George Barris Net Worth

George Salapatas net worth is
$10 Million

George Salapatas was born on the 20th November 1925, in Chicago, Illinois USA, of Greek descent, and as George Barris was known as a car designer, famous for building automobiles for Hollywood, such as the Batmobile and Munster Koach. Thanks to his designing skills and car knowledge, Barris’ net worth significantly increased. His career was active from the 1940s until 2010. He passed away in 2015.

Have you ever wondered how rich George Barris was at the time of his death? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that Barris’ net worth was high as $10 million, an amount earned through his successful career as a car designer.

George Barris Net Worth $10 Million

George Barris was born into the family of Greek immigrants; when he was three years old, his father sent him and his brother Sam to live with their uncle in Roseville, California. George developed an interest towards cars from an early age, so at seven he was already making car models and winning contests. George and Sam worked at the Greek family restaurant, and saved enough to buy their first car, a 1925 Buick that wasn’t in a good shape, but the brothers quickly improved its condition, inserted a few modifications, and later sold it for a profit – it was George’s first custom car of many.

Barris went to San Juan High School, and although his family wanted him to stay and work at the restaurant, Barris decided to move to Los Angeles, and at 18 years of age, opened Barris Custom Shop . After being discharged from the army, Sam joined his brother in L.A., and they started working on custom cars for private buyers, before somebody from the movie industry noted their skills. They were asked to design cars for Hollywood stars and executives, but also as props for films – their first one used in a movie was in “High School Confidential” in 1958.

Barris subsequently designed the Ford police car featured in the movie “North by Northwest” in 1959, and a modified Plymouth Barracuda for “Fireball 500” (1966), a Mercury station wagon for “The Silencers” (1966), Dodge Charger for “Thunder Alley” (1967), created a vehicle for “Supervan” (1967), and Lincoln Continental Mark III for “The Car” (1977). All of these ventures increased George`s net worth by a large margin.

However, Barris’ most notable work came when the ABC executives asked him to create a signature car for the TV series “Batman” (1966-1968). He didn’t have enough time to build a new car from a scratch, so instead George used his Lincoln Futura as a base, but the Batmobile was an international hit and stayed under Barris’ ownership until he sold it at auction for $4,620,000 in 2013. Selling this famous vehicle generated a large contribution to his net worth.

George meantime constructed and modified cars for such celebrities as Zsa Zsa Gabor, Bob Hope, Elton John, Ann-Margret, Bing Crosby and Glen Campbell. He also modified a Pontiac station wagon for John Wayne, a Cadillac limousine for Elvis, Cadillac Eldorado for Dean Martin, and in 1966 Ford Mustang convertibles for Sonny and Cher, increasing further his net worth. Latterly he worked on a Toyota Prius for The New York Times in 2005, and did a special design of a 2010 Chevrolet Camaro Spirit, which also added to his net worth.

Regarding his personal life, George Barris married Shirley Nahas in 1958, and were together until her passing in 2001; they had two children together. George Barris died in his sleep at home in Encino, California, in November 2015.


Full NameGeorge Barris
Net Worth$10 Million
Date Of BirthNovember 20, 1925, Chicago, Illinois, United States
DiedNovember 5, 2015, Encino, Los Angeles, California, United States
ProfessionBusinessman, Designer for Hot rod art, automobile customizing and pinstriping, Builder of many famous Hollywood custom cars
EducationSan Juan High School
NationalityAmerican
SpouseShirley Nahas (m. 1958–2001, her death)
ChildrenJoji Barris, Brett Barris
ParentsFanicia Barakaris, James Salapatas
SiblingsSam Salapatas
Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/BarrisKustom/posts/1548844055190603
Twitterhttps://twitter.com/barriskustom?lang=en
IMDBhttp://www.imdb.com/name/nm0057572/
Movies“North by Northwest” (1959), “The Beverly Hillbillies” (1962), “Fireball 500” (1966), “Back to the Future”, “The Silencers” (1966), “Thunder Alley” (1967), “Bearcats!” (1971), “Supervan” (1967), “The Car” (1977), “Batman” (1966), “Supervan” (1977)
TV Shows“The Beverly Hillbillies” (1962-1963), “The Late Show” (1988), “TV Land's Top Ten”, “TV's Greatest Cars” (2004), “The Batmobile” (2012, documentary), “G4 Presents Comic Con 2012 Live Z” (2012)
#Fact
1Still running Barris Kustom Industries in Toluca Lake, California. [1999]
2Well known builder of hot rods and custom cars, such as the Batmobile from Batman (1966) and the truck from The Beverly Hillbillies (1962).

