Ghost Cars at the Winchester Mystery House (2017) - full transcript

(whooshing)

(humming)

(pleasant music)

- [Narrator] Rolling slowly from the mist,

headlights flash and engines rumble.

You're about to enter a world of strange

and exotic automobiles,

hear stories of triumph,
and defeat, and weird tales

of the mysterious, the bizarre,

and unexplained twists of fate.

These are the Ghost Cars.



And now, here's your host, Adam West.

- We've just arrived at the
bizarre Winchester Mystery House

here in San Jose, California.

It's the mansion that once
belonged to Sarah Winchester,

the heiress to the bloodstained
Winchester rifle fortune.

Later, I'll be telling you
why her house is so strange,

and what's so unique about the garage

where she kept her cars.

I'll also tell you the
incredible story of this sleek

and mysterious automobile,
called the Phantom Corsair,

designed by a man who
could see into the future.

You know, many people
believe that automobiles

and houses have a mysterious
independent life of their own.

Perhaps you, yourself,
have experience a home



with some haunting memories,
or have owned a car

that had a personality all its own.

There are individual cars
all around the world,

with stories that strain the imagination.

And, with the help of
some good friends of mine,

we'll share with you
some mysterious stories.

(energetic music)

- He was the tycoon of a gambling

and hotel empire, and
loved beautiful cars.

Bill spent the last last
25 years of his life

amassing the largest
collection in the world.

And this 1911 Maxwell was the
beauty that got him started

on a collection that
filled three showrooms

with over 1500 extraordinary automobiles.

If Bill Harrah hadn't pursued
his extravagant hobby,

much automobile history
would have been lost forever.

But here's where the mystery comes in.

When he died in 1978, he left no plans

for keeping his marvelous
collection intact.

Now you would think
after spending millions

of dollars he would have
wanted to preserve it.

Some say he was so possessed
by the collection itself,

that it never occurred to him that anyone

would dare to dismantle
it after his death.

Although some of the cars were sold off,

fortunately the city of
Reno has stepped in to help

save much of this world famous collection,

and we're about to tell you the story of

some of its outstanding showpieces.

But before we do, let's
go back, all the way back,

to the origin of the automobile.

(vintage piano music)
- Think Henry Ford

invented the automobile?

Not a ghost of a chance.

This is the first internal
combustion engine motor car,

built by Frenchman Etienne Lenoir in 1863.

But he only built one,
and it was never patented.

In 1875 an Austrian name Siegfried Marcus

stated publicly, that
his motorized invention

was a waste of time and money.

Marcus would pursue it no further.

Carl Benz however,
wanted to build and sell

his three-wheeled motorcar, and by 1895

was selling 135 of his
automobiles per year

all over Europe.

His vehicle was practical, and successful,

which is why Carl Benz is recognized

as inventing the first automobile.

Curiously, fellow German Gottlieb Daimler

was developing his
version of the automobile

only 60 miles from Benz.

But they never met, or
even heard of each other.

Eventually, following 40
years of bitter rivalry,

Benz and Daimler would
merge their companies

into one powerful automotive entity.

Daimler's development of racing cars,

with their advanced engine
and chassis technology,

produced the top three winners

in the 1914 French Grand Prix.

One of the cars was shipped to America,

where it won the 1915
Indianapolis 500 Race.

The spirits of Karl Benz
and Gottlieb Daimler

continue to speak to today's international

automotive industry.

- This 1907 Thomas Touring Car is one of

the favorites here at Harrah's.

She's referred to as Blondie.

The manufacturer, E. R.
Thomas of Buffalo, New York,

bragged about how fast his cars would go.

Now just suppose we strip
this beautiful automobile

of her top and all dead weight,

and make a race car out of her.

Now just imagine.

- Well Linda we don't have to imagine,

because it actually happened,
and this is the car.

This is a 1907 Thomas Flyer.

