Search Results: Auto Racing from Royal Books, Inc.

Indianapolis: O'Dell and Shields Studios, 1956. Two vintage photo albums documenting Dean Van Lines Indy car team before, during, and after the Indianapolis 500 in 1955 and 1956, with legendary driver Jimmy Bryan at the helm. Several photographs stamped on the verso by the O'Dell and Shields Studios of Indianapolis, longtime contract photographers for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Dean, a California moving company magnate and noted championship car owner, began his association with Bryan in 1954, when the driver would score his first significant win, the AAA National Championship. The pair would win an astonishing 17 national championship races over the course of the next four years. The 1955 album contains 12 photographs, capturing the moments before the 500, with several views of the team performing last-minute modifications to the Kuzma-Offenhauser, better known as the Dean Van Lines #2 Special, custom-built by Eddie Kuzma for the 1955 race. Also included in the album are several action… Read More

N.p.: N.p., 1950. Archive of 13 vintage single-weight vernacular photographs and 1 vintage double-weight vernacular photograph of open-wheel racing events held at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, circa 1950s. The photographs in the archive show close-ups shots of races at the Iowa State Fairgrounds' original half-mile dirt track, with the idiosyncratic vehicle designs and paint schemes of the era on full display. Also included in the archive are several photographs of the Bardahl Special #2, "The Black Deuce," a champion racing car owned by noted car collector Hector Honore Jr., with the car's second driver, Bobby Grim, behind the wheel. Open-wheel racing was first sanctioned in the US by the AAA Contest Board, who introduced the first track season national championship in 1905. The sport grew in popularity after World War II, attributable in large part to the rapid innovations in auto engineering and design throughout the 1950s. In the ensuing decade the rise of the Chevy V8 would quickly… Read More

New York: Rizzoli, 1982. First American Edition, preceded by the French edition published by Editions du Regard in 1981. Photo-illustrated throughout in color and black-and-white. A superb history of the Bugatti family: Carlo (the father, a furniture designer), Rembrandt Bugatti (son, a sculptor), and Ettore and Jean (son and grandson, automobile designers). Fine and unread in a Near Fine dust jacket.

N.p.: N.p., 1986. Two vintage product illustrations for toy racetracks made by German manufacturer Darda, both by illustrator Ken Zaruba, circa 1986. The two track illustrations presented here are variants on Darda's track sets, "Raketenbaum" (Rocket Car) (with an annotation on the overlay of "Rollercoaster Roadway"), and "Bahn mit Tankstille" (Track with Gas Station), both manufactured in 1986, each signed by the artist, one with a Zaruba Studio label on the overlay. Popular in Europe and the US during the 1980s and 1990s, the Darda motor was invented by Helmut Darda in 1970, and feature a unique pullback motor, winded by rolling the cars back and forth, which then propel the cars to speeds up to 30 mph, requiring no batteries or electricity. While the cars can be run on any surface, Darda designed brightly colored tracks for the vehicles, incorporating loops, jumps, curves, and crossovers, which can be combined to create elaborate circuits, which run both vertically and horizontally. Darda cars… Read More

Milwaukee, WI: Motorbooks, 2004. First printing of this edition, originally published in 1979 by Osprey. Profusely photo-illustrated throughout in black-and-white. An historical analysis of and tribute to the legendary Ferrari engine, including technical specs and racing performance records. Fine and unread in a Fine dust jacket.

New York: Ace Books, 1959. First Edition. No. D-406. First Edition, a paperback original. Very Good plus in wrappers, with a slight lean, and a diagonal crease on the top right corner of the front wrapper. Holroyd, p. 40.

Minster Lovell, UK: Bookmarque, 1993. First Edition. First Edition. SIGNED by the subject, auto racing legend John Fitch, on the half-title page. Near Fine in a lightly soiled, Near Fine dust jacket.

Portland, OR: Graphic Arts Center Publishing, 1990. First Edition. First Edition. Near Fine in a Very Good plus dust jacket. Jacket has a short closed tear on the top edge of the front panel, with brief wear at the spine ends and a couple of nicks on the corners.

