Announcer: VISITING WITH HUELL HOWSER IS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH A GENEROUS GRANT FROM... [CAPTIONING MADE POSSIBLE BY KCET PUBLIC TELEVISION AND FRIENDS OF NCI] Huell Howser: WELL, THIS IS GONNA BE AN HONEST-TO-GOODNESS ADVENTURE.

WE ARE IN POMONA AT THE L.A. COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS.

WE ARE STANDING IN FRONT OF THIS BEAUTIFUL BUILDING RIGHT HERE, AND I AM STANDING WITH A LIVING LEGEND.

IT'S NOT MANY PEOPLE I GET TO INTERVIEW IN FRONT OF THEIR OWN STATUE, AND, WALLY, IT'S A PRETTY GOOD LIKENESS OF YOU.

Wally: WELL, THANK YOU.

I HOPE I LOOK AS YOUNG AS THE STATUE DOES.

Huell, laughing: WELL, INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO EVERYBODY.

YOU ARE WALLY PARKS, AND YOU'RE--I HAVE A LOT OF CLAIMS TO FAME, BUT-- BUT YOUR MAIN CLAIM TO FAME IS THIS ORGANIZATION THAT YOU FOUNDED YEARS AND YEARS AGO.

Wally: THAT WAS IN 1951 WHEN WE FOUNDED THE NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION.

A GREAT THING ABOUT IT IS THAT IT WAS JUST AN ORGANIZATION TO TRY TO SLOW DOWN STREET RACING.

THERE WAS HOT RODDERS ON THE STREET.

AND TODAY I'M VERY PROUD TO SAY THAT IT'S THE WORLD'S LARGEST MOTORSPORTS ORGANIZATION.

Huell: WELL, THIS IS EXCITING, BECAUSE WE'RE NOW STANDING IN FRONT OF THE N.H.R.A.--THE NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM, PRESENTED BY THE AUTOMOBILE CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, AND THIS IS YOUR MUSEUM AND YOUR ORGANIZATION'S MUSEUM, AND YOU'RE GONNA GIVE US A TOUR OF WHAT'S INSIDE.

NOW, YOU AND I INITIALLY MET, WHAT, 8 YEARS AGO.

Wally: THAT'S RIGHT.

Huell: OUT ON ONE OF THE DRY LAKE BEDS, OUT AT EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, WHEN THEY WERE BRINGIN' BACK A LOT OF THE OLD HOT RODS THAT USED TO RACE ON THE DRY LAKE BEDS BACK IN THE TWENTIES AND THIRTIES.

Wally: RIGHT.

THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME IN 55 YEARS WE HAD ACCESS TO THE--WHAT THEY CALL MUROC DRY LAKE, AND, UH, IT WAS A GREAT OCCASION, AND IT WAS A GOOD TIME TO MEET YOU.

Huell: WELL, HOT-RODDIN' IS ALIVE AND WELL, AND WE'RE GONNA FIND OUT BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA GET A TOUR FROM THE MAN HIMSELF.

WE'RE GOING TO GO INSIDE THIS BEAUTIFUL MUSEUM HERE AT FAIRPLEX AND TAKE A LOOK, AND I GUESS YOU COULD BRING US ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE HISTORY OF HOT-RODDIN' IN THIS COUNTRY.

Wally: IT'S GOT ABOUT EVERYTHING IN IT, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID WAS THAT WE DIDN'T WANT IT TO BE JUST THE HISTORY OF NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION AND DRAG RACING, BUT IT REPRESENTS ALL THE DIFFERENT FORMS OF MOTORSPORTS THAT RELATE TO WHAT WE'RE DOING, SO THERE'S A LOOSE MIXTURE THERE TO PLEASE ANYBODY THAT WANTS TO COME IN.

Huell: ALL RIGHT.

I'M ANXIOUS TO GO IN, AND AS WE LEAVE, LET'S TAKE ONE MORE LOOK.

HERE'S THE MAN, AND HERE'S HIS STATUE RIGHT HERE--WALLY PARKS--THE FOUNDER OF THE NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION...AND OUR TOUR GUIDE TODAY.

WE'RE INSIDE THE MUSEUM, AND OUR FIRST STOP IS IN FRONT OF THIS-- IS THIS LITERALLY A HOT ROD?

Wally: THAT DEFINITELY IS, UH, LITERALLY AND TYPICALLY A HOT ROD.

MOST OF THE HOT RODS OF THE EARLY YEARS CAME FROM MODEL T AND MODEL A FORDS, AND IT'S, UH, IDENTICAL WITH THE TYPES OF CARS--IN FACT, THESE CARS HAVE HISTORIES OF RUNNING AT THE DRY LAKES.

Huell: OK.

SO THESE WOULD'VE BEEN--LIKE, THIS ONE OVER HERE.

IS THIS A DRY LAKE CAR?

Wally: THAT'S A DRY LAKE CAR.

Huell: WOW!

AND THESE WOULD'VE BEEN FROM, WHAT, THE TWENTIES, THE THIRTIES, THE FORTIES?

HERE'S ANOTHER ONE OVER HERE-- THIS MERCURY-POWERED 500.

AND THEY'RE ALL KIND OF FROM THE SAME ERA.

Wally: THEY ALL WERE TYPICAL OF WHAT WAS RUNNING AT THE DRY LAKES, AND, UH, THAT WAS THE HIGHEST FORM ACTIVITY AS FAR AS HOT RODS WERE CONCERNED.

Huell: WERE OUT ON THE DRY LAKES.