On February 12th, 1908,
this American-built car,

along with three French cars, one Italian,

and one German car, began what was to be

the most incredible
endurance race in history.

It was the Around the
World, New York to Paris

Automobile Race, and this
Thomas Flyer was a late entry.

- Little was done to
modify it for the race.

Oh they did add 12-inch wooden planks

to replace the fenders for mud and snow.

- And you have to keep in mind that there

were no superhighways back then.

Day after day, the going got pretty tough.

- [Narrator] The voices
of 50,000 spectators

ring in the ears of the contestants

(lively music)
as they spirited their cars

westward from New York's Times Square.

They lurched and jerked
their way through Buffalo,

Cleveland, Toledo and Chicago.

Deep and drifting snow made
the travel treacherous.

West of Chicago the snow turned to rain

and mired the racers in ruts of mud.

Almost six weeks later,
the contestants arrived

in San Francisco, but the ghastly elements

had claimed two of the six starters.

The U.S. Flyer, Italian
Zust, French DeDione

and German Protos all boarded ships,

heading to continue their race in Japan.

But having never seen cars before,

the Japanese spectators actually slowed

the pace of the race down.

In the Far East of Asia the
drivers found no roads at all.

The Flyers straddled the
tracks of the winding

Trans-Siberian Railway,
putting a tremendous

strain on the car.

Breakdowns along the way called for

ingenious repairs, and took the Flyer

to the brink of failure.

But finally, the weary
and worn crew and car

arrived in Paris,
triumphantly driving down

the Shanzelize, on July 30th, 1908.

In 171 days, the Flyer had traveled

13,341 grueling land miles

to victory.

- I've been telling you
about Sarah Winchester

and her house, but this
program is mostly about

mysterious automobiles.

Sarah owned three, a Renault,
a Buick and a Pierce-Arrow.

Her contribution to automoive technology

is one of great significance,
and I'll tell you

about it later in the program.

She bought a Pierce-Arrow in 1911,

the same year the Indianapolis 500 began.

And here to tell us about some

Indianapolis cars with strange

and unusual stories is the voice of the

Indianapolis 500, Paul Page.

- This is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Hall of of Fame Museum.

It is here where they
house the great racing cars

of the decades, and pay tribute
to the men who drove them.

There are many myths and
legends connected with

the unrelenting quest for speed.

It was a mystery to many how the

Marmon Wasp became the first car to win

the very first 500-mile
race, back in 1911.

Driven by Ray Harroun,
it was dubbed unsafe

and unreliable because
it was a single-seater,

the only one of its
kind in that first race.

It won, with an average speed
of 74 1/2 miles an hour.

Every tale that is told about these

mysterious and powerful
machines contains a

dose of the unusual, even the bizarre.

In racing, death is a constant passenger.

Only the most daring and skilled driver

can take a car to the
limit, and avoid disaster.

But there was one car that
even the best could not tame.

(dramatic music)
The mystery surrounding

the Bowes Seal Fast Special
continues even today.

In 1935, a driver named Johnny Hannon

had been hired by car owner Leon Duray

to make his debut at
Indianapolis by driving #45.

Although a rookie, Hannon's
previous accomplishments

had given him the
credibility to run at Indie.

He felt confident that he was going to win

the 500 this first time out.

It was never to happen.

During his first practice run,

Hannon never appeared
through the fourth turn.

No one had reported seeing
the car stop on the track,

in fact, the car was nowhere in sight.

Finally, Duray found fresh
skid marks in turn three.

As he looked over the wall he was shocked

to discover his damaged
race car sitting upright

on the edge of a cornfield.

Hannon was dead, his (somber music)

riding mechanic severely injured.

Hannon's quest for instant
speed had brought him

to a swift meeting with death.

That one incident however,
was not to be the end

of the mystery, and
tragedy, surrounding #45.

Only six days later, veteran
driver Clay Weatherly

qualified the car for the ninth row.

