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“One might ask why the NCM has devoted a year-long exhibit to the art and influence of Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth,” said Dr. Sean Preston, President and CEO of the Museum. “While our Museum was established 25 years ago to be the caretakers and collectors of Corvette history, we understand that you cannot tell the story of the early days of Corvette without telling the story of the Ford Thunderbird. You cannot tell the story of Corvette Racing without talking about the Cobra, the Viper and the Ford GT. And you cannot tell the story of Corvette design without talking about those who influenced the designers, which brings us to Ed Roth.”

Considered a renaissance man, Roth became a central figure in the 50’s and 60’s Kustom Kulture era of automobile history, becoming a cultural phenomenon himself in the process. With no formal education in engineering, he designed and created some of the era’s most iconic cars, many of which are displayed as part of the exhibit. The Revell model company would turn Roth’s car creations into toy model kits that would sell millions of units. One car, ‘Tweedy Pie,’ sold over 11 million units alone. When Hot Wheels emerged on the toy scene, they crafted a series of 16 cars that would include Roth’s ‘Beatnik Bandit.’ Both cars can be seen on display at the National Corvette Museum.

‘Rat Fink,’ a cartoon character created by Roth, later became the car culture mascot and would go on to introduce a generation of young people to the amazing world of automobiles. Some of those young people would grow up to build their own tributes to Roth, creating some of the amazing cars that can be seen in the exhibit.

“One of my jobs at the National Corvette Museum is to collect Corvette history on camera so we can save those stories and use them to educate, entertain and inspire others,” said Bob Bubnis, Curator of the exhibit. “Back in July 2014 I recorded Tom Peters life story. I asked Tom, ‘what caused you to want to draw cars, what were your influences?’ and he said, ‘Ed Big Daddy Roth.’ When his excitement grew talking about it, that’s when the idea for this exhibit began.”

As a teenager, Peters was an aspiring car designer, mimicking Roth’s t-shirt advertisements. He would later become the design team leader for the Corvette C6, C7 and 2020 Stingray mid-engine Corvette.

“This exhibit was specifically designed to bring back the memories of our older guests, but along with that, we hope to ignite the imagination of young people and challenge them to harness, cultivate and believe in their own natural abilities as Ed Roth and Tom Peters did,” said Preston.

Peters, who served as co-curator for the exhibit, is excited for others to share in his passion.

“This brings me right back, coming into this fabulous exhibit like I’m 13 years old again. As I look around here, all the wonderful artwork and all these cars together for the first time ever in a setting like this, there’s something for everyone, adult and young.”

“I don’t know if Ed Roth realized the extent of his impact over the years. I can tell you many designers that I’ve talked to over the course of my career, we have that discussion of where you began, what inspired you,” said Peters. “So many will say ‘I remember drawing those Rat Fink cars and building those models.’ The impact has been an incredible phenomenon within the industry. It’s such a timeless effect. This exhibit will inspire young people to get involved, whether it is with cars or some other avenue for a career. It really speaks to a level of heart-felt creativity and an explosive way of generating new ideas to rock the world, and rock the boat. I’m really excited about that.”

Beau Boeckmann of Galpin Auto Sports and owner of many of the original Roth cars shared what made Roth unique. “What I love about Roth, he was incredible and did things on his own terms. He didn’t care so much about what others thought, and that’s what really made him great. He took the automobile and turned it into artwork in a way that hadn’t been done before.”

Boeckmann credits Roth and other legends including Robert Williams and Ed Newton for creating the Kustom Kulture. “It was a whole movement for all of us to enjoy. It inspired generations, not only to build custom cars, but to do fine artwork, and to do things that are a little outlandish, pushing the envelope, and maybe upsetting our parents a little bit. Ed loved what he did, and he did what he loved.”

Roth’s widow, Ileene, shared that experiencing the exhibit was like three of four Christmases on top of each other. “It is amazing to have it all come together in this beautiful facility. The talent is just dripping when you see everything. There has never been a more humbling experience for me than being here and seeing what they have done with Ed’s things. I know that my sweetie would just totally appreciate how they have displayed it. It wasn’t about himself it was about sharing his life with others.”

