History TV Tommy IVO the early years

Was this key an aftermarket item as I recall seeing a pretty well known Lakes or Bonneville may have been a 32 sedan with one...just curious?
That Tommy had alot of classy go machines for sure.

 

A production key would have been made much nicer than what Ivo lent me. Ivo has a well known sense of humor and believe he was the first to populerize the wind up key style push bar

 

Thanks for that info @dreracecar.
Nothing wrong with a special key or should I say Ole Sparky...Ivo like so many right here are Icons of the sport. Pretty honored to be amongst this group of individuals.

 

Hey dreracecar any idea who this guy is. This was posted by swi66 in the vintage thread with no caption.

 

That's chassis builder, Kent Fuller

 

I should have known that here he is in a shot I posted way back at the beginning. .

 

Real early pic when the car had front suspension, later made solid

 

TV Tommy Ivo explains Top Fuel dragsters to Annette Funnicello - Bikini Beach

 

The Quad

 

Posted by 296ardun in here:https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...picture-thread.228509/page-1872#post-12400606

Early run by Don Prudhomme in the Ivo single car, which he bought and later fitted Dave Zeuschel's blown Chrysler...I watched his first run at San Fernando, this could have been taken on the same day...he raced and beat Tony Nancy's gas roadster on the top eliminator run.

 

Quad

 

Painted body goes on this week after its lettered, will put some pics up

 

For sure please do.

 

couple more days til its all together

 

Is this one a running car or static display?
Gorgeous regardless.
KK

 

Its a runner / static combo. motor and driveline is complete

 

Looks BETTER than the original LOL.

 

They always do

 

Beautiful job! Take the nose off, and I would swear that's the same car I saw at old San Gabe in '59!

 

Kent Fuller did build the rolling chassis for this re-creation.
Will be in the "ROAD KINGS" booth at the upcoming GNRS

 

Excellent. I look forward to seeing it.

 

I have the final pics, but the owner asked those to be held till after the GNRS---sorry, but he pays the bills

 

here it is

 

WOW!
KK

 

Like the youngsters say TOTALLY AWESOME

 

Dualie

 

Quad

 

The World’s First And Second T Buckets Met Only This One Time, At Santa Ana In March. We Thought We’d Seen Every Photo Of The Grudge Match Until This Wally Parks Negative Surfaced In The PPC Archive. C.J. “Pappy” Hart Flagged Off A Battle Won By Ivo (right), Though Grabowski Arguably Won The War When A Life Magazine Team Followed Him—not TV Tommy—to Bob’s Big Boy Drive In To Shoot The Famous Full Page Photo Of Norm Chewing On Grilled Cheese.

 

I found this picture the other day. In 1963 I was 14 years old and my parents bought a brand new Buick Wildcat. Along with my three brothers they proceeded to take us on a 3 week vacation of a lifetime. We left Texas and went up the east coast stopping at all the historic sights, Williamsburg Va, Washington DC, NYC where we saw a Yankees game with Mickey Mantle, Niagara Falls, and on to Detroit. When we pulled into the motel in Detroit, lo and behold there was Tommy Ivo’s dragster in the parking lot. After talking to them we found out he was match racing none other than Don Garlits that night at Detroit Dragway. For a kid who’s only exposure to drag racing had been magazines to say I was excited was an understatement. My brothers and I talked my parents into taking us to see them run that night. Now my dad was a stick and ball guy and had no ideas what was going on. He bitched about the cost to get in and the cost of the concessions, oh, and the noise. But what an introduction to drag racing. I don’t remember who won but still remember the tire smoke, smell, and excitement. Hooked me for life.