Peru, Indiana: N.p., 1967. Vintage stringbound vernacular photograph album documenting the vehicular obsessions of one Greg Wildrick of Peru, Indiana, who would ultimately kill four people in a motor vehicle accident and later die himself in the same manner while speeding. Approximately 150 black-and-white photographs and 50 color photographs, with manuscript ink annotations captioning most of the images. Manuscript ink annotations on the front board provide the album's title: "#1 / Our new cars etc. / Family Too." Additional annotations on the inside rear board note: "The bullshit contained in this so called albumn (sic) belongs to Greg E. Wildrick / 4 Holiday Drive / Peru, Indiana is where I live if you don't know me. Call 472-2550 / If you don't call me, forget it!!! / Book Finished March 5, 1967 at 4:45 A.M." The photographs in the album span roughly 1955 to 1966, compiled by Greg at the age of 19. In addition to many images of the family's muscle cars and trucks, the album also contains quite… Read More

N.p.: Laurel Productions, 1965. Collection of three vintage color studio still photographs from the 1965 film. George Takei appears in a pre-"Star Trek" role, which also features James Caan, Laura Devon, and Marianna Hill, as well as an uncredited appearance by Teri Garr as a go-go dancer. Shot on location in various motor speedways across the United States, including the Daytona International Speedway in Florida. 8 x 10 inches. Near Fine with light creasing to one image, and pin holes and a manuscript ink notation to another. Rosenbaum 1000.

Cambridge, MA: David Bull, 1995. First Edition. First Edition. Photo-illustrated throughout in color and black-and-white. Near Fine in a Near Fine dust jacket.

Los Angeles: N.p., 1941. Collection of six vintage photographs of California midget car racing, each with the same decorative border, at the short-lived Atlantic Speedway in Los Angeles, circa 1941. Featuring an unknown race car with number 23 painted on the tail, and "Warner Spl." painted just below the cockpit, a few of the mechanics responsible on-hand. "X34" rubber-stamps on the versos. Midget racing began in California in the early 1930s in Los Angeles, the sport then owned and operated by the Midget Auto Racing Association (MARA). Small custom cars, many called "specials," looped on small wood tracks formerly reserved for bicycle races. A notable venue was Gilmore Stadium, built in 1934 by Earl Bell Gilmore, an heir to the Gilmore Oil Company. The Atlantic Speedway operated about 1935-1942, near Compton at the intersection of Atlantic and Banducci Boulevards (now part of Long Beach Expressway), and this collection offers a humble, pocket-sized look at that lost California track. 2.5 x 4… Read More

New York: Philip Rose, 1975. Draft script for the 1977 play, which premiered at the Longacre Theatre on January 4, 1977 and played for 70 performances, closing on March 5, 1977, with annotations on two pages in manuscript pencil and marker highlighting dialogue. Professional race car driver Bobby Horvath returns to his hometown after eight years away and reminisces on his youth and his lost ambition. Set in Mansfield, Ohio. Maroon Studio Duplicating Service vinyl titled wrappers, with credits for playwright John Bishop. Title page present, with copyright date 1975, with credits for playwright John Bishop. 141 leaves, with last page of text numbered 2-53. Mimeograph duplication, rectos only. Pages Near Fine, wrapper Near Fine, bound with two gold screw brads.

Daytona Beach, FL: N.p., 1958. Collection of 24 vintage vernacular photographs documenting the final NASCAR race at Daytona Beach, Florida, 1958. Occasional manuscript pencil annotations or rubber stamps to the versos. The photographs in this collection document the final year the iconic Daytona NASCAR race took place on two miles of flat beach and two miles of Highway A1A before moving to the newly-built 2.4 mile Speedway track in 1959. Photos depict various vantage points on the track including beach shots, a sharp curve, and the finish line. Drivers featured in the photos include pioneering greats like Fireball Roberts, Tim Flock, Cotton Owens, Curtis Turner, Dick Joslin, Paul Goldsmith, and more. While the most frequently found photographs of NASCAR in this era tend to be professional shots sold in duplicate, these vernacular photos reflect an intimate, uncommonly-found look at the then-emerging sport. Once organized racing had begun in Daytona Beach in earnest in the 1930s, the popularity of… Read More