Otto Kuhni, Larry Wood
Background
Otto Kuhni — Otto Johnson Kuhni was a graphic artist who created much of Hot Wheels' early artwork for blister packs, cases and playsets. He started as a freelancer in 1962 and joined Mattel in 1967, hired by Rick Irons, where he drew many of the card and playset illustrations (and even designed some large playsets). He retired in 1995 but returned part-time to create artwork for the then-new Hot Wheels Collectors series, the Red Line Club and other retro products.
He died in 2017. His legacy includes the Custom Otto, a reinterpretation of the generic car he drew for the 1968 packaging, which was not released at the time.
Larry Wood — Larry Wood, known as 'Mr. Hot Wheels', studied at the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles. He was recruited by Ford in 1965 and joined Hot Wheels in 1969, building a career of about 50 years with the brand: he was full-time chief designer until 2009, then a consultant and ambassador, and officially retired in 2019. His projects include Bone Shaker, Rodger Dodger, Tri-Baby and Purple Passion.
He has received the Hot Wheels Hall of Fame (2003), the Model Car Hall of Fame (2009 and 2014), the West Coast Kustoms Hall of Fame (2019), the Pop Culture Hall of Fame (2021) and the Automotive Hall of Fame (2023). Today he works as a freelancer, at Larry Wood Design LLC.
