1948 Kurtis-Omohundro Comet

Research is a funny thing. You never know where it will take you. But what you secretly hope is that someday you ’ ll “ grab a tiger by the tail ” and find yourself in a full - blown adventure. That “ someday ” happened for me when I met Phil Fleming in 2007. I began a quest with my friend and collaborator Rick D ’ Louhy and Phil Fleming to find two special cars from Phil ’ s youth— two Kurtis - Kraft sport cars from Phil ’ s hometown of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan—lost to time. Ultimately, this search would culminate in finding and writing about what are now known as: “ America ’ s First Postwar Sports Cars ” A class of car known then and now as “ Sport Customs. ” Documenting early postwar sports cars has been a passion of mine that has led to assembling the largest and most comprehensive collection of American literature relating to cars of this type known today. It was from this cumulative database that I was able to determine chronology, production, and creation of coachbuilt, custom built, and hand - crafted American postwar sports cars. This movement started in 1945 with the design of the first Kurtis - Omohundro Comet ( Motor Trend , October 1950) and culminated in the late ’50 s. From a close review of this information, we learned that the “ Comet ” — designed by Frank Kurtis of Glendale, California, and built by Paul Omohundro of Bellflower, California, was a very special car. It was the earliest conceived, designed, built, and written about sports car in postwar America—with production plans to boot. Two cars were ultimately built. Foreword During this research, uncovered documentation revealed: • An initial press release in 1946 of the “ Comet ” with specifications and plans for its design and production • The appearance of the “ Comet ” in 1947 in the first printing and distribution of Dan Post ’ s California Custom Car Photo Album • Continued appearances in various Dan Post publications showcasing sports and custom cars from 1947 through 1955 • Additional publications including Popular Mechanics, Road & Track, Autocar (UK), Motor Trend and others. This heritage makes the 1947 and 1948 Kurtis - Omohundro Comets the first coachbuilt sports car that was documented, photographed and written about in postwar America. These early postwar sports cars are often referred to as “ Sport Customs, ” because of the interesting nexus they occupy. Larger and more powerful than their prewar sports car counterparts of Great Britain (MG ’ s, Singers, etc.), American Sport Customs simultaneously reveal both elements of custom cars and sports cars at a time when both genres were at their genesis in postwar America. As America advanced beyond the early postwar years, sports and custom cars would diverge from their common heritage. Sports cars would shrink in size (the Comets had a wheelbase of 112 - 114 inches) and grow in power while “ custom cars ” would begin to incorporate more elements of “ restyling ” than “ innovation ” in design. I hope you enjoy learning more about the birth of sports cars in postwar America as presented on the field in the class of “ Dream Cars ” at the Pebble Beach Concours d ’ Elegance in August, 2023. 1