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If you're a "Rodder" or Custom Car Fan….. |
Much of the work Dick has done over his 40 odd years in the business has been
done in the shops of, or in collaboration with, other builders such as George
Barris, Dean Jefferies, and the like. Thus, Dicks nickname
"the ghost-builder". We are going to let you in on some of the projects
that you may not have associated with Dick, as well as giving you the
"low-down" (no pun intended) on his most recent projects !
We were first introduced to the magic of Dick Dean Cars in 1990 when we fell in love with a beautiful flamed Merc owned by Noel Blanc. We saw it often at a "cruise-in" we went to on Saturday Nights in Studio City, California. As we learned more, we found that we knew many of Dicks cars… but that we didn't have his name connected with the works !
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Dick Deans road to fame began with a job at his fathers Nash dealership in Wyandotte, Michigan. They wanted him to work the parts counter but he gravitated to the body shop instead. Although he wasn't too thrilled with the idea of putting wrecked cars back together - he was fascinated with what he saw in the shop of Bill Hines… the fellow his dads shop hired to fix the bad wrecks. In Hines' shop he got a look at the art of customizing. Hines let him hang around the shop after school and it was here that he learned about leadwork and where he first learned the customizing tricks that would become his future. His first project was a'41 Hupmobile that he bought from a farmer for $25. He worked 2 years to turn it into a thing of beauty. |
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After graduating from high school with an art and drafting major, he |
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Dicks '53 Ford Pickup, his rolling billboard for South End Kustom.
This was the beginning of
Dicks "Ghost Building" era...
many of the famous cars that came out of the Barris
shop were built by Dick Dean. In all, Dick estimates that he built 40-50 cars during two stints at the Barris shop.
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"Dragula" was Grampa Munsters Car built at the Barris |
Barris wasn't the only
builder that Dick
collaborated with during the '60's. He
worked for
2 years with another
famous customizer Dean Jeffries.
It was at Jeffries' shop that they did
the "Manta Ray" and the "Black Beauty"
used in the Green Hornet.
The Flintstones Car, Power Rangers, Ninja Turtles
and Jurrasic Park were some of the more recent
projects for the movies. We have an inside look at some of those projects for you………...
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Dick and his sons worked on many movie projects in |
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During his
years working on projects for the movies, Dick was also busy
working on many less well-known custom cars for individuals. He also found
time to build a few for himself...
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Believe it or not… this '52 Plymouth Wagon was not a Woodie when Dick started on it. He, of course, chopped it …. and then made all of the wood components to turn it into a "Woodie". This beauty also had a matching teardrop type trailer which Dick completely hand-crafted from scratch. |
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Betcha Didn't Know that those big long Surf-Cads you see at all of the Hard Rock Café Clubs were built by Dick Dean.
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These are the cars that we love ! Dick estimates that he has chopped over 1000 tops in his career and that he has done 300 to 400 '49 - '51 Mercs and these days he spends most of his time working on one (or more) at his shop outside of Palm Springs, California. We'll take a look at his current projects shortly…... |
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A story about Dick Dean
wouldn't be complete without mentioning the "Shalako". When customizing
took a nose dive in the late '60's, Dick had to devise a way to make his talents pay the
bills. He took advantage of the publics' love-affair with the Volkswagen,
and designed a "Kit" Car which would go onto a '66 VW Platform.
The Shalako and its successor the "Shala-vet" were a success, with about 1,000 being built. |
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When it came out, |
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That's Jeanne with the '70 |
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In 1984 Dick was commissioned by Wolfgang Schuller, from Germany, to build the Worlds longest Limo. It was an amazing 60 ft long ! It was shipped to Germany to appear as an attraction along with other auto exhibits. Dick was amazed that the German people would pay 20 marks to see his car. A few years later, Wolfgang shipped the car back to the US and had Dick lengthen it to 100 feet. At this length it was actually two complete vehicles which were maneuvered separately, and then fastened together for display. This vehicle made the Guinness Book of World Records.
You Probably Think That Dick is now kicking back somewhere….
Relaxing….. Enjoying retirement ….
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Dick and Jeanne do spend time together and Dick does tinker with his hobby, remote controlled airplanes and building special toys for the grandkids. |
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BUT You Forgot --- |
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It's The " Mer - Vettes " |
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and You're getting the First Look !
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And… If this isn't enough - Dick is also working on a '51 Merc for Dr. Mike Norville. |
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This wild custom is on a 1995 Corvette Chassis. |
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We've had such a good time reminiscing with Dick about so much of the work he's done.
We could have |
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