Bellflower High School

A photo of Earl Bruce's flamboyant Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing, captured at the 1957 Long Beach Renegades Car Club Renecade. This Gullwing wasn't just any luxury sports car; it was a custom sensation adorned with dramatic flames that mirrored the fiery passion of the era's car culture. Snapped on July 4 at Bellflower High School, this image hails from a show with entrants from all over California vying for a towering 56-inch trophy for best in show. Von Dutch gave the car its iconic flame paint job in 1956, and he once told Terry Cook that he thought they were going to lynch him for desecrating a shrine. Earl's Mercedes stands as a testament to the ingenuity and boldness that defined the car shows of the 1950s. Photo from The George Contaoi Photo Collection.