George Barris (born George Salapatas; November 20, 1925 – November 5, 2015) was an American designer and builder of Hollywood

custom car A custom car is a passenger vehicle that has been either substantially altered to improve its performance, often by altering or replacing the engine and transmission; made into a personal "styling" statement, using paint work and aftermarket ...

s. Barris designed and built the Hirohata Merc. Barris's company, Barris Kustom Industries, designed and built the

Munster Koach The Munster Koach is the family car that was used in the television series, ''The Munsters''. The show's producers contracted George Barris to provide the Koach. Barris paid show car designer Tom Daniel $200 to design the car, and had it built at ...

and

DRAG-U-LA DRAG-U-LA, along with the Munster Koach, was one of two cars on the television show ''The Munsters'' designed by prolific show car designer Tom Daniel while working for George Barris and Barris Kustom Industries. The car The fiberglass body o ...

for

The Munsters ''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom depicting the home life of a family of benign monsters. The series starred Fred Gwynne as Frankenstein's monsterEpisodes referring to the fact that Herman is Frankenstein's monster include #55, "Just Anoth ...

; and the 1966

Batmobile The Batmobile is the fictional car driven by the superhero Batman. Housed in the Batcave, which it accesses through a hidden entrance, the Batmobile is both a heavily armored tactical assault vehicle and a personalized custom-built pursuit a ...

for the Batman

TV series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...

and

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

. Born in

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on November 20, 1925, Barris and his brother Sam moved to California to live with relatives. By his high school graduation, Barris had customized and sold multiple cars. He moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

at the age of eighteen to build custom cars for private buyers, including the Hirohata Merc in 1951. In the 1950s, Barris's business became Burris Kustom Industries. Barris's company designed and built vehicles for multiple television series in the 1960s, including Batman, The Munsters, and

The Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor, backwoods family from ...

. Barris's company designed and built custom cars for celebrities and private individuals. His company also built replicas of cars. Burris died in

Encino, Los Angeles Encino (Spanish for "oak") is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. History In 1769, the Spanish Portolá expedition, first Europeans to see inland areas of California, traveled north through Sepulveda P ...

on November 5, 2015.

Early history

George and his brother Sam (1924–1967) were born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in the 1920s. Their father was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

immigrant from

Chios Chios (; el, Χίος, Chíos , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greek island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. Chios is notable for its exports of mastic ...

. Their mother died a few years after the brothers were born. When Barris was three years old, Barris's father sent the brothers to live with an uncle and his wife in

Roseville, California Roseville is the most populous city in Placer County, California, located within the Sacramento metropolitan area. As of 2019, the US Census Bureau estimated the city's population to be 141,500. Interstate 80 runs through Roseville and State Rout ...

. By the age of seven, Barris was building and modifying

model cars A model car, or toy car, is a miniature representation of an automobile. Other miniature motor vehicles, such as trucks, buses, or even ATVs, etc. are often included in this general category. Because many miniature vehicles were originally aime ...

made of

balsa wood ''Ochroma pyramidale'', commonly known as the balsa tree, is a large, fast-growing tree native to the Americas. It is the sole member of the genus ''Ochroma''. The tree is famous for its wide usage in woodworking, with the name ''balsa'' being ...

. His model cars won contests sponsored by hobby shops for careful attention to detail. The brothers worked at the Greek restaurant owned by their family and were given a dilapidated 1925

Buick Buick () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American marques of automobiles, and was the company that established General ...

for their help. They swiftly restored it to running condition and experimented with changing its appearance. This became the first Barris Brothers custom car. They sold it at a profit to buy another project vehicle. Before George graduated from high school, demand for their work was growing, and they had created a club for owners of custom vehicles, called the Kustoms Car Club. This was the first use of the spelling "Kustom", which would become associated with Barris. Barris attended San Juan High School and "rushed to sweep floors at a local auto body shop as soon as school let out". Barris resisted his family's desire for him to work at its Greek restaurant in a Sacramento suburb. He moved to Los Angeles after turning 18 years old to "become part of the emerging teen car culture" and opened the "Barris Custom Shop" on

Imperial Highway The Imperial Highway is a west-east thoroughfare in the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and Imperial in California. The main portion of the existing route begins at Vista Del Mar in Los Angeles near the Los Angeles Inter ...

