Moldy Marvin's 9th Annual Kustom Kulture Extravaganza in the press

CAR ENTHUSIASTS - Aaron Graves, left, and Tony Fava check out a 1951 Mercury at Moldy Marvin's 9th Annual Kustom Kulture Extravaganza and Rock-A-Hillbilly Jamboree Saturday at The Outpost in Littlerock. The event featured cars, bands, booths and contests.

MOLLY HAUXWELL/Valley Press

Rockabilly roadsters ride out for car show

This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press
Sunday, July 20, 2008 .

By TITUS GEE
Valley Press Staff Writer

PEARBLOSSOM - Hillbillies and hot rod lovers trekked out to the east desert on Saturday for Moldy Marvin's ninth annual Kustom Kulture Extravaganza and Rock-a-Hillbilly Jamboree.

The event drew hundreds of auto-philes from across Southern California , with cars that have been customized down to the door locks and hand-welded valve covers. They met at The Outpost on the corner of Pearblossom Highway and 116th Street East to swap vehicle admiration and listen to a clutch of local rockabilly bands.

Other events included a flame-throwing show and a tattoo contest, along with the down-home fun of a potato sack race. This morning, they will start the day with a pancake breakfast and then cruise out to El Mirage Dry Lake to watch the Southern California Timing Association's time trials.

Robert "Hot Rod Bob" Kuhn turned up on Saturday with his Defenders car club.

Theirs are not typical classic or antique automobiles. They tend away from the flashy chrome and shiny candy paint. They don't stress over original parts or "stock" restorations, and they don't load their babies in the back of trucks.

"All our cars we drive everywhere," Kuhn said. "That's the fun in it."

That includes several trips to Las Vegas every year and a spate of shows around Southern California .

Not bad, considering that the club's mascot is a 1930 Ford Model A Sedan with a chopped top and a six-cylinder stunt car engine.

The Defenders do their own mechanic and body work in the true moonshiner modification style.

"The fun is in scrounging the parts, going to swap meets, doing the work," Kuhn said. "Anybody can buy a (classic) car and drive it."

The show also drew Gene Winfield, a big name in the world of body and paint customization.

"Gene Winfield has forgotten probably more than everyone else here knows," Kuhn said. "He's my hero."

A veteran of two wars - World War II and Korea - Winfield has built or painted cars in Japan and Europe . He opened his shop in 1946 and still teaches workshops in metalwork. A recent book by David Grant chronicled his life and work for Motorbooks.

In person, Winfield gives off a kind of kicked-back vibe, despite his legend status.

He says he started fixing up cars during high school and when the Korean War took him to Japan he found a way to work on cars there, too. When he got home, he made cars his life - especially those built by Mercury from 1949 to 1951.

"It's an interesting body style and they stayed in style for all these years," he said. "People kept those cars in their barns and their backyards and garages through the years."

He offered some advice for the young folks walking in his shadow.

"Work hard. Have lots of patience," he said, and then with a little smile, "Say no to drugs."

Jeff "Moldy Marvin" Hillinger organized the Extravaganza, which met at the Los Angeles County Raceway for three years before the track was closed down.

In previous years the event was coupled with a celebration of artist and car customizer Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, famous for his character "Rat Fink." This year Hillinger decided to split the event in two, with a little more hillbilly flavor in the Kustom Kulture and purer tribute to Roth in the "Rat Fink.Party" event. The Roth tribute still is in the planning stages, Hillinger said.

Please Note: El Mirage was closed down the day before and instead we went to Wrightwood. The cruise to El Mirage is planned for Sept. 14^th Stay tuned, up dates coming soon!