Wally: ON THE DRY LAKES.

YES.

THE WHOLE MOVEMENT THERE WAS KINDA PLANNED TO KINDA OVERCOME STREET RACING.

IN FACT, JUST THE SAME AS OUR NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION WAS.

BUT, UH, THESE WERE THE STATE OF THE ART AT THE TIME THAT THEY WERE RUNNING.

Huell: SO, THIS WHOLE IDEA OF RACING ON THE DRY LAKES WAS AN IDEA HERE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AT LEAST TO HELP GET THE KIDS OFF THE STREETS AND ONTO THE DRY LAKES, WHERE THEY COULD GO AS FAST AS THEY WANTED TO AND NOT BOTHER ANYBODY.

Wally: WELL, THAT'S IT EXACTLY.

OF COURSE, THE DRY LAKES WERE OPEN FOR VARIOUS FORMS OF SPEED TRIALS BACK IN THE 1920s AND '30s.

BUT IN THE 1940s, HOT RODS HAD GOTTEN A PRETTY BAD NAME, PARTICULARLY AROUND THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AREA, AND SO THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TIMING ASSOCIATION, WHICH WAS FORMED IN 1937, SET ITS SIGHTS ON TRYIN' TO OVERCOME THAT IMAGE.

AND, UH, DRY LAKES RACING WAS AVAILABLE ABOUT 100 MILES FROM LOS ANGELES.

CONSEQUENTLY, THAT BECAME THE PRIMARY SPORT, AND THE CAR CLUBS IN THIS AREA WERE THE ONES WHO ACTUALLY PUT ON THE EVENTS, AND STILL DO.

Huell: NOW, I'M LOOKIN' OVER HERE.

THESE AREN'T...THESE AREN'T HOT RODS, ARE THEY?

Wally: WELL, THEY'RE ALL--THEY ALL COME UNDER THE GUISE OF BEING HOT RODS.

THESE ACTUALLY ARE DRAGSTERS, AND AS YOU CAN SEE, THEY'RE REAR-ENGINED, AND THEY'RE BUILT FOR ACCELERATION FROM STANDING START TO A QUARTER MILE.

Huell: THEY LOOK LIKE ROCKET SHIPS.

Wally: WELL...ONE OF 'EM-- Huell: I MEAN, THESE THINGS-- ARE--ARE THESE THOSE THAT--WHERE THE FLAMES COME OUT THE BACK?

Wally: THAT'S IT.

THAT'S--THAT'S THE ENGINE.

THE ZOOMIES IS WHAT WE CALL THE HEADERS ON 'EM.

THE FLAME COMES OUT THE TOP.

THESE ARE VINTAGE VEHICLES HERE.

THEY'VE BEEN AROUND FOR A LONG TIME.

Huell: LIKE, WHEN YOU SAY "VINTAGE," HOW FAR BACK ARE WE TALKIN' ON THESE THINGS?

Wally: OH, MAYBE 10, 15 YEARS FOR--FOR MOST OF 'EM THAT WE HAVE IN THE PLACE.

Huell: BUT HERE ARE THE OLD ONES...UP HERE.

THESE ARE FROM THE THIRTIES AND THE FORTIES, THESE PICTURES MADE OUT ON THE DRY LAKE.

Wally: THESE, UH...THESE PARTICULAR ONES WERE ACTUALLY MADE ON THE SALT FLATS IN UTAH, AND WE STARTED RUNNING THERE IN 1949.

AND THAT, OF COURSE, IS THE--THE BEST PLACE THAT YOU CAN GO FAST SAFELY.

Huell: NOW, I DON'T KNOW WHETHER WE'RE FOLLOWIN' THE TIME LINE EXACTLY AS WE SHOULD OR NOT, BUT SOMEBODY HAD ALREADY GIVEN ME A HEADS-UP THAT I SHOULD STOP AND ASK YOU ABOUT THIS CAR RIGHT HERE.

Wally: WELL, THIS CAR IS ONE THAT WE CALL SUDDENLY, AND IT'S A REPLICA OF ONE THAT RAY BROCK AND I BUILT, UH, IN 1957.

AND WE TOOK IT DOWN TO DAYTONA BEACH DURIN' THE SPEED TRIALS DOWN THERE.

WE RAN IT IN THE EXPERIMENTAL CLASS AND RAN AGAINST ALL THE FACTORY PARTICIPATION THAT WAS THERE AND ENDED UP SETTING THE TOP SPEED AND THE RECORD SPEED DOWN THERE.

Huell: HOW FAST WERE YOU GOIN' IN THIS THING?

Wally: IT WENT 166 MILES AN HOUR.

[HUELL WHISTLES] Wally: AND THEN RAY TOOK IT UP TO THE BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS LATER THAT YEAR AND RUN 183 MILES AN HOUR WITH IT.

Huell: AND THIS IS A 1957... Wally: '57 PLYMOUTH WITH A HEMMING ENGINE IN THE THING.

[MOTOR ROARS] Huell: LOOK AT THIS CAR!

Wally: THAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT THE EARLY, EARLY HOT ROD LOOKED LIKE.

Huell: WHAT IS THIS?

WHAT-- WHAT KIND OF CAR IS IT?

Wally: IT'S A MODEL T FORD, AND IT'S GOT A FORD FLATHEAD ENGINE WITH SOME SPECIAL HEADS THAT ED ESKANGARIAN MADE FOR IT.

AND OF COURSE IT'S GOT A SPECIAL MANIFOLD WITH 3 CARBURETORS.

