'Classic Customs' - the Dallas Autorama 2011

text and images by: Diana Merrill Claussen, Dallas

The Dallas AutoRama sped into town on Friday, February 18, and will run until Sunday 20, at 5:00 p.m.  There were many friendly and interesting people who not only attended the event, but entered their custom rides to be judged.

The Dallas AutoRama, sponsored by O’Reilly Auto Parts, is in it’s 51^st year, and is part of the Summit Racing Equipment Show Car Series.  The competitors in the show are so serious that the cars literally have to pass ‘white glove’ judging.  Winning at this highly acclaimed show is everything to the entrants, and so is spending time with fellow car enthusiasts.   While many of the show cars and their owners are from across the country, there were plenty of Texans on-hand who shared interesting background stories about their cars and their lives.

One such entrant is Mr. Bruce Hubbard, from DeSoto, Texas. Bruce brought his White 1948 Lincoln Continental Classic Coupe off of  eBay® for $16,000.  After his initial purchase, he started looking into the coupe’s history. “I contacted Ford Motor Company and they have been helping me to research the Lincoln’s former owners,” Bruce said. After six months of research, Bruce and Ford narrowed the list of previous owners down to two Hollywood agents that had bought Lincoln’s for their movie star employers.

“One of car was owned by Errol Flynn, and also appeared in the movie The Godfather,” Bruce said. “The other Lincoln could have possibly been owned by Marilyn Monroe,” he added.  Bruce has owned the car for two years and says Ford is still working on getting the cars certifications. “If someone famous has owned this car, it will immediately triple in value,” Bruce said. The Lincoln has all of its original parts and the interior boasts a luxurious Spanish Red Corinthian leather, the kind of interior fit for a Hollywood legend.

Located across from Bruce was Shelli Dowdy, who is the proud owner of a highly customized 2004 Viper.  Shelli is also no stranger when it comes to competing and winning. “I’m a Texas girl, but before I got the, Viper I was first a Porsche girl,” Shelli said. “That is until I lost weight while using a well-known weight loss product.” After her weight loss, Shelli wrote a 500 word essay about the product and how it had helped change her life.  The essay was entered into a contest sponsored by the weight loss company and, “Out of 7,000 contestants, I was the last girl standing,” Shelli smiled.

“I was then awarded the car by Anna Nicole Smith,” Shelli said. Many call Shelli the Living Legend of Anna Nicole, not only because of their likeness but also because of their similar backgrounds.  At the time, “We were the same age and had sons that were the same ages too.”  Losing weight and winning the car is what Shelli said turned her life around. She said it was also the catalyst to having a winning attitude in all that she does. 

Once she received the title to the all white Viper, Shelli went to work in customizing her new ride. “It now has a Paxton super charger on the big block, so it runs hot!” Shelli exclaimed. She also had Jarod Frannea of Dallas give the Viper a custom paint job of a ‘Viper’.  The snake mouth starts on the hood, while the body runs down the side of the car and around the trunk. “My car is named the Venomous Bastard,” Shelli smiled. It also has leather interior that looks like actual snake skin. Venomous Bastard didn’t receive it’s name because it’s a Viper, but thats another story for another time.

While Bruce and Shelli had never met until this years’ AutoRama, both owners found it very enlightening that his Lincoln and her Viper were touched by the hands of famous people. The Anna Nicole and the (possible) Marilyn Monroe connection was even more exciting for both of these AutoRama exhibitors.

There were several celebrities on hand during the weekend, such as the “Rangers Captain”, the Texas Rangers Mascot for the sports enthusiests.  For the younger hot rodders, Debby Ryan who plays “Baily” from Disney’s “Suite Life On Deck” also had scheduled appearances.  Then there was the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, and even Wrestling Superstar Shawn Michaels was on hand.

Other notables at the event during the weekend included the ‘Living Legends of Drag Racing Cacklefest’, featuring The Grizzlehopper, Scorpion I & V, and The Blue Max dragsters that helped make drag racing history in the Southwest.

 For more information on the Championship Auto Show series, visit www.autorama.com