Many beautiful automobiles were sculpted in the 1930's by artisans given the opportunity to create custom bodies. Following WW2 these fabled American and European designers faded away in a new era of mass production. Was this the end of their craft? Not really, for they were replaced by individuals who began with common, everyday cars and chopped, channeled and rebuilt them to satisfy their own fantasies. The 1950 Mercury Coupe, owned by Barry Watson and shown at the 2006 Steamworks Concours, is an exquisite example. Can anyone honestly say that as a work of transportation art, it is any less perfect than a Delahaye by Saoutchik or a Bentley by James Young? Not your host, for I was captivated by this beauty which, when I sat back and thought about it, brought me back to earth from the precious princesses I'd been observing at Pebble Beach.