Bell, California Bell is an incorporated city in Los Angeles County, California, near the center of the former San Antonio Township (abolished after 1960). Its population was 35,477 at the 2010 census, down from 36,664 in the 2000 census. Bell is located on the ...

. George and Sam Barris built their "kustom" designs for private buyers. George also built and raced his own cars briefly. Soon, Hollywood studio executives and stars wanted the custom cars for personal use and as film props.

Robert E. Petersen Robert Einar "Pete" Petersen (September 10, 1926 – March 23, 2007) was an American publisher who founded the Petersen Automotive Museum in 1994.Hevesi, Dennis (March 27, 2007)Robert Petersen, Publisher of Auto Buff Magazines, Dies at 80.''Ne ...

publicized the Barris cars through car shows and by publishing George's how-to articles in ''

Hot Rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...

'' and ''

Motor Trend ''MotorTrend'' is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, and designated the first Car of the Year, also in 1949. Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles published ''MotorTrend'' until 19 ...

'' magazines.

Custom cars and early popularity

A George Barris - Custom Hudson (241204719)

In 1951, the Barris Brothers designed and built the Hirohata Merc as a customer order based on Sam Barris's own custom car. The Hirohata Merc was shown at the 1952

General Motors Motorama The General Motors Motorama was an auto show staged by GM from 1949 to 1961. These automobile extravaganzas were designed to whet public appetite and boost automobile sales with displays of fancy concept cars and other special or halo models. M ...

auto show and was so popular, it overshadowed the best work of Detroit's top designers. It also established the early 1950s

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

as a popular basis for custom car design. In addition, Sam built ''Ala Kart'', a 1929 Ford Model A roadster pickup. After taking two AMBR (America's Most Beautiful Roadster) wins in a row, the car made numerous film and television appearances, usually in the background of diner scenes. Sam left the business in the 1950s. George continued in the business with his wife Shirley, and the business became Barris Kustom Industries. The company licensed its designs to model car manufacturers such as

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

Revell Revell GmbH is an American-origin manufacturer of plastic scale models, currently based in Bünde. The original Revell company merged with Monogram in 1986, becoming "Revell-Monogram". The business operated until 2007, when American Revell was ...

, MPC, and

AMT Amt is a type of administrative division governing a group of municipalities, today only in Germany, but formerly also common in other countries of Northern Europe. Its size and functions differ by country and the term is roughly equivalent to ...

, which spread the Barris name into the model builder community. In the early 1960s, Barris, along with other well-known customizers (

Gene Winfield Gene Winfield (born June 16, 1927) is an American automotive customizer and fabricator. In the mid-1960s, his designs caught the attention of the film community, resulting in a large body of his work appearing on screen, including in the iconic 1 ...

Dean Jeffries Edward Dean Jeffries (February 25, 1933 – May 5, 2013) was an American custom car designer and fabricator, as well as stuntman and stunt coordinator for motion pictures and television programs based in Los Angeles, California. Early life ...

and the Alexander Brothers) reworked production cars for Ford's "Custom Car Caravan" and "Lincoln/Mercury's Caravan of Stars". The traveling exhibits were designed to appeal to younger car buyers. Barris also used the body of ''Pulsator'' (designed by

Nye Frank Nye Frank is an American dragster builder in the 1960s and 1970s. Among others, Frank worked on the twin-engined dragsters ''Freight Train'' and ''Pulsator'' (as designer) the Setzer streamliner (designing and positioning the wings), ''Flying ...

) on his snowmobile dragster

show car A show car, sometimes called a dream car, is a custom-made automobile created specifically for public display, rather than sale. They are shown at auto shows and other exhibitions. Show cars can either come from car companies or from private indivi ...

''Ice Kutter''. Barris is the subject of the title story in writer

Tom Wolfe Thomas Kennerly Wolfe Jr. (March 2, 1930 – May 14, 2018)Some sources say 1931; ''The New York Times'' and Reuters both initially reported 1931 in their obituaries before changing to 1930. See and was an American author and journalist widely ...

