Kandy-Kolored Tangerine Flake Streamline Baby started as a letter to Wolfe’s editor (of the Esquire, no less) while he had writer’s block. To be fair, letter is inaccurate; what he sent was a collection of his field notes about the Kustom Kulture car movement and his interactions with Ed Roth and George Barris, both gods in their field, respectively. His editor published it verbatim.
The book isn’t just about kustom kars though. The 22 essays contained within this book don’t really relate to eachother in any meaningful way. However they all, in one way or another, capture and address the trends and American aesthetic of the 1960s.
The most critically acclaimed piece within this book is “The Last American
Tom Wolfe, Jerry Garcia, Rock Scully
Hero,” a piece on Junior Johnson. Robert Johnson Jr. is a god in the stock racing world and in the underground moonshining business. He is also thought to have discovered drafting. Wolfe wrote this piece in such a way that you felt like you were Johnson’s friend and lived this life as his right hand man – privy to all details. You know how it was.
This story was so well written that it was actually turned into a movie in 1973. Jeff Bridges as Johnson.
Wolfe is a demi-god with all of his rambling calculated speech. Kandy-Kolored Tangerine Flake Streamline Baby hinges on this kind of “new journalism” and Wolfe excels at it.
And last but not least. When the book was released, there was an incomplete quote on it by Kurt Vonnegut (may he rest in peace), “Verdict: Excellent book by a genius.” Which was actually supposed to read, “Verdict: Excellent book by a genius who will do anything to get attention.” At least we agree that he’s brilliant.
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Filed under: Literature Reviews, Tom Wolfe , 1960s, book review, books, ed roth, junior johnson, kandy-kolored tangerine flake streamline baby, kurt vonnegut, kustom kars, new journalism, review, short stories, the Last American Hero, tom wolfe
