J.Ukrop submitted a new blog post: This is the City Part III: A Mother’s Day Story Continue reading the Original Blog Post
Great story! I really love your dash. Sad the middle will be covered / removed. It has a great 50’s vibe.
I will have to say had you not enlightened us on how it came to be I would have thought that it was a swap meet find. Love it and even better that you were able to make memories with your Mom!
Love it, between you and @Austin kays im really jonesing for this stage of getting a car buttoned up. Really cool man, really cool.
Hey @J.Ukrop As a fellow graphic artist, I gotta say, bravo on your very cool art work on that dash! A lot of good vibes coming out of the "LOYOLA TERRACE" studio of fine automotive art! Happy Mothers day to your great Mom! Thanks from Dennis.
I would buy another Brookville dash and hang that one on the wall. Then I would cut the hole for the dash first and then paint it again. That way the artwork is around the panel instead of under it. It's cool either way.
Neato! Happening! Wicked! Glad you got wrinkles, I went through that on an OT air cleaner. Found that the halogen work lights put out enough heat on High to kick off the process nicely. Wonder if you are going to incorporate any hammer tone finish on the project too. Always liked that, but went a bit crazy on my first project.
Joey, good to hear the surgery went well and it sounds like you had the best recovery nurse a son could have. Your relationship with your mom is wonderful, she loves you and your interest, make darn sure you pickup the phone and call here Sunday and wish her a Happy Mothers Day. This thread made my day! HRP
say, @J.Ukrop , this is one of the best posts I have read on here in a spell. I really dig the end result for your dash, it looks like mid-century bark cloth!! So damned cool!! And, I am envious that you have your amazing Mom to assist you in a time of need and to work with you on your roadster. That is pretty freaking cool. I lost mine to Cancer in October of 2022 to Cancer, and miss her everyday.
Very cool. I am glad that you were able to make memories with your mom. When the car is done you will have a great reminder.
Someplace somewhere the spirit of the great abstract expressionist Hans Hofmann is smiling, thinking, “ Oh man, that paint work of Joey’s is killer- I gotta paint my dash, too.” His paintings at MOMA, the Guggenheim, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art:
Hello JU, Sorry about your knee operation. Back in 1967, I was playing rugby for the Long Beach Rugby Club. I was fast enough to play the far outside wingman. I had skills to run with the ball, and do the little juke kicks over the heads of the oncoming tacklers. Plus, being in my 20s, top physical shape to do all sorts of high energy activities. I loved sand lot tackle football in our teens, along with the certified tackle football team games. So, rugby was a natural. I was successful as the outside guy and also the guy who tosses the out of bounds ball into the huge mashup facing me with both teams trying to get the high thrown ball into the playing field. I always selected our tallest player and he knew when to jump at the signal. Being 6’5” he was a gift on our team. After our initial season of 1966-67, I was selected to play in an all -star game against the number 1 team going to the club championships that year. I had a great game but after the half time breather, I was running with the ball towards the goal. Only one player was facing me at a charging run. So, I juked him to the left and he fell for it. I stepped to the right and it was a clear field to the goal line. In an instant, the first step for me found me flat on my face. After planting my left foot, my cutback was outstanding. But. Something made a funny noise and I fell flat on my face, as if shot from a sniper’s rifle. Everyone could not understand why I was on the ground, looking for someone on my team to toss the ball. By the time the ball was going down field, I was still laying down and trying to get up only to fall down on my first step to the sidelines. I was rushed to the nearby hospital and it was diagnosed as a bad sprained knee that was the size of a large melon. My doctor sent me to get more tests and the UCLA Medical Center diagnosed it as a torn cartilage. The surgery was at the UCLA Medical Center and done by the Laker’s surgery doctor who is/was on staff at UCLA back then. Jnaki The best thing was my girlfriend/ future wife, who was at my bedside when I woke up. The bad was the guy in the next room that had a brain injury after falling from a horse and dragged a block… When I was ready to go home, lifting the leg/knee was a problem. I could barely fit into the El Camino. Once at home, my mom, like all great moms took over and I was an injured person with a personal attendant who could cook some fabulous meals, serve them to a hobbling 20 something in a stationary seat in our study den. Most moms have a goal in mind. The youngest son or a son is one of the ways to try and keep a growing person at home for one last round of “taking care mom style,” that they always live for and try every time. I healed in several painful recovery months, while still trying to go to college classes. An injured person, special parking pass was the best thing going while parking at the college. But, my girlfriend/wife was flabbergasted when I told her that I wanted to try and continue playing again. She took this great action photo of me scoring, with my knee in a protective self-taping job and a secure brace. I could still run, but cutting back and forth was hindered. It took me two weekends of games to realize, my playing days were over. Try icing a swollen knee after each game and being out of it, for a couple of days, as a means to finally come to my senses… At least, it allowed me to park as close to my final year college classrooms with that special pass. Yippee! YRMV NOTE: Your mom is a wonderful person to be so concerned. Helping you at a time when all seems lost with every painful movement of the leg that won’t bend, can’t drive a stick shift car, let alone bending it enough to sit comfortably or even go for walks in deep sand along the beach. Kudos to her… Note2: It will heal... No hurry...nature has its own way to do things for different people.
