mine was filming it until his camera batteries died.. I will find out how much he got and figure out a way to post it..

 

The event was really amazing- we had about 100 people there, which, as Jim mentioned, was more than we had when we had an event with all past 4 mayors speaking! It was awesome to see so many people come out to support!

**** had great stories and Bruce just let him tell them without getting in the way. He really painted a picture of a way of life that is totally gone now. Junkyards in the center of town, running a bodyshop out of a one car garage in a residential neighborhood, all the kustom work being done piecemeal because nobody had the money to do more than a tiny bit at a time. As we were setting up the event, he and Ohanesian were reminiscing about Westergard and it just boggled my mind that they were casually chatting about a guy who has been gone 61 years as if it was yesterday.

Buddy Ohanesian (pronounced O'-HAN-uh-shun... i've been saying it wrong for years) added some great anecdotes, including a tale of being pulled over outside of Oakland in his '40 Merc - a jewelry store had just been robbed and his car was riding so low the cops thought he had the stolen safe in his trunk!

Most people didn't notice, but Bruce also brought a carload of goodies which were sprinkled behind the 'stage' area: a '37 DeSoto ripple bumper, Packard and LaSalle grilles, a nose off a midget racer... pretty cool stuff!

Bertolucci's daughter Terry filmed the whole thing and I'm hoping to get a copy and post some highlights on youtube. And Rikster- don't worry about the slideshow - 90% of it came off your site!

Thanks again to everybody who came out. It was an amazing chance to hear a true legend - and a really decent, nice guy - speak, and I was stoked that so many people showed. I've got a few pictures and I'll post them as soon as I get 'em off the camera

 

Hey,

Thanks for this post and the reporting.........................

I now wish I'd ditch work and bought a plane ticket!

I guess I really don't get the HAMB any moe- eighteen thousand hits on a post on mexican blankets, and only alittle over fivehundred people have an interest in this one?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

" Meanwhyle, back aboard The Tainted Pork "

 

I'd love to see this interview, PLEASE post this if you can. It just doesn't get any better than talking to those true pioneers and very few of them left.
Even locally I always take time to LISTEN to all those old timers who've walked the walk

 

posted a couple of pics here: http://www.midtownmonthly.net/blog/bertolucci-off-the-chain/

 

man I wish I lived closer to California....I really hope someone can put the movie up on youtube soon!

 

It was really great to see Buddy Ohanesian and William Yee show up too - just interesting to see the actual men who's cars made history and have them all reminiscing together.....and some new stories I'd never heard before.

Buddy's Merc is my top favorite custom of all-time - so it was an extra treat to see him in-person for the first time.

I thought it was interesting that **** said that when Buddy originally lowered his car that it was SO LOW that the skirts drug on the ground going around corners and **** had to convince him to raise it up some to keep from grinding the bottom off the skirts. Buddy said that when he drove it over acorns in the street, he could hear them kicking up off the ground and bouncing off the inside of the back bumper. And the story of the cops thinking he must have had the stolen safe in the trunk - great stuff. Most people think the too-low craze is more recent, but obviously not!

Thanks for putting this together crosleykook!

 

I actually got chills when Bertolucci talked about being out driving with William Yee when news about Pearl Harbor came on the radio...

 

Ain't THAT the truth brother!

 

Wow--what a great time. Wish I coulda been there. I really hope someone posts a video. Bertolucci is one of the greats. He really comes from a time which, sadly, doesn't exist any more.

We may be trying to emulate him, but nowadays, we have to come at it from a totally different perspective.