Here's where the story
becomes almost bizarre.

On the 10th lap, Weatherly
like Hannon before him

lost control of the machine

and crashed.
(dramatic music)

He died instantly, and his
riding mechanic was also killed.

The tragedy put a pall on
the running of the 1935 race.

As the mystery surrounding
this death car intensified,

what prompted both
drivers to lose control,

was foul play involved,
was the car jinxed?

Why wasn't it pulled from the race after

the first fatality?

Well today these questions
still go unanswered,

but the story does not end here.

In 1936, this infamous car
was back in the lineup,

driven by a young Frenchman
named Cliff Bergere.

Why any driver would accept a ride

in the same machine that had
killed three of his colleagues

within nine days of each other is unknown.

But because Bergere did,
the jinx that had haunted

the Bowes Seal Fast
Special was now broken.

The 1936 driver of Leon Duray's death car

did not win the race that year,

but unlike his predecessors,
he did live to tell about it.

I'm Paul Page.

(eerie whooshing)

- Those are real bullet holes,

and this car once belonged to two of

the most notorious bank
robbers and murderers

of the 1930s, Bonnie and Clyde,

and here's Bonnie Parker herself,
to tell us the real story!

- Thanks a lot Jim.

I'm really glad I'm not Bonnie Parker,

because this is the very
car she and Clyde Barrow

were driving when they
were ambushed by the law.

This is the authentic
Bonnie and Clyde death car.

- You might say it was the
last ride for Bonnie and Clyde.

(energetic music)
- The truth is they were

lovers in crime who paid a
heavy price for defying the law.

Bonnie Parker was from a comfortable,

middle-class family in a suburb of Dallas.

She didn't have to steal.

- [Jan] On the other
hand Clyde Barrow was a

sharecropper's son who
by 1932 was establishing

a reputation as a car thief, bank robber,

and cold-blooded killer of a dozen men.

Then he met Bonnie
Parker, who was bored with

being a waitress and eager for action.

The two of them went on
a ruthless crime spree

that shocked law-abiding
citizens in five states.

- [Bonnie] While waiting on a side road

outside Grapevine, Texas for
other members of their gang,

Clyde and his cigar-smoking moll, Bonnie,

viciously gunned down two state troopers.

(gun firing)
- It was these atrocious

murders that sealed their doom.

Outraged, Dallas County Sheriff Newt Smith

said to his deputies, Bob
Alcorn and Ted Hinton,

"I want those two and I don't care what

"you have to do to get them!"

Alcorn was the only lawman
who could identify them.

And on May 23rd, 1934,
after a year of pursuit,

a tip-off sent him and
five other peace officers

to a rural area just outside
of Arcadia, Louisiana,

where they set their trap and waited

for the vicious pair to show up.

Their patience paid off.

- [Bonnie] At 8:30 in the morning a 1934

four-door Ford sedan rumbled
down the country road

directly into the lawmens' gun sights.

Alcorn was quick to identify Clyde Barrow.

He waited until the last
possible moment, then yelled,

- [Jan] "That's him, for sure!"

- [Bonnie] The six lawmen stood and fired.

(guns firing)

- [Jan] 160 bullets ripped
through the car door,

passing through both Clyde and Bonnie,

exiting through the other door.

The officers weren't taking any chances.

They intended to stop
them cold, and they did.

- [Bonnie] Found in the
car was Clyde's arsenal

of two sawed-off shotguns,
two machine guns,

10 automatic pistols, and
1500 rounds of ammunition.

- They were young and in love
and quick on the trigger.

But in the end, Bonnie and Clyde died

as they lived, by the gun.

(tense music)
- Bonnie and Clyde,

ghosts from the bullets of guns.

Perhaps guns made by Winchester?

- Exploring the strange Victorian mansion

that Sarah Winchester
built is no easy task.

You really have to begin here,
in this plain little room.

It's the seance room, and
it's the heart of the house,

surrounded by a confusing
maze of 160 rooms.

