George Cerny

George Cerny

George Cerny's 1932 Ford Tudor

George Cerny's 1949 Chevrolet 4-dour Fleetline

George Cerny's 1950 Plymouth Suburban

George Cerny was born in 1916 in Huntington Park, a suburb of Los Angeles. He got his first car at the age of 10 or 11, a Model T Ford that he gave five bucks for. George had dozens of cars during the next few years, and he was always working on them trying to make them go faster and look better. When he was old enough he went to Muroc to race.

George's first job was spraying porcelain for O'keefe and Merritt, who made home appliances. After a while his brother in law who had worked on the paint line at the Detroit auto factories moved out to California and opened Foster's Auto Paint and Metal Shop in back of the Sutton Ford dealership in Inglewood. George went to work for his brother in law painting cars. Because of his interest in modified cars, George attracted a young crowd who were coming around to get their cars painted. The shop became a place to hang out, and George worked on a lot of hot rods and customs.

In 1942 George decided to open up his own shop, and leased a property at 1514 North Long Beach Boulevard in Compton. He erected a rickety building, and called his new venture Cerny's Auto Paint & Body Shop. One of the trends George started back then was tinting white primer. A trend he called "Easter Colors". Back then a lot of the guys drove around in primer while they saved up to have their cars painted. George began to add a little bit of color to the primer. He had an Acme mixing machine, and he'd squirt a little toner into the primer. The trend became a popular fad, and he even painted all of Ebb Rose's Indy Cars in "Easter Colors".

George Cerny's Cars

George Cerny's 1932 Ford Tudor
George Cerny's 1949 Chevrolet
George Cerny's 1950 Oldsmobile Holiday Coupe
George Cerny's 1950 Plymouth Suburban
George Cerny's 1951 Chevrolet Pick Up
George Cerny's 1953 Oldsmobile