Swanx of Oakland

A Swanx of Oakland group shot taken at the Los Angeles Motorama in the mid 1950s. All club members wore derby's, except for the President, he wore a top hat. Photo courtesy of The Swanx Photo Collection.

A Swanx of Oakland group shot, showing some of the members in their "uniforms", consisting of club jackets and derby hats. Photo courtesy of The Swanx Photo Collection.

A group of Swanx of Oakland members photographed in 1954. Photo courtesy of the Swanx car club.

Ted Leventhal's 1950 Chevrolet Convertible displayed in front of the Swanx banner at the 6th annual Motor Revue and Motorama, October 14-23, 1955.

The original Swanx banner, from the 1955 Motor Revue and Motorama, as it appeared in 2013. Photo courtesy of Swanx Vallejo.

Gary Elmore's 1949 Ford of Castro Valley, California. Gary was a member of the Swanx of Vallejo car club, and his Ford was shown at the 1955 National Roadster Show.

Ted Leventhal's 1950 Chevrolet Convertible of Oakland, California was restyled by Emory Robinson's Custom Shop in 1955. Painted in a green iridescent lacquer by Mel Pinoli's Body and Paint Shop, Ted's Chevrolet is known as the first car ever to receive a Candy paint job.

Johnny Johnson's 1951 Kaiser of Oakland, California. Johnny was a founding member of the Swanx of Oakland car club.

Ted Lundquist's 1951 Kaiser of Oakland, California. Ted was a founding member of the Swanx of Oakland car club.

Gary Elmore's 1953 Studebaker of Castro Valley, California. Gary, who was a member of the Swanx of Oakland car club, restyled the Studebaker himself, with the help of a couple of good friends. The build, known as Exotica, was completed around 1959-1960.

Swanx car club, of Oakland, California, was founded by Ted Lundquist and Johnny Johnson in 1952. From 1952 to 1961 the list of Presidents included Johnny Johnson, Hollis "Holly" Berg, Scotty Bergerson, John Bradas, George "Red" Krug, Gary Mayer, Boyd "Babe" Mesecher, Gene Newman, Bill Sprott, Ray Stroud, and Art "Waggie" Wagner. Beyond the Presidents, the club counted more then 100 members through the time of that chapter. You had to own a car to be voted in as a member of the club, and your car had to meet certain standards with the club to have a plaque.^[1]