Neal East’s ’32 Ford Panel … The Beginning

By Brian Brennan Photography Courtesy of the Tex Smith Collection

The ’32 Ford panel truck was shot by Tex Smith in front of a hangar used by Howard Hughes at the Santa Monica airport. It was here where truth was proven to be stranger than fiction.

on Ceridono and I couldn’t pass up this story. One evening while swapping old photos taken by our mentor LeRoi “Tex” Smith, Ceridono and I began talking about the ’32 Ford panel truck displayed on this page. It might not be the most exciting hot rod you have gazed upon, but the backstory of its owner is most definitely one to read.

Before we get onto the Deuce panel, how about a little on J. Neal East’s background. Neal is a lifelong hot rodder, car show guy, magazine guy (freelancer and former staff member of Rod & Custom), owner of many hot rods, including some famous ones, automotive bookstore owner, and a Lifetime L.A. Roadsters Club member. Now, we don’t have the space to go into depth on Neal and his lifelong obsessions, as that’s a story for another time, but here’s a sample that should open your eyes, give you a chuckle, and downright know you are reading about a true hot rodder.

Before Neal was the “famous” hot rodder, he was another hot rodder working his way through school. The ’32 panel photos were shot by Tex Smith in front of a hangar at the Santa Monica airport. Not just any hangar, but one used by Howard Hughes Productions. Yep, that Howard Hughes. Here Hughes housed leftover goodies from his movie production days, including his personal aircraft. Neal tells us that he was the night shift back gate guard and in several years of being “on duty” no one ever passed through these gates. As such he had lots of time to do his homework. This led to him eventually becoming a chauffeur for Hughes, not for him but for Hughes’ dentist. When working your way through school you take the jobs you can find.

Now back to the Deuce panel. Neal found it parked on an L.A. street resting under a tree. He stopped to look and soon found that the owner was in a bind with the IRS and offered the truck to Neal for $300. Neal didn’t have that much on him and said he would be back the next day. The owner then informed Neal the price would be $350 “the next day.” So, Neal managed to get his dad to come back the same day with the prescribed $300, and the rest, as is often said, is history. The panel had a four-cylinder along with mechanical brakes. Neal drove it like that for a spell, but it wouldn’t be long before the hot rodder in him led to swapping the mechanical brakes for hydraulic binders and out came the four and in went a stout 296-inch Ford Flathead V-8 that is topped with a four-barrel carb. The panel has been driven everywhere, including from SoCal to Denver when Neal moved, and in 1991 it became his daily driver while operating the automotive bookstore. Neal also drove it from Denver to Iola, Wisconsin, to be part of Old Cars Weekly working with Smith. It was back in 2022 that Neal and his son, Chad, drove the panel on the Denver Early Ford V8 Club Poker Run … it ran just great.

It’s just the “tip” of a great story about a true hot rodder but it’s one-story worth reading. Neal … keep enjoying those hot rods, you’ve kept all of us captivated.

This photo was shot back in 1960 and shows one of the many Deuces Neal owned. It also proves the point that you can “drive ’em and show ’em” to equal success.