It's said that Sarah
Winchester was a woman

(wind howling)
driven by guilt,

and the terror of vengeance

from beyond the grave.

The tragic deaths of her
infant daughter and husband

forced her to consult a
medium, who convinced her

that her whole family had
been cursed by the souls

of those who'd been murdered
by the Winchester rifle,

and there was only one
chance for salvation.

She must move west and construct a house

that would never be finished.

Only then could she placate the spirits

and achieve eternal life.

According to legend,
Sarah came to this room

each night between the hours
of midnight and two a.m..

She summoned her ghostly accusers.

They gave her the mythical
commands for building her house.

Then each day she gave orders
to her army of carpenters

who worked unceasingly, 24 hours a day,

seven days a week for 38 years.

There are rooms that are
literally built around each other

(eerie music)
Priceless Tiffany stained

glass windows look out on inner walls,

or are completely hidden in closets.

The stairways can be treacherous,

they twist and turn, leading
back to where you started.

Here are a series of steps that lead

mysteriously to the ceiling and stop.

Only a ghost could get to the upper floor.

The storage space in closets and cupboards

can vary, from the size
of a three-room apartment,

to only one inch.

You never know what you'll
find when you open a door.

In this case, it's a blank wall.

Here the first step can kill you.

It's a one-story drop.

There's no question about it,

this is the house that guilt built,

and with its bell towers, weather vane,

turrets, gables, skylights
and Victorian gingerbread,

believe me there's nothing
like it in all the world.

A person could disappear
behind these walls

and never be heard of again.

That door won't open, and there's no floor

behind this door.

How am I gonna get out of here?

When I starred in Batman
I used to get out of

situations more dangerous than this,

it's as easy as saying, holy ghosts.

(whooshing)

I'm sure you've gathered by
now that Sarah Winchester

was more than a little eccentric.

Actually, it goes even deeper.

She zealously guarded her privacy.

Uninvited guests were unwelcome

and that even included the
President of the United States

who tried to get through
these front doors and failed.

(cheerful music)
In 1903 Teddy Roosevelt

was visiting the area
and was curious to see

the outlandish Winchester
house that he'd heard

so much about, so he
paid a surprise visit.

But Sarah refused to see him.

So he got back into his official carriage

and returned to Washington
without saying a word.

Horse-drawn presidential
carriages lost their

usefulness along about 1909.

To tell us more from the Henry Ford Museum

in Greenfield Village, Michigan,

is the lovely Eleanor Mondale.

- Thanks Adam.

You know, this is the very same carriage

that president Roosevelt used riding away

from Sarah Winchester's house.

Teddy Roosevelt was a very skilled rider

and he loved beautiful horses.

The thoroughbreds that pulled this rig

were considered the finest in the country.

Perhaps that's why
there were no motor cars

in the White House.

Then in 1909, President
William Howard Taft

finally changed the stables into a garage.

He purchased the first four cars in the

presidential fleet, a white steamer,

two Pierce-Arrows, and a Baker Electric.

Both the president and his
lady were mad for motor cars.

In President Taft's time the
cars were bought outright.

In contrast the cars of
Franklin Delano Roosevelt

were specially built
for him, like this 1939

Lincoln convertible nicknamed
the Sunshine Special.

It was shipped around the
world to such exotic places

as Casablanca and Yalta.

During World War II
protective armor was added,

including a compartment for firearms and

sub-machine guns to
protect FDR from assassins.

The next president, Harry
S. Truman retired it in 1950

in favor of this up to the
minute Lincoln Cosmopolitan.

Unlike the ready-made
models, this car has enough

head room for even the tallest top-hat.

President Eisenhower was
responsible for adding

the clear plastic bubble top
over the back seat of the car.

He liked being visible to the crowd

while still feeling protected.

Of all the presidential vehicles,

this elongated 1961
Lincoln Continental remains

at the center of one of the greatest

mysteries in American history.