IT HAS NO FENDERS, AND THAT USUALLY TYPIFIES A HOT ROD.

Huell: HA!

WHAT DOES MAKE--WHAT DOES MAKE SOMETHIN' A HOT ROD?

LET'S WALK ON DOWN HERE AND SEE SOME OF THEM.

Wally: WELL, THIS IS A HOT RODDER HERE.

IT WAS A 1927 FORD AT ONE TIME WITH AN OLD WHEEL ENGINE IN IT.

AND ACK MILLER, WHO HAPPENED TO BE ONE OF THE FOUNDING, UH, OFFICERS FOR THE-- THE FORMATION OF NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION, DROVE IT IN THE MEXICAN ROAD RACE AND, UH, FINISHED FIFTH IN HIS CLASS WITH IT.

AND IT WAS A HYBRID.

THEY CALLED IT THE "HORSE OF IRON."

BUT, AGAIN, IT WAS A HOT ROD, AND, UH... Huell: BUT LOOKIN' DOWN HERE...

BOY, LOOK AT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THAT OLD CAR THAT WE SAW THAT USED TO R--UH, YOU KNOW, THAT--WHAT IS THAT, A '27... Wally: THAT'S A '25.

Huell: '25...TO THESE DOWN HERE.

AND TO THINK THAT THEY'RE ALL IN THE SAME CATEGORY--LOOK DOWN HERE--OF SOMETHIN' CALLED HOT RODS.

Wally: ACTUALLY WHAT WE HAVE HERE IS AN EVOLUTION.

IT--IT SHOWS THE VARIOUS PHASES THAT THE--THE EQUIPMENT WENT THROUGH AS IT WAS BEING DEVELOPED, AND SOME OF THESE ARE IN OUR, UH, 4-STAR CATEGORY.

SOME OF 'EM ARE IN THE FUNNY CAR CATEGORY... 'CAUSE WE HAVE OVER 2OO CLASSES OF COMPETITION IN AN N.H.R.A.

DRAG RACING.

BUT WHAT YOU HAVE HERE IS A--IS A MIXTURE.

BUT IT ALSO REPRESENTS SOME OF THE MOST POPULAR AND PROMINENT CARS IN THEIR TIME.

Huell: THIS ONE RIGHT HERE--THIS LOOKS LIKE SOMETHIN' YOU'D SEE ON TV TODAY... Wally: WELL, IT-- Huell: RACIN' AROUND THE TRACK.

Wally: IT IS AND IT WAS.

IT'S ONE OF JOHN FORCE'S CARS, AND, UH, IT, UH, CERTAINLY HAS BEEN A RECORD HOLDER.

HE'S CERTAINLY BEEN ONE OF THE LEADING POINTS WINNERS IN--IN DRAG RACING, AND IT'S VERY, VERY TYPICAL OF WHAT THE MODERN FUNNY CAR LOOKS LIKE.

Huell: THAT'S A FUNNY CAR?

Wally: THAT'S A FUNNY CAR, AND IT'S POWERED WITH AN ENGINE THAT PRODUCES 6,000 HORSEPOWER.

Huell: WHAT MAKES SOMETHIN' A FUNNY CAR?

Wally: WELL, IT LOOKS FUNNY... Huell: OH.

Wally: [CHUCKLES] TO BEGIN WITH.

THAT'S A NAME THAT STARTED OUT A LONG TIME AGO WITH ONE OF THE CARS DOWN HERE ON, UH...ON OUR LEFT.

AND, UH, THEY CALLED IT A FUNNY CAR I GUESS BY ACCIDENT, AND THE NAME STUCK, SO... Huell: LOOK AT THIS ONE-- "DOUG'S HEADERS."

Wally: THAT'S ONE OF THE EARLIEST--EARLY FUNNY CARS.

AND THE ONE THAT JOHN FORCE HAS IS ONE THAT HAS DEVELOPED OVER A PERIOD OF TIME SINCE THEN.

Huell: AND THEN THIS ONE OVER HERE!

LOOK AT THIS!

BOY, THIS IS A-- Wally: THIS WAS A VERY, VERY SPECIAL, UH, VEHICLE...HERE.

LIKE MANY HOT RODS, THEY DON'T REPRESENT ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR AS FAR AS PRODUCTION BODIES ARE CONCERNED.

BUT THIS WAS A--A CAR THAT WAS OUTSTANDING IN ITS TIME.

AND THIS SHOWS SOME OF THE DESIGN AND ARTISTIC IMAGINATION THAT HOT RODS REPRESENT.

Huell: NOW...DOWN HERE, ALL OF THESE ARE--ARE BEAUTIFUL CARS.

HOW DO YOU TALK THE OWNERS INTO DONATIN' 'EM TO YOUR MUSEUM?

HOW DO YOU GET 'EM TO PART WITH 'EM?

Wally: WELL, IT ISN'T DIFFICULT BECAUSE MOST OF THE PEOPLE WHO COLLECT AND RESTORE VEHICLES LIKE THIS LIKE TO HAVE THEM SEEN.

AND JUST THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE THEM ON DISPLAY IN A COLLECTION LIKE THIS IS-- IS ENOUGH.

ALL OF 'EM ARE NOT DONATED.

SOME OF 'EM ARE HERE ON TEMPORARY LOAN.

Huell: SO YOUR EXHIBITS ARE ALWAYS CHANGING.

Wally: YEAH.

