Nowhere else in the world...

[scurvy]

Sam and I made a run South to look for obsolete parts at a few old foreign service garages in the greater L.A. area, and made a stop at Burbank Autobooks while we were down there. We pulled in via the alley in back, so we didn't see the AWB Dodge out front until we were almost in the door...

Hey! It's Steve Magnante! We shot the bull with Steve for a good long time, he showed us his AWB project inside and out, we discussed modelbuilding and the current state of the car hobby and the Barrett-Jackson Auction, where we all got to hear Steve decode musclecar serial numbers on-air. Just as we were telling Steve that we needed to go in, who should walk up, but one of the Justice Bros. and Dean Jeffries. We spoke with them for a bit as they checked out Steve's ride and discussed the good ol' days of Hot Rod Magazine, then started to make our way into the store when...
"Hey Steve! Dave?!!" Thomas Voehringer (Bonedigger's Styrene Archaeology, Motor Trend Classic, etc.) showed up. Seems he's clearing out most of his model collection to make room in the garage for his wife's car to fit in there... more discussions of showrods, drag cars/models and the AMT Piranha in both 1:25 and 1:1 and it probably took us two hours just to get in the door!

Where else but a place like Burbank Autobooks could you meet up with such a cool bunch of "insiders" and icons and spend this much time shooting the bull? You might be able to get that group together at SEMA or maybe even the Grand national Roadster Show, but if you did, nobody'd have the time or attention to spend just reminiscing, discussing the present state of things and looking forward to what the future of rodding might hold... bitchen.

BTW: We didn't get there until about 11:00am, so I'm guessing we missed Jay Leno's weekly visit by an hour or so.

[dbash2006]

sounds like ya had a great time Dave!

[howardcohen]

For those of us who don't live in California, it's not nice of you to tell us about meeting all those super neat car guys I'm up here in frozen Toronto and you're down there in the warm sun (probably in short sleeves) talking cars with our idols...and not a photo to prove you're telling the truth If you don't start carrying around your camera, some of us just might have to come down there and hang with you to see if you're telling us an old wife's tale

Now back to my cold boring life of building models...until the Detroit Autorama...

[hizootdklown]

Well Groucho,

You're not as correct as you may think..! As for the weather here, while it's NOT sub zero like you lucky dogs have, we've had more rain & colder temps than in the last 8 years & it's cold & wet right now as I write..! All which could wash away your hillside property if you got burnt in the annual wild fires or lost your home in an earthquake...

I never could understand why you guys insist on living in a freezer instead of dealing with smog & high crime rates..! Maybe the you could join 1000's of other snowbirds & join us.

And while it's true we have lots of auto & other celebrities, they're only human too & you may NOT like what you see or hear... Autobooks in Burbank, CA noted as being a place where local auto enthusiast hang out, both celeb (like Sam Freeman & Scurvy) & non-celeb (like Jay Leno) : ; ;D

So while it seems we rub it in your face, remember you need to take the bad with the good & we simply have MORE OF EACH to contend with..!

Hizoot ;D

[scurvy]

Yep,

Yesterday happened to be partly cloudy and sixty degrees, but today it's raining again, and the already over-saturated hillsides in the area are showing sines of impending mudslides. last week, we ended up with torandoes as well - I thought this was So Cal and not Kansas.

I'm not going to complain about the weather though. Soon enough, I'll see the sun again, and I can shoot paint in the garage with a heat lamp on if I have to. While it's great to live someplace where the automotive freaks have so many more days each year to play, don't forget that we pay for it with inflated housing prices and a governor that still can't properly pronounce the name of the state.

I spent a few years living on the East Coast, and toured a good portion of the world during my time in the Navy. When it was time to get out, I couldn't wait to get back to my little corner of So Cal, with it's year-round temperatures that rarely waver more than fifteen degrees from its seventy three degree average, and mountains and the beach all within twenty minutes from my front door. If any of you clowns want to come out for a holiday, get in touch - I'll be glad to play tourguide for a couple of days and let you see the non-touristy fun in So Cal.

