Make: Volume 74

Ed Roth was a huge influence on 1960s kids,

and I was no exception. We were crazy for

all his kooky creations: weirdo T-shirts and

decals, plastic Rat Fink and car models, slot car

magazines and comic books, and Hot Wheels

cars. It all started with Roth’s wild custom hot

rods, seen at car shows and in magazines. Revell

licensed his car designs for model kits and

created the moniker Ed “Big Daddy” Roth (he had

five kids). Testors sold “Roth Custom Finishes”

paints in colors named after his cars. Mattel

re-created his Beatnik Bandit as one of the first

Hot Wheels cars. Kids eagerly anticipated Roth’s

next car and gobbled it all up.

But in 1964 ...