Gene Winfield, who was known in Hollywood as “The King of Kustoms,” has died after a battle with cancer. He was 97.
Winfield was known for creating custom vehicles for use in movies and TV shows, including Blade Runner, Star Trek, RoboCop, Get Smart!, Batman, and countless more.
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He was born in 1927 in Springfield, MO and moved to Modesto, California at a young age. Winfield was already working on cars at the age of 10, which turned into a lifelong love for all things vehicular.
His best known works are the “spinner” vehicles in Blade Runner, which were nominated for a Special Effects Oscar, and the iconic Galileo space shuttle and Jupiter 8 sports car from the original Star Trek series.
More of his futuristic vehicles can be seen in classics like Back to the Future, RoboCop, and The Last Starfighter. He also built the Catmobile in the Batman live-action TV show, and various gadget-related cars for The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Mission: Impossible and Get Smart! during their TV runs.
Other examples of his work include Sleeper, Ironside, Bewitched, Magnum Force, and plenty more.
A book about his famous cars, The Legendary Custom Cars and Hot Rods of Gene Winfield, released in 2008 and a series about his work, The King of Kustoms, ran in the 2010s.
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