's first collection of essays ''

The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby ''The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby'' is the title of Tom Wolfe's first collected book of essays, published in 1965. The book is named for one of the stories in the collection that was originally published in ''Esquire magazine'' i ...

''.

Auto customizing for television, films and celebrities

According to Barris, some of his first film work was making soft aluminum fenders for a police car that crashes into the rear of a

Mercedes Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...

convertible in ''

North by Northwest ''North by Northwest'' is a 1959 American spy thriller film, produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint and James Mason. The screenplay was by Ernest Lehman, who wanted to write "the Hitchcock picture to ...

''. The idea was to give the collision a comedic quality while also preventing serious damage to the expensive Mercedes. He also built and supplied cars for the 1958 film '' High School Confidential'' and loaned some of his customs for the "future" scenes in the 1960 film adaptation of

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

''The Time Machine''. Other Barris-built film cars included a modified

Dodge Charger The Dodge Charger is a model of automobile marketed by Dodge in various forms over seven generations since 1966. The first Charger was a show car in 1964. A 1965 Charger II concept car resembled the 1966 production version. The Charger has ...

for ''Thunder Alley'', a

Plymouth Barracuda The Plymouth Barracuda is a two-door pony car that was manufactured by Plymouth (automobile), Plymouth from 1964 to 1974. The first-generation Barracuda was based on the Chrysler A platform, Chrysler A-body and was offered from 1964 to 1966. A ...

for ''

Fireball 500 ''Fireball 500'' is a 1966 stock car racing film, blended with the beach party film genre. A vehicle for stars Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello, and Fabian, it was one of a string of similar racing films from the 1960s. Written by William Ashe ...

'', the futuristic '' Supervan'' for a film of the same name, a gadget-filled Mercury station wagon for ''The Silencers'', and a sinister rework of a

Lincoln Continental Mark III The Continental Mark III is a personal luxury car marketed by Lincoln from 1969–1971 model years. The namesake successor of the 1956–1957 Continental Mark II, the Mark III again served as the flagship vehicle of Ford Motor Company. Offered ...

for ''

The Car ''The Car'' is a 1977 American horror film directed by Elliot Silverstein and written by Michael Butler, Dennis Shryack and Lane Slate. The film stars James Brolin, Kathleen Lloyd, John Marley and Ronny Cox, along with real-life sisters Kim and ...

''. In the 1960s, the Barris firm became heavily involved in vehicle design for a television production. At the beginning of the decade, Barris purchased the

Lincoln Futura The Lincoln Futura is a concept car promoted by Ford's Lincoln brand, designed by Ford's lead stylists Bill Schmidt and John Najjar, and hand-built by Ghia in Turin, Italy — at a cost of $250,000 (equivalent to $ in ). Displayed on the a ...

, an extravagantly designed

concept car A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle, show vehicle or prototype) is a car made to showcase new styling and/or new technology. They are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or ...

. It remained in his collection for several years, until he was unexpectedly asked by

ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...

to create a signature vehicle for their ''Batman'' television series. As filming would begin in a few weeks, there was not enough time to create a new design from scratch. Instead, Barris used the Future as the base for the

. Barris hired

Bill Cushenbery Bill Cushenbery (March 22, 1933 – December 12, 1998) was an American car customizer, show car builder, and model kit designer. Cushenbery was a major influence on the look of custom cars and the customizing industry in general. In addition t ...

to modify the car, which was ready in three weeks. The show's popularity added to Barris's fame. Barris owned the Batmobile until he sold it at a 2013 auction. Other television cars built by Barris Kustom Industries include the

and the

for ''

'', an Oldsmobile Toronado turned into a roadster used in the first season of ''

Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private inves ...

'', a 1921 Oldsmobile touring car turned into a truck for ''

'', the fictional "1928 Porter" for the NBC comedy ''

My Mother the Car ''My Mother the Car'' is an American fantasy comedy that aired for a single season on NBC between September 14, 1965 and April 5, 1966. Thirty episodes were produced by United Artists Television. The premise features a man whose deceased mothe ...

