Happy Birthday to The King of Cool

[Zach Gomulka]

Would have been 79 today







 

[Rennsurfer]

Happy B-day, Steve! Because of that picture... I've been using that "victory" finger gesture for years.

[Dave Rosique]

Happy Birthday to Steve... may his memory live on 

My favorite movie of all time:  On Any Sunday

~DR.

[Rennsurfer]

Let us further celebrate Steve's passion for automobiles & motorcycles.

McQueen was an avid motorcycle and racecar enthusiast. When he had the opportunity to drive in a movie, he often did so himself, performing many of his own stunts.



Perhaps the most memorable were the classic chase in Bullitt and the motorcycle chase scene in The Great Escape. Although the jump over the fence in The Great Escape was actually done by Bud Ekins for insurance purposes, McQueen did have a considerable amount of screen time riding his motorcycle. According to the commentary track on The Great Escape DVD, it was difficult to find riders as skilled as McQueen and at one point in the film, due to clever editing, McQueen is seen in a German uniform chasing himself on another bike.

Together with John Sturges, McQueen planned to make Day of the Champion, a movie about Formula One racing. He was busy with the delayed The Sand Pebbles, though. They had a contract with the German Nürburgring, and after John Frankenheimer shot scenes there for Grand Prix, the reels had to be turned over to Sturges. Frankenheimer was ahead in schedule anyway, and the McQueen/Sturges project was called off.



During his acting career, McQueen considered becoming a professional race car driver. In the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring race, Peter Revson and McQueen (driving with a cast on his left foot from a motorcycle accident two weeks before) won with a Porsche 908/02 in the 3 litre class and missed winning overall by a scant 23 seconds to Mario Andretti/Ignazio Giunti/Nino Vaccarella in a 5 litre Ferrari 512S. The same Porsche 908 was entered by his production company Solar Productions as a camera car for Le Mans in the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans later that year. McQueen wanted to drive a Porsche 917 with Jackie Stewart in that race, but his film backers threatened to pull their support if he drove. Faced with the choice of driving for 24 hours in the race or driving the entire summer making the film, McQueen opted to do the latter. However, the film was a box office flop that almost ruined McQueen's career. In addition, McQueen himself admitted that he almost died while filming the movie. Nonetheless, today, Le Mans is considered to be the most historically realistic, accurate, and dramatic representation of one of the most famous periods in the history of the race, as well as being considered one of the greatest auto racing movies of all time.



McQueen also competed in off-road motorcycle racing. His first off-road motorcycle was a Triumph 500cc that he purchased from friend and stunt man Bud Ekins. McQueen raced in many of the top off-road races on the West Coast during the '60s and early 1970s, including the Baja 1000, the Mint 400 and the Elsinore Grand Prix. In 1964, he represented the United States in the International Six Days Trial, a form of off-road motorcycling Olympics. He was inducted in the Off-road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1978. In 1971, Solar Productions funded the now-classic motorcycle documentary On Any Sunday, in which McQueen himself is featured, along with racing legends Mert Lawwill and Malcolm Smith. Also in 1971, McQueen was on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine riding a Husqvarna dirt bike.



McQueen was interested in collecting classic motorcycles. By the time of his death, his collection included over 100 motorcycles and was valued in the millions of dollars.

In a segment filmed for The Ed Sullivan Show, McQueen drove Sullivan around a desert area in a dune buggy at high speed. At the end of the trip, all the breathless Sullivan could say was, "That was a helluva ride!"



He owned several exotic sports cars, including:

* Porsche 917, Porsche 908 and Ferrari 512 race cars from the Le Mans film
* 1963 Ferrari 250 Lusso Berlinetta
* Jaguar D-Type XKSS (Right-Hand Drive)
* Porsche 356 Speedster



To his dismay, McQueen was never able to own the legendary Ford Mustang GT that he drove in Bullitt, which featured a highly-modified drivetrain that suited McQueen's driving style. There were two cars used for filming. According to the October 2006 issue of Motor Trend Classic, in its cover story on the film, one of the cars was so badly damaged during filming it was judged to be unrepairable, and scrapped. The second car still exists, but the owner has consistently refused to sell it at any price. The owner plans a "minimal restoration" to make the car roadworthy, yet still retain the original wear & tear and years of aging.

