Book Review: Muscle Car Dream Garages

Review by Russell Purcell

So you’ve worked hard and socked away a little money, or better yet, signed a huge endorsement deal. Maybe you came out on top in the lottery sweepstakes. Now the big question is what to spend those big bags of cash on? For most people a stable of automobiles is pretty high on the list.

Noted automotive photographer Simon Green has put together a very interesting book that gives us a peek inside the garages of some of the most famous (and infamous) stars from the world of sports, entertainment and popular culture. Muscle Car Dream Garages dedicates a chapter to each personality, fleshing out each individual’s unique tastes through a mixture of personal reflection and insightful captions, all made bigger than life through Green’s creative photography.

Mr. Green begins the book with a brief intro explaining how shortly after emigrating from England he became aware of American muscle cars through the star status they carried in most television shows and films. Weak on knowledge, but in search of muscular American iron, he found himself with the keys to a 1964 Oldsmobile Cutlass. He loves his car, and wanted to create this book based on the concept that each of his subjects shares his infatuation with the American muscle car and the sense of adventure that comes with owning one.

I like this book, but I am not sure Mr. Green really understands what cars are typically considered muscle cars. There are sixteen celebrities featured in the book, but the majority of them seem to have 1960s era Cadillacs and Lincoln Continentals, cars you would be hard pressed to list as muscle cars. Where are the ‘Cudas, GTOs, Mustangs, Chargers and Camaros? Just to name a few. Despite the poor choice of title, the book is well written and chock full of beautiful photos.

We learn of Funkmaster Flex’s love for Chevy Chevelles, but a pair of modern Mustangs flesh out his fourteen car collection. He reveals that one headache that comes with fame is that he needs to have someone else buy his cars for him; it’s the only way he can get them for a fair price.

Former Green Bay Packer Gilbert Brown’s father worked for Chrysler and loved to spend his off time at the drag strip with his son. This spawned Gilbert’s passion to the point that he has filled his massive garage with some pretty special cars, but his biggest prize is part ownership in the famed Milwaukee Mile racetrack.

We learn that motorcycle racers Ben and Eric Bostrum like to collect cars together, but storing their two classic Cadillacs and drop-top Continental is a challenge as their garage is still under construction and an over-abundance of motorcycles compete for space. A similar theme finds BMX star Matt Hoffmann driving a 1960 Cadillac Coupe de Ville and a 1972 Fleetwood limousine.

Moto GP star Colin Edwards has an eclectic collection, but after seeing the movie Gone in 60 Seconds he was smitten by the star car, Eleanor. The “Texas Tornado” called on Unique Performance to build him one of their incredible 750-hp Shelby Super Snake Mustangs and he is proud to say he “drives the shit out of it!”

Custom chopper builder Billy Lane shares his passion for Corvettes with his father. The interesting fact here is Billy likes to restore the cars to factory specifications rather than transform them into elaborate show pieces like the bikes he builds for his clients at Chopper Inc.

One of Billy’s rivals is also featured in the book. Like Billy, Joe Martin made his name creating two-wheeled sculptures for well-heeled customers and made his name a little more prominent through participation on Discovery Channel’s Biker Build-Off series. Unlike Mr.Lane however, Joe likes the Pro Touring look, so his toys all sport flashy custom paint jobs and massive rims.

Other celebrities include:

Tina Basich – Pro snowboarder
Erick Dampier – NBA – Dallas Mavericks
Thomas DuPont – Publisher of the DuPont Registry
Jeff “Left Hook” Lacey – Boxer
T.J. Lavin – MTV host and pro BMX rider.
Lonie Paxton- NFL – New England Patriots
Heath Pinter – Hotrod builder and pro BMX rider.
Chris Wilcox – NBA – Seattle Seahawks
Trevor Vines – Trevor Vines – Freestyle motocross

If cars are your passion and you like shows like MTV’s Cribs, then Muscle Car Dream Garages is well worth adding to your automotive library.

www.motorbooks.com
ISBN-13: 9780760330388
ISBN: 0760330387
Price: $38.95 CAN