Chew the Fat: Pop Culture, Automotive Style

 

Redartz:  Recently our friend and frequent commenter Charlie Horse 47 passed along to me a suggestion for a topic. It was a good one, and hence we have our subject for discussion this week. Thanks CH!

Charlie was pondering the influence that cars, and related automotive miscellany, had on our Bronze age culture. It got me to thinking. Cars surely have been present in films, books, and magazines since Henry Ford was active. But when you look back at the 60's, 70's and 80's, you find many examples of rather specific 'Auto' philia. OK, that doesn't really sound right, but you know what I mean! The automobile was, and is, much more than merely a form of convenient transportation.

 In previous discussions, we've looked at "Odd Rods" stickers from the early 70's, and "Hot Wheels" cars from , well, everywhen. That's just a toe in the water of this lake. Here's a few examples of popular culture's love affair with the automobile. I'm betting you can come up with quite a few more. So buckle your seat belts and lower your visors, here we go...

 

 The animated "Hot Wheels" cartoon

 This show was a favorite of mine when it debuted in the 1969-1970 season. Fairly standard animation, but it sure held my attention (doubtlessly the intent of the producers, as I also frequently pestered my parents for a new "Hot Wheels" car or two).

Hanna Barbera's "Wacky Races"

 This was another 'never miss' show on those great pre-teen Saturday mornings. I always rooted for the "Arkansas Chugabug", although it would have been fun to see Dick Dastardly actually win a race, just for a change.

 Hanna Barbera's "Speed Buggy"

 Sort of  "Scooby Doo" with a car replacing the iconic dog. Rather formulaic, but weren't most Saturday morning offerings?  And it boasted the brilliant vocal talents of Mel Blanc!

 Mattel's "Hot Wheels" toys

Between the cars and the tracks, these were my toy of choice from the ages of 8-10. Countless hours were spent racing them with friends and with my brother. One of the very few toys I managed to hold on to, after all these years: the "Red Baron"...

Ronny and the Daytonas, "Little GTO"

This blast of vintage 60's racing pop is representative of the whole slew of racing songs that filled the music charts of the day. The Beach Boys, Jan and Dean, the Rip Chords; so many practitioners of the genre. A close sibling to Surf Rock, and just as cool.

HO- scale Racing

Another toy that found a lot of use at our house. No fun like accelarating down the straightaway and flying off the track at the curve. And the best racing was in the dark, if your cars had working headlights...

"Odd Rods" stickers

Yet another element of our collective youth. Combining cars and monsters; what could be better? My school notebook was covered with these.

AHRA Racing cards, 1971

Not a far jump from collecting baseball cards, these cards depicted some of the hottest, fastest, and most popular racers of the early 70's. This card had the "Mongoose" and "Snake" as featured in the Mattel "Hot Wheels" collection mentioned earlier...

DC's "Hot Wheels" comic

You knew we'd get to a few comics eventually, didn't you? Based on the cartoon we covered above, and with art by the likes of Alex Toth and Neal Adams, it was a great (albeit short-lived) series.

Charlton's "Drag 'n' Wheels"

Never actually had a copy of this title, but it serves as an example of the generic 'racing' comics found on the spinners of our Bronze age. It seemed most publishers (notably excepting Marvel) took a shot at this style of comic; there were many.

All right, I've filled the tank for you. Take the wheel and let's cruise into a high-octane discussion of automotive fun...

Pulled From the Pack: Odd Rods!

 


Redartz:  Good day, and welcome to another episode of "Pulled from the Pack". Today we recall a series of wild, wacky stickers from the people at Donruss cards: Odd Rods (and a 'thank you' to Wikipedia for the background info on these goodies).  These featured the always winning combination of monsters and cars, both depicted in an exaggerated, manic style. 

1965 Ad for Monogram "Mouse" models

They were created by cartoonist B.K. Taylor (a cover artist for  "Sick" magazine, and a cartoonist for "National Lampoon"), and were sold in several series between 1969 and 1973. In appearance, they were obviously reminiscent of the work of "Big Daddy" Ed Roth from the 60's ("Rat Fink") and Stanley "Mouse" Miller (designer of Monogram model kits featuring such characters as "Super Fuzz" and "Fred Flypogger").
















 

They were sold in packs for 5 cents (when was the last time you saw ANYTHING for sale for 5 cents?). Thus a kid like yours truly, with limited allowance funds, could get several packs for his quarter (assuming there were no comic purchases to make that week). And of course, they also included a stick of that petrified, tooth-cracking bubble gum. 








 


I discovered these stickers about the same time that I found "Wacky Packages",  in the late years of elementary school. And like those "Wackies", the "Odd Rods" stickers became currency-du-jour at recess and after school. The appeal of these stickers to pre-teen kids was apparent: bug-eyed monsters, loud colors, hot cars with oversized engines. No wonder the classrooms were full of sticker-encased notebooks. Mine included, in fact my favorite was planted dead-center on my blue school folder: the "VW Varmit":








Here are a few more examples:

 

Anyone else remember these stickers? Perhaps you built some of those model kits, or had an older brother with those car magazines. Perhaps you still have a school folder, buried somewhere, covered up in monster stickers...