Looking through the January 1958 issue of Rodding & Re-Styling (Fred Steele's purple Deuce is on the cover) there was an article called,"Pinstripers of the East" by Morgan Emmett. It showed examples of work by stripers Ron Lussier out of Worcester MA; Al Cravero from Philadelphia PA' Tony Kinta from Bayville Long Island NY; Leo Burnett from Rochester NY;Hal Gray from Elnhurst NY and Andy Southard Jr. from Oceanside NY. I knew of Ron Lussier(he striped Fred Steele's roadster) but don't know if he is still with us or not. I know Andy is still alive(talked with him a couple months ago) although he hasn't striped in awhile. I'm curious as to whether any of the others mentioned in the article are still alive and striping. Anyone on here have any info about them? Here is the article in question; I don't think I'll get in trouble posting it.
I like the work on the ranchero hood, that's nice. I've seen that cat somewhere before. Everyone knows Andy Southard, it is kinda cool to see some examples of his early work. Good post.
The cat looks to be a copy of the ones that were on the tailgate of the Barris' "Wild Kat" pickup that I believe was striped by Dean Jeffries.The lovebirds on the deck of the coupe by Ron Lussier was copied from the 16th edition of the Speedball lettering book. I know that because I have the issue and used it to paint them on the hood of my wife's o/t Geo Tracker
Which one Bruce? The 55 has been back on the road for awhile now.The 57 is still sitting in limbo waiting for me to get my a** in gear.
Very interesting and it would be cool to find out what many of the old pinstrippers are up to these day's. I also wonder how many are still on the road following the car show circuit or things like the N.S.R.A. around the country. I know the cost to set up at many of the larger shows as gone through the roof over the years and many simply setup in a parking lot near the big shows instead of paying to get in the door. Anyone know if Jake Hudson is still hitting the road at more? Jimbo
Odds are after the article was written in 1958 most if not all these gentleman have laid down the brush,hopefully most are still alive & well. HRP
I would hope that they are still with us if not still painting. In 1958 I had been fooling around with striping for 3 years and had already done a couple of cars. I still do a lot of painting at nearly 72. Of course the guys in the article are a bit older(Andy is 10 years older than I am)but I don't think age is really a factor. I have a friend who lives in South Carolina that is still merrily striping and lettering at the age of(I believe) 87. He is in a lot better shape than people I know who are half his age.
Yep, it was common knowledge that sign painters and pin stripers need a couple of shots to do good work. It helps to steady the hands!
Yep, I Knew sign painters and stripers decades ago and most needed a couple of shots to steady their hands. Not being judgmental ! I could add a lot of additional punctuation (but I decline to do so) .
I have heard this about sign painters since I started painting in 1955(did my first car in 1957) and I think I know where the idea came from. First let me say I have NEVER met anyone who could either paint a sign or stripe while they were intoxicated from whatever. I tried it once(along with my good friend and fellow striper Davey Jones from Rhode Island)when we were at a car show in Boston imbibing in some wine of very questionable vintage(not sure what week it was made). Davey decided it might be fun to add some stripes to his custom 40 Ford coupe turned convertible. We both commenced to work on it(my ex-wife even added a few licks) and the next day when I looked at it I was horrified. It was TERRIBLE! Davey thought it was great and left it on for months.That was the LAST time I ever tried to paint drunk(or stoned). As for the origins I think it probably dates back to the Depression era(or perhaps even earlier) when there was precious little work to be found and no welfare so it was either find something to do or starve.There was also a lot of alcohol consumption due to the feeling of hopelessness many people had. One of the jobs that always seemed to be in demand was that of a sign artist. Everything depended on visual signs(again no radio or TV or internet)such as billboards and the like. Most sign painters always needed helped in doing a lot of the,"bull" work such as blocking in backgrounds and prepping surfaces for paint. A lot of these jobs went to itinerant house painters and many of them were out of work from their regular trades and had taken to drinking. Over the years when people saw a sign being done they likely saw the people either prepping the sign boards or blocking in backgrounds or filling in large letters that had been outlined by the sign artist.and many of these people were likely less than sober. I formulated this theory after working with a gentleman in a body shop who had done such work for a sign painter back in the 1930's and was not a drunk. Just a theory on my part folks but I will think otherwise when I actually see someone letter a sign or stripe a car when they are drunk or stoned and do a credible job.
A few trips up to Oakland to visit (usually to 'purvey' paying clients) Tommy the Greek would dispel your theory of 'sobriety makes perfect'... Tommy kept a gallon bottle of 'Dago Red' on the floor, left side of his bench. 'Looky-Loos' were ousted, told when to return for the finished product. Morris Srabian (former owner of the "Wild Kat" ala Dean Jeffries/Barris) and his brother delivered Morris's newly finished flawless black '48 F1 pickup to Tommy, was told "Leave it, go out to dinner...Come back in an hour and a half!" Morris recalled the 100+ hours they put in blocking and preparing the truck for the black lacquer. The truck had been bought new by a neighbor farmer in Fresno, it broke down one day on his ranch. The farmer was so mad he towed it into his barn, where it sat for 30 years, 45 miles on the speedo! The 'New Old Pickup' was trailered to Morris's brother's body shop, where they replaced the fuel pump (!) and ironed out the hastily stamped sheet metal. This F1 was the straightest black truck I ever saw... Reluctantly, they left the truck with the Greek...went to the Chinese restaurant 2 blocks away, Morris said it was like waiting for a jury to reconvene. Longest hour and a half he could remember... They returned to Tommy's shop, walked thru the tunnel like entrance... The truck was high lighted in Apple Green...a 7/8" beltline around the cab ended in the Greek's trademark 'arrow heads', on the sides of the hood. Trademark teardrops adorned the bare spots, the flower of teardrops on the cowl vent...The edges of green were striped with Tommy's 'fineline' in white. The Greek laid down pure genius in an hour and a half. How could he work so deftly, so fast? ......"Greek to me..."
The Jalopy Journal