‘Car-Toon Creatures, Kustom Kars and Corvettes: The Art and Influence of Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth is now open in the National Corvette Museum’s Exhibit Hall and runs through April, 2021. Access to the exhibit is included with regular Museum admission. The Museum is open daily, 8am-5pm CT and is located at I-65, Exit 28 in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

“After over a year of working on this project, it was a thrill being able to share it with the world,” said Bubnis. “I’d like to again thank Ilene Roth for getting behind this from the beginning and loaning us the precious artifacts we’d need to tell the Ed Roth story; Beau Boeckmann for his enthusiastic willingness to share so many of the original Roth cars with us and our guests; Dave Shuten for his devotion to the task of restoring these cars to a level of historic perfection that only someone who loved them would do; Rob Palmer and Gary Reid for sharing the cars that Roth inspired them to create; The Petersen Automotive Museum for loaning us “The Outlaw”: the National Automobile Museum for letting us display the “Beatnik Bandit”; the licensed artists who gave of their talents to be a part of this; the Museum team who worked so hard on this to make it as special as it had to be; and Tom Peters, design team leader of the last three generations of Corvette, for co-curating with us. This exhibit was designed to be a fun, educational, and inspiring look at the impact that one person had on the automotive world. We hope to bring back the memories for some and create new memories in another generation.”

Discovery Channel filmed the exhibit opening for a new series featuring Galpin Auto Sports titled ‘Driven’ slated to air late winter. As part of the ceremony Roth’s ‘Wishbone’ car was revealed after being restored by Galpin. That episode is slated to air in March 2020.

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Joining the display are Sideswipe (aka the 2009 Stingray Concept Corvette) from the second Transformers film, Revenge of the Fallen; and Crosshairs from the fourth Transformers film Age of Extinction.

Concept Corvettes offer an opportunity for designers to cut loose with their best ideas between generations of Corvettes. GM Design Chief, Tom Peters, always wanted to do a modern interpretation of the 1963 Corvette Stingray, and this was it. He made it silver and gave it the split window like the 1963, as well as the revered ‘Stingray’ badge.

Global VP of Design, Ed Welburn, liked where Tom was going with the design so much that he ordered a full-size working model of it to be built. Every detail was an opportunity for creative exploration, using carbon fiber, chrome, premium components and LED lighting. Even the engine cover was branded ‘Hybrid Stingray’ to point to future thinking.

When movie director Michael Bay went through the secret halls of GM one day looking for stars for the upcoming Transformers film, he liked the Stingray Concept so much that he created a character for it to play – renaming him ‘Sideswipe.’

Inspired by Ed Roth and his Rat Fink, Tom would go on to lead the design teams for the C6, C7 and the next generation mid-engine Corvette. The C7 debuted on January 13, 1013 to world-wide acclaim, and would later be chosen to star in the movie Transformers: Age of Extinction.

Based on a 2014 Corvette, this green movie-used car played the part of the adventurous paratrooper Crosshairs, fighting alongside the Autobots and Optimus Prime to defend the earth against the dreaded Decepticons.

Sideswipe is on loan from the GM Heritage Center while Crosshairs is on loan from DreamWorks Pictures.

The special exhibit is included with regular Museum admission.

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A world-class lifestyle event aimed to engage, excite and entertain families, racers and automotive enthusiasts alike will make its debut in downtown Chattanooga, Tenn. on October 11-13, 2019. The inaugural Chattanooga Motorcar Festival borrows the style of its European counterparts by incorporating unique classic car events tailored to the vintage/historic car collector and racer, and the welcoming hospitality that is the trademark of the American South. Each day will provide spectators different ways to enjoy the experience. It is hosted by the Westin Hotel and Chattanooga’s West Village.

Joining the Festival is a series of vintage and concept Corvettes, from the model’s outset to the latest mid-engine 2020 Stingray, on loan from the GM Heritage Center, National Corvette Museum and the Revs Institute. The display includes:

• 1953 Corvette, one of just 300 units that were hand-built that first year
• 1959 Corvette Stingray Racer Prototype
• 1963 Z06 Split-Window Race Car, one of only 6 built
• 1963 Corvette Grand Sport, number four of just five examples
• 1969 Chevrolet Manta Ray Concept Corvette
• 1972 Chevrolet Reynolds Aluminum Mid-Engine Corvette XP-895
• 2009 Centennial Concept Corvette (‘Sideswipe’ from Transformers II)
• 2020 Stingray Eighth Generation Corvette

In addition to the Corvette display, the National Corvette Museum and Corvette Store will be set up on-site, offering Corvette and car care merchandise for sale.

Three distinct components make up the three-day weekend of the Festival held on Chattanooga’s Riverfront, with all events scheduled for Friday and Saturday.

Between the Bridges Time Trials: A competitive event each day for authentic vintage and historic cars. One car against the clock will compete on a 1.5-mile circuit on Riverside Drive. The event, dubbed “A Driver, A Vehicle, A Clock,” will be limited to 50 cars, divided into approximately 10 classes.

