Wendell Scott’s Number 34 Blue 1970/1971 Torino Top - NASCAR Stock Car and movie prop

Wendell Scott’s Number 34 Blue 1970/1971 Torino Top Scott’s Blue #34 race car started life as a 1966 Fairlane chassis. Parnelli Jones drove the Fairlane as #15. It won a USAC race at Indianapolis Raceway Park. After the 1967 season it was sold to ARCA driver Benny Parsons. Benny ran the car through the 1968 season and won the ARCA championship. For the 1969 season, Ford gave Parsons a new Torino and the old #15 was used as a back-up. In 1970 the car was sold to Wendell Scott and painted red. In July of 1970 Wendell destroyed the car when he flipped it over the guard rail (the car flipped at least 9 times) at Trenton Speedway in New Jersey. Scott continued to race in borrowed cars throughout the 1970/1971 seasons. Bobby Fleming rebuilt the car for Wendell to race in the 1972 season. The car was “reskinned” as a 1970-1971 Torino and painted blue. In 1972, Scott’s blue #34 Torino started in 5 Winston Cup races and 13 Grand National events. The cars’ best finish was 4th in Jacksonville on March 14th 1972. The car ran 6 races in 1973. The cars’ last known race was at Cumberland Speedway in Fayetteville North Carolina on November 4th 1973. Wendell Scott Jr. drove the car to a 14th place finish...... Movie Car "Greased Lightning" 1977. NASCAR driver and Hollywood stuntman Neil Castles was the vehicle coordinator for the film Greased Lightning. Castles put the vehicle in running condition. It was repainted to be exactly as it was when Wendell competed in his last few NASCAR seasons. Scott’s blue #34 was used in the filming of the movie. In the final scene, Richard Pryor, portraying Wendell Scott, jumps on top of Scott’s Blue #34 and waves the checkered flag. Scott actually drove the car in the final scene. An exceptionally rare and important historical African-American, NASCAR, and motion picture artifact. Aquired from the African-Americam Sports Museum in Marietta GA. Includes museum display (image 4) and letter of authenticity. Approx 59"X57"..............................................................Wendell Scott (1921-1990) an army trained mechanic operated a taxi service in his native Danville, Virginia during the day and hauled moonshine at night. Gaining experience racing from police, Scott broke the color barrier in Southern stock car racing on May 23, 1952, at the Danville Fairgrounds Speedway. He tasted success only one month into his driving career, winning his first race on the red clay half mile in Lynchburg, Virginia at the age of thirty. Determined to move up in the sport of stock car racing, Scott traveled the south during segregation, showing up at NASCAR events with his number “34” ready to race. He was turned away, told by speedway personnel that he would not be able to compete due to the color of his skin. Encountering signs at restrooms, water fountains and restaurants that read "White Only" was a common occurrence for Scott, who never seemed to let it bother him. "I expected all of that," he said of his trials to become a NASCAR driver in segregated America. Wendell Scott was finally issued a NASCAR license and allowed to compete at the old Richmond Speedway in Virginia in 1953. Scott would go on to win 120 races in lower divisions and in 1959 was the Virginia state champion. In 1961 he was able to pull together enough money to field a car on NASCAR's top-level Grand National circuit, later renamed the Winston Cup series (now called the Nextel Cup series). Scott endured persistent, brutal discrimination from drivers, NASCAR officials and fans. Many drivers would wreck him deliberately. Just like Jackie Robinson a few years earlier, Scott refused to retaliate. Scott raced in 495 events in NASCAR's top division from 1961 through 1973. Racing on a shoestring budget without a major sponsorship, he finished in the top ten 147 times. On December 1, 1963, he won his only major race, a 100-mile event on a half-mile track in Jacksonville, Florida. However, Scott was denied the opportunity to celebrate the victory. Buck Baker received the checkered flag (despite being two laps down) and celebrated in victory circle. Scott was awarded the victory 4 hours after the race was completed and left the track that day without the winner’s trophy. NASCAR officials called the mistake a “scoring error” but many believe race officials were afraid a riot would ensue if Scott had been awarded the victory. Scott continued to race until a near death crash in 1973 at Talladega Speedway in Alabama forced him to retire. Greased Lightning, a movie based on Scott's career, was produced in 1977 starred Richard Pryor as Wendell Scott. Scott worked with the producers and was promised royalties, but never received any. Sports