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March 22, 1952, Palm Springs California. I was there cheering Roger on — wearing my specially-made Simca T-shirt that had amused Barlow when I came to his dealership earlier that same year.This is the first of the two Roger Barlow Simcas, seen here with mechanic Bill Pringle behind the wheel. Pringle raced this car in the event, while Barlow himself drove the new Simca special, #62, with right hand drive. Pringle finished second and Barlow fifth in the main event. Al Coppel won the class in his MG special.
As we have seen, Studebaker designer and part time photographer Bob Temple recorded sports car events at the Studebaker Proving Grounds and the Press on Regardless Rally in the early 1950s. Temple also went out west, and was there with Kodachrome for the Palm Springs races on March 22, 1952. Most remarkably, Jim Sitz was there as well and recorded all the cars on his invaluable set of index cards. He was therefore able to identify and comment on the cars and the personalities at the race. Our thanks to both the late Bob Temple and the very much still alive Jim Sitz.
Photos by Bob Temple courtesy Vintage Motorphoto
Story and captions by Jim Sitz
I had the good fortune to attend the March 22, 1952 event at Palm Springs, California. The photographs were taken by Bob Temple. I also had attended earlier events there in April and October of 1951.
The April 1951 event featured Jim Kimberly’s Ferrari 166 Barchetta and a young mechanic named Phil Hill, who drove his old Alfa 2.9. What a car! What a sound! The memory of Hill’s Alfa prompted me to follow his career. Race fans also saw and heard a Ferrari V-12 for first time on west coast.
On October 28, 1951, there was a bitter battle between the Barlow SIMCA and the John von Neumann MG Special. Phil Hill’s brother-in-law, Don Parkinson, won in his own Jaguar Special.
In 1951, the Cunningham cars, which had run at Le Mans that year, were sold to local California customers. All three team cars were driven across the States in November after Briggs’ shop had reconditioned them. In 1952, Briggs had trouble with the IRS and had to sell some cars to make his operation in Palm Springs look like a real business. Irving Robbins drove a Black Cunningham, which he crashed at Torrey Pines in December.
My friend, Jack McAfee, collected three trophies that weekend with the Siata 1400 roadster, the Jag XK 120, and his fast, noisy, supercharged MG Special. The MG was the famous number 88 which John Edgar had spent so much money on. John could have had a Ferrari; he got one later when he bought a 340 America from Henry Manney in 1952. Henry had scared himself in the big Ferrari.
Celebrities at the Palm Springs Races
Clark Gable was the man who bought the first Jag XK 120 out here (Bogie was not amused to lose out.) Gable was the starter for the 1952 Palm Springs races.
Keenan Wynn, son of comedian Ed Wynn, had driven his Type 57 Bugatti from New York to Hollywood in 1947. In 1950 he bought an Alfa 2300 from Tommy Lee and ran the first Palm Springs with full body. He made the Alfa into a hot rod with a Cadillac motor, which Tom Bamford drove in 1951 and 1952. Actor Frank Lovejoy was with him at the 1952 event.
Ranald “Randy” MacDougall was a screenwriter who got Oscar for script of Mildred Pierce and shared screenwriting credit for 1963’s Cleopatra. He also directed a number of films, including 1957’s Man on Fire with Bing Crosby. He raced an MG TD and the first OSCA in California, and then 1953 new Ferrari 166/53 Vignale painted red and black. He was married to star Nanette Fabray.
This is the Wayne Nardi Danese Chevy, most certainly at Palm Springs, and probably dated 1952. The car was entered in the last Palm Springs event in 1953, but here it is probably just in the exhibition class and is has no number.
This is probably the Cooper FIII of Bill Breeze, who ran the car both in the 1951 event and again in March of 1952.
1952 Scorpion, a Crosley in fiberglass, made in Pasadena by John Wills, and was on cover of Motor Trend in 1952
Lovely MG Special of Al Coppel, best known for his OSCA drives, was from Los Altos and author of Hero Driver among many other fictional books. He drove the same car at Palm Springs in both 1951 and 1952 with the same number. In 1952 Coppel won the 1500cc main event.
Brooklands Riley of Mr. George Bucknam Jr. “The little 1100cc 28 year old car should get a medal for running…Bucknam had a lot of fun with it,” or so said R&T, May-June 1952.
The Seifried Special was another well-built race car with a Mercury engine. The car retired after a great start in the finals. Richard Seifried, Jr.’s father, Richard Seifried, Sr., built bodies for Auto Union. It was raced later in 1952 by Steve Wilder of Car and Driver fame.
Edwards Special – love that car! The number is 26 as the 2 is hidden. Design was influenced by Cisitalia, as entrepreneur, Sterling Edwards told the Press. Top Notch Professional Job! The car featured a Phil Remington chassis and a coach-built body by Emil Diedt. Edwards built three of those specials and, in 1954, introduced his road car in convertible and coupe version. He only made five or six of these. He raced C-Type Jag in 1952 then went to Italy in 1953 to collect his new Ferrari 340. He used the Ferrari for his honeymoon with new wife, Marion.
