brian cassidy bookselle

stock Ford whomp the shit out of every other car on the track – and
the Ford folks could just as well have had salesmen outside with the
order blanks to sell more cars. People identified” (158). And indeed,
Phillips’ own circa-1979 gray Ford Thunderbird (with Confederate flag
license plate) is shown in a handful of images, as are frequent comments
in his notations about the superiority of Fords in general and
the Thunderbird in particular.
While NASCAR had been exceedingly popular in the South since its formation
in 1948, it wasn’t until 1979 that CBS broadcast the Daytona
500, the sport’s flagship event, in its entirety, drawing an estimated
15 million viewers. ESPN began showing select races in 1981 and devoting
more time in its news programming to NASCAR. By 1989 nearly
all Winston Cup races were broadcast live, either on network or by a
host of cable stations. This early television era is well-chronicled
here by Phillips: the 1979 Daytona 500 alone is covered by three albums;
and in easily the oddest selection of the lot, a 62-image volume
is composed solely of race action broadcast on Phillips’ home
television screen, circa-1982.
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