Drag racing's 1st live TV show Lions Drag Strip KTTV 1961.mov

[Thaddeusd1958]

This is incredible. As a kid I was a rabid drag racing fan. I never made it to Lions, dad didn't want to drive all the way there from Azusa when San Gabriel and Irwindale Raceway were just a few miles away. One of my dad's friends was married to a woman who worked for Ray Alley and she would save the old Drag News issues from his shop and give them to my dad, who gave them to me. Lions always got a lot of ink in Drag News, and I would have killed to go there. Thank you for posting!

[MrRonnieG]

@spidersinspace ~ Thanks for the reply. Drag racing, in the 60's, was magical. I got my 1st car, a 1957 Chevy, in August 1964 (age 17) and was then able to make the drive (down Florence Avenue to the L.B. Freeway to 223rd & Alameda) with a couple of great high school friends who also loved drag racing. Lions was my favorite spot although I spent alot of time at Irwindale and OCIR too. Made the Bakersfield Smokers' Meet in '64, '65 and '67 and the Winternationals (Pomona) '65 thru '69.

[XM170]

Fantastic clip, the good old days of drag racing, great to see this stuff documented.

[MrRonnieG]

These were the days, long long before they put in the roller starters that was powered by a little orange 283 Chevy. They'd push from the top and make the turn in front of the bridge, before staging.

[MrRonnieG]

I was born (1947) and raised 30 miles southeast of downtown L.A. (Norwalk) and remember KTTV (Channel 11) like it was yesterday. There was also KTLA (Channel 5), KHJ (Channel 9) KCOP (Channel 13) and the 3 network stations. I also lived at SoCal dragstrips from the end of 1963 until drafted (Vietnam) in 1969. Lions was, of course, my favorite & the best. 223rd & Alameda off the Long Beach Fwy. Just the best memories of this old man's life.

[spidersinspace]

@MrRonnieG

I was born in 1948 and grew up in Lynwood, CA. I can remember hearing the faint roar the dragsters from Lions Drag Strip on warm summer Saturday evenings when I was 14-years old. My mom would drop me off at the entry gate around 2:00 and then pick me up around 10:00. After I got my drivers license at age 16, I spent every Saturday at LDS for many years watching all the now-famous drivers make history. Those memories will stay with me for ever. Unfortunately modern drag racing sucks.

[EdWatts]

Just seeing the KTTV remote van brought waves of nostalgia. This was back in the day when a blue-collar guy punching a clock could build a competitive car at home in his garage -- before the corporate entities took everything over.

America used to be a hell of a place, huh?

[Jen31083]

My grandpa used to race his motorcycle there. Too bad it's no longer there :(

[PHAEDRIDER]

wait .. THE mickey thompson?

[EdWatts]

@PHAEDRIDER

Yup.  THE Mickey Thompson.

[PHAEDRIDER]

@PHAEDRIDER oh man .. may he rip .. amazing promoter..

[DoveManufacturing]

My daddy was there.

[newsmaninla]

September of 1961 was 19 years before I went to work for KTTV, but when I did I got to spend time fixing "stuff" in that old remote truck by then dubbed the "Color Cruiser" as it had by then been retrofitted to more modern technical standards of NTSC color TV transmission. More important, I became friends with the late, great, Bill Welch and had the honor of working with him on many occasions. Great memories.

[EmpEntTV]

Very cool, never had seen the film clip before. Great memories of Lions, Bill Welch and Mickey Thompson