As a struggling artist looking to finance his latest contraptions, Ed “Big Daddy” Roth became a legend almost over night. By 1963, Roth and his unique gang of hot rod driving monsters were so popular that rodders of all ages were sporting shirts and stickers, as well as purchasing other products showcasing Roth’s famous characters. While Roth passed away in 2001, his legend lives on in the hot rod community, rock culture and beyond.

Similar in idea to Roth's band of characters, Devereaux's illustrations are meant as a homage to Roth's work rather than imitations. Images: Oregon NewsLab

Big Daddy Roth is such an integral part of hot rod culture that even to this day it’s hard to attend a car show without seeing some reference to Roth’s characters, mainly Rat Fink, or the artist himself. But as Oregon NewsLab found out, we may just have another up-and-coming Roth in our midst.

Artist Devon Devereaux is not your typical hot rod guy. In fact, you’d never catch him in a garage tinkering on a classic automobile. But when he was asked to attend a car show to showcase some of his work, the idea of combining hot rods and monsters just clicked.

So, Devereaux, a self-proclaimed uber fan of horror, especially classic characters like Dracula and Frankenstein, used his talents to render creepy monsters driving rickety old hot rods. What resulted was a number of books with a cast of strange characters.

Among the cars in Devereaux’s books, the self-published “Tales of Hot Rod Horror (1 and 2),” are a vintage hearse, which steals all its owners’ souls, and James Dean’s Porsche, the only true-to-life car used in the series so far. The third volume of the book is currently in the works.

While Ed “Big Daddy” Roth will never be outdone at his own hot rod artistry, Devereaux may just bring the the next Rat Fink to the hot rod scene. We’ll just have to wait and see and find out!