A full set of the Railway Engines set from the WD & HO Wills Company mounted in an album will be examined this week.
The Driver Suit Blog-Wheel Reviews-Days Of Thunder
By David G. Firestone
If you ask people what the quintessential NASCAR movie is, most would say Days of Thunder. Certainly it is a good movie. It stars Tom Cruise as Cole Trickle, who is based on Tim Richmond, and Robert Duvall as Harry Hogge, based on Harry Hyde. The movie starts with the Daytona 500, which features Rowdy Burns, played by Michael Rooker, wrecking Richard Petty, and while this is going on, Tim Dalland, based on Rich Hendrick, recruits Harry Hogge, a former crew chief who left the sport after the death of a driver was linked to his methods. Dalland talks Hogge into meeting Cole Trickle, a sprint car driver with no stock car experience. Rowdy sets up a car for a test, and Cole proves his talents fast.
Hogge and Cole don’t agree on much during their first races, and they meet little success. Finally, Hogge takes Cole to a track and tells him that if he races Hogge’s way, he can win, but if he races Cole’s way, he won’t. He is quickly proven right, and Cole becomes a winner. Rowdy and Cole develop a fierce rivalry, and at the Firecracker 400 at Daytona in July, they get into a crash, and both are seriously injured.
As they recover, they become good friends. Cole meets Dr. Claire Lewicki, and the two begin a romantic relationship. Dalland hires Russ Wheeler, based on Rusty Wallace, to fill in for Cole. Cole is back in the car before the end of the season, but Rowdy’s injuries are career ending. Russ proves himself to be a dirty driver, and wins at North Wilksboro after wrecking Cole on pit road. An understandably upset Cole wrecks him after the race, and is fired by Dalland.
Rowdy asks Cole to race for him in the Daytona 500, and Cole agrees. Russ gets dirty again, and damages Cole’s transmission. Cole comes back and wins the race. Standard Hollywood ending. But what makes this movie really good is that there are a lot of things that happened in real life. There is a scene where Cole wants to pit, but because the crew is eating ice cream, he can’t. That happened to Benny Parsons in 1987. A subplot where Rowdy and Cole must drive together to have dinner took place with Dale Earnhardt and Geoff Bodine in the 1980’s. The scene where Cole and Rowdy race a pair of rental cars to the breaking point was a common occurrence between Curtis Turner and Joe Weatherly.
The 1990’s uniforms are amazing, but the really odd thing is after Cole wins the Daytona 500, his uniform is heavily soiled, and has a large tear in the leg. I still don’t understand how a brand new suit can get that level of damage, after one race. I still love this movie, and I highly recommend it.
I did this as a stand alone post because I came across something that I felt deserved to be on the blog. I found this:
That is an eBay listing for a suit worn by Carl Elwes while playing Russ Wheeler! The suit looks really good, and I would buy it provided it wasn’t so expensive!
It has a classic late 1980’s/early 1990’s look, and the Hardees color scheme looks really good.
Editor’s note, for the next 3 weeks, I will be taking a badly needed vacation, so while I have articles ready to go, I won’t have any paint scheme reviews until I come back.
DGF2099 Productions-Introduction to Tobacco Cards-Radio Celebrities 2-1934
This full set of the second series of Radio Celebrities from the WD & HO Wills Company will be examined this week.
The Driver Suit Blog-Bill Brach Vintage Suit
By David G. Firestone
A couple of weeks ago, I discussed the events in 1964 that led to the invention of the Nomex driver suit. I also briefly discussed what one of these pre-Nomex suits looked like. Well that was meant as a Uni-Watch article, and was written differently than I would normally write it. It didn’t run on Uni-Watch for a myriad of reasons not worth getting in to. So for this week, I will analyze the suit in Driver Suit Blog style
Before Nomex became the standard for driver suits, racing was living in the dark ages. Drivers would race in whatever they were wearing when they came to the track. Little if any consideration was given to fire safety. As such, many drivers perished in on-track fires. Even when the fire retardant suits began to spring up, they were of little value. Prior to 1967, and for some time after, your standard driver suit was little more than a cotton or polyester suit dipped in borax and other chemicals. This made them fire retardant, but very uncomfortable to wear. Nomex made the driver suit safe and comfortable to wear.
But what did these suits look like? Well this is an example of a polyester suit. It was worn by an Indianapolis based driver named Bill Brach. He was a member of the Murat Shrine in Indianapolis, and he raced in this suit.
The suit itself dates to 1972 at least, because of an Archie Bunker For President patch.
It has a tag that says “Untreated, will burn,should be dipped.”