[Fritter]

Let's see any of today's sissy male movie stars do what Steve did.

BTW, there is a VW in the shot of Steve with the motorcycle.  Too bad Steve never had VW's, I guess he never was turned on to them.

[Dave Rosique]

Good report Fred!!!

Thank you!

~DR.

[Jim Ratto]

Awesome actor. Le Mans has to be my very favorite movie, since I was about 6 years old when my dad sat me down to watch it.


Long live his legacy

[ESH]

Legend. Happy Birthday. 

[Jim Ratto]

....drool

just need the rawhide fringed jacket and the dream sequence of the 908 crashing

[Rennsurfer]

Mat, VERY good lookin' 911S! Such great handling/sounding cars right from the factory. I'm guessing that one's either a '68 or '69. Those are getting up there with late model 911 prices, these days. Gone is the era of picking up one cheap.

[Zach Gomulka]

Mat, VERY good lookin' 911S! Such great handling/sounding cars right from the factory. I'm guessing that one's either a '68 or '69. Those are getting up there with late model 911 prices, these days. Gone is the era of picking up one cheap.

The car pictured is (was) Steve's personal '69 911S. I highly advise you pick up the book "McQueen's Machines"

[Fritter]

I am lucky enough to have a bahama yellow '68. 

Asbestos is a biatch, RIP Steve.

Oh, teach them young.   

[Jim Ratto]

I have an old VHS tape on racing Porsches and Derek Bell was quoted that during filming of LM, that McQueen hung right there, with the likes of Bell, Brian Redman and David Piper. Also he said something about McQueen laying on his belly with a movie camera, filming the 917 and 512 Ferrari coming over rise on the Mulsanne.

 

[Jim Ratto]

I am lucky enough to have a bahama yellow '68. 

Asbestos is a biatch, RIP Steve.

Oh, teach them young.   

nice car!

[Rennsurfer]

The car pictured is (was) Steve's personal '69 911S. I highly advise you pick up the book "McQueen's Machines"

Thanks for that most excellent tip, Zach. I'll keep an eye out for that book. Heck, a few of us should get together and make a trek up to Autobooks, again. Spend half a day out there and do some lunch, while enjoying our cars. I never get sick of going in that place.

[Rocket Ron]

I am lucky enough to have a bahama yellow '68. 

Asbestos is a biatch, RIP Steve.

Oh, teach them young.   

my fav colour 911

[Lee.C]

The One And Only - A true LEGEND, I want to see to  Ed Sullivan Show footage 

[Fritter]

I am lucky enough to have a bahama yellow '68. 

Asbestos is a biatch, RIP Steve.

Oh, teach them young.   

nice car!

Thanks Jim.  For contrast, here is my current '64 Sunroof project, and my old white '65 I sold to Bill Taormina in your neck of the woods a year ago.

[Harry/FDK]

THE GETAWAY.

[Lee.C]

THE GETAWAY.

Hmmmmmmmm Ali McGraw 

[Zach Gomulka]

It's that time again... Happy 80th Steve!

[Nico86]

 

[streetvw]

some really great shots of the king of cool here
http://www.life.com/topic/steve_mcqueen

[mg]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/f8vKwknEON8" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/f8vKwknEON8</a>"

[Zach Gomulka]

That's great!

[mg]

That's great!

some cool photos.....
http://www.life.com/image/ugc1034922/in-gallery/41172/steve-mcqueen-20-never-seen-photos

[Zach Gomulka]

That's really cool, Mike. Thanks again for sharing!

The other night I watched "Junior Bonnor". It was shot in 1972, and filmed entirely in my hometown of Prescott, AZ. I really enjoyed it, but then again I just may be biased

[Zach Gomulka]

Happy Birthday, Steve!

[Lee.C]

Ohhhhhhhhh the Bronze lusso - What a car 

[Fastbrit]