by Wallace Wyss –
Photographs by Richard Bartholomew –
Rick Dore is taking custom cars way beyond where they have ever gone before. Unusual among rod shops they custom design the car for the customer if need be. Dore’s fortunes changed mightily when James Hetfield a musician (lead singer and guitarists for Metallica) showed up who liked classic car styling of the prewar era (streamline Moderne) but wanted modern power trains.
Dore has the talent to design them and has worked with the greats in hot rodding in SoCal, including Marcel’s custom bodywork and Art Morrison for chassis.
Rick became better known in the ‘90s but now is thriving in California, having moved from Glendale, Arizona. Dore’s original focus was American roadsters and then through 1960s cars. On TV, he is the co-host, with Chuck Palumbo, of the Discovery Channel show Lords of the Car Hoards, which debuted in 2014. James Hetfield has said “When it comes to building a Kustom car, Rick Dore is in a league of his own.”
A salute from this car historian, who also likes prewar French streamline moderne, to Dore and Hetfield for showing us to what heights custom cars can aspire to.
Most of these photos were shot at the recent Rodeo Drive Concours d’Elegance in Beverly Hills.
Let us know what you think in the Comments.
THE AUTHOR/ARTIST: Wallace Wyss is the author of 18 car books. As an artist, he specializes in postwar sports cars or prewar Streamline Moderne. A list of his works is available from mendoart7@gmail.com
THE PHOTOGRAPHER: Richard Bartholomew is an artist and photographer based in Southern California. He is open to interesting consignments and can be reached at zeroagenow@aol.com
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