The polyester material is very flimsy, and is ripped in one part.
It has a classic racing stripe up the side, similar to what Paul Newman wore in LeMans.
The belt has a metal-clasp to close it, unlike most suits, which use Velcro
The sleeves can be unzipped for comfort, which compromises the fire protection.
The back has MURAT 500 SHRINE CLUB in chain stitching on the back.
This is an example of a suit from yesteryear. One that has been made obsolete. It is delicate, thin, and in a fire was of limited value. Nomex has become the standard, and suits like this are now simply relics.
Paint Scheme Reviews
Jamie McMurray #1 Keurig Chevy SS Great color scheme, simple design, A+
Brad Keselowski #2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion Too overdesiged. Not a good look. Good color scheme. B-
Brad Keselowski #2 Redd’s Apple Ale Ford Fusion Black and Red is always a good scheme, and the overall design is good. The sticking point for me with this scheme is that APPLE ALE is almost invisible on the quarter panel. So for a final grade, it gets a B-
Kevin Harvick #4 Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevy SS A good patriotic scheme. A
Denny Hamln #11 FedEx/Autism Speaks Toyota Camry This is, by far, the best design Denny has run all year! I can’t say anything bad about it! A+
Clint Bowyer #15 RK Motors Charlotte Toyota Camry Same bad 5 Hour Energy scheme, but with an even worse color scheme. F
Greg Biffle #16 Fastenal Ford Fusion What’s worse than camo? Blue camo! F
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #17 Fastenal Ford Fusion A mediocre scheme, that is much too overdesigned. D-
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #17 Cargill/Winn Dixie Ford Fusion Great color scheme, and I love the flame design on the side. A+
Kyle Busch #18 M&M’s Toyota Camry Good color scheme, good design, A+
Ryan Newman #31 Quicken Loans Chevy SS Good design, great color scheme, A
Ryan Newman #31 Wix Filters Chevy SS Awful design, and awful color scheme, F
Alex Kennedy #33 Dream Factory Chevy SS Yeah it is a tad overdesigned, but it is for a charity to help children with life-threatening illnesses. So I’ll give it a B
Reed Sorenson #36 Click it or Ticket Chevy SS Another potentially good design with a great color scheme ruined by an overly complex design. B-
David Ragan #38 The Pete Store Ford Fusion Good color scheme, great design, A+
Landon Cassill #40 CRC Brakeleen Chevy SS Good design, good color scheme, Solid A.
Landon Cassill #40 NBS Chevy SS Great design, and a good shade of green…something not seen in NASCAR much. A+
Kurt Busch #41 Haas Chevy SS If the black were blue, and the red and white stripes were kept, I would like it more, but this scheme earns a C.
Kyle Larson #42 Cottonelle Chevy SS The blue looks decent, but the target logos on blue look awkward. The 42 would look better in white than dark blue as well. C+
Aric Almirola #43 Nathans Hot Dogs Ford Fusion As much as I like Nathans Hot Dogs, this is awful! The clash between the green and blue is horrific, and I can’t give this a passing grade.
Justin Allgaier #51 Hendrickcars.com Chevy SS I like the color scheme, but the car is a bit too overdesigned. Still it earns a C
Dave Blaney #77 Fochler Veterans Law / Valor 4 Vets Ford Fusion Really good patriotic scheme here, nothing wrong, A+
Dale Earnhardt Jr. #88 National Guard/Superman Chevy SS I love the red and yellow numbers, and the overall color scheme is great. The design is a bit overdesigned though, and it brings it down to a B.
Michael McDowell #95 JPO Absorbents Ford Fusion Levine Family Racing keeps cranking out good schemes, and this A scheme is no exception. Good color and design schemes.
Michael McDowell #95 JTS/Black Dragon Ford Fusion See Above…A
Michael McDowell #95 K-Love Ford Fusion Good design, but the sky blue is awful. It just looks awful. B-
Josh Wise #98 Reddit/iRacing Ford Fusion Good design, great color scheme, A
Carl Edwards #99 Fastenal Ford Fusion See Ricky Stenhouse Above…D-
Vintage Item Spotlight-Mike Garman 1972 Boston Red Sox Game Worn Jersey
By David G. Firestone
Last year, when I started this project last year, I know I would have to end it at some point. Tragically, this post is that point. This will be the last regular installment of Vintage Item Spotlight. I’ve had fun with it, but it’s gotten overwhelming, writing this, The Driver Suit Blog, and producing Introduction to Sports Memorabilia. I’ve had fun, and I’ve saved my favorite item for last.
