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27th Annual Kkoa Leadsled Spectacular - Toto, We're Not In California Anymore!The 27th Annual Kkoa In Salina, KS From the February, 2008 issue of Street Rodder By Jerry Weesner
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These 2-foot-high metal letters... These 2-foot-high metal letters have been a fixture since the very first KKOA Leadsled Spectacular at Wichita in '81. "KKOA, this is Jerry." "Jerry, this is Geoff Carter from STREET RODDER, how are you doing?" Was I hearing right, or did I have a bad connection? I kept asking myself, was this really that giant magazine on the West Coast that dealt mainly with pre-'49 street rods calling this less-than-six-months-old organization? Jeeish ... what could he want? If I wasn't already in Dreamsville, I was most definitely going to be there when I heard his next question: "I see you're producing your Leadsled Spectacular, and we were wondering if Street Rodder could be the official sponsor of the event?" "We can talk about it"' I said, trying to sound my most businesslike. And talk we did, reaching an agreement with which both parties felt comfortable. The marriage would last for the next three years until, finally, on friendly terms, we went our separate ways. I will always appreciate what Street Rodder did for the KKOA in its early days, and has continued to do even today. The preceding is an excerpt from the "Kustom Kemps of America" commemorative book in which Jerry Titus, founder and president of KKOA, expounds on the history of his organization, giving credit where credit is due. Lou Calasibetta always arrives... Lou Calasibetta always arrives with a stunning kemp from his home in Stillwater, NJ; this year he brought this flawlessly chopped, very black and badass '51 Merc. Before continuing, possibly a brief explanation is in order, since "just what the heck is a kemp, anyway?" For those of you not fully immersed in kustomizing, the term "kemp" is '50s slang for all cars, having deep roots in jazz and the beat generation-dig? The term was brought to the forefront of popular culture by two individuals: Carl Kohler, through his humorous stories in Car Craft magazine; and jive-talkin' Kookie Kar-drivin' Dino's Lodge valet parking attendant Gerald Lloyd Kookson III, aptly played by actor Edd Byrnes in the classic '50s ABC TV detective series, "77 Sunset Strip" (thus the "Kookie" moniker for Norm Grabowski's T, the undisputed star of the show-at least for us guys). So, to answer the musical question, "Can it really have been over a quarter century since Jerry Titus and a cadre of dedicated volunteers brought the world that first Leadsled Spectacular in Wichita, Kansas, reintroducing the traditional kustom car to America, and in fact, the world?" yes, fellow babies, it has, it really has! "Tell us more, tell us more!" Well, kiddies, unfortunately by the '70s, kustoms weren't even that anymore, but rather lumped together with everything else (remember "street freaks"?) and classified as "street machines." You'll notice that we're spelling custom with a "k," because that's how it's spelled at the KKOA in homage to those pioneers like the Barris brothers, who really got the whole thing rolling into the new world of teen culture during the immediate postwar years. Now that we've had our history lesson for the month, and without too much gushing on and on about how great this year's 27th annual Leadsled Spectacular was-like the run-what-ya-brung eighth-mile drags at the Old Salina Airstrip on Friday evening-let's get right to it with our story in pictures. Just one more thing-reserve the last weekend in July for your own journey into the world of the low and lacquered come next summer. For more information, write Kustom Kemps of America, 26 Main, Cassville, MO 65625-9400; call (417) 847-2940; fax (417) 847-3647; or e-mail kustomkemps@mo-net.com.  This is a most significant...  This is a most significant photo, as it documents what is more than likely the first drag race between bubbletops-Cliff Starbird in his Starship Camaro at left, and Gary Meyers' Vampyre at right.  Hang around a kustom event...  