"If you said you were bringing a Batmobile for a car show, the show would just absolutely be mobbed with people who wanted to see the car. It was a major contribution to the popularity of a film that you had the people taking a picture next to the car. That was a thrill. We made that car be a star on film as well as in real life."

    About This Interview

    In his three-hour interview, George Barris (1925-2015) talks about his early years customizing his own cars as a teenager and describes his participation in the street racing youth culture of the late 1940s in Los Angeles. He discusses the craze in low budget Hollywood films to depict this culture thus leading to his work in film and television. Barris describes, in great detail, the custom cars from various television series for which he is best known, including the "Batmobile" from Batman, the "Munster Koach" and "Drag-u-la" from The Munsters, the family car from The Beverly Hillbillies, the red with white-stripe Ford Torino from Starsky and Hutch, the "General Lee" from The Dukes of Hazzard, and "K.I.T.T." from Knight Rider. He also talks about his contributions to such feature films as Ghostbusters, Back to the Future, and The Flintstones. Additionally, Barris discusses his role as a pioneer of custom designing cars and talks about his extensive celebrity clientele that included Elvis Presley, Bob Hope, Redd Foxx, and Zsa Zsa Gabor. Karen Herman conducted the interview on April 21, 2004 in North Hollywood, CA.

    All views expressed by interviewees are theirs alone and not necessarily those of the Television Academy.
    People Talking About ...
    Thumbnail of George Barris

    George Barris on making the "Batmobile" for Batman

    09:13
    Thumbnail of George Barris

    George Barris on making cars for The Beverly Hillbillies

    04:27
    Thumbnail of George Barris

    George Barris on designing the "Munster Coach" and the "Dragula" for The Munsters starring Fred Gwynne as "Herman Munster" and Al Lewis as "Grandpa Munster"

    08:31
    Thumbnail of George Barris

    George Barris on growing his custom cars business in the 1960s

    02:47
    Thumbnail of George Barris

    George Barris on designing cars for the feature film "Back to the Future"

    01:37
    Thumbnail of George Barris

    George Barris on his work on the feature film "Ghostbusters"

    00:56
    Play Full Interview

    Chapter 1

    On his early life and influences; on his early interest in cars; on his involvement with cars during his high school years

    15:08

    On moving to Los Angeles to start his custom cars business and getting involved in the "street racing" culture there; on celebrities' early interest in his custom cars, and on the pitfalls of making custom cars; on making custom cars for various celebrities, and various feature films

    14:55

    Chapter 2

    On his work designing a car for a Dragnet episode; on making cars for Route 66; on designing cars for 77 Sunset Strip, and on touring the car from the show

    09:27

    On growing his custom cars business in the 1960s; on knowing how his custom cars would look once they were on camera; on designing a car for The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis starring Dwayne Hickman

    07:14

    On losing many of his cars in a fire in the 1960s and on opening his North Hollywood shop; on designing the "Munster Coach" and the "Dragula" for The Munsters starring Fred Gwynne as "Herman Munster" and Al Lewis as "Grandpa Munster"

    13:48

    Chapter 3

    On licensing cars like the "Munster Coach" for toys; on making cars for The Beverly Hillbillies; on knowing what colors to use for his cars on television and in feature films

    08:47

    On making the car for My Mother the Car; on making the Batmobile for Batman

    11:45

    On the choice of Bronson Cave for the location of the Batcave on Batman; on working with Batman creator Bob Kane on the design of the Batmobile for Batman

    02:54

    On the number of Batmobiles he made for Batman; on designing the Bat Boat, the Batcopter, and the Batcycle for Batman; on work he did for Batman projects subsequent to Batman

    06:26

    Chapter 4

    On his work for The Green Hornet; on his work for The Monkees; on his work for Mannix

    08:43

    On working on Sid and Marty Krofft shows including The Bugaloos and H.R. Pufnstuf; on the challenges his custom car business faced in the 1970s; on his work for The Partridge Family

    05:26

    On making cars for M*A*S*H; on his work for Bearcats; on his work for Starsky and Hutch

    07:32

    On making cars for Fantasy Island; on working on CHiPs; on his work for Knight Rider

    07:32

    Chapter 5

    On his work on Knight Rider; on working on The Dukes of Hazzard

    09:07

    On some of his film work including "Back to the Future" and "Ghostbusters"; on customizing private cars for Redd Foxx, Bob Hope, and Elvis Presley; on the craft of car design and customization

    19:38

    Chapter 6

    On making a car for Zsa Zsa Gabor; on the car that best expresses him; on communicating with his staff when creating cars, and on running his custom car business

    11:46

    On his career highlights; on customizing a car for an episode of Extreme Makeover

    05:00

    On advice to aspiring custom car designers; on how he would like to be remembered

    06:15

    77 Sunset Strip

    George Barris on designing cars for 77 Sunset Strip, and on touring the car from the show

    01:50

    Batman

    George Barris on making the "Batmobile" for Batman

    09:13

    George Barris on the choice of Bronson Cave for the location of the Batcave on Batman

    00:52

    George Barris on working with Batman creator Bob Kane on the design of the Batmobile for Batman

    02:02

    George Barris on the number of Batmobiles he made for Batman

    02:21

    George Barris on designing the Bat Boat, the Batcopter, and the Batcycle for Batman

    01:05

    George Barris on work he did for Batman projects subsequent to Batman

    03:00

    Bearcats!