Mike Garman was a journeyman pitcher who was signed by the Boston Red Sox to their farm system in 1967 at age 17. He spent 1967, 1968, and the majority of 1969 with the Greenville Red Sox, and was a September call up in 1969, 1971, and 1972. He was a member of the full-time roster in 1973, but was traded to the Cardinals at the end of the season. He also pitched for the Cubs, Dodgers and Expos, until he failed to make the roster in 1979. After on season in the minors, he retired in 1980.
When he was a September call up in 1972, he was issued this road jersey. His first pitching appearance came on September 4 in the second game of a double-heard against the Milwaukee Brewers in Milwaukee. The appearance was for the bottom halves of the 7th and 8th innings, and he gave up one hit, one home run and an error. During that appearance, he wore this pullover jersey.
What fascinates me about this jersey is the fact that the BOSTON lettering across the front has been removed, and was replaced with RED SOX, and then was restored. The reason it was removed was because from Major League Baseball’s inception up until the 1980’s, many teams would remove their lettering and logos from the uniforms, and then send them down to their minor league affiliates. The minors would, in turn, add their own lettering as a way of saving money. It looks a little sloppy, but the lettering looks good, and it’s the correct size.
The front of the collar has some repair work done to it. It was cut and repaired.
The back numbers show some wear, and have been replaced at some point. and I love the red-on-blue setup the Red Sox use.
The tagging is correct, and it just adds to the vintage feel of the uniform. Tim McAuliffe Inc was founded in 1896 in Boston, and supplied caps and uniforms for baseball up until the 1970’s, when the competition became too great, and they were run out of the market. While they were a supplier, they often had other companies make parts of the uniform and slapped their own tags on it.
This is a truly unique jersey, and is my favorite items. This was also one of my favorite projects. I’m sad it has to end, but stay tuned, I might have something else in the near future.
DGF2099 Productions-Introduction to Tobacco Cards-British Freshwater Fishes-1934
A partial set of the British Freshwater Fishes tobacco card set from John Player and Sons will be examined this week.
DGF2099 Productions-Introduction to Sports Memorabilia-2013 Drag Boat Worn Helmet
In conjunction with Behind the Scenes, this is the ITSM episode produced in that video.
Vintage Item Spotlight-Chicago Bears Autographs
By David G. Firestone
Having grown up in Suburban Chicago, I grew up following the Bears. Admittidly, I’m not a football fan, I’m a racing fan, but I do support Chicago fans. I also like to go to autograph signings and get things signed.
Yes I know that these items are not “vintage” per se, but they does have an interesting history behind it. In 2004, I went to Woodfield Mall outside of Chicago with some friends, and I bought a Brian Urlacher jersey for $45. Back then, that was what new NFL jerseys cost. I know, I can’t believe it anymore either. I then noticed that in the center court there was a table with a line, and I realized that Jim Miller was signing autographs at a free signing. So I took my jersey and got it signed by Jim Miller. That was the start of a journey.
Later that year, The Great Indoors opened in Deerfield Illinois, and Brian Urlacher was going to do a free signing, and the first 500 people would get one autograph. After standing in a snowstorm for an hour, I got inside, got to meet the Maytag Repairman, had a free cup of coffee, and then was one of the first 500 and got my autograph!
I was doing more signings than I currently do now, so I got more signautres and shows and signings, but things really kicked into overdrive in 2005 when the Chicago Bears had the 20th Anniversary of their Super Bowl XX victory, and there were dozens, and I mean DOZENS of signings. In total, this jersey has 25 signatures, including Urlacher, Jim Miller, Jim McMahon, and William Perry,
If I had the chance, I would take other items to me with signings. This Bears helmet for example has a number of signautres including William Perry, and Dan Hampton. I like the look of the helmet with no facemask, it has a more vintage look.
By far, the most unususal item in my Bears collection is this XFL football. The XFL was a football league founded by Vince McMahon in 2001, and folded after one season. I took this full size regulation football with me to a number of signings, and every Bear who signed it said the exact same thing to me, word for word “This is the first XFL ball I’ve ever signed.” It’s a unique item, and one of my favorite items in my autograph collection.
DGF2099 Behind the Scenes
This week, we go behind the scenes and examine how I create the articles and videos on the site.
DGF2099 Productions-Introduction to Tobacco Cards-The Basics
Tobacco cards are what the American sports cards and memorabilia hobby are literally founded on. What exactly are tobacco cards? Well, we’ll discuss that on the second season premiere of Introduction to Tobacco Cards.
DGF2099-Main Page 