This is the car which
President Kennedy was riding in

the day he was assassinated.

(tense music)

Controversy has raged ever
since on the true circumstances

behind his brutal murder.

But loss of evidence and
disappearing witnesses

have ensured the impossibility
of formal prosecution.

The car was more luxurious
and contained more

special features than any other automobile

used at the White House.

After the tragic events
of November 22nd, 1963,

President Johnson had
the limousine sent back

to Detroit for remodeling.

When it rejoined the
official fleet in 1964,

the presidential continental had undergone

a somber transformation.

It contained enough armor
plating to resist a land mine,

and weighed more than five tons.

Even so, LBJ was always
uneasy when he rode in it.

The car remained in use for
presidents Nixon and Ford.

Then when Jimmy Carter became president,

and my father vice president,
they retired the car

here at the Henry Ford Museum.

- Teddy Roosevelt wasn't the only person

snubbed by Mrs. Winchester.

As time went on she
retreated further and further

from public view, until
the only two people she saw

were her butler, and her secretary.

Still, she avidly directed
the construction on her house

inventing new ways to make her estate

function more efficiently.

This call box to summon
her servants was one of her

many extraordinary inventions.

(bell ringing)

This storage room is stacked
with priceless wall coverings,

costly veneers and
masterpieces in stained glass.

Her delicate stained glass
windows were designed

by Tiffany's of New York.

On the rare occasions
when she left the house,

Sarah rode like a queen in a splendid

chauffeur-driven
Pierce-Arrow that reflected

her exquisite taste.

Exploring the Winchester
House, lost in luxurious

surroundings such as this
magnificent grand ballroom.

Can you see yourself dancing across this

elegant parquet floor,
above a silver chandelier

with a magical number of 13 candles?

Sarah could.

(lively chamber music)
She decided to give a ball,

soon after the room was completed.

A gourmet supper was
served off golden plates,

with rare wines sparkling
in crystal goblets.

Tuxedoed musicians played, and the butler

formally announced the name
of each arriving guest,

except, there were no guests.

And Sarah danced through
the evening alone.

Oh, if you're eccentric
it helps to be rich.

On the morning of September 5th, 1922,

the round-the-clock work on
this incredible house stopped.

Sarah Winchester had died
quietly in her sleep.

Now she too travels with the spirits,

her most surprising legacy?

It's in the garage.

I'll show you.

Sarah installed this oil
burning cast iron stove.

The stove heated the water
in this galvanized tank

which was fed up into the ceiling to this

deceptively simple device,
consisting of a pipe

and a rotating nozzle.

It created a spray of cascading water.

You see, Sarah invented the first carwash.

One wonders what she would have thought

of the automobiles we drive today,

with their advanced safety features,

sophisticated emission
controls and computers.

Our high-tech world would
probably boggle her imagination.

Technology keeps changing every day,

and the luxury car of
today quickly becomes

the museum piece of tomorrow.

- This low slung silhouette Buick Y-Job

is a museum piece, now on display at the

Henry Ford Museum in
Greenfield Village, Michigan.

But back in 1938 when GM first built it,

this was the most
futuristic automobile ever

to come out of Detroit.

The smooth contours and
concealed headlights

show the first attempt at
aerodynamic efficiency.

It was designed by the
legendary Harley Earl,

who inspired the GM Styling
Department for 30 years,

from the early 1930s through 1958.

Many cars that started
out on the drawing board

went on to become classics, like this

successful forerunner of the Ford Mustang.

The fantastic turbine-engine Chrysler.

The Ford X-100, or the exciting

and still awesome 1958 Firebird Two.

Looking back with a 1990s perspective,

the 1950s were a prosperous, secure,

and wonderfully optimistic time.

A technology-enriched
future of space travel,

jet airplanes and computers
seemed just around the corner,

and everybody really believed that

what was good for General
Motors, was good for America.