1952 Yellow Beast is the 32 valve Stutz of Kelly Buchanan which impressed but did not make the grid.
Porsche 356 A coupe. Porsche was a very early import for California and this coupe belonged to Bob Doidge-who traded in his MG TC to get it.
Three wheel Morgan with a Ford motor of Walker Edmiston (Road & Track for January 1952) who produced a television show for kids named “Time for Beany.” He used the Moggie for hillclimb and gymkhana events.
Aston Martin driven by Doug Trotter. It was purchased new by Phil Hill in August 1951, but used for road only. Not raced by Phil since he was driving for Jaguar then. I remember teasing Phil, that he was some hot shot salesman at International — selling HIMSELF a $5800 car! But it was beautiful and large crowd gathered in Pitas at Reno, October 51 when I was there, and admired the gunmetal sleek coupe from England. Trotter installed a GMC motor for 1953, then sold to Alan Selby of Santa Rosa.
Duesenberg Model J—I photographed this same car later in October 1952 at a field meet for the Horseless Carriage Club, which GM hosted at their South Gate factory. According to my friends, Don Tom in Florida and William Schooling, this is a 1930 Phaeton on a short wheelbase, just 142 inches! The body was fabricated by La Grande and purchased new by movie director Howard Hawkes. By 1939, it belonged to my friend Jimmy Talmadge, son of Buster Keaton and Norma Talmadge. In 1952 it was owned by Gil Wright of San Diego.
Baldwin Special. Built by Willis Baldwin of Santa Barbara. The grille was taken from a fridge shelf! He built three of these cars, in 1947, 1950, and 1954. See Road & Track for May, 1950.
The Riley and an MG owned by Bill David from San Francisco.
Great photos. My father worked with Jerry Wright owner of the Duisenberg. As I young kid got to ride in it, what a thrill.
Absolutely marvelous images from Palm Springs. They capture so well the feel of the onset of road racing So Cal. So glad Dale LaFollette re-discovered them, and for your publishing them with such an in depth and enjoyable article by Jim Sitz. Keep the Temple images and the Sitz commentary coming. Historically yours Allen R Kuhn
That event was my introduction to sports cars and these many years later I still have the bug (I’m 84). The cars I remember most were the Brooklands Riley which sputtered and popped its way around. He deserved a medal for perseverance. Whether it was just slow or needed a tuning badly, I’ll never know. Certainly the prettiest special was Bill David’s blue MG. It didn’t place well but it was loverly to look at. The Al Coppel MG special was the next best turned out special, IMO. The Barlow Simca Special was all but unstoppable. Until Ken Miles’ MG Special ( pre-Flying Shingle ) Barlow pretty much owned the 1500cc class. I remember that his business partner Van Dyke ( International Motors ) usually followed Barlow home for a second or third in class. When Ken Miles’ Special appeared it was all but over for everyone else until John Von Newman built and raced his Pooper (Cooper with a Porsche engine). By then, Miles drove other people’s larger displacement cars and turned pro.
Ah, those were the days. Wild and wooly but lots of fun.
Fantastic images. I wonderful look into a bygone time.
Mr Evidon, being of my age remembers when Ken Miles took
over the 1500cc class, winning all until Oct 1955 when Pete Lovely
in the Cooper Porsche beat Ken at Sacramento race.
But von Neumann on the other hand was VW- Porsche importer and
thus had the ONLY 550 in town—-beginning in April 1954 when
his Red 550 was at Pebble Beach (raced in Mexico year before)
It really annoyed Johnny that Miles would win when he had the
advantage. Even in 1955 von Neumann got new4 cam 550 car,
before deliveries made to private buyers,
I was so impressed in 1953 when Ken Miles upset the odds by
winning in his new MG, people assumed it was the rain at
Pebble Beach, but he just kept on winning, ands by January 1956 my
friend Miles became Porsche driver for John von Neumann in 550
That was an easy win and 3rd overall in the big car main at Torrey
Pines, passing a well driven D type Jaguar to do so..!
Jim Sitz
COOL!!
I’d love to use the one of the GMC-Wayne Nardi Danese for my new edition of Weekend Heroes .. also like the Union Ice Company truck in the background!
I wish I knew where that Nardi Danese is, even if it did not have the 6C2500 engine any longer. The photos of the car in Tony Adriaensens’ collection are not bad either!
Peter
Mr Marshall might be keen to know that 30 years ago, a friend and fellow
enthusiast for Italian cars had tried to find the Nardi coupe in Kagel Canyon
which is just north of Hansen Dam in Los Angeles and west of Tujunga Canyon.
Seems the rare car had been sighted in that neighborhood, but sorry to convey
my friend only found ’48 Buick Roadmaster !
Last I saw of the car was a shop in Glendale, just down street from Road & Track
office (I worked next door) and offered by owner for $ 2375 in our local racing
newspaper ” MotoRacing” for Dec 14th, 1956
I still wonder if it was same coupe imported to New York 1949 and then
owned by Charlie Kreisler an automobile dealer in Manhatten.? It was taken
down to Argentina in 1951 and raced by Hal Ullrich, the mechanic for both Cameron Peck’ and Brooks Stevcns. Photo of the coupe was in Motor Trend for April 1950.
faithfully
Jim Sitz