The Cliff Riehl Photo Collection

A photo of Cliff with his old club shirt taken in June of 2020. Cliff is also holding his plaque from the Disneyland Car Club Day and Autocade in the photo. Photo courtesy of Ted Riehl.

A photo of Cliff taken in a Stout Scarab that the Los Angeles Police Department donated to the Road Lords. "We never had enough money to make it look good again," Cliff told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama in 2020. "It was in good shape, but still, it needed a lot of work." The club never completed the project, and Cliff believed the Police Department ended up taking it back. Photo courtesy of Cliff Riehl, provided by Ted Riehl.

A photo of the Barris Kustom's Kopper Kart taken at the Disneyland Car Club Day and Autocade September 5, 1959. Bob Holley, worked as the Public Address Announcer that day, and he remembers that he had to tell George Barris over the PA system that if he didn't move his car, a red Cadillac, which he had asked him to do at least twice before, then the club would push it off. The reason was that according to the agreement with Disneyland, they could not have any car motors started or running during the event for safety reasons. Photo courtesy of Cliff Riehl, provided by Ted Riehl.

Leo Lyons' Ultra Modern Merc. After 10 years of hard work, the car made its first public debut at the Disneyland Car Club Day and Autocade. It was presented at the show as the "Ultra Modern Merc." Photo courtesy of Cliff Riehl, provided by Ted Riehl.

L. Walkamp with the Fantasy Bird. This panel painted 1958 Ford Thunderbird was supposedly painted by Larry Watson for George Teixeira. Photo courtesy of Cliff Riehl, provided by Ted Riehl.

Three iconic Southern California hot rods. Ed Roth's Excaliber, later known as he Outlaw, made its debut at the show. The interior was not finished, so the car was not judged. Photo courtesy of Cliff Riehl, provided by Ted Riehl.

Norm Grabowski's 1922 Ford Model T Roadster. Also known around the world as the Kookie T. Sometime after the show, Norm sold the car to Jim Skonzakes of Dayton, Ohio. Photo courtesy of Cliff Riehl, provided by Ted Riehl.

A Candy Red Thunderbird. Unfortunately, Cliff can't remember who this belonged to. Photo courtesy of Cliff Riehl, provided by Ted Riehl.

Cliff's plaque from the first, last and only Disneyland Car Club Day and Autocade. Photo courtesy of Ted Riehl.

Kustomrama Photo Archive

Cliff Riehl was a member of the Road Lords of So. Cal. car club. He joined the club as a teenager in the 1950s, and helped organize the first, and only, Disneyland Car Club Day and Autocade September 5, 1959. "It was the last time we held it there," Cliff told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama in 2020, "Disney took all the money," he added. Cliff did not have a car at the show himself. While he was a member of the club, he drove a 1940 Ford, a Mercury, and different other cars. "My first hot rod was a 1940 Ford coupe. I had traded a 1956 Studebaker Commander convertible for the 40 Ford straight across. The ford was wine-colored and had big tires on the rear wheels." As far as Clif knows, he never took any pictures of that car. He remembers blowing up the transmission while trying to lay rubber. "The transmission was having none of it with big tires in the rear." He repaired the coupe and drove it for a while before trading it in. "That car was real fun to own," he recalled.