Automotive advertising has entertained and informed the public for years, young and old. Over time they have continuously evolved to meet changing tastes as well as reflect changing media. A new book about auto illustrations done by Art Fitzpatrick and Van Kaufman—recommended!

= Hold the presses! = We interrupt this normally-scheduled blog post to bring you important news—the book, Classic Speedsters, received a very favorable review by Hagerty Media in their online newsletter, the Daily Driver. …more details follow in the blog….

My book has been printed and 1050 copies have been delivered to their distribution site—my home. Can you imagine 175 cases of books sitting in your bedroom? Yikes!

That’s my story, but this journey all began a long, long time ago…

What early twentieth century autoist became a folk hero from his adventures crisscrossing the United States to set long-distance records? In the era when navigable roads did not exist, he stood tall in the saddle of his motorcycle or down in the mud of his Bearcat, but he got ‘er done! This story and more news regarding my book, Classic Speedsters, is in this episode.

Early twentieth century road and track racing was intertwined with the development of the speedster. Each helped the other. A study of these races reveals the challenges that racers faced and would put up with from race promoters and local jurisdictions. The Legend of the First Super Speedway covers that and more: we do a book report.

Imagine a company that produced speedsters in the classic era—and is still around today doing that. For over 70 years—wow! This episode concludes our look at my upcoming book, Classic Speedsters, with a summary view of this company and two others that didn’t make it….

News of my book’s publication, Classic Speedsters, follows a look at our next set of chapters—three companies that also began their speedster journeys in the first part of the 20th century. All managed to produce fine automobiles up through the Great Depression. One even made it to the 1950s….

The early 20th century—it was the best of times, it was the worst of times… We’re read that line before, and it certainly applies to this era in automotive history. While the Classic Speedsters’ book interior is being mapped out and refined, let’s take a look at the next three chapters…

After ten years of digging up information on and writing about this topic, my book, Classic Speedsters , is going to the printer soon. This episode opens the book to look at the first few chapters.

It’s always good to reflect on one’s life while it’s passing, and also before it has passed. But how do you sum it all up in 250 words or less? And, how to write an abstract—a pitch—for a book ? This post attempts that…