WE KEEP ROTATING THOSE, AND EVERY TIME I SHOW UP, IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S BEEN CHANGED A LITTLE BIT.

Huell: BOY, THESE LOOK SPECIAL.

LOOK AT THE LINES ON THESE CARS.

Wally: WELL, EVERY ONE OF 'EM IS SPECIAL IN THE HISTORY OF DRAG RACING AND HOT RODDING.

UH, THIS ONE HERE BELONGS TO ART CHRISMAN, AND IT'S ONE OF THE OLDEST HOT RODS THAT WE KNOW OF THAT'S STILL IN EXISTENCE.

Huell: HOW OLD IS THAT?

Wally: WELL, IT WAS RUNNING AT THE DRY LAKES IN THE 1930s.

Huell: BOY, THAT'S A--THAT LOOKS LIKE IT CAME ALONG LATER THAN THE THIRTIES.

Wally: WELL, THE HOOD AND FRAME HAVE BEEN EXTENDED SINCE THEY RAN IT AT THAT TIME AND CONVERTED IT OVER TO DRAG RACING.

BUT THIS WAS THE CAR THAT MADE THE FIRST RUN OF OUR FIRST NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN 1955 AT GREAT BEND, KANSAS.

ART CHRISMAN DID THAT.

HE JUST REPEATED THE SAME THING 50 YEARS LATER AT INDIANAPOLIS AT OUR-- OUR ANNIVERSARY THERE.

Huell: AND LOOK AT THIS ONE!

Wally: THIS ONE WAS DRIVEN BY CALVIN RICE.

HAD A FLATHEAD FORD ENGINE IN IT.

AND HE WON IN THE VERY FIRST NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS, AGAIN IN 1955.

Huell: AND WHAT ABOUT THIS PURPLE ONE DOWN HERE?

Wally: THE PURPLE ONE BELONGS TO MEL HAYES FROM OKLAHOMA.

AND IN 1956 AT THE NATIONALS, HE MANAGED TO DEFEAT CALVIN RICE FOR THE FINALS, AND SO HE BECAME THE 1956 NATIONAL CHAMPION.

Huell: AND THE ONE NEXT TO IT HAS A TOTALLY DIFFERENT LOOK.

Wally: WELL, IT DOES HAVE.

IT'S AN OLDSMOBILE ENGINE.

DIFFERENT STYLE.

LITTLE SHORTER WHEEL BASE.

AND HE ACTUALLY WON, UH, THE NATIONALS AT, UH, AT DETROIT IN 1959.

Huell: BOY, YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKIN' ABOUT.

YOU HADN'T USED A CHEAT SHEET ALL DAY.

Wally: WELL, I HAVEN'T-- Wally: YOU LIVED ALL OF THIS.

Wally: YEAH, WE DID.

WE DID.

AND THERE'S SO MUCH ABOUT EACH ONE OF 'EM, YOU KNOW, THAT YOU'D LIKE TO TELL.

Huell: AND, YOU KNOW, NOW, WE'RE STANDIN' HERE.

THIS WAS--THIS WAS POMONA, WASN'T IT?

Wally: THAT WAS RIGHT HERE AT THE FAIRGROUNDS, YEAH.

Huell: BACK IN THE FIFTIES.

Wally: RIGHT.

Huell: AND LOOK.

I KNOW THE CAMERA CAN PICK IT UP.

HERE ARE THE HOT RODS DOWN HERE AT THE BOTTOM WITH ALL THE GUYS GATHERED AROUND.

THOSE EARLY DAYS, UH, BACK IN THE THIRTIES, FORTIES, AND FIFTIES--THOSE WERE EXCITING DAYS TO BE IN THE HOT ROD GENRE, WEREN'T THEY?

Wally: WELL, THEY ACTUALLY WERE BECAUSE YOU WERE...YOU KNOW, YOU WERE TREADING NEW GROUND.

NOTHING OF THAT NATURE HAD BEEN DONE BEFORE, SO EVERYTHING WAS EXPERIMENTAL.

Huell: DO YOU KNOW, I'M THINKIN' BACK TO REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE WITH JAMES DEAN.

REMEMBER THAT RACE THEY HAD IN THERE?

THEY WERE KIND OF DELINQUENTS, AND THEY WERE OUT JOYRIDIN', AND THEY WERE OUT--THEY WERE KIND OF THE--YOU KNOW, I THINK IN THOSE EARLY DAYS, ESPECIALLY IN THE FIFTIES, THERE WAS A LITTLE BIT OF THAT IMAGE THAT YOU HAD TO OVERCOME, WASN'T THERE?.

Wally: THERE WAS A LOT OF IT.

WE WERE GETTING SOME BAD, BAD PUBLICITY, AND WE KNEW THAT WE HAD TO COME UP WITH SOMETHING THAT HAD A MORE FAVORABLE ACCEPTANCE AS FAR AS THE PUBLIC WAS CONCERNED.

AND THE FACT THAT THIS PARTICULAR SPORT EMERGED FROM THAT IS SOMETHING THAT ALL OF US ARE VERY PROUD OF.

Huell: THIS MUSEUM IS FULL OF CASES, FULL OF ALL KINDS OF HISTORIC PICTURES, INCLUDING THIS ONE THAT'S LABELED "THE ORIGINAL N.H.R.A.

DRAG SAFETY SAFARI."

WHAT WAS THAT ALL ABOUT?

