Although it may seem hard to fathom today, many of the well-known creations built by National Rod & Custom Hall of Fame members were lost, damaged, or destroyed after the custom car heyday faded in the 1960s. While we revere vehicles such as the Hirohata Merc, the Aztec, and the Golden Indian, at one point they were seen as just "old show cars" by second- or third-hand owners who allowed them to languish.
Such was the case with this '51 Ford Victoria, originally built by legendary Northern California customizer Joe Bailon. Thankfully, it was discovered and restored by a dedicated custom enthusiast named Paul McElley. The restoration was completed in the mid-1980s, shortly before these never-before-published photos were taken. Paul died in 1990, and eventually the Ford was put on permanent display at the Oakland Museum as part of its tribute to California's car culture.
To truly grasp this car's story, it helps to know both its creator and its restorer. Joe Bailon customized his first car while still in high school and, after serving in World War II, the self-taught bodyman became one of the best-known customizers in Northern California. The creation of his Miss Elegance '41 Chevy in the early 1950s really set his career in motion, while he secured his status as a custom car legend by pioneering Candy Apple Red paint (as well as other candy finishes) later in the decade.
Paul McElley saw Bailon's Miss Elegance as a kid at the Oakland Roadster Show, and was a Bailon fan thereafter. A garbage man by trade, Paul messed with cars all his life and eventually quit his job to do bodywork and paint on a full-time basis. He even built a '41 Chevy with more than a little Miss Elegance influence, as well as a '54 Chevy pickup that took many cues from the Rod & Custom Dream Truck. He was one of those great guys who looked like a Hell's Angel, but would give you the shirt off his back. As a body and fender man, he could lay down a black lacquer job that you could see your face in.
While working on the Chevy truck, Paul heard of an old Bailon custom wasting away in someone's backyard in nearby Fremont. Little time was wasted identifying it as the famed Bailon Mystery Ford, so named because its exact model year was hard to determine due to the many major body modifications. Even less time was spent getting the car home to Paul's garage. That was in the late '70s, and it wasn't until 1981 that restoration began. It was finished in time for the 1983 Oakland Roadster Show, where it won First Place in the Radical Custom class.
Bailon originally built the Mystery Ford in 1958 for Joe Tocchini. Endless hours of design collaboration were spent between Bailon and Tocchini before any metal was cut. All modifications were originally done (and are still done) in steel and lead. Starting at the front, the fenders were flared horizontally and '58 Chrysler Imperial headlights were set into squared openings just above a rectangular cavity housing a '57 Buick grille. The hood was a complete remake, shortened and narrowed with a rectangular opening above the grille and a wide recess leading up to a scoop filled with five chrome teeth. Turn indicator lights were built into the two vertical nerf bumpers.