Hello all. This is Kevin, son of John Chun. I was forwarded this post from BaT member 2112.
I've enjoyed reading this thread. @dbegley thank you for your original post. It's very cool to read about dad and all the stories...I have a few myself. We all miss him very much. I still represent John at the annual Shelby American Employee Reunions. The group of Legends is smaller every year. I've also enjoyed creating the event poster the last few years (I thought it made sense that the designer's son should probably do the artwork). I've read a couple of posts regarding the sketches. Before my dad had passed away, I had a series of sketches printed for our June 2012 trip to Mid America Ford Shelby event in Tulsa, OK. I don't think many people knew of my dad, but there's a lucky few folks out there who bought prints with a big signature and had photos with him. If there's any interest in prints/sketches, they're available.
I'm happy that my dad was recognized for his work at SA, but it was later in his life before he decided to participate in the reunions/shows. Full circle indeed. I do remember attending shows with him and it was like walking with Moses as seas of people would just part to let him walk through haha. I do miss that perk as now I'm just a guy bumping into other people! The Shelby American is a great family and honored to be a part of it!
I do have a fun story that my dad told well. While at Shelby American, he was test driving a '68 GT500. (Not sure, but I want to say that it was white with blue stripes). The car was being prepared for actor (Gene Kelly). On a beautiful sunny California day, my dad was pulled over. The car did not have plates on it and it was being driven by some Asian guy. Definitely suspicious. Before the officer could say or do anything, my dad told the officer to just please take the car 'around the block'. He explained that this was a new car and had to get it back to HQ for a special customer. The officer returned with a gigantic smile on his face and said: "Get the hell outta here!"
I've enjoyed reading this thread. @dbegley thank you for your original post. It's very cool to read about dad and all the stories...I have a few myself. We all miss him very much. I still represent John at the annual Shelby American Employee Reunions. The group of Legends is smaller every year. I've also enjoyed creating the event poster the last few years (I thought it made sense that the designer's son should probably do the artwork). I've read a couple of posts regarding the sketches. Before my dad had passed away, I had a series of sketches printed for our June 2012 trip to Mid America Ford Shelby event in Tulsa, OK. I don't think many people knew of my dad, but there's a lucky few folks out there who bought prints with a big signature and had photos with him. If there's any interest in prints/sketches, they're available.
I'm happy that my dad was recognized for his work at SA, but it was later in his life before he decided to participate in the reunions/shows. Full circle indeed. I do remember attending shows with him and it was like walking with Moses as seas of people would just part to let him walk through haha. I do miss that perk as now I'm just a guy bumping into other people! The Shelby American is a great family and honored to be a part of it!
I do have a fun story that my dad told well. While at Shelby American, he was test driving a '68 GT500. (Not sure, but I want to say that it was white with blue stripes). The car was being prepared for actor (Gene Kelly). On a beautiful sunny California day, my dad was pulled over. The car did not have plates on it and it was being driven by some Asian guy. Definitely suspicious. Before the officer could say or do anything, my dad told the officer to just please take the car 'around the block'. He explained that this was a new car and had to get it back to HQ for a special customer. The officer returned with a gigantic smile on his face and said: "Get the hell outta here!"