Consider a new DVD release of a feature film, especially one loaded with extras... Whether it's commentary form the director or writer, offering you some insight to the big "why" questions, or a peek at the cast, it's just cool to be a part of the action. Prior to DVD's (and their subsequent "special features"), seeking out those behind-the-scenes features required a little more effort. There were magazines, certainly, and the occasional "featurette" on TV, but in the earliest days, looking into the meat and potatoes required some serious digging, if not inside connections. It was much the same for custom cars and hot rods in the early days. Before there was Powerblock TV and Overhaulin', getting that in-progress glimpse of a build was a rarity, and required a trek to a local shop, or that rare tech article.
Enter two gentlemen who had a profound impact on their respective industries, as well as on me: Forrest J Ackerman and George Barris. Buckle your belts 'cuz we're going to mix and mash two seemingly different things once again, and hopefully leave you with some fresh insight... and don't worry, this one will be quick and painless!
About the time that George Barris was born (in the mid-1920's), Forrest J Ackerman was reading his first sci-fi tale in a copy of Amazing Stories. While Forry's interests were writing fiction and celebrating the genre and its writers, George and his bother Sam were customizing cars. Forrest was hanging with friends the likes of Ray Bradbury and Henry Kuttner, starting magazines like Futuria Fantasia (which would be a killer name for a bubbletop custom, mind you), The Barris boys were learning tricks of the trade from masters like Dick Bertolucci, and bolting together a slick '36 Ford which was used as a calling card, attracting paying customers. (Keeping with our "parallels" theme, at around this same time, George founded a car club named "Kustoms Car Club", reportedly the first use of "kustoms" with that "K"... Meanwhile, Forry and his friend Myrtle R. Douglas attended the first-ever World Science Fiction Convention, dressed in space suits, setting of a chain-reaction of future comic and Trek convention costumed attendees. Trendsetters indeed!) Add to the parallel that all three were in Los Angeles in these times, and, well, it just couldn't be any cooler had it been written that way. (oddly enough, Sam Barris and Forry Ackerman were both enlisted in WWII.)
Throughout the '40's and into the '50's, Barris continued building custom cars, and making a huge name in the industry, guiding it, in fact. It was during these years that George saw the potential in magazines, and was instrumental in documenting literally thousands of cars, and in the process virtually invented the modern "tech article". His photo essays in the popular car magazines of the time chronicled trends and techniques for customizers living outside of the California hotbed of activity, and offered that all-important "behind-the-scenes" insight, probably providing countless would-be customizers with some inspiration. Barris is often credited with inspiring many modern day customizers to practice their craft, and his efforts with his unique brand of Public Relations certainly has been a driving force behind the continuation of this industry into the twenty-first century.
Meanwhile, Ackerman was acting as a literary agent, representing hundreds of writers, and serving as "agent of record" for many more, ensuring that their work would be published in numerous anthologies, preserving the science fiction genre's past in not only written form, but providing an entirely new facet for the then-growing motion picture industry. Consider that his magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland exposed many aspiring special effects artists and film makers alike to those "behind-the-scenes" looks, and the parallels just grow stronger. It was these close looks at the men behind the special effects techniques that inspired such talents as Tim Burton, John Landis and Rick Baker, as well as countless other amateur home directors. Forrest truly created an industry that continues strong today, not only from the standpoint of the behind-the-scenes documentary, but for collectors of film memorabilia. He was also one of those rare "hands-on", approachable figures, leading tours of the "Ackermansion", his personal home and museum, packed to the rafters with his collection of movie props and memorabilia.In this same way, George is a common figure at car shows and events, as well as still working from his shop. It's this accessibility that makes it all even more fun; having that opportunity to mix and mingle with the folks who not only "were THERE", but helped to preserve our hobbies for future generations. While we unfortunately lost Forrest J Ackerman in 2008, the next time you load that movie into your DVD player and pop open the "Special Features" menu, give a quick "thanks" to the ultimate fanboy, and feel free to share your knowledge of where it all began. And while you're at it, why not give a tip of the hat to George next time you're browsing those back issues at the swap meet. After all, chances are, many of the photos in that issue are courtesy of the "King of the Kustomizers".
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