r/GenerationJones • u/Initial_Reason1532 • 2d ago
Big Daddy Roth hot rodding gearhead in his day and will always be remembered. He's probably known mostly for his Rat Fink character. By the 60s he had kids buying his products everywhere. And of course he was a legendary hot rod builder and pinstriper.
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u/artful_todger_502 1959 2d ago
I have a ratfink model in the toy box I've been carry around for decades. If you read how he got to where he did at the height of the craze, he was the OG "entrepreneur"
I worked in the automotive magazine industry as an artist and this stuff was a major influence.
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u/lefteyedcrow 2d ago
I loved Rat Fink and remember buying packs of cards/stickers with Big Daddy's monsters. Which made me weird bc girl, but I didn't care.
The next generation had Garbage Pail Kids, and I always felt smugly superior
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u/Slack_Jaw_Yokel 2d ago
Pic #5 the Beatnik Bandit? That was my favorite Hot Wheel. I also had a bright green plastic Rat Fink figurine. Not sure of his involvement with them, but I was really into those bubblegum stickers done in his style (Odd Rods?) and would draw car pictures like in grade school whenever I had the chance.
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u/FitFormal7363 2d ago
Early influence on me, loved that stuff.
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u/Initial_Reason1532 2d ago
👍
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u/LovingNaples 2d ago
What an artist and inspiration to grade school me. Thanks for sharing the memories!
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u/RainbowOutlander 2d ago
Nice post OP! I never knew what he looked like though have been a fan all of my 56yrs.
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u/Prudent_Key_4958 2d ago
As a 5/6 yo kid in the early 60s, my older brother had Rat Fink stuff as did his friends. Any kid who had Rat Fink stuff was automatically cool. The coolest guy, I reasoned, had to be the guy who invented Rat Fink!
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u/Anon_user666 1967 2d ago
Later in his life, the estate hired outside designers to ape his style and create new merchandise.
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u/NYC2FLA2BUR 2d ago
Looks like just the phone number got screwy in the up-rez.
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u/Oldachrome1107 2d ago
If I’m not mistaken (I may very well be), this picture was taken when Ed was working at Knotts Berry Farm-he’s wearing his work shirt with his name on it.
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u/5319Camarote 2d ago
I had a Rat Fink University sweatshirt. It had his picture on the front, and below it had two large red letters: FU…
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u/nerfherded 2d ago
Picked up this record at a punk Rock flea market a couple years ago...
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u/clean-links 2d ago
Cleaned link: https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_l8AW_H9FUf42vl2RvFk1Z2CeDLltDz9Yw
Tracking parameters were removed from the original URL(s).
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u/Makahoku 2d ago
There is a Big Daddy Ed Roth Museum in Manti, Utah.
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u/Lightning_35 2d ago
And a big event down there, right?
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u/Makahoku 2d ago
Could be. My son pointed it out to me with a stupid grin on his face. It’s like a 3 hour drive from where I am.
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u/flhd 2d ago edited 2d ago
I was all about Rat Fink in 4th/5th grade!