So Long George Barris, And Thank You
There are individuals who have an impact on the lives of millions of people just by living out their passion. George Barris was one of them.
George Barris was born in Chicago on November 20, 1925. As a child, he’d have fun creating scale models of cars out of wood, and won a few prizes thanks to the precision of his artwork. His first real creation turned out to be a modified 1925 Buick, completed with the help of his brother Sam. That successful project helped the Barris brothers start their journey to celebrity.
After the Second World War, the Barris brothers started working on new projects that turned out to be successful, as they got noticed by the Hollywood crowd. In 1958, one of the Barris’ creations was featured on the big screen in High School Confidential. From there on, their road to glory was paved; George was the creator, the artist and the promoter while Sam brought his brother’s projects to life.
Over the years, George Barris created vehicles that marked the movie industry, and his rise to fame escalated with the 1966 Batmobile. Aside from that car, which filled the imagination of boys (and girls) everywhere, there have been dozens of others that have appeared in movies and on television. The Munster Koach, Starsky & Hutch’s red and white Torino as well as Knight Rider’s Firebird are only a few of Barris’ creations that became famous.
This artist passed away peacefully yesterday in his Los Angeles residence. He was 89.
The world should be filled with more people like George Barris.