Miscellaneous

TitleYearStatusCharacter
James Dean: Live Fast, Die Young1997race car: Kustom Spyder
Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie1997car customizer
Jurassic Park1993car modifications - uncredited
Knight Rider1982TV Series car designer
The Dukes of Hazzard1979TV Series car modifications
The Car1977car customizing
Supervan1977car customizer
Bearcats!1971TV Series car - 13 episodes
The Bugaloos1970-1971TV Series car designer - 14 episodes
The Beverly HillbilliesTV Series car designer - 3 episodes, 1962 - 1963 production assistant - 1 episode, 1968
The Banana Splits Adventure Hour1968TV Series car designer - 5 episodes
Mannix1967TV Series car customizer: Mannix Roadster
Thunder Alley1967car customizer: Thunder Charger - uncredited
Batman: The Movie1966car designer - uncredited
Fireball 5001966car customizer - uncredited
Out of Sight1966car customizer
The Silencers1966car customizer - uncredited
Marriage on the Rocks1965car customizer: Zebra Mustang
The Munsters1965TV Series technical advisor - 1 episode
For Those Who Think Young1964car customizer
Cinderfella1960builder: 'Golden Sahara' car - uncredited
High School Confidential!1958car modifications - uncredited

Actor

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Smokey and the Hotwire Gang1979Billy The Kid
Mag Wheels1978Shop Owner
Supervan1977King of the Customizers

Producer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Disco Fever1978/Iexecutive producer
Mag Wheels1978executive producer
Juke Box Racket1960co-producer

Transportation Department

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Patsy1964picture vehicles - uncredited
For Those Who Think Young1964picture vehicles - uncredited

Director

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Juke Box Racket1960co-director

Writer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Disco Fever1978/Istory

Thanks

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Deadline Auto Theft1983special thanks

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
American Pickers2013TV Series documentaryHimself
The Batmobile2012TV Movie documentaryHimself
Comic Con 2012 Live2012TV MovieHimself
The Jace Hall Show2010TV SeriesHimself
Totally Tracked Down2010TV SeriesHimself
Monster Garage2002-2007TV SeriesHimself
The Girls Next Door2006-2007TV SeriesHimself - Kustom Kar King
Real James Dean2006Video documentaryHimself - Custom Car Designer
TV's Greatest Cars2004TV Movie documentaryHimself
TV Land's Top Ten2004TV Series documentaryHimself
Dead Famous2004TV Series documentaryHimself
Street Fury: Inferno2003Video documentaryHimself
Biography2002-2003TV Series documentaryHimself
Living Famously2003TV Series documentaryHimself
The Batmobile Revealed2001Video documentary shortHimself
The Final Day2000TV Mini-Series documentaryHimself
Bat Talk1989TV Movie documentaryHimself
The Late Show1988TV SeriesHimself
Forever James Dean1988DocumentaryHimself
Deadline Auto Theft1983Himself
The Junkman1982Himself
Disco Fever1978/IHimself
Pit Stop1969Himself

Won Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
2005Lifetime Achievement AwardSan Fernando Valley International Film Festival
2000Life Career AwardAcademy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USADesigner of film and TV's Batmobile.

Known for movies

Source
IMDB Wikipedia

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