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Rolls Royce FAB 1

FAB 1 is the name given to the six wheeled, pink Rolls-Royce in the Thunderbirds TV Series. Owned by Lady Penelope Creighton Ward, her chauffeur Parker sits at the center front of the passenger compartment under a bubble canopy. This car is like a James Bond style vehicle with gadgets and gizmos including heavy artillery and even a hydrofoil. Rolls Royce actually supplied a radiator grille complete with Spirit of Ecstasy for close-up shots of the car.

In the 2004 film version, the car was still pink, had six wheels and a glass canopy (now tinted) but Rolls Royce threatened legal action if the Rolls Royce name was used - this was considered slightly ironic, as Rolls Royce's Rolls-Royce Phantom was heavily compared to FAB1 when it was first introduced.

Ford were then approached and could not have been more helpful. The replacement FAB1 was - fittingly - a heavily modified Ford Thunderbird supplied by the Ford Motor Company.

According to some websites, FAB 1 can travel at supersonic speeds while flying. The boot panels would open to expose the gas turbine engine before flight and wings would extend from the undercarriage. During flight, the rear set of wheels folds into the vehicle's body completely. This prevents them from creating unnecessary drag and so slowing the aircraft down.

Skis for going over heavy snow are also added to the vehicle. The bullet-proof, run-flat tyres are fitted with studs in order to give extra traction.

The central passenger compartment of FAB 1 doubles as an emergency life raft in the event of an emergency at sea. Buoyancy tanks hidden in the body paneling ensure that the compartment remains afloat after it has broken away from the rest of the vehicle.

Lady Penelope also ownes a yacht, FAB 2, and a winning racehorse, FAB 3.

Artist - Gil Elvgren

Gil Elvgren (1914-1980) was the most important pin-up and glamour artist of the twentieth century. During his professional career, which began in the mid 1930s and lasted more than forty years, he established himself as the clear favorite of pin-up collectors and fans worldwide. Although most of his work was created for commercial use, it has been increasingly recognized as "real" art by many private collectors, dealers, galleries and museums. And indeed, though Elvgren has been considered as mainly a pin-up artist this last half-century, in reality he deserves recognition as a classical American illustrator whose career encompassed many different fields of commercial art. He was always a master in portraying feminine beauty, but his output was by no means confined to the calendar pinup industry.

Thus, part of Elvgren's fame is undoubtedly due to his now legendary series of pin-ups painted over a period of thirty years for Brown and Bigelow, calendar publishers of St. Paul, Minnesota.

However, his twenty-five-year stint on advertising work for Coca-Cola helped to establish him as one of the great illustrators in this field as well. While the Coca-Cola artwork included some typical "Elvgren Girl" pinups, most of it depicted typical American families, children and teenagers ordinary people doing everyday things. During World War II and the Korean War, Elvgren even painted military scenes for Coca Cola. Like his famous Brown and Bigelow pinups, the Coca-Cola images eventually became acknowledged icons of American life.

Gil Elvgren a man who had spent much of his life enriching the lives of others succumbed to cancer on February 29, 1980, at the age of sixty-five. In his studio, on Featherbed Lane in Siesta Key, Drake found his father's last Brown and Bigelow pin-up an unfinished and yet still brilliant painting, reproduced and published here for the first time. Elvgren the man has been missed for almost two decades, but his art and legacy live on. Celebrating and enjoying what he created will remain the best compliment and greatest honor we can now bestow on them. And, without question, art historians of the twenty-first century will recognize Gil Elvgren as a major and important contributor to twentieth-century American art.

Old School Balling

Futuristic

I think someone has been doing some hard drugs here.

Rat Rods ??

Many of my friends have asked me, what is a rat rod? A rat rod is simply a custom hot rod that is made for driving and hanging out with friends. Rat rods aren't ultra glossy show cars. Instead a rat rod is a "unfinished" street rod that is intentionally left a bit rough around the edges. You might be able to recognize most rat rods by their flat black or gray paint but there are no set rules as to what makes a rat rod what it is. Today's rat rods come in all shapes, sizes and colors. I can't exactly define a rat rod, but I know one when I see it.

The most important thing about a rat rod is they aren't for wimps. You aren't going to see very many tree huggin' wimps driving these babies. Some of the rat rods that I have owned have been down right hard to drive, no power steering, doors that do not open, brakes that just barely function (you get the picture).

Back in the 50's just about all street rods would be considered rat rods in modern times, but nowadays the street rod has become a bit "stuffy". Street Rods and Hot Rods are more of a "garage dweller" too afraid to come out at night because the expensive paint job might get scratched. Hence.... the rat rod! A rat rod isn't afraid of a few scratches, heck scratches only add more character. These buckets of bolts are loud, smokey, and ready to burn up the streets. So roll up your sleeves, toss on your shades (yes even at night) and lets go for a ride.