Tom Medley (20 March 1920 - 2 March 2014 ) was an American

hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimized for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and ma ...

der and

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comics illustrators/artists in that they produce both the litera ...

, best known as creator of

Stroker McGurk Stroker McGurk is a cartoon character created by Tom Medley, featured in Hot Rod magazine, ''Hot Rod'' and Rod and Custom magazine, ''Rod & Custom''. Medley's famed creation debuted in the third issue of ''Hot Rod'', and continued in the magazine u ...

History

Medley was born in

Lebanon, Oregon Lebanon ( ) is a city in Linn County, Oregon, Linn County, Oregon, United States. Lebanon is located in northwest Oregon, southeast of Salem, Oregon, Salem. The population was 19,690 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Lebanon sits be ...

, 20 March 1920.Vaughn, Mark, West Coast Editor. "Tom Medley 1920-2014", written 8 March 2014, a
''Autoweek'' online
(retrieved 24 October 2018) He became interested in auto racing at a young age, and would hitchhike up to to attend dirt track events.Tchekmedyian, Alene. "Hot rod legend, Tom Medley, 93, dies", written 7 March 2014, a
''Los Angeles Times'' online
(retrieved 23 October 2018) He served in the U.S. Army's 78th Infantry Division during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After the war ended, he enrolled at California's Art Center School, in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

. It was there, like many returning GIs, he became interested in hot rodding. Medley provided photographic coverage of the land speed racers at Bonneville Speed Weeks, and of the

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly shortened to Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indian ...

, from 1950 to 1964. He began displaying his cartoon creations at a local rod shop, Blair's Speed Shop, which helped get him a job at ''Hot Rod'' (when it was still called ''Honk!'') with just its second issue, in February 1948.Alverson, Brigid. "Stroker McGurk’ creator Tom Medley passes away", written 12 March 2014, a
CBR.rom
(retrieved 23 October 2018); Coonan, Steve. "Hot Rodding Legend Tom Medley Passes Away at 93", a
Roddersjournal.com
(retrieved 23 October 2018) Medley moved from humor editor to advertising in 1955, and stayed with Petersen Publishing until 1985.Coonan, Steve. "Hot Rodding Legend Tom Medley Passes Away at 93", a
Roddersjournal.com
(retrieved 23 October 2018) In December 1965, Medley was named publisher of ''Rod & Custom'',Alverson, Brigid. "Stroker McGurk’ creator Tom Medley passes away", written 12 March 2014, a
CBR.rom
(retrieved 23 October 2018) which he transformed from a general interest automotive and drag racing magazine (including coverage of

kart A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of small sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance ...

s) to a specialist

custom car A custom car is a passenger automobile, vehicle that has been altered to engine tuning, improve its performance, change its aesthetics, or combine both. Some automotive enthusiasts in the United States want to push "styling and performance a st ...

title. He ran contrary to the trend toward

muscle car A muscle car is an American-made two-door sports coupe with a powerful engine, marketed for its performance. In 1949, General Motors introduced its 88 with the company's OHV Rocket V8 engine, which was previously available only in its lux ...

s and

drag racing Drag racing is a type of motor racing in which automobiles or motorcycles compete, usually two at a time, to be first to cross a set finish line. The race follows a short, straight course from a standing start over a measured distance, mos ...

, and succeeded. Taking that position led to a brief revival of the Stroker McGurk cartoons in the magazine.

Stroker McGurk

Medley's famed creation, Stroker McGurk, debuted in the third issue of ''Hot Rod'' (when it was still called ''Honk!''), and continued in the magazine until 1955. He would reappear briefly in 1964 and 1965, and occasionally in ''Rod & Custom'' in the 1980s. Stroker (as he was always known) drove a trademark 1929 Ford roadster in most of his appearances, but he also innovated a number of things later copied by real-life racers, including multiple-engine dragsters,

traction bar Traction may refer to: Engineering *Forces: ** Traction (mechanics), adhesive friction or force ** Traction vector, in mechanics, the force per unit area on a surface, including normal and shear components * Traction motor, an electric motor us ...

s, and parachutes. Medley would create an equivalent character, Flat Out Snodgrass, for ''Cycle''.

Rodding

After discussions with Tex Smith, Medley helped organize the first

Street Rod Nationals The Street Rod Nationals is the world's largest street rod gathering. It is hosted annually by the NSRA (National Street Rod Association). The Street Rod Nationals was first held in 1970 in Illinois and is currently held in Louisville, Kentucky. ...

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is a city in Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located on the Illinois River, the city had a population of 113,150 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Ill ...

, in summer 1970. Medley had a favorite 1940 Ford 5-window, which was destroyed in 2011 in a garage fire; family and friends raised US$30,000 to have the car restored, presenting it to him 10 months later. He was a long-time friend of customizer Dick "Magoo" Megugorac.

Personal life

Medley had one son, Gary. He died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on 2 March 2014, after a brief illness, at 93.Vaughn, Mark, Crain News Service. "Cartoonist/creator of fictional hot rodder 'Stroker McGurk' dies", written 10 March 2014, a
Tirebusiness.com
(retrieved 23 October 2018); Tchekmedyian, Alene. "Hot rod legend, Tom Medley, 93, dies", written 7 March 2014, a

(retrieved 23 October 2018); Vaughn, Mark, West Coast Editor. "Tom Medley 1920-2014", written 8 March 2014, a
''Autoweek'' online
(retrieved 24 October 2018)

Notes

External links

''Hot Rod'' online
(obit)
Facebook
(memorial)
Pressreader.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Medley, Tom 1920 births 2014 deaths People from Lebanon, Oregon Artists from Oregon American cartoonists American caricaturists 20th-century American artists DIY culture American publishers (people) United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War II