Happy (would be) birthday to the late, great Ed “Big Daddy” Roth.
He was interested in cars and motorcycles as a teen, and began working on custom fiberglass body modifications shortly after leaving the Air Force.
He dove headfirst into the hot-rod culture. He made cartoon character illustrations for handmade t-shirts that he airbrushed at car shows. His wacky illustrations and hot-rod designs helped spark the iconic Kustom Kulture of the late 50’s through the early 70’s. Ed was one of several illustrators who were regularly featured in CARtoons Magazine.
Among his most well-known characters are Rat Fink and Mr. Gasser. They were usually depicted driving souped-up cars or surfing (another 60s sub-culture that resonated with his odd brand of humor.)
Although not necessarily created by Ed Roth, several toys and model kits took “inspiration” from his style.
Aurora Models used their hugely successful monster kits to mash up with crazy car models (such as “Frankenstein’s Flivver “ and “Mummy’s Chariot.”) Louis Marx Toys created a line of “Nutty Mad” toys that featured goofy Roth-esque characters, as well as Hawk Models series of “Weird Ohs.”
My personal memory of Roth’s creativity is limited to a handful of hand-me-downs from older cousins and neighbors. I came across several of those toys when going through our parents’ house. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to build some of those Hawk model kits that were re-released in 2005.
Big Daddy would have been 93 today.
-Toph