Wally: WELL, ACTUALLY, AFTER WE HAD DEVELOPED ENOUGH RULES AND PROCEDURES AND INSURANCE ON DRAG RACING, WE DECIDED THAT WE NEEDED TO GO OUT AND DEMONSTRATE AND--AND INSTRUCT CAR CLUBS ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY ON HOW TO CONDUCT AN EVENT, SO WE SENT THE SAFETY SAFARI OUT--4-MAN TEAM-- AND THEY WENT INTO THE COMMUNITIES AND--AND ACTUALLY INDOCTRINATED THE LOCAL CAR CLUBS INTO HOW IT BECOMES TRACK OPERATORS, SOMETIMES ON STREETS, SOMETIMES ON AIRPORT RUNWAYS, WHEREVER THEY COULD GET IT.

BUT THEY ACTUALLY WERE THE JOHNNY APPLESEED CAMPAIGN THAT PLANTED A SEED FOR ORGANIZED DRAG RACING FROM COAST TO COAST.

Huell: YOU WERE SPREADIN' THE MESSAGE ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, COMIN' OUT OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.

YOU WERE KINDA DOIN' MISSIONARY WORK.

Wally: WHAT WE WERE DOING, UH, WE NOT ONLY HAD THEM OUT THERE AS OUR EMISSARIES, BUT HOT ROD MAGAZINE COVERED IT RELIGIOUSLY, SO WE WERE ABLE TO REACH READERS IN COMMUNITIES FROM COAST TO COAST.

AND IT ACTUALLY WAS, I GUESS, THE FOUNDATION OF AN ORGANIZED SPORT AT THAT TIME.

Huell: NOW, WE'RE STANDIN' HERE BY THIS YELLOW JALOPY AND THIS BRIGHT-RED TRACK ROADSTER, AND WE'VE BEEN JOINED--INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO EVERYONE, MRS.

PARKS.

Barbara Parks: I'M BARBARA PARKS.

Huell: MM-HMM... Barbara: AND I'VE WORKED FOR WALLY SINCE HE...FORMED N.H.R.A.

IN 1951.

Huell: WELL, YOU NOT ONLY WORKED FOR HIM, YOU MARRIED HIM.

Barbara: 10 YEARS LATER, YES.

Huell: HOW LONG HAVE YOU ALL BEEN MARRIED?

Barbara: 42 YEARS.

Huell: NOW, WHEN YOU MET HIM... Barbara: YEAH... Huell: WAS HE THIS...UH, KIND OF FAST...CAR...FAST-DRIVIN'...

FAST-LANE SORT OF A GUY WHO IMMEDIATELY APPEALED TO YOU?

Barbara: WELL, NO, NOT THAT SO MUCH, BUT WE DID USED TO KID ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE FORMED N.H.R.A.

TO GET HIM OFF THE STREET.

[HUELL CHUCKLES] Huell: AND WHAT ABOUT YOU?

HOW HAVE YOU BEEN INVOLVED IN THIS ALL THE YEARS?

Barbara: OH, I WENT TO WORK FOR HIM BECAUSE I WAS LOOKING FOR A JOB TO GET BACK TO NEW YORK.

Huell: MM-HMM... Barbara: AND I WAS HIS SECRETARY AT HOT ROD MAGAZINE WHEN HE FORMED N.H.R.A.

Huell: MM-HMM... Barbara: AND SO HE SAID, "YOU MIGHT HAVE SOMETHING TO DO," AND I DID.

I TYPED ALL THE FIRST MEMBERSHIP CARDS AND ANSWERED THE MAIL AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

Huell: SO YOU'VE BEEN WITH HIM AND WITH THE NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.

Barbara: VERY BEGINNING.

YEAH.

Huell: AND IS IT IN YOUR BLOOD, TOO, NOW?

Barbara: WELL, I LOVE N.H.R.A.

AND THE SPORT, PARTICULARLY THE PEOPLE INVOLVED.

I MUST CONFESS I KNOW VERY LITTLE ABOUT CARS.

Huell: YOU DON'T KNOW--WAIT A MINUTE.

YOU'VE BEEN AROUND 'EM ALL YOUR LIFE.

Barbara: WELL... Huell: DO YOU LIKE TO RIDE IN THESE?

WOULD YOU LIKE TO GO AROUND THE TRACK IN SOMETHIN' LIKE THIS?

Barbara: WELL, NOT NOW.

[HUELL CHUCKLES] I'M TOO OLD.

Huell: GOES TOO FAST FOR YOU NOW.

Barbara: AT ONE TIME, I LOVED WALLY'S ROADSTER, WHICH HE HAD WHEN I WENT TO WORK FOR HIM.

Huell: MM-HMM... Barbara: AND, UH, SO-- Huell: SEE, THAT'S WHAT I WAS GETTIN' AT.

HE DID HAVE A FAST CAR WHEN YOU FIRST MET HIM.

Barbara: YEAH.

IT WAS A MARVELOUS LITTLE ROADSTER.

I'M SURE THERE'S SOME OUTSIDE SIMILAR.

Huell: SO, DID YOU WOO HER WITH YOUR CAR?

Barbara: HA!

Wally: OH, I'D LIKE TO THINK NOT.

I THINK SHE WAS MORE ATTRACTED TO ME THAN SHE WAS TO THE CAR.

SHE--SHE USED TO COMPLAIN.

IT WAS A FENDERLESS ROADSTER, AND SHE DIDN'T LIKE THE WIND ON THE BACK OF HER NECK.

I DO REMEMBER THAT.

[BARBARA CHUCKLES] Huell: BUT YOU MARRIED HIM ANYWAY.

Barbara: I DID.