'', updated

KITT KITT or K.I.T.T. is the short name of two fictional characters from the adventure franchise ''Knight Rider''. While having the same acronym, the KITTs are two different entities: one known as the Knight Industries Two Thousand, which appeared i ...

s for later seasons of ''

Knight Rider ''Knight Rider'' is an American entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three television series: the original ''Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequel series ''Team Knight Rider'' (1997–1998) ...

'', and replicas of 1914 Stutz Bearcats for ''

Bearcats! ''Bearcats!'' is an American Western television series broadcast on the CBS television network during the fall 1971 television season. It starred Rod Taylor and Dennis Cole as troubleshooters in the period before the American entry into World War ...

''. Barris created a customized gold

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

for actress

Zsa Zsa Gabor Zsa Zsa Gabor (, ; born Sári Gábor ; February 6, 1917 – December 18, 2016) was a Hungarian Americans, Hungarian-American socialite and actress. Her sisters were actresses Eva Gabor, Eva and Magda Gabor. Gabor competed in the 1933 Mis ...

. The golden Rolls-Royce displayed the detailed work of Barris and included hand-etched window glass by Robb Rich showing butterflies, roses, and hummingbirds. Barris built many novelty vehicles for other celebrities. These include golf carts for

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

Ann-Margret Ann-Margret Olsson (born April 28, 1941) is a Swedish–American actress, singer, and dancer. As an actress and singer, she is credited as Ann-Margret. She is known for her roles in ''Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), ''B ...

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...

, and

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

; and 25 modified

Mini Moke The Mini Moke (styled "MOKE") is a small, front-wheel-drive utility and recreational convertible, conceived and manufactured as a lightweight military vehicle by British Motor Corporation (BMC), and subsequently marketed for civilian use under ...

s for a record company contest involving the Beach Boys. Barris also modified cars for Hollywood stars. Some examples include a

Cadillac The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed i ...

limousine for

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

, custom Pontiac station wagons for

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Gol ...

, a

Cadillac Eldorado The Cadillac Eldorado is a luxury car manufactured and marketed by Cadillac from 1952 until 2002 over twelve generations. The Eldorado was at or near the top of the Cadillac line. The original 1953 Eldorado convertible and the Eldorado Brougham ...

turned into a station wagon for

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...

, and a pair of "his & hers" 1966

Ford Mustang The Ford Mustang is a series of American automobiles manufactured by Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its sixth generation, it is the fifth-best selli ...

convertibles for

Sonny and Cher Sonny & Cher were an American pop and entertainment duo in the 1960s and 1970s, made up of husband and wife Sonny Bono and Cher. The couple started their career in the mid-1960s as R&B backing singers for record producer Phil Spector. The pair f ...

. With the cooperation of

American Motors American Motors Corporation (AMC; commonly referred to as American Motors) was an American automobile manufacturing company formed by the merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motor Car Company on May 1, 1954. At the time, it was the ...

, in 1969 he modified an AMX coupe into the AMX-400 show car, later used in a 1972 episode of '' Banacek.'' In the 1990s,

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

contacted Barris to request the designs of the Moonscope vehicle, a 1966 design that was a popular plastic car model for collectors. NASA engineers designing Martian rovers and vehicles were interested in the Moonscope's 6-wheel spider suspension and large wedged tires. Edward Lozzi, spokesperson for George Barris, stated, "NASA contacted my office and requested the original designs of the Moonscope from Barris. They revealed they were interested in studying the Barris designs for the Martian vehicles. Barris gave them permission and NASA sent people to meet with him". Between 2002 and 2006, Barris also designed two custom

hearse A hearse is a large vehicle, originally a horse carriage but later with the introduction of motor vehicles, a car, used to carry the body of a deceased person in a coffin at a funeral, wake, or memorial service. They range from deliberately ano ...

s for episodes of the cable television series ''

Monster Garage ''Monster Garage'' is an American television series aired on the Discovery Channel and hosted by Jesse James (television personality), Jesse James. Each episode was an hour in length and was conceived and produced (along with James) by Thom Beers ...

''. Barris' company often builds replicas of non-Barris designed vehicles from other TV series, including ''

The Monkees The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was conc ...

