So what did your grandfather do last weekend? In Fresno, one 77-year-old capped a year-long search for the 200-plus vehicles he wanted to invite to his area car show--a show he's organized for almost 50 years. He traveled to Oakland, St. Paul, San Mateo, Detroit, Boise, Pleasanton, San Diego, and to the L.A. Roadster show to personally invite car owners to attend his event. A tough job for a 77-year-old who has had his hip replaced twice? You bet! But, on the other hand, the septuagenarian we're talking about is Blackie Gejeian (pronounced ja-GEE-an).
It's safe to say there is no one like Gejeian (who got his "Blackie" handle because it was the nickname given to his black roadster). He says his Fresno Autorama is like a family, and it's obvious that he likes a big family. But the uniqueness of the show, besides being an invitational, is that it's the one and only time these cars will be shown here (there are no "repeats" from year to year). Because of this policy, local spectators can rest assured that what they see inside the huge Fresno New Exhibit Hall is new and fresh.
Blackie scours the countryside looking for the "right" cars to invite and most who have gotten the nod from Gejeian take his invite as the highest form of praise. After all, it would be hard to find anybody who has been around the hot rod hobby longer or who has been immersed in it deeper. And he's done it all. He's not only been a street racer and show car builder (his Shish-Kabob Special won the America's Most Beautiful Roadster award at the National Roadster Show in 1953, before "Grand" was added to the show's name in 1962), but has been a show owner and promoter as well (he owned Clovis Speedway in NorCal for 20 years and, of course, has owned the Fresno Autorama for more than 40). These accomplishments give Blackie an edge on providing what spectators want to see.
There are a handful of vendors selling their wares inside the facility but, make no mistake about it, the cars are the stars in Fresno. A room adjacent to the vendors area, nicknamed the Nostalgia Room, houses early hot rods (ones that frequented the drags and that were street driven as well). A few full-on racers, such as two '50s- and '60s-era Indy cars, were especially nice to see this year. Another entrant, 86-year-old Eddie Bosio, still builds cars for show and has had a vehicle in Blackie's invitational for each of the past 30 years, including this year.
When it comes to awards, Blackie personally hands them out at the end of the show, and there are only two major trophies: Best Custom and Best Rod. Gejeian is from the school of thought that believes any year car that has significant customizing done to it is a custom and all others are rods. This year Best Custom went to Ray Von Uhlit of Fremont, California, for his '51 Plymouth wagon, which was built by metalman Mickey Galloway. Best Rod went to Fresno local Charlie Lambetecchio and his '36 Ford roadster, which was built by South Dakota's Larry Ruth. And this year's Builder of the Year was Dean Bryant, whose collection has included a chopped and customized '66 Rolls Royce!
But just being asked to display your ride at Blackie's Fresno Autorama is enough honor for any rodder. Everyone knows it features the best of the best and, while some shows struggle with their identity, people come away from the Autorama saying they don't know how Blackie could top the effort he's put into that year's show. But that's the kind of show you get when the owner of the show lives and breathes hot rods!
Chet Fulton's '40 Chevy was impressive. The wire wheels looked right on this car, as did the pleated white interior. | 
There were a lot of customs in the show, too. Andre Carey showed what you can do with a '60 Ford Starliner, which he built for Jim Rydelius. The car will be featured on the cover of the Sept. '03 issue of Custom Rodder. | 
Just about everyone we met in Fresno has a midget racer in their garage, but we bet none look better than Leroy Sabbatini's racer, which was formed by Jim Allen and finished with polished aluminum. Powered by an Offy, this racer is a repro of a Frank Kurtis racer. |
This year's Best Custom award (and the 8-foot trophy) went to Ray Von Uhlit of Fremont, whose '51 Plymouth wagon was built by Mickey Galloway (pictured on right with Ray). | 
Fresno local Charlie Lambetecchio (left), along with car builder Larry Ruth, share the honor of owning and building this year's Best Rod--a two-tone '36 Ford cabriolet (powered by a 406 Donovan) that also had a working electric top. | 
You can't go wrong with a blown '41 Willys. Rolling in from Huntington Beach, CA, Joe Bullock's red hot rod used a set of Radir wheels to great effect. |
Wouldn't you like these in your garage? We bet Phillip Parnagian does. He owns both of these Indy cars--the '63 on the left and the '53 on the right. (Billy Vukovich raced the black Bardahl Special in 1965). | 
Here's some history! From the left: Gene Winfield, Sam Foose, Bob Larivee, Sr., George Barris, Blackie Gejeian, and Paul Bender. You never know who you'll run into in Fresno. | 
Bob Schoonhoven has promised Blackie he'd bring his Pizza Wagon to Fresno for the past 10 years and it just now made it! The former show car is based on a '19 Ford C-cab and features a Dan Wood suspension system. |
There was a lot of work done on Dee Barnes' '32 sedan. A chassis from Brizio, a chop from Marcel's, paint from Greg Barker, flames from Himsl, and an interior from Sid Chavers all add to the total package. | 
Pete Scialabba, from San Jose, sure knows how a rod should sit. His '46 Ford Deluxe convertible features Tommy the Greek-style scallops and a Sid Chavers interior. | 
Gary Ross and Jim Jent built this '39 Ford for Jent using a Pro Street chassis, a 454 equipped with parts from Street & Performance, and a 16- and 17-inch wheel combo. |
In from AZ, Dan Dowdy brought his heavily massaged '37 Terraplane truck to Fresno. A blown 433 Chevy resides up front, forward of the cab that was stretched 7 inches. | 
Another car in contention for the big award was Tom Compton's '46 Buick Super convertible. Roseville Rod & Custom did the chassis and bodywork on the 'vert, which gets its go from an 8-71-blown 454. | 
Ken Fuhrman still owns his '29 roadster--the same one he's owned since 1943! He and his car were at the first show in Oakland in 1950, and his car was displayed again at the 50th Grand National Roadster Show in 1999. |
Arriving from Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada (they loaded the car into the trailer while it was snowing!), Doc Kinney displayed his cool '36 Ford Club Cabriolet. The 'vert rolls on a 17- and 20-inch Budnik wheel combo. | 
Another group of customs in the Fresno Autorama belonged to Dean Bryant and included his '54 Ford, which was painted by Art Himsl. Dean was named this year's Builder of the Year. | 
Bill Wadley had Frantic Fred Hot Rods build his '47 Ford convertible and it's covered with wispy burgundy flames over black gloss. Big-inch American fives always look good, too. |
Bob Honstein did lots of custom metalwork to this '46 Olds. A 502 motor was fit to an Art Morrison chassis and the peach paint was applied by Don Honstein. | | |