Norwalk Motorcade 1957

Jack James' 1957 Buick Special of Norwalk, California. James' Buick featured a radical flame paint job by Larry Watson, supposedly Watson's first radical flame job. Photo from The Bob Stephenson Photo Collection.

Ina Mae Overman brought two cars to the 1957 Norwalk Motorcade, her 1952 Lincoln and her 1955 Ford Thunderbird. Both cars were restyled by Valley Custom Shop. Photo from The Bob Stephenson Photo Collection.

The Rod & Custom Magazine’s Dream Truck. This is the third iteration of the truck, as it appeared after Bob Metz had fitted it with new rear fenders and fins. Photo from The Bob Stephenson Photo Collection.

Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Photo Collection.

Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Photo Collection.

Joe Edd Ray's 1950 Buick Sedanette of Shelbyville, Indiana. Known as the "XM105," Ray's futuristic Buick was restyled by Bob Metz. Ray was an upholsterer that did all of the interiors for Metz. Photo from The Bob Stephenson Photo Collection.

Another photo of Joe Edd Ray's 1950 Buick Sedanette. Brandon Graham's brother rode out to California with Ray, and he told his brother that they were the kings of the drive-ins. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Photo Collection.

An early iteration of Dick Jackson's 1957 Ford Thunderbird of Lynwood, California. Jackson restyled the Thunderbird while he worked as a painter at Barris Kustoms. Photo from The Bob Stephenson Photo Collection.

Dick Jackson and Junior Conway preparing their cars for the show. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Custom by Paint - Made in Bellflower - A tribute to traditional custom cars of the 1950s. Bodywork by Barris. Paint by Larry Watson. Lifts by Bill Hines. Long live Kustomland! Price: $19.99 - Check availability on Amazon.om.

Paul Richards' 1949 Ford Convertible of Long Beach, California. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Dick Gonzales' 1955 Studebaker of Anaheim, California. Dick belonged to the Cut Outs of Long Beach car club. Restyled by Art's Custom Shop, this iteration of Dick's Studebaker was known as "Strawberries and Cream." Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Ed Cousins' 1932 Ford Pickup of Long Beach, California. Cousin was a member of the Renegades of Long Beach car club. His pick up was restyled by Dick's Body Shop and the build was completed earlier the same year. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Rod and Custom. A beautiful hot rodded Ford pick up truck displayed next to Kermit Hanson's 1957 Buick. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Custom by Paint! A mildly customized Chevrolet Corvette that has been dressed up with a tasteful scallop paint job. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Custom trucks were popular in the latter part of the 1950s. Cool and practical. A chopped top, tasteful two-tone paint job, Thunderbird hubcaps, and bedrail exhaust make this Ford F-100 a real head-turner! Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Another sharp-looking Ford F-100 custom truck. This one with a more radical scallop paint job. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

A group of guys preparing the Ardun powered Scotty's Muffler Service's 1923 Ford Model T Roadster for the show. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

A pristine looking Ford Model A Phaeton that has been hopped up with an overhead valve conversion kit. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Buzz Pitzen's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster. Buzz was a member of the Challengers of Los Angeles car club. The roadster was his first hot rod and he started the build around 1954. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Richard Guzman's 1954 Ford. A beautiful mild custom belonging to the President of the Krankers Berdoo car club. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Custom by paint was one of the hottest trends of 1957, and this mild 1951 Ford Victoria custom looks great with a black and bronze scallop paint job. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Norm Grabowski's 1922 Ford Model T Roadster of Sunland, California. Also known as the Kookie T, Norm's T-Bucket gained national recognition when it started appearing in the popular TV series 77 Sunset Strip. Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

Dave Cunningham's 1940 Ford Sedan of San Francisco, California. Dave channeled the body of the car roughly 10 inches over the frame before trailing it to Barris Kustoms to have it completed. The build became known as "Lil' Beauty." Photo from The Ina Mae Overman Collection.

A movie by Bob Stephenson from the 4th annual Norwalk Motorcade. Stephenson was a member of the Norwalk Coachmen, and Keith Christensen, who was the Director of the show, was even able to get Bob a ride in an airplane to fly over and film for the air.

Kustomrama California Division T-Shirt - Order Yours Today!

Kustomland: The Custom Car Photography of James Potter, 1955-1959 - A unique glimpse into the Sothern California custom car scene of the late 1950s. A book loaded with inspiration and good ideas. Click here to check availability on Amazon.com.

The 1957 Norwalk Motorcade was an outdoor car show sponsored by the Norwalk Coachmen Car Club. Because of the connection to the Norwalk club, the show is also known as "The Coachman Show."

The 4th annual Norwalk Motorcade was held at the Excelsior High School in Norwalk, California. Coachmen President Keith Christesen was the Director of the show, and in 2016 he told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that the show was held on the grounds of the high school that the members of the club attended. "The show expanded to encompass all of the grounds on all sides and brought a huge crowd, as we drew in entries for many communities in the outlying areas. This was the babyhood of car shows. No one had 'yet started doing this as the customizing era had just started and we were groundfloor. In its peak, we had displays from all of the local car dealers, the Army National Guard, the Motorcycle shops and many others, about 4 acres of show grounds." Keith was able to get club member Bob Stephenson, who was a photographer, to film much of the shows. "We even got him a ride in an airplane to fly over and film for the air," he told Kustomrama.

Cars Attending

Norm Grabowski's 1922 Ford Model T Roadster - Kookie T
Buzz Pitzen's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster
Ed Cousins' 1932 Ford Pickup
Lloyd Bakan's 1932 Ford 3-Window Coupe
Jim Griepsma's 1934 Ford 3-Window Coupe
Dave Cunningham's 1940 Ford Sedan
Louie Bettancourt's 1949 Mercury
Joe Edd Ray's 1950 Buick Sedanette - XM105
Rod & Custom Magazine’s Dream Truck
Santo Vasques' 1950 Chevrolet Convertible
Junior Conway's 1950 Ford - The Teardrop
Pete Angress' 1952 Ford
Ina Mae Overman's 1952 Lincoln Capri
Ed Russell's 1952 Mercury
Bob Schremp's 1954 Chevrolet
Ina Mae Overman's 1955 Ford Thunderbird
Earl Bruce's 1955 Mercedes 300SL
Dick Gonzales' 1955 Studebaker
The Kopper Kart
Ed Roth's 1956 Ford F-100
Jud Morgan's 1956 Ford F-100
Jack James' 1957 Buick Special
Kermit Hanson's 1957 Buick
Harry Okuda's 1957 Dodge
Dick Jackson's 1957 Ford Thunderbird