Hang around a kustom event long enough and you could almost get the idea that Mercurys were only produced from '49-51.  Talk about history; Dave McPhail...  Talk about history; Dave McPhail had this very same '53 Chevy at the first Spectacular, and it remains exactly the same after all these years.  Ron and Gail drove all the...  Ron and Gail drove all the way from Owego, NY, in their chopped '51 Chevy Fleetline. Not only did they have a blast doing so (lots of thumbs-up on the way), but picked up the Frank Livingston Award as well.  Still amazing after all these...  Still amazing after all these years, it's hard to believe that Mike Young's '60 Impala Bradley Award winner, built by Gary Howard, has been around since '95.  Jimmie Vaughan's latest is...  Jimmie Vaughan's latest is this beautiful study in subtlety of a '54 Ford Victoria, breathed on by master builder Gary Howard, one of this year's KKOA Hall of Fame inductees.  The streets of Austin must...  The streets of Austin must have been pretty bare of customs during the Spectacular, as witnessed by still another Texan's car-Steve Wertheimer's '57 Caddy Coupe de Ville.  Dennis McPhail copped my personal...  Dennis McPhail copped my personal pick, the Weezaward, on Saturday evening. His '56 Chevy is just the car I'd have loved to cruise to Poly High in my senior year.  Yet another Customs By Gary...  Yet another Customs By Gary Howard kemp is this superb example of a '36 Ford three-window for Austin, TX, resident Mike Young.  Apparently built for shock...  Apparently built for shock value alone, the presence of Kevin and Zeke Gallegos' '28 A out of Denver, CO, was undeniable. They could be seen cruisin' the park pretty much nonstop, wearing ear protection to mute that straight-piped Hemi.  "Go back, go back, Jack's...  "Go back, go back, Jack's Speed Shop in Culver City, CA, is a ruse I tell you, a ruse!" And so it might be for Mark Buehler's big-window '56 Ford from Merriam, KS, but what a ruse it is.  Comin' or goin', Butch Tucker's...  Comin' or goin', Butch Tucker's '51 Ford ragtop is a delight to the eye and a poster child for shoeboxes (that would be '49-51 Fords) everywhere.  Roy Fields out of Hutchinson,...  Roy Fields out of Hutchinson, KS, profiled his '49 shoebox in Thomas Park.  Bob Hall lists his Roth-like...  Bob Hall lists his Roth-like bubbletop (one of three such contrivances on the premises) as a '23 T, and it was indeed mounted to a T-bucket chassis-it had just evolved to the next level, that's all.  And in the T 'n' A department,...  And in the T 'n' A department, well, A anyway, Steve Blackwell's '28 Tudor stood out like a lump 'o' coal in a snowstorm, or would that be a mat-finished aqua, fender-free fliver in a sea of mostly full-figured kemps?  "And on the inside, locked...  "And on the inside, locked up and slidin' toward the finish line, it's ol' number five!" Such could have been "Ol Leather Britches" reporting from Gardena on the KTLA TV station in the mid-'50s, or Anywhere USA for that matter.  Darryl Starbird pulled the...  Darryl Starbird pulled the Crystal Ball Merc out of his Hall of Fame Museum in Afton, OK, to roll through Thomas Park on the latest style of wheels.  Thomas Park has more than...  Thomas Park has more than its share of shade trees, which is good for lowering the temperature of participants, but bad when it comes to taking pictures.  Wichita's Troy Pate donated...  Wichita's Troy Pate donated his '49 Merc to the KKOA Kustom Body Shop at last year's Spectacular for "a little off the top." This year, the now-hammered and hardtopped Fordor was a semi-finished work-in-progress driver.  Bob Klessig of Wisconsin took...  Bob Klessig of Wisconsin took home the Hall of Fame pick presented by Gary Minor for his Chevy. (We'd like to congratulate Bob, a longtime friend of the SRM staff who has helped us on numerous occasions. -B.B.) (Photo by Maggie Klessig)  When it came to kustom bait...  When it came to kustom bait (circa late '40s/ early '50s), '41 Fords were once king of the hill.  Designer and co-builder Elden...  Designer and co-builder Elden Titus sees the bubbletopped Vampyre crew off for an orbit of the park.
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