GM responded to all of this
by building some of the

loveliest fantasy cars ever imagined,

and going on tour with a splashy,

spectacular road show, called Motorama.

It lasted from 1953 until 1961.

Recently a number of Motorama
survivor vehicles were

gathered at exclusive Concourse D'Elegance

in Pebble Beach, California.

Joe Boods of Highland
Park, Illinois, was among

the collectors who brought their elegant

automotive art objects.

This 1954 Pontiac Bonneville Special

is one of his prize possessions.

With its sleek sports car styling,

fiberglass body and
short, 100-inch wheelbase,

the incomparable Harley
Earl was the designer

responsible for its timeless good looks.

Of all his fascinating
chrome-trimmed creations,

the dazzling 1951 Buick LeSabre
is his most magnificent.

It has everything the car owner
of the '50s could wish for,

a beautiful long, low silhouette,

wide wrap-around windshield,
and fantastic fantail fins

that influenced every
other car that came after

it in the 1950s, including
this extraordinary

1959 Cadillac Cyclone.

This automotive work of
art was not only designed

by the great Harley Earl,
it was his personal car.

But GM wasn't the only
car company influenced

by future space travel.

This streamlined Chrysler
looks as if it could fly,

even when standing still.

And so does this beautifully
restored Plymouth.

Every car in this Concourse
D'Elegance has been

shined and polished beyond mint condition.

There were also foreign builders who

developed some fascinating
experimental cars.

The futuristic BAT cars are
among the most exciting.

Seeing all three of the BAT cars on parade

along with the long list
of dream cars of Motorama

is a rare treat for anyone
who loves automobiles.

This is a 1954 Chrysler automobile.

Kind of an interesting
car, although the owner

was even more interesting,
he was Howard Hughes.

Now the windows in this car
were hermetically sealed,

with the exception of the driver's door.

Now why would Howard do that?

Well because he loved clean air.

He actually built an air pollution system

in the back of this car that
fed into the automobile,

and it cost more than the car itself.

- [Narrator] This 1931
Bugatti Royale is a dream car

for the rich and pampered.

Experts estimate its value
at more than $10 million.

Only six of these Bugattis were ever made,

and it's fine artistry and detail

is reflected in its craftsmanship.

One of the largest
passenger cars ever made,

this 20-foot Bugatti is powered by

a 300-horsepower straight-eight engine.

This masterpiece was
supposedly built for the

King of Romania, but eventually
made its way to France.

In order to avoid capture or destruction

by the Nazis in World War II,

it was hidden in the sewers
of Paris until after the war.

- Bill Harrah acquired
the car and made it part

of his collection in 1964.

This car is to automobiles what the

Hope Diamond is to jewelry.

- [Narrator] These beautiful
and sometimes haunting

works of art are from the Los Angeles

Museum of Contemporary
Art, and they depict both

the abstract and traditional visions of

the automobile from the artist's eye.

With pieces by Salvador
Dali, Picasso, and Matisse

the exhibit shows everything
from fleeting fantasy,

to the stark reality of cars
and their influence on society.

While everyone sees something
different in these works,

in the form of paintings,
photos and sculptures,

they all agree that they
reflect the automobiles' gift

of convenience, joy,
and sometimes tragedy.

(brooding music)

- In the late 1930s the
Winchester House was closed.

People feared that the place was haunted.

At the same time, this
mysterious car was being built.

Come to think of it, both
the house and the car

have a lot in common.

They're beautiful and they're mysterious,

and they have stories involving
bizarre twists of fate.

The car, called the Phantom
Corsair, may even be haunted.

The two men who loved it the most,

both died in tragic car crashes,

but that's only part of the story.

It all began back in
1936 with a 23-year old

Yale drop-out named Rust Heinz.

He was the heir to the famous
ketchup and pickle fortune,

you know, the 57 varieties folks.

He was obsessed with his dreams of a

futuristic vision he
called the Phantom Corsair.

