Sam Flowers grew up in L.A., Calif. in the early '50s. His older sister had a few boyfriends who had rods and customs. His sister was his babysitter, so if a boy wanted to take her out, Sam had to go with her. He learned very early, riding in the rumble seat of some neat cars, what brands and years they were.

When he went to high school he got his first car: a hand-me-down 1946 Chevrolet. After throwing a rod in the 6 cyl. and advancing to a 1950 Chevy, he threw another rod in it, and that was his last 6 cyl. Afterwards he stepped up to a 57 Chevy with a hot 283, which he used to street race. It got stolen and stripped, but was recovered.

He got a '48 Ford coupe next and kept it until he bought a new '67 Chevy stepside and threw chrome rims on it. He wore that one out and bought a '73 stepside, once again with rims to make it look better. After wearing it out, he had Baja Bugs, a '60 Chevy, another '57, a '48 Lincoln, a '41 Graham Hollywood (which he still has today), a '28 chopped sedan, a '57 Chevy pickup (his everyday driver) and a '49 Merc. He's had others, too - quite a collection.

He got started taking pics for Hot Rod Hotline a long time ago (about 18 years) because he wanted to share car show pics with others and also see their shows. Hot Rod Hotline has long been the best source for these type of photos.

Some of the shows he really likes to photograph are Pleasanton Good Guys, NSRA Bakersfield, San Luis Roadster Show, L.A. Roadster Show, Grand National Roadster Show at Pomona, Ca. Bent Axles show in Santa Maria, Ca., March Meet and Hot Rod Reunion at Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield, Ca. If he attends any show, he takes pics to share with others; sometimes he gets carried away and misses seeing much of the show himself!

He finds seeing the ingenuity of some rodders' work on their cars fascinating, and the craftsmanship on great cars always amazes him too.