BIG CITY GIRL, I WAS, BUT I--YOU KNOW, I GOT INTRIGUED WITH THE SPORT--THE EARLY SPORT AND THE PEOPLE INVOLVED IN IT.

I FOUND THE EARLY RACERS AND THE CAR CLUBS, WHICH I HELPED ORGANIZE ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, VERY APPEALING.

THE PEOPLE WERE MARVELOUS.

AND THE WIVES AND THE KIDS THAT HELPED THEM OUT, THEY WERE THE, UH...THE CREW MEMBERS IN THE EARLY DAYS.

THEY DIDN'T HAVE ALL THESE HUGE RIGS AND THINGS THAT THEY HAVE TODAY.

Huell: WELL, IT WAS AND IT IS STILL, THOUGH, KINDA LIKE A BIG FAMILY, ISN'T IT?

Barbara: YEAH.

YEAH.

Wally: IT DEFINITELY IS, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE WORKED HARD TO PROTECT WAS ALLOWING YOUNG PEOPLE INTO THE PITS, AND WE HAD TO PAY A HIGH PREMIUM FOR THE INSURANCE COMPANIES TO ALLOW THAT, BUT IT'S ALWAYS BEEN A FAMILY PARTICIPATION SPORT, AND THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK MAKES IT SO POPULAR.

Huell: AND TODAY...MANY YEARS AFTER YOU STARTED THE NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION BACK IN 1951, IT'S GROWN TO THE POINT WHERE--HOW MANY DRAG STRIPS ARE THERE AROUND THE COUNTRY?

Wally: WELL, RIGHT NOW WE HAVE JUST UNDER 150 THAT ARE ONLY UNDER THE N.H.R.A.

SANCTION.

UH, N.H.R.A.

ACTUALLY OWNS 5 TRACKS AROUND THE COUNTRY THAT IT OPERATES, AND THAT'S IN INDIANAPOLIS AND COLUMBUS, OHIO, ATLANTA, GEORGIA, UH, GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA, AND THE ONE HERE AT POMONA.

AND SO THOSE ARE WHERE THE MAJOR EVENTS ARE TAKIN' PLACE.

UH, BUT ACTUALLY, AS FAR AS MEMBERSHIP IS CONCERNED, WHY, WE'RE UP IN THE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS.

WE-- WE HAVE 80,000 MEMBERS OF N.H.R.A.

RIGHT NOW, UH, MOST OF WHICH ARE PARTICIPANTS.

WE HAVE OVER 35,000 DRIVERS, LICENSED DRIVERS.

Huell: AND SOME ARE PROFESSIONAL, MAKE A LOT OF MONEY AT IT.

SOME OF 'EM--MOST OF 'EM ARE JUST PROBABLY DOIN' IT FOR THE FUN OF IT AND FOR THE JOY OF IT.

AND SO IT'S REALLY OPEN TO EVERYBODY.

Wally: WELL, WE HAVE 220 CLASSES FOR COMPETITION, AND IT RUNS THE GAMUT FROM TOP FIELD DRAGSTERS THAT ARE RUNNING 330 MILES AN HOUR DOWN TO SUCH VEHICLES AS YOU SEE HERE.

OR EVEN THE FAMILY SEDAN THAT YOU GO AND--AND GET YOUR GROCERIES IN.

Huell: SEE WHAT YOU STARTED?

Wally: WE DIDN'T KNOW AT THE TIME.

PEOPLE ASK US OFTEN, YOU KNOW, "DID YOU EVER VISUALIZE IT BEIN' LIKE THIS?"

NOBODY HAD THOSE KIND OF PLAN.

IT WAS OUR GOAL TO PROVIDE ACTIVITIES FOR THE OWNERS OF HOT RODS WHERE YOU GO OUT AND HAVE FUN WITH 'EM WITHOUT GETTING ARRESTED.

AND THAT WAS ABOUT THE LIMIT OF IT.

BUT WHAT IT'S GROWN INTO JUST BECAUSE OF THE SHEER DEDICATION OF THE MEMBERS AND THE PARTICIPANTS, UH, YOU KNOW, IT JUST SEEMS TO BE AN UNSTOPPABLE, UM, ACTIVITY, AND WE'RE JUST TICKLED TO DEATH TO HAVE BEEN INVOLVED WITH IT.

Huell: WELL, CONGRATULATIONS.

AND CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR MUSEUM HERE.

THIS IS A WONDERFUL TRIBUTE TO THE WORK THAT NOT ONLY THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE ALL OVER THE COUNTRY AND THE WORLD HAVE DONE, BUT WHAT THE TWO OF YOU ALL HAVE DONE TO GUIDE THIS ORGANIZATION AND THIS SPORT AND THIS, UH, FORM OF ACTIVITY ALONG.

YOU SHOULD BE HONORED AND THRILLED ABOUT THIS.

Wally: WE'RE PROUD, AND WE'RE PROUD OF HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN IT FROM DAY ONE ON IT.

THEY'RE JUST THE GREATEST GROUP OF PEOPLE AND THE MOST DEDICATED PEOPLE THAT YOU COULD EVER FIND.

Huell: OK, WE'RE NOW OUTSIDE THE N.H.R.A.

MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM.

I'VE HOOKED UP WITH STEVE GIBBS, WHO'S PART OF ALL OF THIS.

YOU'VE BEEN AROUND THIS FOR A LONG TIME, STEVE.

Steve Gibbs: LONG TIME.

ABOUT 40 YEARS, HUELL.