    George Barris on his work for Bearcats

    01:45

    Beverly Hillbillies, The

    George Barris on making cars for The Beverly Hillbillies

    04:27

    Bugaloos, The

    George Barris on working on Sid and Marty Krofft shows including The Bugaloos and H.R. Pufnstuf

    01:37

    CHiPs

    George Barris on working on CHiPs

    00:38

    Dragnet

    George Barris on his work designing a car for a Dragnet episode

    05:10

    Dukes of Hazzard, The

    George Barris on his work on The Dukes of Hazzard

    05:29

    Extreme Makeover

    George Barris on customizing a car for an episode of Extreme Makeover

    02:48

    Fantasy Island

    George Barris on making cars for Fantasy Island

    01:56

    Green Hornet, The

    George Barris on his work for The Green Hornet

    02:52

    H. R. Pufnstuf

    George Barris on working on Sid and Marty Krofft shows including The Bugaloos and H.R. Pufnstuf

    01:37

    Hill Street Blues

    George Barris on working on Hill Street Blues

    02:46

    Knight Rider

    George Barris on his work for Knight Rider

    02:12

    George Barris on his work on Knight Rider

    03:39

    M*A*S*H

    George Barris on making cars for M*A*S*H

    01:52

    Mannix

    George Barris on his work for Mannix

    03:01

    Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The

    George Barris on designing a car for The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis starring Dwayne Hickman

    01:29

    Monkees, The

    George Barris on his work for The Monkees

    02:50

    Munsters, The

    George Barris on designing the "Munster Coach" and the "Dragula" for The Munsters starring Fred Gwynne as "Herman Munster" and Al Lewis as "Grandpa Munster"

    08:31

    George Barris on licensing cars like the "Munster Coach" for toys

    01:41

    My Mother the Car

    George Barris on making the car for My Mother the Car

    02:32

    Partridge Family, The

    George Barris on his work for The Partridge Family, including the bus

    02:18

    Route 66

    George Barris on making cars for Route 66

    02:27

    Starsky and Hutch

    George Barris on his work for Starsky and Hutch

    03:54

    Pop Culture

    George Barris on designing the "Munster Coach" and the "Dragula" for The Munsters starring Fred Gwynne as "Herman Munster" and Al Lewis as "Grandpa Munster"

    08:31

    George Barris on making the "Batmobile" for Batman

    09:13

    Television Industry

    George Barris on licensing cars like the "Munster Coach" for toys

    01:41

    George Barris on the challenges his custom car business faced in the 1970s

    01:31

    Custom Car Designer

    George Barris on knowing how his custom cars would look once they were on camera

    02:58

    Geroge Barris on knowing what colors to use for his cars on television and in feature films

    02:39

    George Barris on the craft of car customization

    04:28

    George Barris on the car that best expresses him

    03:48

    George Barris on communicating with his staff when creating cars, and on running his custom car business

    05:57

    George Barris on advice to aspiring custom car designers

    05:16

    Designers

    George Barris on knowing how his custom cars would look once they were on camera

    02:58

    Geroge Barris on knowing what colors to use for his cars on television and in feature films

    02:39

    George Barris on the craft of car customization

    04:28

    George Barris on the car that best expresses him

    03:48

    George Barris on communicating with his staff when creating cars, and on running his custom car business

    05:57

    George Barris on advice to aspiring custom car designers

    05:16

    Adventure/Espionage Series

    George Barris on making cars for Route 66

    02:27

    Comedy Series

    George Barris on designing a car for The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis starring Dwayne Hickman

    01:29

    George Barris on designing the "Munster Coach" and the "Dragula" for The Munsters starring Fred Gwynne as "Herman Munster" and Al Lewis as "Grandpa Munster"

    08:31

    George Barris on making cars for The Beverly Hillbillies

    04:27

    George Barris on making the car for My Mother the Car

    02:32

    Cop/Detective/Mystery Series

    George Barris on his work designing a car for a Dragnet episode

    05:10

    George Barris on designing cars for 77 Sunset Strip and on touring the car from the show

    01:50

    George Barris on making the "Batmobile" and various other vehicles for Batman

    18:33

    Reality TV

    George Barris on customizing a car for an episode of Extreme Makeover

    02:47

    Redd Foxx

    George Barris on designing a car for Redd Foxx

    02:00

    Zsa Zsa Gabor

    George Barris on making a car for Zsa Zsa Gabor

    02:01

    Fred Gwynne

    George Barris on designing the "Munster Coach" and the "Dragula" for The Munsters starring Fred Gwynne as "Herman Munster" and Al Lewis as "Grandpa Munster"

    08:31

    Dwayne Hickman

    Custom car designer George Barris on his work for a Dragnet episode

    03:20

    Bob Hope

    George Barris on designing Bob Hope's golf cart

    02:20

    Bob Kane

    George Barris on working with Batman creator Bob Kane on the design of the Batmobile for Batman

    02:02

    Marty Krofft

    George Barris on working on Sid and Marty Krofft shows including The Bugaloos and H.R. Pufnstuf

    01:37

    Sid Krofft

    George Barris on working on Sid and Marty Krofft shows including The Bugaloos and H.R. Pufnstuf

    01:37

    Al Lewis

    George Barris on designing the "Munster Coach" and the "Dragula" for The Munsters starring Fred Gwynne as "Herman Munster" and Al Lewis as "Grandpa Munster"

    08:31

    Elvis Presley

    George Barris on designing for Elvis Presley

    06:28

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