Jesse Valadez Junior, or "Little Jesse" as he's known to his family and friends was a second-generation lowrider, and son of Jesse Valadez, the man who founded the famous Imperials Car Club in the 1970s.
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Valadez passed away Tuesday, at the age of 45, after a hard-fought battle with cancer.
He hailed from an iconic Southern California club whose roots are proudly in East Los Angeles.
Little Jesse's Godfather remembers a man who was proud of his family, culture, and his connection to a special SoCal legacy.
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ABC7 featured Valadez in April of this year and spotlighted the Gypsy Rose, perhaps the most famous lowrider car and the first-ever inducted into the Historic Vehicle Association.
The Gypsy Rose now has a home at the renowned Petersen Automotive Museum.