Huell: NOW, WHAT HAVE YOU GOT US INTO OVER HERE?

THIS IS A WHOLE 'NOTHER THING GOIN' ON OUT HERE.

Steve: WELL, IT'S OUR MONTHLY TWILIGHT CRUISE.

IT'S A PRODUCTION OF THE MUSEUM, AND WE'RE INTO OUR FIFTH YEAR OF DOING IT.

WE DO IT 9 MONTHS OUT OF THE YEAR, AND EACH MONTH, WE HAVE ANYWHERE FROM 400 TO 500 OF THE FINEST STREET RODS YOU'LL FIND IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GATHER HERE.

Huell: NOW, YOU CALL 'EM "STREET RODS."

ARE THEY STREET RODS?

ARE THEY HOT RODS?

ARE THEY DRAGSTERS?

WHAT ARE THEY, EXACTLY?

Steve: WELL, THEY'RE HOT RODS, BUT THEY'RE ALL, YOU KNOW, STREET-LEGAL, SO THESE ARE CARS THAT, YOU KNOW, ARE DRIVEN TO THE SHOWS AND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF 'EM ARE A LITTLE MORE EXOTIC THAN OTHERS, BUT THEY'RE ALL STREET-LEGAL CARS.

BUT THEY ARE HOT RODS, INDEED.

Huell: AND WHAT DO PEOPLE DO?

THEY COME OUT AND SET IN FRONT OF THEIR CAR AND SHOW OFF, LIKE THIS GUY RIGHT HERE?

IS THIS YOUR CAR?

Man: THIS IS MINE RIGHT HERE.

Huell: STAND UP AND TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT.

Man: HI.

THAT'S A 1932 ROADSTER.

Huell: WOW!

Man: A FORD ROADSTER, AND, UM, IT'S GOT A LITTLE 350 CORVETTE ENGINE IN IT.

UH... Huell: AND DO YOU RACE THIS THING, OR YOU JUST SHOW IT OFF?

Man: OH, NO.

WE CRUISE IT.

WE DRIVE IT.

WE ENJOY IT.

WE GO TO SHOWS.

WE HAVE A BALL WITH IT.

IT'S A LOT OF FUN.

Huell: WELL, YOU KNOW, IT'S KIND OF APPROPRIATE THAT IT'S HERE RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM.

Man: ABSOLUTELY.

Huell: IT KIND OF TALKS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE HISTORY OF WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT.

Man: ABSOLUTELY, AND YOU'LL SEE ALL THE CARS HERE ARE-- EVERYBODY HAS A CRAZINESS FOR CARS.

THEY LOVE THE CARS.

THEY LOVE WHAT THEY DO.

THEY LOVE TO SHOW 'EM.

THEY LOVE TO DRIVE 'EM, AND THEY ENJOY 'EM.

Huell: BOY, LOOK AT THIS ONE RIGHT OVER HERE.

THIS IS A NICE ONE.

YOURS IS A NICE ONE.

ARE YOU JUST A LOOKY-LOO, OR... Man: NO, NO.

MINE YOU WALKED BY.

IT'S THE ORANGE 40 BACK THERE.

Huell: I'M SORRY.

I DIDN'T MEAN TO WALK BY.

Man: THAT'S QUITE ALL RIGHT.

Huell: BUT YOU DON'T TAKE THAT PERSONALLY.

YOU--YOU ENJOY THE JOY THAT EVERYBODY GETS OUT OF THEIR CARS.

Man: ABSOLUTELY.

EVERYBODY COMES OUT AND DISCUSSES THEIR CAR AND LOOKS AT CARS AND APPRECIATES WHAT THE OTHER GUY DID.

Huell: AND WHEN DID ALL OF THIS--WHEN DOES THIS BEGIN TO CREEP INTO EVERYBODY'S BLOOD?

WHEN THEY'RE TEENAGERS OR WHEN THEY'RE GOIN' THROUGH MID-LIFE CRISIS OR WHAT?

Man: WHEN YOU'RE BORN.

Huell: WHEN YOU'RE BORN, IT CREEPS IN--HA HA HA!

Man: PROBABLY.

PROBABLY.

UH, I'VE HAD CARS SINCE I WAS 14 YEARS OLD.

Huell: YEAH.

Man: MY WIFE AND I, WE JUST HAD OUR 39th ANNIVERSARY.

WE'VE HAD OVER 60 CARS SINCE WE WERE MARRIED, AND THEY'RE JUST...YOU KNOW, ALL DIFFERENT KINDS, AND WE LOVE 'EM.

Huell: WHICH STAYS WITH YOU?

Man: IT NEVER LEAVES YOU.

IT STAYS WITH YOU, AND IT'S SOMETHIN' YOU CAN DO UNTIL YOU CAN'T DRIVE ANYMORE.

AND THEN YOU LET YOUR KIDS DRIVE YOU AROUND IN YOUR HOT RODS.

Huell: OH, BOY!

RIGHT OUT HERE IN THE PARKIN' LOT WE'VE RUN ACROSS...IS THIS THE ORIGINAL DRAG SAFARI?

WALLY WAS TELLIN' US ABOUT THIS.

Man: THIS IS THE ORIGINAL ONE.

WE STARTED OUT IN 1954 GOIN' ACROSS COUNTRY TO TELL THE PEOPLE ABOUT SAFETY ON DRAG RACING.

Huell: IN THIS CAR AND PULLIN' THIS TRAILER.

Man: THAT'S RIGHT.