[Hizoot]

AS would I Scurvy,

I think we've already invited the world to the Rat Plastic Thrash more than once... Plus guys like Timbo, Jerry G. Dekal Dan etc... The list goes on & on..!

Hizoot ;D

[barrisfan- Mark-78Pinto]

Hey, I am happy to be where we have ALL FOUR SEASONS!! ;D (Wisconsin) You have to love it when it snows and you can get out with a very loud snowblower and wake the neighbors up at 6am. But when they see that you have cleared their sidewalk, well no complaints are heard. I even tried driving the Subaru up a snowbank yesterday ;D
But you guys have all of ths stars. It woud be nice to rub elbows with the greats but if that happens a lot, it would kinda take the thrill out of it. I know that when Mr. Barris comes to town, it's like meeting him all over again. Or When Paul LeMat drops in at World Of Wheels, I still get excited.

Good luck with the mud slides ;D

[stevielewis]

Hate to say it....but....."Been there, done that". Yup, I lived in SoCal myself from June '98 to late April '04, NoHo. I know what you guys are going through right now with the rain, mudslides, eathquakes, fires, smog. Great place! And the celebs you meet in out of the way places. I'd be back out there if I had a job lined up that paid well. (I left and moved back to Michigan because I was out of work and nothing on the horizon.) I miss the weather, the women, the beaches, the women, the mountains,...did I mention the women? Lol! You guys just keep telling us what's happening out there and when you run into these people the rest of us only read about. You guys got it made man. ;D

[Deleted]

Nanaimo - wet - snow - no one famous - high postage - AND I LOVE IT ;D ;D ;D ;D It would be cool to meet some of the greats every now and then but I wouldn't give this place up for nothin'. You guys out there keep me in touch with the rest of the world (simple as it is) and that keeps me satisfied. The only down side is lack of a really good hobby shop - but am slowly building up a network. Oh yeah - like Mark said - all four seasons ;D ;D ;D

Lance

[Tim Nolan]

Man, what a kool day you had Dave! As high profile as a lot of these guys are though, most of them are just like you and me when it comes right down to cars and bikes! Some of them are jackasses, (like here, Don Garlit's would top the list), but most of them are really nice. Vince Carter of the Toronto Raptor's is a family friend, but he's turned into a snot these days....

I've been lucky enough to meet or at least talk to a lot of these guys over the years, with good results. Don Prudhomme was the nicest millionaire superstar I've ever met. Barris and wife were super nice to me and my family. My family members have gotten to see a ton of the Nascar drivers around town, they are almost always friendly. My youngest daughter got to see Travolta, who was very nice too.

I think it's kool when any of us get to hang with these guys. Absorb anything they tell you so you can pass it on!

[bobpaeth]

It is true that in SoCal a lot of things happen with a lot of people to see and talk to. I was born in the Bay Area of California and live in SoCal for almost seven years. Because of my relationship with Revell, I was able to meet all sorts of car people ( Barris, Alexander Bros, Bill Cushenberry, Joe Bailon, Jeffries, Winfield and many others). Closed a bar one nite with Graham Hill, Skip Hudson and that other Formula I championship driver from Scotland. Movie stars such as James Garner, and Goldie Hawn, I have met. Also met the creator of the Chipmunks, once. He and his wife drove a 4-door Maserati. I saw at least eight custom car shows a year and many drag strips. And with all of this I moved to Portland Oregon to watch the front lawn grow and my hair to turn white. SoCal is a very exciting place to be and a good place to be from. Everyone should remember that with all of the excitement to enjoy, you must share it with eight million other people ( and some of them are JERKS )

bob

[scurvy]

You got that right, Bob. I live a bit outside of the L.A. metroplex, but not too far. I couldn't live down in LA-la land, but it's sure a fun place to visit.

[barten]

Scurvy. . . yea . . .all cool. . . but . . . what about Thomas' model collection he is dumping to make room for his wife's car? ? ? ? Are you getting that? ? ? ? ?

It is all in the plastic!

GB
barten