'' Monkeemobile, ''

Starsky & Hutch ''Starsky & Hutch'' is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a ''Movie of the Week'' entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn (inspired by th ...

'' (

Ford Torino The Ford Torino is an automobile that was produced by Ford for the North American market between 1968 and 1976. It was a competitor in the intermediate market segment. The car was named after the city of Turin (''Torino'', in Italian), consider ...

), ''

Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an entertainment and merchandising franchise built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. Produced first by Saban Entertainment, second by BVS Entert ...

'' (Turbo Vehicles) and ''

. Barris also designed and built the "

Wagon Queen Family Truckster ''National Lampoon's Vacation'', sometimes referred to as simply ''Vacation'', is a 1983 American Road movie, road trip comedy film directed by Harold Ramis starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, John Candy, and Chri ...

", based on a 1979

Ford Country Squire The Ford Country Squire is a series of full-size station wagons that were assembled by American automaker Ford. Positioned as the top-level station wagon of the Ford division, the Country Squire was distinguished by woodgrain bodyside trim. From ...

station wagon A station wagon ( US, also wagon) or estate car ( UK, also estate), is an automotive body-style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door ( ...

, for the 1983 film ''

National Lampoon's Vacation ''National Lampoon's Vacation'', sometimes referred to as simply ''Vacation'', is a 1983 American road trip comedy film directed by Harold Ramis starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, John Candy, and Christie Brink ...

''.

Later career

In 2005 ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' had Barris customize a

Toyota Prius The is a car built by Toyota which has a Hybrid vehicle drivetrain, hybrid drivetrain, combining an internal combustion engine with an electric motor. Initially offered as a four-door Sedan (automobile), sedan, it has been produced only as ...

, which they called one of the most popular yet least attractive cars in the U.S. The budget was $10,000, and a further condition was not to chop the body or interfere with the hybrid mechanics in any way. In April 2010, the special George Barris design edition of the 2010

Chevrolet Camaro The Chevrolet Camaro is a mid-size American automobile manufactured by Chevrolet, classified as a pony car. It first went on sale on September 29, 1966, for the 1967 model year and was designed to compete with the Ford Mustang. The Camaro share ...

Spirit was introduced to the public for the first time at a VIP media event at Community Chevrolet, one of the largest Chevrolet dealerships in the United States. On November 29, 2012, Barris Kustom and George Barris announced the sale of the Number 1 Batmobile at the

Barrett-Jackson Barrett-Jackson is an American collector car auction company headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was founded by Scottsdale business partners Tom Barrett and Russ Jackson. They initially launched a car show, Fiesta de los Autos Elegantes, in 19 ...

car show and auction held in Scottsdale, Arizona. The world-famous vehicle went on the auction block, on January 19, 2013. The final sale price, after a very intense bidding war, was $4.6 million to car collector Rick Champagne from

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

''Back to the Future'' controversy

Over a decade after the release of '' Back to the Future Part III'', Barris restored one of the

DeLorean time machine In the ''Back to the Future'' franchise, the DeLorean time machine is a time travel device made by retrofitting a DMC DeLorean vehicle with a flux capacitor. The car requires 1.21 gigawatts ("jigawatts/jigowatts") of power and needs to travel 88 ...

stunt cars. Barris later purchased a stock DeLorean and converted it into a replica of the ''Back to the Future'' DeLorean, which he used to promote himself and his company. While Barris never officially stated that he had anything to do with the ''Back to the Future'' films, he would state that he had built a ''Back to the Future'' DeLorean without disclosing that it was a replica car. In 2007, Universal Studios officials sent Barris a

cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not dis ...

order demanding that he never again make "misrepresentations regarding any involvement with the ''Back to the Future'' films". The order called upon Barris to remove images of the flying DeLorean from his company's website and to restrict displaying any replicas of cars from the films. ''

Back to the Future ''Back to the Future'' is a 1985 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis, and written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale. It stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, and Thomas F. Wilson. Set in 1985, ...

'' writer/producer

Bob Gale Michael Robert Gale (born May 25, 1951) is an American screenwriter, comic book writer, film producer and director. He is best known for co-writing the science fiction comedy film ''Back to the Future'' with his writing partner Robert Zemec ...

said, "George Barris had absolutely nothing to do with the design or construction of the DeLorean time travel vehicle."