WE PULLED ALL OUR EQUIPMENT FOR THE DRAG--WE COULD PUT ON A COMPLETE DRAG RACE WITH EVERY PIECE OF EQUIPMENT THAT WE HAD IN THE TRAILER.

Huell: AND WHAT KIND OF RECEPTION DID YOU GET OUT ACROSS THE COUNTRY AS YOU CALIFORNIA BOYS WERE SHOWIN' UP WITH ALL THIS HOT ROD, UH, MESSAGE TO THE PEOPLE OF THE HINTERLANDS?

Bud: WELL, A LOT OF FUN.

UH, THE GUYS WANTED TO LEARN HOW WE DID IT OUT HERE AND HOW IT STARTED.

MY WORK WAS TO SHOW 'EM HOW TO DO IT SAFELY.

Huell: BECAUSE YOU ALL WERE, LIKE, LEGENDS WHEN YOU DROVE INTO TOWN, WEREN'T YOU?

Chic: OH, THAT'S FOR SURE.

THEY CAME GANGIN' AROUND, FOLLOWING US ALL OVER TOWN.

THEY'D MEET US OUTSIDE OF TOWN SOMETIMES IF THEY KNEW WE WERE COMING IN, AND THEY, UH, THEY JUST TREATED US LIKE KINGS, REALLY.

IT WAS JUST WONDERFUL THE WAY THEY TOOK US, YOU KNOW, ACCEPTED US.

AND THEN OF COURSE AFTER WE LEFT, WHY, THEY HATED TO SEE US GO.

Huell: HA!

WELL, IT'S GREAT TO SEE THE OLD CAR AND THE OLD TRAILER.

WHO'S BEEN LOOKIN' AFTER IT ALL THESE YEARS?

Chic: WELL, THE TRAILER'S BEEN HERE AND THERE AND EVERYWHERE.

IT'S BEEN REBUILT A COUPLE TIMES.

BUD, WHEN HE HAD HIS, UH, RV COMPANY, UH, REBUILT IT ONCE, AND I GUESS IT'S BEEN REBUILT A COUPLE TIMES SINCE, BUT IT'S BEEN BACK AT INDY.

IN FACT, SOME OF THE...THE FIRST SALES THAT SPORTS SERVICES MADE, UH, WERE OUT OF THIS TRAILER.

Huell: WOW.

Chic: AND WHEN WE WERE ON THE TOUR IN '54, AFTER I'D GET THROUGH INSPECTING CARS AND CLASSIFYING 'EM, THEN I'D GO IN THE TRAILER, SELL T-SHIRTS SO WE COULD PAY FOR OUR MOTEL ROOM.

Huell: AND YOU'RE STILL SELLIN' T-SHIRTS.

Chic: I'M STILL SELLIN' T-SHIRTS.

Huell: AND THE OLD DRAG SAFARI IS HERE, AND THE ORIGINAL GUYS ARE RIGHT OUT HERE IN THE PARKIN' LOT IN FRONT OF THE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM.

WELL, THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL.

WE'VE HAD A GREAT TIME HERE AT THE MUSEUM.

Steve: THANK YOU VERY MUCH, HUELL.

Huell: AND THE JUXTAPOSITION OF THE OLD CARS AND THE CAR ENTHUSIASTS FROM TODAY'S WORLD-- LOOK AT THIS OVER HERE--AND THEN IT'S ALL IN JUXTAPOSITION TO THE MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM OVER HERE, WHICH CELEBRATES THE HISTORY OF THIS SPORT THAT STARTED WITH THE--REALLY, WITH THE--THE GRAND MAN WE SPENT THE DAY WITH TODAY.

IT ALL KINDA TIES IT TOGETHER, DOESN'T IT?

Steve: IT DOES TIE IT TOGETHER.

WE'VE GOT, UH--YOU KNOW, ALL THE HISTORY'S HERE GOIN' ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE DRY LAKES RACIN' IN THE 1930s TO THE CURRENT STATE OF THE ART STREET RODS AND OUR OWN PERSONAL HISTORIES HERE.

MY OWN LITTLE CAR'S SETTIN' OVER THERE, AND MY WIFE AND I, UH, 44 YEARS LATER, WE STILL GOT OUR ORIGINAL HOT ROD THAT WE HAD OUR HIGH SCHOOL DAYS, AND YOU HEAR THAT STORY OVER AND OVER AND OVER HERE.

THERE'S A REAL LOVE AFFAIR WITH THE AUTOMOBILE, AND THIS IS A GREAT PLACE TO, YOU KNOW, TO HAVE THAT KIND OF ACTIVITY.

Huell: AND I'LL TELL YOU WHAT.

IT ALL STARTED RIGHT HERE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, AND IT DOESN'T GET ANY MORE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THAN THIS, DOES IT?

Steve: NO.

I'M A CALIFORNIA KID, AND THIS IS A SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HAPPENING.

Huell: AND THAT'S THE WAY IT IS.

THE HOT RODS ARE STILL ALIVE AND WELL HERE IN POMONA...AND ALL OVER SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.

Man: WELL, GO ON.

DON'T BE CHICKEN.

GO ON!

[CAPTIONING MADE POSSIBLE BY KCET PUBLIC TELEVISION AND FRIENDS OF NCI] [CAPTIONED BY THE NATIONAL CAPTIONING INSTITUTE --www.ncicap.org--] HEY, THAT'S NOT BAD!

142 MILES AN HOUR.

Announcer: VISITING WITH HUELL HOWSER IS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH A GENEROUS GRANT FROM...