[427TJ]

I was at the Seattle Roadster Show a couple of years ago and was browsing at a vendor table. The guy at the table asks me if I need any help and I look up and see that it's Gene Winfield, the famous customizer. Stunned, I just looked at him for a few seconds and then managed to say "You're Gene Winfield!" and I held out my hand. He shook hands with me and said, "Yes, that's me." He must have thought I was from the moon but I was just out of it when I was looking at his stuff. Back in the '60s when I was a kid and a model car nut I saw Gene Winfield's name and face on those great AMT car kits. Looking up and seeing him right in front of me was just a shock. I bought a poster of his, the 1957 LIFE magazine cover photo of Norm Grabowski's T-bucket at a drive-in, and had Gene sign it. Man, I was just star-struck. I babbled about AMT model cars and he chuckled and then I thanked him for his autograph and went back to the show. Neat guy.