Presented by the Champion Spark Plug Company, Take It From A Champion is a 1956 promotional and educational film produced by Dynamic Films that gives viewers a look at three races (the 1956 Indianapolis 500, 1956 NASCAR race at the Daytona Beach and Road Course, and the 1955 Southern 500) while promoting the importance of safe driving by reviewing driving techniques, road signs, stopping, and handling turns. The film opens with a teenager talking to his neighbor. The neighbor, race car driver Johnnie Parsons, sits in his car while talking with the boy. At the Indianapolis raceway, Parsons sits in his racecar (00:45) gearing up for a second win at the 40th Indianapolis 500. Parsons flies around the racetrack during qualifiers. The film shows other drivers and racecars moving out onto the track and trying to qualify for the race. The film then shows some of the precautions taken by the speedway: a man takes a vision test and has his reflexes tested; drivers walk along the track and talk about their experiences and give advice to each other. A parade marches at the racetrack (04:12), and the last spectators arrive and fill the stands. The racecars follow the pace car prior to start of the race (04:50). The race begins and cars fly around the first turn. Pat O’Conner takes the lead to start the race. Pat Flaherty and Paul Russo soon challenge O’Connor for the lead. Russo driving his number 29 car keeps up an incredibly fast pace until his tire blows and his car spins out (07:26). He escapes his car and moves to safety; other cars spin out as they approach Russo’s abandoned car. Flaherty stops for a pit stop. Parsons takes the lead (08:48), but then pulls into the pit “to play it safe.” Parsons’ team gets his car back onto the track, but he is unable to reclaim the lead. Flaherty wins the race and celebrates (09:57). The film cuts to Daytona Beach (10:40), where stock car driver Fireball Roberts talks with other drivers. One driver pulls off a controlled spin in his car. The film provides viewers with tips on how to properly handle a turn and a stop, showing a car driving around a turn and then stopping at an intersection. Back in Daytona, people crowd into the stands (15:42). NASCAR champion Tim Flock sits in his 1956 Chrysler (16:06). The cars drive on the asphalt backstretch to start the race. Several cars spin out as they hit a sandy turn on the course. Another car hits the sand and rolls several times (18:05). Flock crosses the finish line first, and he celebrates the win (19:23). The film then goes to the 1955 Southern 500 in Darlington, SC (19:44). Mechanics work on cars, changing tires, checking engines, and replacing spark plugs. The Marine Band marches down the racetrack (20:51). Fireball Roberts and other drivers slowly make the parade lap. The race begins and the cars hug the turns. Herb Thomas makes a move in his car (23:20), but then he makes a pit stop. However, Thomas wins the Southern 500 in his number 92 ’55 Chevrolet; he stands and celebrates his win. The film ends with driver’s education students riding in a car, and a shot of Johnnie Parsons driving through his neighborhood.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
