To the Voxmobile, Ricky!

[FGM]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Other-Ma ... 1%7C39%3A1



http://www.thevoxmobile.com/

[8mileshigher]

Amazing !!
Let's see what it sells for... one of a kind.

[octagon]

Think it could beat The Monkeemobile?

[brammy]

[teb]

The video is pretty funny.

[jingle_jangle]

Hollywood nonsense brought to you by the Kng of the Hot Glue Kustom-Misers, George hisself.

This "car" has achieved legendary status almost in opposition to its intrinsic value, which is zero. But it is the first vehicle to combine automotive junk with musical instrument cast-offs. 175 MPH? At anything over about 45 it would be insane to pilot.

So, is it a car or a stage set? It does poorly at both functions.

As I've mentioned in previous posts on similar period topics, of the two Barris brothers, Sam was the artist and George the promoter. Sam died too young and George went on to create a half-century's worth of dreck of dubious value except as examples of visual pollution and clutter.

In the trumped-up "King of the Kustomers" battle of the '60s between Barris and Roth, Roth was the true artist/artisan, whose creations still look fresh and baroque today.

The Voxmobile was possibly Barris' best-realized design, in the sense that it doesn't look rushed. By this I mean that a minimum of hot melt glue was used in its construction.

[collin]

In the trumped-up "King of the Kustomers" battle of the '60s between Barris and Roth, Roth was the true artist/artisan, whose creations still look fresh and baroque today.

+1000 and to a lesser extent, guys like Dean Jeffries and Darryl Starbird (and the true straight up artists--Ken Howards, Larry Watson etc...).


I like very few Barris cars (the A la Kart is one...), but everything Roth touched, from Cars to Trikes and Bikes were pure gold and pure art....

The Voxmobile is way cool, though I might just think that due to the subject matter! It's way cooler than the Monkeemobile (technically a Dean Jeffries creation), or the Munster Koach..

But I doubt Kevin is going to get that kind of money for it. Since Barris cranked out so many weird cars over the years (many of which survived), it's much easier to get ahold of a Barris creation than an original Roth car (of which maybe 6 still exist, and have been restored) that hurts the value, plus in this economy....

[jingle_jangle]

In the trumped-up "King of the Kustomers" battle of the '60s between Barris and Roth, Roth was the true artist/artisan, whose creations still look fresh and baroque today.

+1000 and to a lesser extent, guys like Dean Jeffries and Darryl Starbird (and the true straight up artists--Ken Howards, Larry Watson etc...).


I like very few Barris cars (the A la Kart is one...), but everything Roth touched, from Cars to Trikes and Bikes were pure gold and pure art....

The Voxmobile is way cool, though I might just think that due to the subject matter! It's way cooler than the Monkeemobile (technically a Dean Jeffries creation), or the Munster Koach..

But I doubt Kevin is going to get that kind of money for it. Since Barris cranked out so many weird cars over the years (many of which survived), it's much easier to get ahold of a Barris creation than an original Roth car (of which maybe 6 still exist, and have been restored) that hurts the value, plus in this economy....

As Barris got richer and attracted more and more business, he handed off contract work to fellas like Jeffries and Dick Dean.

The Monkeemobile is plainly not Barris' work or style, but he got credit. Jeffries had some choice words on this when I spoke to him on this and other topics back in the mid-'80s when I visited his shop.

I'm a big Monkeemobile fan and have been since its unveiling. It's sheer genius to take a then-new GTO body, turn it into a bucket-style car without losing its flavor, and graft a vintage touring car top and windshield onto it. Because of its proportions and design, it shows off its occupants instead of hiding them. Brilliant.

http://www.monkees.net/DOCS/MMOBILE.HTM

Let's not forget Jeffries' finest hour: The Manta Ray. This was a scratchbuilt flight of fancy of faultless quality of construction (Dean was a perfectionist) that was on display at his shop as a centerpiece, once its touring days were over.

http://www.streetrodderweb.com/mileston ... index.html

And, yeah, Starbird did some nice work with blown bubble tops as a central feature.

I'm a HUGE Ala Kart fan. Everything about that kustom is fabulous. I've got a sweet little special Hot Wheels "adult collectible" edition of it that's barely 2" long and perfect in every detail. The Danbury Mint has released its own version, too, and I can't wait for mine to arrive!

[collin]

Yep, guys like Starbird and especially Jeffries are sadly overlooked these days as names like Barris just keep getting bigger (with all the Hollywood hype).

The Ala Kart was a rad kustom though! I think it was built back in the late 50s when Sam was still heavily involved. Seems like back in the 50s they were still cranking out semi-standard kustoms like the Bob Hirohata Merc, the Kopper Kart, and the Golden Sahara before the "kooky" stuff came out in the sixties and George went chasing Hollywood money.

Cool link about the Monkeemobile, Paul.

I knew it was Jeffries' creation (...maybe word is finally getting out there, poor guy), but I didn't know that much about its construction etc. I never knew there were two of em as well (imagine buying that in a Puerto Rican auction for $5K ! )

I love this stuff....

[collin]

Speaking of Kustoms......I'm sure you already have, but did ya hear about Roth's Orbitron Paul?

http://www.theorbitron.com/



To:

[jingle_jangle]

Yeah, I saw the Ganahl writeup, but it's good to see all the details.

I remember seeing the Orbitron at a show in either Chicago or Detroit, back in "the day". It was tucked back into a corner and did not draw a crowd, which was atypical for any Roth car. The lack of visible chrome and the awful blue color (Chicago had just redone its polics cars in a similar shade of blue!) didn't help it.

Glad it see it back in operation.

[collin]

Yeah, it's by no means one of Roth's best creations (and he readily admitted it.....covering the chrome engine was a huge mistake and huge waste of money), but the story of finding it being used as a mexican trash can and now fully restored is super cool. Bringing back pieces of automotive/SoCal history..

...now if they could just find that damn Mysterion.