Outlaw was designed and
built by Ed Roth who was a
of Drag-Wagons car club of
Maywood California.
Outlaw was the first cool
fiberglass creation done by
Ed Big Daddy Roth. It had
started with the back of one
his Weirdo's sweat shirt
monster drawings on back
of these shirts.Ed got this
idea of fiberglass from
Henry Ford swinging a very
sledge hammer on a deck lid
of a 1941 Ford.The Ford had
a fiberglass deck lid would
not dent.Ed introduced this
at Hunting Beach Pier,called
fiberglass.He saw a wooden
surf board with a waterproof
covering of fiberglass.Ed had
read about Shadoff in Life
Magazine who built the cool
streamliner Shadoff Special
Bonneville Streamliner out
fiberglass.In 1957 Ed started
experimenting with this new
material in his shop,located
at 4616 Slauson Avenue in
Maywood California
Outlaw had a 1929 Model
A frame with a 1925 cross
member.A 1950 Cadillac
V-8 Ed found in a junk
yard that was installed in
between the frame rails.
Ed went to a lumber yard
and bought casting plaster.
The buck was covered with
messy fiberglass.When this
fiberglass finely cured,he
knocked out the plaster out
from the back side,and that
became the female mold for
the Outlaw.the Outlaw,the
only car with a four piece
piece female mold held in
place with took box latches.
Ed wired everything he
wanted welded together
with bailing wire,before he
trailered the car to this cool
shop Clarence Bell ,in which
Clarence welded everything
together,then Ed Roth went
back to his shop for his cool
final preparation work.Ed
then filed the weld marks by
hand,the whole chassis was
chrome plated by this cool
Chrome Nickle Plating.The
rear axle drive shaft,and
also 1939 Ford transmission
were chrome too. Ed had to
sell his custom built car that
Little Jewel to pay for the
chrome on the Outlaw.A
local mechanic helped Ed
who was Fritz Voigt, was
going to rebuild the cool
Cadillac V-8 engine.The
idea was to install four of
Stromberg 97 carburetors,
on a Craigar manifold. He
added Cal Custom finned
valve covers,chrome oil
pan,and a set of long cool
sweeping chrome zoomy
headers.The front axle and
spindles from 1937 Ford
installed up front along with
a couple of front springs
cups that housed cut down
1958 Chevrolet coil springs.
The coil were combined with
Airflow trailer cushions and
Mercury outboard shocks,
the rest of the running gear,
except for a Model A cross
spring,came from a old 1948
Ford.The 1941 Ford steering
gear was mounted on the
drivers side.Front height is
kept stock,while the rear was
raised.The windshield frame
came from a 1922 Dodge,then
blue tinted safety glass was
installed into the 1922 Dodge
windshield frame.The 1958
taillights from a Bel-Air was
fit into 1956 Chevrolet lenses
before Ed installed into the
body.Quad headlights came
from a 1959 Rambler was
installed up front.The quad
headlights were mounted
under the fenders in a type
of special spring ring.The
grill is a a cut from a 1959
Chevrolet.A radiator from
DKN that is stock is used
to cool the engine.Nerf bars
designed for protection are
mounted.Larry Watson is
responsible for the paint on
the Outlaw.House Of Style
does it in pearl white with
candy green panels.This is
Larry Watson who does the
painting at his shop.
Ed installed a 1958 Chevy
Impala steering wheel and
cool seven Steward Warner
guages.
It debut at Disneyland
Car Club Day and Autocade
Show September 5,1959.
The Outlaw was originally
fitted with a gullwing top
made of Naugahyde and also
aluminum over a wooden
frame.But in 1960 while he
was trailering the car in the
Kansas state,the top blew
off and was destroyed. Ed
was happy when his car
Outlaw was on Car Craft
January 1960 issue on the
magazine.January 1960
issue still showed Outlaw
with a tonneau over the
interior and Mercury
steel wheels on all four
corners.After Disneyland
Show,Eddie Martinez had
upholstered the interior in
tuck-n-roll,that was Roth's
designed.In July 1960 Ed
was selling glossy pictures
of Outlaw in 8"X 10" in
Car Craft Magazine.Now
the front wheels were do
be replaced with spindle
wire wheels and motor-
cycle tires.Ed Roth took
home many trophies with
Outlaw.He got a T-shirt
Booth and traded for using
the car for appearances,
that made him money,that
he could use.
Ed bought Dick Cook's
1940 Chevy to trailer the
Outlaw around.It had a
Tri-power Oldsmobile V-8
in the car.A simple trailer
with two wheels and tires,
one axle, open air model.
The Chevy was replaced
by a Cadillac Hearst so
Ed Roth could sleep on
the road.
Revell called Ed Roth
and asked if they could
make and sell model kits
of the Outlaw.Ed Roth
said yes,and was happy
and agreed to the terms.
He would get one cent for
every model kit sold.Now
there was a problem that
had to be settled at Revell.
Ed Roth was taken into
office,to discuss this matter
that would want kids to buy
his kits.Henry Blankfort
said:" you need a name to
boost the sales."Ed:"At
Bell High I was called Big
Ed."So Blankfort wanted
Ed to go with the Dutch
movement and call him
"Spider" or "Roach"but
Ed didn't like those.He did
know in LA there were
beatnics that wore their
beards long,and those cool
coffee places were called
"Big Daddy".So Blankfort
that he would be called the
name "Big Daddy."Ed Roth
had five children at home so
it would fit.He agreed to be
"Big Daddy" Ed Roth. Kit
was designed by Jim Keeler,
who did designed work on
many of Ed Roth kits later.
1961 Bob Larivee Sr. bought
Outlaw for $3,250 from Ed.
Ed saw the deal to fund his
next car.He already started
Beatnic Bandit.
The story of Little Jewel was
Ed Roth returned four years
from the US Air Force he built
1930 Ford Tudor that was red
enamel by Wally Jordan. It
had a white Naugahyde top,
and white running boards. A
1932 Ford grill and radiator
shell was swapped out.Ed had
made the nerf bar with signal
lights in them.The interior was
done by Martinez Upholstery
in black and white upholstery.
Undercarriage was chromed
to bring home trophies.
You are looking what
Ed Roth had to give up
to finance the Outlaw's
chrome to be finished.It
must have been hard for
Big Daddy to give it up.
There are more details
about the car. The rake
was achieved installing
3-inch dropped front
axle,Juicy brakes,from
a 1948 Ford passenger
car,shocks from 1949
Ford components,now
under this hood is a
pinstriped firewall by
Ed Roth.He installed
a 1950 Oldsmobile
engine.Big and cool
little whitewall tires,
cool chrome hubcaps,
and what look like a
set of black pinstripes
on the front fenders.
Ed Roth had to sell
Little Jewel in 1958
to pay for the chrome
on the Outlaw.It was
sold to Lee Rhodes of
Long Beach Renegades.
Then later Little Jewel
sold to Henry Cantu,
had the car now lime
green with pearl white
scallops painted by Ed.
In 1962 the hood was
removed with a Chevy
small-block installed.
No one seen the car
since.