Personal life and death

Barris was married to Shirley Nahas from 1958 until she died in 2001. They had two children. Barris died on November 5, 2015, in his sleep at his home in

Encino, Los Angeles, California Encino (Spanish for "oak") is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. History In 1769, the Spanish Portolá expedition, first Europeans to see inland areas of California, traveled north through Sepulveda P ...

, fifteen days away from his 90th birthday.

Filmography

Features

*''

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

'' — car designer, The Batmobile (uncredited) (1966) *'' Supervan'' — King of the Customizers (1977) *''Smokey and the Hotwire Gang'' — Billy The Kid (1979) *''

Jurassic Park ''Jurassic Park'', later also referred to as ''Jurassic World'', is an American science fiction media franchise created by Michael Crichton and centered on a disastrous attempt to create a theme park of cloned dinosaurs. It began in 1990 when ...

'' — car modifications (uncredited) (1993) *'' Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie'' — car customizer (1997) *''The Batmobile Revealed'' — Video documentary short, as himself (2001)

Television

*''

'' — technical advisor — 1 episode, Hot Rod Herman (1965) *''

'' — car designer, The Batmobile, 120 episodes (1966–1968) *''

'' — car customizer, Mannix Roadster (1967) *''

The Banana Splits Adventure Hour ''The Banana Splits'' is an American television variety show produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and featuring the Banana Splits, a fictional rock band composed of four costumed animal characters in red marching band hats with yellow plumes. ...

'' — car designer, 5 episodes (1968) *''

'' — car designer, 3 episodes (1962–1963); production assistant, 1 episode (1968) *''

The Bugaloos ''The Bugaloos'' is an American children's television series, produced by brothers Sid and Marty Krofft, that aired on NBC on Saturday mornings from 1970 to 1972. Reruns of the show aired in daily syndication from 1978 to 1985 as part of the "Krof ...

'' — car designer, 14 episodes (1970–1971) *''

'' — car, Bearcat, 13 episodes (1971) *'' Banacek'' — modified AMX-400 (1972) *''

Starsky and Hutch ''Starsky & Hutch'' is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a ''Movie of the Week'' entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn (inspired by th ...

'' — car designer, "striped tomato"

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

(1975–1979) *''

The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy TV series that was aired on CBS from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. The show aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons. It was consistently among the top-rated television series ...

'' — car modifications (1979) *''

'' — car designer (1982–1986) *''

The Late Show The Late Show may refer to: Books * ''The Late Show'' (book), a 2017 book by Michael Connelly Film * ''The Late Show'' (film), a 1977 film * ''Late Show'', a 1999 German film by director Helmut Dietl Music * ''The Late Show'' (Eddie "Loc ...

'' — episode dated April 28, 1988, as himself (1988) *''

Biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

'' — episode, ''The Munsters: America's First Family of Fright'', as himself (2003) *''TV's Greatest Cars'' — TV movie documentary, as himself (2004) *''TV Land's Top Ten'' — TV series documentary — episode, Top 10 TV Cars, as himself (2004) *''

The Jace Hall Show Jason "Jace" Hall is an American film, television and video game producer. Career Hall was one of the founders of Monolith Productions and is CEO of record keeping platform Twin Galaxies. His music video "I Play W.O.W" was featured on IGN's ...

'' — episode, ''Pow! Biff! Kaboom!'', as himself (2010) *'' Totally Tracked Down'' — episode, ''Holy Batman!'', as himself (2010) *''The Batmobile'' — TV movie documentary, as himself (2012) *''G4 Presents Comic Con 2012 Live'' — TV movie, as himself (2012) *American Pickers, episode "California Kustoms"— as himself (February 25, 2012)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Barris, George 1925 births 2015 deaths Kustom Kulture artists People from Roseville, California American automobile designers Vehicle modification people American people of Greek descent American automotive pioneers Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)

Early history

Custom cars and early popularity

Auto customizing for television, films and celebrities

Later career

''Back to the Future'' controversy

Personal life and death

Filmography

Features

Television

See also

References

External links