Hirohata Merc ON THE BLOCK
The Hirohata Mercury, arguably most famous custom car of all time, owned by one California family for 59 years, is about to be offered for sale. Custom car enthusiasts can’t wait to see the result. Will it be the “Million Dollar Merc?”
Before we speculate on that question, let’s examine the car, the culture and legend.
THE BASICS OF A CUSTOM LEGEND
If ever a single car has come to define its genre, this 1951 Mercury hardtop, built by George and Sam Barris for Los Angeles custom-car enthusiast Bob Hirohata, is it. Hand-crafted in mid-century by the Barris Brothers, who were some of the best talent in the business, and featured in countless magazines (not to mention it was a scene-stealing Hollywood B-movie star), this stunning car was highly acclaimed in its heyday. Then its first owner was murdered in a drive-by shooting, and the obsolete custom fell into disrepair and disappeared for a time. Decades later, it emerged as the centerpiece of an exhibit at the Oakland Museum and, after a serious re-restoration, it starred at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
THE CULTURE BEHIND THE HIROHATA MERC
When World War II ended in 1945, pent-up demand for new cars drove America’s automobile industry to convert, in record time, from producing war materiel back to building civilian vehicles. Deprived of their formative years, returning GIs with saved-up combat pay demanded new wheels right away. So did the gas-rationed and war-deprived civilian population. To quickly meet demand for the 1946 model year, Detroit’s automakers offered what came to be known as “warmed over” 1942 models: prosaic cars