Hello, This is a story that has lived on in my memories as part of our hot rod history. Two brothers heavily involved in hot rods, drag racing, filming, and building different styles of hot rods/motors + go fast parts. All of the time, our mom disliked our “loud machines” and greasy hands during our backyard garage work. She ran a clean house and it was difficult to walk into the house with Levis that had spots from the work we did in the backyard garage or in/under cars that needed some repair. We definitely needed to clean our hands with Comet/Ajax and a scrub brush, if we wanted to have lunch or a snack in the house. We also had direct access to our teen bedroom area from the outside sliding door. So, we could leave our "oil infused" Levis out on the porch, before coming into the house. Ha! We used to hide our Levis that we all wore daily, work, school or play. The older, more worn out, the better was the way most liked their Levis to look and function. The old adage, stand them up in a corner and that is the look and style of "good Levis..." Ha! If we did not hide them, the got washed with the daily wash or a couple of pairs in the washing machine from our closet for my brother and me. We got used to the "ribbing" at school of having the cleanest Levis compared to other teens worn, stained and used pants. It was the way our mom saw her two boys out in the public vs. what was appropriate for her. It was a good thing we had those 50s dinette sets with red gloss tops and stainless steel edging, along with the same pattern and material for the 4 seats that had chrome legs. It was the standard dining set for a kitchen. It was my job to keep the chrome clean, so, the car wax products always kept them shiny and nice... Ahhh... The Cadillac Blue Coral aroma was always with us during meals... She allowed us to sit and eat with our dirty, well worn Levis in the red chairs. Her idea was that the covering was easily wiped with a cloth and window cleaner, so it was almost teenage boys-proof. But, that was just a part of the concern for her two boys involved in “loud machines.” So, for the whole time we were doing our “teenage” things, she was not always a supporter of our involvement. And, yes, when one pair was being worn, the other Levis were always in the wash, daily or weekly. Jnaki Even when we moved on to the surfing scene, worn Levis were acceptable for daily wear. But, yet, my brother and I always had clean Levis due to our mother's insistence and grab and wash technique. Despite her concern and dislike of the hot rods and motors, she did bring us sandwiches and drinks to the backyard garage at anytime, snack breaks, lunch or even after dinner snacks late into the evening. So, she did like her two sons, she just did not like the hot rod involvement. Now, surfing was another matter in itself. Outdoors, healthy environment and she grew up living on the beach as a little girl. So, there was that! Note: Persistence pays off. At least when we went out on our own dating scene... The girl's family always inspected the teen at the door. A nice clean appearance always hit the "plus for him" spot with those parental scrutinizing eyes... yes! Our mom was proud that her two sons appeared to be normal teenagers and not some wandering the street folks living under the PCH/L.A. River bridge. Yikes! Happy Mother’s Day… She left a lasting memory for my wife, too. One of the last things she said was... "...that I am in good hands and she does not need to worry about how I will turn out...." At least I had someone to help me lead our family in the right direction for those times since 1966 to this day... YIPPEE!
What an interesting story and segue to painting the dash for your roadster. I had never thought of an abstract painted dash before however the awesome outcome has really peeled my eyelids open. Best wishes for your recovery Cheers Turns
This is so cool! I love the dash, looks amazing! What an awesome way for you to spend time with your mom.
@J.Ukrop Bravo dude!!!!!!!!! That is as cool as a "ZOLATONE" splatter painted trunk, in a 61 Lincoln Continental! Magnificent! Most impressive indeed! Thanks from Dennis.
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