‘Lucky Betty’ owned by Betty La Foy
Starting out in the summer of 1959 from Porter, Indiana, ‘Lucky’ Betty La Foy and her all female stunt crew took their daredevil show across America, driving jalopies through rings of fire, jumping motorbikes over school buses and escaping certain death many times over. And if that wasn’t dangerous enough, Betty’s piéce de résistance was to ride the Wall of Death on a modified ex “Wrecking Crew’ Indian Scout motorbike while playing rock n roll hits on her custom made electric guitar. Betty had a red version for week day shows, and a white one for Sunday best.
After 40 years of dropping the jaws of audiences worldwide and without ever having a single stunt go wrong, Betty decided to quit before her luck ran out. She currently lives a quieter life on the Florida Keys with her devoted husband, Big Al. At 79 she still drives her hot rodded 1934 Ford Model 40 V8 Coupe every day and is the oldest Floridian resident ever to receive a speeding ticket, shooting 73 mph in a 50 zone.
Body: Double-cut, super resonant American Alder body with custom “Lucky Betty” graphics and go faster binding. A Red version for the weekday and a White one for Sunday best.
Bridge: The Wilkinson WVC Vibrato bridge enabled Betty to pull off her signature ‘changing gears’ trick and come back in tune every time. What are you gonna do with yours?
Pickups: Single Joe Doe designed humbucker that can take you from 0 to around 8k in the twist of a volume pot.
Controls: Lots going on under the hood here. A single master Volume, single tone control and variable coil tap providing a huge range of tones from soulful to scorching hot.
Machine heads: Wilkinson WJ55 E-Z-Lok machine heads provide simple, effective action and are plated in shiny chrome like the mudguard from an Indian Motorbike.
Neck: Hard rock Maple with classic Vintage ‘soft C’ profile for instant comfort. On the rear there’s a good luck message from Betty’s husband, Big Al. Run your fingers along it for luck, just like Betty did before every show.
Fingerboard: Lignum Rosa™ for outstanding tonal transfer and durability. A traditional 10” radius makes playing as easy as riding around a small wooden cylinder at 30mph with a guitar in your hands.
Frets: 22 Medium profile frets.
Nut: 43mm Graphtech nut, smooth and friction free, just like the running order of Betty’s shows.
Headstock: Unique Vintage “Joe Doe” Lucky Betty” headstock design.
Case: Joe Doe luxury hardshell case with certificate of authenticity and case candy.
The limited edition 'Lucky Betty' is an original Vintage® guitar, designed and created by Joe Doe Guitars and the UK Vintage design team.
Who wants to see a clever magic trick? Of course you do, so put out your hand and take this penny. Have a good look at it, rub it between your fingers. Feels like a regular penny right? No different to all the others you’ve ever held? Ok, now let’s do some magic and change it before your very eyes. See this is no ordinary penny. It belonged to someone very, very famous. A singing sensation. Picture sold out shows in Las Vegas during the 1960’s. People selling their watches, their cars, even their own grandmothers to get a ticket. Front row seats filled with major celebrities and minor royalty enjoying free champagne while they wait for the shows to start… But before the stage curtain would ever rise up, the superstar had to perform one simple task. He would take a penny out of his tux pocket and rub it between his fingers. Why? To remind him how far he’d come. See, it was a gift from his mother, back when the family were so poor she had nothing to give each of her children for Christmas but a new, shiny penny. Well he kept hold of it and cherished it until the day he died, and now you have the exact same penny in the palm of your hand. So take a look at it again. It’s no longer a plain ol’ coin, cast from melted metal. It has been transformed into an artefact. It has a backstory and is freighted with meaning. It has become magical…
We’re not practising magicians here at Joe Doe Guitars but we understand how the power of a good story can transform something ordinary into something extraordinary. Our trick is mixing art with some tall story telling to turn simple wood and wire into unique musical instruments that have a proud history and character all of their own. So when a Joe Doe Guitar is hanging on a wall, it’s a piece of art to be admired and discussed in hushed tones… and when it’s hanging off your guitar strap it’s pure musical inspiration. Now if it’s all right with you, we’ll take back that penny and put it away for safe keeping.
