Darryl Starbird, Builder Of The Year - 2009 Detroit Autorama

One of the most significant honors awarded during the 57th Detroit Autorama was to Darryl Starbird who was recognized as Builder of the Year with an amazing array of his custom cars on display. Recognized worldwide as The Bubble Top King, Darryl's career spans more than 60 years and his designs have been influential in the world of hot rodding for decades with many of them still being used today.

With beginnings dating back to his teens growing up in Wichita, Kansas he began honing his customizing skills with his first car, a '41 Ford drop-top, treating it to a Continental kit, rear skirts, '48 Chrysler rear bumper, and a cool rake. It was at this time when Darryl began to learn metal crafting, leading him to become more deeply involved with reshaping panels and creating signature looks that had never before been seen.

In 1954, at the age of 21 he opened the doors of the Star Kustom Shop and during that year his first feature on a '47 Cadillac appeared on the pages of Rod & Custom. As the years passed numerous cars would receive the Starbird touch, and in 1959 he received his first cover feature with a '55 Plymouth in Hot Rod.

It was also the year Darryl undertook creating his most radical design when he hauled a wrecked '56 Thunderbird into the shop and in 11 intense weeks brought the Predicta to life. The Predicta was unlike anything the automotive world had ever before seen, with its space-age restyling, first-ever Lucite bubble top, cockpit interior, and tiller steering. Debuting at the National Roadster Show in 1960, it set the automotive world on fire, won the top honors of the show, and set the pace for customizing for years to come.

A deal with Monogram Models would allow Darryl's Predicta and future Starbird designs to come to life atop kitchen tables across America. At this time Darryl opened a much larger shop known as Starbird Custom Auto Creations while he continued to create countless other bubble tops, including the Forcasta, Fantabula, Electra, and the wild three-wheeled Futurista. In total, eleven bubble-top creations would roll out of the shop in addition to numerous other award-winning customs. As the decades moved on, Darryl continued to bring many more designs to life, often using modern production vehicles and even melding cutting-edge chassis and drivetrain combinations with those of vintage bodies.

Today Darryl is still active in the custom car world while operating the Starbird National Rod & Custom Car Museum and Hall of Fame in Afton, Oklahoma alongside his lovely wife of 55 years, Donna. He still has a workshop on the museum grounds and is primarily focused now on restoration of past Starbird creations when he's not on the road doing personal appearances. An inspiration to us all, Darryl has truly left his mark on the custom car world.