For the faithful, the curious, the hot rod purist, or for the rest of us who are waiting time at work, surfing the web on the boss’s dime…here are a handful of more vintage shots of the ‘34 PBC courtesy of our friends at the NHRA Museum in Pomona, California. The Coupe will be on display in the museum until May 2010, so swing by and see it in the flesh as well as the other great exhibits on display. This month don’t miss the Museum’s newest photographic exhibit featuring award winning photos, features, and race coverage from 50 years of National Dragster Magazine.

Watch for the next post on the PBC for rarely seen interior photos.

If you’re fortunate enough to have a copy of our Premiere issue (I don’t even have one!) from early 2002, you’ll remember our feature on Jungle Pam Hardy. Always been a fan of hers and Don Moats turned us onto yet another picture page of her and Jim gettin’ DOWN (here). Not in that way, dude. Sheesh.

There is a lot of history per square foot at Heinold’s Saloon.  In spite the strip mall and office buildings they are building around it, Heinold’s still stands very much as it did in 1883.  While that birthdate might not impress our Eastern-bred editor, in Left Coast terms, it might as well have been spawned in the Big Bang.  You can sit at the very same table where Jack London did his homework on and drink at the sloped bar that was restyled by the 1906 earthquake.  The place has been a hangout for the Oakland HA and William Taft and thousands of commuters and sailors looking for their first or last.  There is a neat interview with Heinold talking about Jack London here.

this great photo was found at the Jockey Journal 

In the last issue, David Burge took us over the border into Juarez with Mike Lightbourn – the guy who discovered the remains of Ed Roth’s Orbitron – and embarked on the haphazard journey of one of the greatest car culture archaeological digs of the century. The Orbitron was found and was destined for more glory than it originally ever enjoyed.

Now, months and untold zillions of dollars later, Beau Boeckmann (of Galpin Auto Sports fame) unveiled the finished restoration of the three-light monster in fine L.A. style last night to a heady mixture of hot rod royalty and SoCal hipsterdom.Darryl Roth was there with brothers Dennis and Charlie, custom paint icons Bill Carter and Larry Watson were trading stories (Bill was on a cane after getting hit by a truck on his motorsikkle – guys half his age wouldn’t be doing so well!), Dave Shuten – who headed up the Orbi’s restoration – was breathing a well-deserved sigh of satisfaction, Robert and Suzanne Williams were chatting it up with some L.A. hip-hop guys, Xzibit and Jelly Roll were wondering “where all they alcoholics at?!?” and Mike Lightbourn represented El Paso with all his homies extremely well.

Now, I’m not exactly sure who all the celebs were on the step-and-repeat and I’m pretty sure there were more than a few hipsters in attendance who had absolutely no idea who Ed Roth was and what the big fuss over the little blue car was all about, but hey – that’s L.A. and it’s quite a scene.

Here’s the thing, though: there were a few thousand people at this event and it took 30 minutes just to get off the freeway exit and onto the Galpin Ford grounds. Even if just a handful of all the bedazzled blazer crowd were stopped in their tracks by one of the greatest car culture finds of our generation, that’s a good thing and I’d like to think a few more gearheads were born again last night…

…and an original Tudor with its original owner driving down the California coast this afternoon. Somewhere near Ojai.

Friend to all hotrodders (and anyone else who likes to do neat stuff), Iowahawk has created an abridged history of the most influential car this planet has ever seen on his blog (here).He can’t let that kewl little history lesson go without his Top 10 list of favorite Model T hot rods and we have to agree with him almost 100%. Full disclosure: we have NOT discussed this list with Joe The Plumber…