American Racing: Portrait of the 50s and 60s [Hardcover]

Tom (Photographs) Burnside (Author), Denise McCluggage (Author), Denise (Text) McCluggage (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1997

Oversize hardbound text with the original dust cover. Very excellent condition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Any motor racing fan will find this a "must" acquisition: an excellent photographic chronicle of American racing which draws upon scenes from the 50s and 60s to create an unusual chronicle of the cars and races involved. Excellent black and white photography forms the foundation for a world-wide examination of the sport's evolution and historic achievements during two decades of change. The oversized format does justice to the beautiful black and white racing scene shots. -- Midwest Book Review

Product Details

• Hardcover: 350 pages
• Publisher: Konemann (January 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 3895082465
• ISBN-13: 978-3895082467
• Product Dimensions: 12.8 x 10.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,462,762 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Time Machine for Automobile Racing Fans, April 8, 1998

By 

R. Baumgartner - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: American Racing: Portrait of the 50s and 60s (Hardcover)

American Racing is a truly nostalgic book. It covers a wide selection of races on road and airport tracks between 1954 and 1968. If you feel a slight tickling down your spine, when you hear words like 'Jaguar D-Type' or 'Ferrari 250 Testarossa', 'Porsche 550 Spyder' or 'Cobra' then this book is for you. Here they are all together with Allards, Austin Healeys, early Chevy Corvettes, Mercedes 300 SLs, OSCAs, up to the Shelby Cobras, Lolas and Chaparrals. If you get sort of jumpy feelings when you hear 'Nassau Speed week', 'Grand Prix of Cuba' (YES! 1957, 58 and 1960) or 'Sebring 12 Hours' by all means get this book! American Racing is a picture book for all who cherish memories of racing cars which still looked like automobiles and not like motorized advertisement posts. The photographs of Tom Burnside are all in B/W. This is the sole reason why I gave only a rating of 9. I had preferred at least a short section with selected color photographs. But - come to think of it - maybe this book had lost its special appeal... Ok - let's make a 10 out of the 9, then! Back to the pictures: Many of them are simply fantastic, you can almost smell the mix of burned tires and Castrol 'R'. Not only are there hundreds of action photographs out on the track. You also find a lot of snapshots of the dramatic action in the pits during a race, contrasting with pictures of the mechanics preparing the cars in the tranquility of a garage. There are a few shots showing the social side of racing: A friendly chat between drivers between two races, relaxation beside the swimming pool of the hotel, the distinguished atmosphere of the official banquet. In short, you (literally) get the whole picture of the racing scene, when autombile racing was still mainly a sport. Imagine a racing car today with only a few decorative racing stripes and at the most two or three palm size bumper stickers! Here they are, page for page - automobile racing at its best! The texts - incidentally in English, German and French! - are concise and informative. They are written by Denise McCluggage, a journalist with a fine sense for writing exactly not too much and not too less. She gives you all the needed information, and at the same time she transmits the feeling of the atmosphere of the scene. By the way: She was also one of the most gifted lady amateur race drivers who mastered also some of the 'big bangers' of the time! It is simply wonderful to see such a book in print, reliving sweet memories of times when visitors of a race simply could walk into the paddock and talk to the heroes of the day: From Briggs Cunningham to Carroll Shelby, from Bob Bondurant to Jim Hall, from Stirling Moss to John Surtees... Here they are all together, doing their thing and bringing us the thrill of automobile racing at its best.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing mix of people and machinery from a unique era ., February 19, 1999

By 

R. Poverman "computer geezer" (Manasquan, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: American Racing: Portrait of the 50s and 60s (Hardcover)

Having lived and participated in the sports car racing era of the 50's and 60's I can only say that this book portrays it as it was. There was a charmingly naive blend of people and machinery in an era when a handshake was a bond. These photos and the text are very accurate, and why not? Denise McLuggage was there racing, Tom Burnside was there photographing. I was a licensed flagman for the SCCA and stood next to Tom Burnside at many a track in the Northeast . His love and passion for the sport then translates beautifully in his work despite the passage of many years. I recommend this work to anyone who was there or wished they had been - it is worth it. The photos are a treasure for all car enthusiasts. As you page through you can almost smell the the Castrol Racing Oil, hear the beat of the engines small and large and sense your adrenalin rising

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Greatest Racing Photographers, August 31, 2011

By 

[e-mail] (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Racing: Portrait of the 50s and 60s (Hardcover)

I was too young to be exposed to Tom's photography when he was shooting in the 1950s and early 1960s, but this book was a revelation when I bought it about 10 years ago. Tom was a real photojournalist - shooting for Life, Sports Illustrated, etc.- and to be successful on that level, at that time, meant you not only had to be technically excellent, you had to be an exceptional storyteller. Tom is both. The shot of Ricardo Rodriguez at Sebring receiving a prayer from his mother, kneeling in the Florida sand in back of his pit, is one of the greatest racing photos ever taken, in my opinion. Get this book. You won't be sorry.