''Silhouette'' was an award-winning

show car A show car, sometimes called a dream car, is a custom-made automobile created specifically for public display, rather than sale. They are shown at auto shows and other exhibitions. Show cars can either come from car companies or from private indiv ...

built by

Bill Cushenbery Bill Cushenbery (March 22, 1933 – December 12, 1998) was an American car customizer, show car builder, and model kit designer. Cushenbery was a major influence on the look of custom cars and the customizing industry in general. In addition ...

in 1962. It debuted at the 1963 Oakland Roadster Show.

History

''Silhouette'' was designed in collaboration with artist Don Varner. Its all-original body made it Cushenbery's first full show car, rather than

custom car A custom car is a passenger vehicle that has been either substantially altered to improve its performance, often by altering or replacing the engine and transmission; made into a personal "styling" statement, using paint work and aftermarket ...

. ''Silhouette'' debuted at the 1963 Oakland Roadster Show and earned Cushenbery his first Master Builder Award. It won first class in the "Tournament of Frame" at the show, which prize included a trip to Paris, France for Cushenbery and his wife. Later the car toured as part of Ford's Custom Car Caravan. ''Silhouette'' was mistakenly sold to a bodyshop in North Hollywood, then later bought by a friend of Cushenbery's who planned to restore it. The partially disassembled car was on a trailer when the car and trailer together were stolen. In 2013 it was reported that the bubble top and some mechanical parts had been found, but the engine and the rest of the body remained missing.

Features

''Silhouette'' was built on a shortened 1956

Buick Buick () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American marques of automobiles, and was the company that established General ...

chassis. Cushenbery hand-hammered the body out of 20-gauge steel. In the style of some other show rods of the time, Cushenbery added a bubble canopy roof — front-hinged and supplied by Acry Plastics in this case. The body was candy-painted with a mixture of black, red, and gold. ''Silhouette'' made extensive use of electric controls on the dash or hidden in the car's trim for things like raising and lowering the bubble top, opening the hood and trunk, starting the engine, turning on and off the lights, and running the blower fans. The tires were mounted on reversed

Cadillac The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed ...

wheels. The car was originally powered by a Buick Nailhead V8 that was later fitted with Hilborn

fuel injection Fuel injection is the introduction of fuel in an internal combustion engine, most commonly automotive engines, by the means of an injector. This article focuses on fuel injection in reciprocating piston and Wankel rotary engines. All com ...

. By the time the car appeared in Ford's Custom Car Caravan, the Buick engine had been swapped out for a

Ford FE engine The Ford FE engine is a Ford V8 engine used in vehicles sold in the North American market between 1958 and 1976. The FE was introduced to replace the short-lived (in the USA) Ford Y-block engine, which American cars and trucks were outgrowing. I ...

Models and media

''Silhouette'' appeared in the 1965 movie "Beach Ball". It was also in the opening and closing sequences of the 1968 television special "Wonderful World of Wheels", driven by narrator

Lloyd Bridges Lloyd Vernet Bridges Jr. (January 15, 1913 – March 10, 1998) was an American film, stage and television actor who starred in a number of television series and appeared in more than 150 feature films. He was the father of four children, includi ...

. A 1/25 scale model of the car was issued, then revised and reissued twice more, by

AMT Amt is a type of administrative division governing a group of municipalities, today only in Germany, but formerly also common in other countries of Northern Europe. Its size and functions differ by country and the term is roughly equivalent to ...

. A 1/64 scale model of ''Silhouette'' was one of the original "Sweet 16"

Hot Wheels Hot Wheels is an American brand of scale model cars introduced by American toymaker Mattel in 1968. It was the primary competitor of Matchbox until 1997, when Mattel bought Tyco Toys, then owner of Matchbox. Many automobile manufacturers ha ...

cars issued. A model of the car was also manufactured in 1/43 scale by

Mebetoys Meccanica Bessana Toys (mostly known for its acronym and tradename Mebetoys), was an Italian toy manufacturer that produced die-cast scale model cars during the 1960s and 1970s. The company was purchased by Mattel in 1969, which continued commer ...

, and sold in the US as part of their "Gran Toros" line, and in Italy as part of their "Serie Sputafuoco", or "Spitfire series". Mebetoys was bought by

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more ...

in 1969. ''Silhouette'' was mentioned in a magazine article written by

Tom Wolfe Thomas Kennerly Wolfe Jr. (March 2, 1930 – May 14, 2018)Some sources say 1931; ''The New York Times'' and Reuters both initially reported 1931 in their obituaries before changing to 1930. See and was an American author and journalist widely ...

titled "

The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby ''The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby'' is the title of Tom Wolfe's first collected book of essays, published in 1965. The book is named for one of the stories in the collection that was originally published in '' Esquire magazine'' ...

Featured appearances

*''Rod & Custom'', January 1963 *''Hot Rod'' magazine, May 1963 *''Car Craft'', August 1963 — ROD SPECIAL, A Profile of Bill Cushenbery *''Popular Customs'', January 1966 *''Hot Rod Deluxe'', May 2009 — 15th Annual Oakland Roadster Show, 1963

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Silhouette (show rod) Modified vehicles One-off cars Buick vehicles 1950s cars 1960s cars Kustom Kulture Individual cars Rear-wheel-drive vehicles