Kenneth Robert Howard (September 7, 1929–September 19, 1992), also known as Dutch, Von Dutch, or J. L. Bachs (Joe Lunch Box), was an American

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

mechanic A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars. Duties Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning and r ...

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, th ...

, pin striper, metal fabricator, knifemaker and

gunsmith A gunsmith is a person who repairs, modifies, designs, or builds guns. The occupation differs from an armorer, who usually replaces only worn parts in standard firearms. Gunsmiths do modifications and changes to a firearm that may require a very h ...

Early life

As the son of a sign painter, Howard learned to letter and pinstripe professionally by the age of 10. While attending

Compton High School Compton High School is a high school in Compton, California, United States, part of the Compton Unified School District. History The school opened in 1896 as Compton Union High School and was later re-established as Compton Senior High School in ...

, Howard excelled in

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

and was referred to as "the fastest man in LA." Family members gave him the nickname "Dutch" because he was "as stubborn as a Dutchman," he added the "Von" prefix later as an artistic signature.

Work

Howard started earning money in the 1950s by pin-striping along with fellow striper

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 Je ...

.St. Antoine, Arthur.
"Interview: Dean Jeffries, Hollywood legend"
. - ''

Motor Trend Magazine ''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 published ''MotorTrend'' until 1998, when it was sold to B ...

'' Von Dutch has been a major influence in the customizing of vehicles from the 1950s to today. Some of his famous works include the flying eyeball logo and the custom Kenford truck, along with numerous custom motorcycles and many award-winning custom

car A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as ...

s. Among many custom car and motorcycle enthusiasts, he is thought of as one of the fathers of

Kustom Kulture Kustom Kulture is a neologism used to describe the artworks, vehicles, hairstyles, and fashions of those who have driven and built custom cars and motorcycles in the United States of America from the 1950s through today. It was born out of the h ...

. In fact, Von Dutch created the K in KUSTOM, a nod to his affection for German esthetics. An avid gunsmith and knife maker, Von Dutch made numerous art knives and embellished firearms. Most of these were adaptations of existing items to which he added his artistic flair. In 1958, Von Dutch designed and produced the "

Mare's Leg The Mare's Leg is the name given to a customized shortened rifle used by Steve McQueen's character on the television series '' Wanted: Dead or Alive'' (1958–1961). McQueen's character was named Josh Randall, and the gun has also been referred ...

", a cut-down

Winchester rifle Winchester rifle is a comprehensive term describing a series of lever action repeating rifles manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. Developed from the 1860 Henry rifle, Winchester rifles were among the earliest repeaters. The Mo ...

for the television series '' Wanted: Dead or Alive''. Von Dutch completed pin striping the well-known "Blue Velvet" Pontiac Firebird in 1979, which is complete with two perfectly parallel pin stripes feet long down each side of the vehicle. These pin stripes were completed by hand and attained a level of perfection that gave rise to the legend of Von Dutch as a pin striper. VonDutchPontiac

Death

Von Dutch's lifelong alcoholism led to major medical issues later in life. He died on September 19, 1992, from alcohol-related complications, leaving behind his two daughters, Lisa and Lorna. His ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean.

Von Dutch Originals, LLC

After his death, his daughters created a clothing line because Dutch left all his prized possessions to the Bruckers. His daughters only sold the clothing rights "Von Dutch" name to Michael Cassel and Robert Vaughn. In 2009 Tonny Sorensen, then CEO of Von Dutch, sold the company to Groupe Royer, a French footwear company.

Racism and anti-sociality

In January 2004, an ''

OC Weekly ''OC Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly paper distributed in Orange County and Long Beach, California. OC Weekly was founded in September 1995 by Will Swaim, who acted as editor and publisher until 2007. The paper was distributed at coffee ...

'' article alleged Howard's violent and

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

tendencies. Robert Williams, a friend and fellow artist, said Howard was "...quite a racist; didn't like anybody. Howard was accused of having all the trappings of being a

neo-Nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...

. Another accusation suggested he could not tolerate black people." The article alleges that a letter written shortly before Howard's death in 1992, when he was in the hospital, closed with “Bye,

Heil Hitler The Nazi salute, also known as the Hitler salute (german: link=no, Hitlergruß, , Hitler greeting, ; also called by the Nazi Party , 'German greeting', ), or the ''Sieg Heil'' salute, is a gesture that was used as a greeting in Nazi Germany. T ...

.” After the publication of the article, a number of retailers removed Von Dutch from their inventory despite its profitability. In May 2004, ''

Los Angeles Magazine ''Los Angeles'' magazine is a monthly publication dedicated to covering Los Angeles. Founded in the spring of 1961 by David Brown, the magazine is currently owned and published by Hour Media Group, LLC. Los Angeles magazine's combination of feat ...

'' profiled Howard similarly, describing his

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

and

anti-social behaviour Antisocial behavior is a behavior that is defined as the violation of the rights of others by committing crime, such as stealing and physical attack in addition to other behaviors such as lying and manipulation. It is considered to be disrupti ...

. Von Dutch clothing founder Ed Boswell described Howard as "...as an avid military enthusiast enamored of German Military esthetics. But he was not a

white power White pride and white power are expressions primarily used by white separatist, white nationalist, fascist, neo-Nazi and white supremacist organizations in order to signal racist or racialist viewpoints. It is also a slogan used by the prominent ...

guy. He hated everybody too much to be one of those. He was a provocateur."

References

External links

A documentary of the life of Kenneth Howard, a.k.a. Von Dutch
*
Rumpsville's Kenneth Howard Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Kenny 1929 births 1992 deaths People from Los Angeles County, California American artists Motorcycle builders Vehicle modification people Kustom Kulture artists Gunsmiths