Rendezvous of the Greats: “A Juried Contest of Elegance.” This Concours d’Elegance will be held on Saturday only. It will include a display of significant vintage and historic cars following a review, acceptance and confirmation of the vehicles by Concours Chairman Ken Gross, an award-winning automotive journalist.

High Jinks Rallye: “A Driver, A Navigator, A Challenge.” Participants will rallye through parts of Chattanooga that are hidden from the bustling downtown and beyond. Each day will have a new challenge and route for the driver and navigator to face.

Other events throughout the weekend round out the dynamic schedule, including lifestyle classes, interactive experiences for children, collector vehicle corrals, antique and classic boat presentations, a fundraising Garden Party for Erlanger on Friday night, and many other family-friendly events. Tickets for the Friday night Garden Party may be purchased at www.chattanoogamotorcar.com/garden-party.

For more information, go to www.ChattanoogaMotorcar.com or contact the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival at info@ChattanoogaMotorcar.com.

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In celebration of the class of 2019, the Museum’s Collections Department has curated a special display featuring a number of special items and vehicles to represent each of the three individuals. The items will be on display in the Museum’s Skydome throughout the Anniversary event, with smaller display cases featuring items from each remaining for one year.

1952 Cunningham C3

This is the second production car built by Briggs Cunningham and was his personal car. The car is on display as part of the tribute to Briggs Cunningham’s racing career that led up to the famed 1960 class win at Le Mans with Corvette. The car will be on display through the end of September 2019.

1960 Le Mans Corvette #3

This is the class winning #3 1960 Le Mans Corvette that ran as one of the team cars for Briggs Cunningham during the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans. With three Corvettes in total, numbered consecutively 1, 2, and 3, Briggs Cunningham was determined to take a class win at Le Mans. After the #1 and #2 cars had to be retired, this car was the only hope. After creatively packing the engine compartment with ice to keep it cool during the last few hours of the race, the #3 Corvette took the checkered flag and won its class.

1986 Corvette Indy styling buck
(pictured in header photo)

This is the styling buck for the 1986 Corvette Indy mid-engine concept car. The exterior design was developed by Tom Peters, the GM-Chevrolet inductee for 2019. According to John Cafaro, Executive Design Director of Chevrolet at the time, this car had a profound influence, not only on Chevrolet, but on many vehicles across the GM fleet and the automotive industry as a whole.

Tom Peters Fifth-Generation Styling Buck
(pictured in header photo)

To stimulate creativity, VP of Design, Chuck Jordan, challenged three Chevrolet design studios to develop a look for the revolutionary 5th Generation Corvette. The three contestants were the California Studio, John Cafaro’s Chevy 3 Studio, and the Advance 3 Studio, led by Tom Peters. When their final full-sized models were done, they took Chuck to an undisclosed location for their unveiling– Selfridge Air Force Base, in Harrison, Michigan, where he saw the cars parked near an F-16 fighter jet. John Cafaro’s version would move forward as the winner, but Tom always saw it as a friendly competition meant to stimulate ideas.

2009 Stingray Concept
(pictured in header photo)

When the C6 Corvette was finished, Design Chief Tom Peters, put his team to work on designing a modern interpretation of the 1963 split window Sting Ray and the original 1959 Stingray Racer. This concept car pulled together design elements from the heritage of other Corvette generations as well, ultimately catching the eye of Ed Welburn, Vice President of Global Design, who ordered it to go to full-sized clay, and then into a vehicle. This car would heavily influence the design of the 5^th Generation Camaro, as well as the 7^th, and even the current 8^th Generation Stingray. This Corvette concept car became most famous in “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” as the character known as Sideswipe.

Dollie Cole outfit

This outfit was designed and worn by Dollie Cole, this year’s inductee in the Enthusiast category. Dollie was strong, driven, fearless, beautiful, and outspoken, with a heart for lost causes and charities. As the proud wife of Ed Cole, President of General Motors, she fused her influence with her Texas bred tenacity, to get things done to help others in need, mostly underprivileged children and animals.

As a fan of Corvette, she would become a resource to struggling race teams in need some engineering help or sponsorship money; a speaker and fundraiser for Corvette clubs; and she would also serve as the Chairman of the Board at the National Corvette Museum during a time when the NCM needed someone with her leadership, vision, and connections, to get on the right road.

Make plans to visit the Museum between now and August 31, 2019 to catch a glimpse of these special items!

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