His family in Pittsburgh
wanted him to grow up

and take over the factory.

But Rust was determined to
make his dream a reality.

Fortunately for him, two car builders

from Pasadena, California,
named Bowman and Schwartz

were smart enough to recognize
real genius when they saw it.

They willingly provided the
practical expertise Rust needed.

The car breezed through all the tests

in a specially constructed wind tunnel,

and was soon ready for
full scale construction.

Nothing like the Phantom Corsair
had ever been seen before.

The soaring lines of its
full-envelope aluminum body

seem to be moving even
when standing still.

It was strictly Buck Rogers.

The fog lights were built
in with chrome lined tunnels

that reflected light to
the sides of the car.

Wrap-around steel bumpers
were controlled hydraulically.

The doors open electrically.

And little wings raised the
roof, making it easier to enter.

The dashboard gadgets monitor everything

from oil pressure to altitude.

And most importantly the entire interior

was padded with cork paneling.

The emphasis was on safety and comfort.

The Phantom Corsair was
far ahead of its time,

but unfortunately, time had
run out for young Rust Heinz.

On the way to the first
public showing of his

beloved Phantom Corsair, he was killed in

an automobile accident
driving another car.

His hopes for marketing his
Phantom were tragically ended.

Still the car has endured.

It starred opposite Paulette Goddard and

Douglas Fairbanks Junior in the 1939 film,

Young at Heart, portraying
a mysterious vehicle

called the Flying Wombat.

The Phantom Corsair was
sold to a number of owners

during the years that
followed, then in 1951

it was bought by comedian Herb Shriner

who shared the same love
for this amazing vehicle

that Rust Heinz once had.

Shriner too was killed
in an automobile accident

while driving another car.

Makes you wonder, doesn't it?

Perhaps both would still be alive if only

they'd been driving the Phantom Corsair.

The car remains an enduring
monument to a young man's dream.

(pleasant music)
- Another young man who had

a dream was Preston Tucker,
whose Tucker Torpedo

was considered to be the most
revolutionary car of its time.

In fact, it was too revolutionary.

This futuristic car was the
brainchild of Preston Tucker,

born in Michigan in 1903.

After working for Ford, Cadillac,

and Pierce-Arrow, Tucker's
first innovative design

was the combat car, built
during World War II.

This vehicle could travel at speeds

exceeding 100 miles per hour,

but it was the gun turret
that secured Tucker

a government contract.

His real dream was to
build a car that would

revolutionize the auto industry.

He fought hard to obtain
financial backing,

and soon formed the Tucker Corporation.

He made plans to produce a car with

a rear-mounted engine, fluid drive,

a safety chamber for the car's occupants,

pop-out safety glass, and
an engine powerful enough

to safely cruise at more
than 100 miles per hour.

The prototype was introduced,
and the word was in.

The Tucker Torpedo was the car to own.

Dealerships were set up,
orders began to arrive,

and a 2200-employee plant was opened

on Chicago's south side.

Against all odds, Preston
Tucker had taken on

the big three of Detroit, and succeeded.

Early production units of the Torpedo

showed them to be sturdy
and dependable vehicles,

and Tucker had captured America's eye.

But the shadow of gloom descended over

the Tucker success story.

There was talk of financial wrong doing in

securing the backing to build the Tucker,

leading to criminal charges of mail fraud

and federal securities violations.

(tense music)
Preston Tucker fought

the accusations and
was successful in being

acquitted in January of 1950.

But the court case had seriously tapped

his finances and dealt a death blow to his

automobile company, as it
was filed for bankruptcy.

The car that was perhaps
destined for greatness

became only a specter of
what it could have been.

Only 51 Tuckers were ever built.

Preston Tucker's cousin, Frank Tucker,

fondly remembers the car maker's dream.

- It came to my knowledge
that Preston wanted

to build a car, it was about 1941 or '42.

He had a artist's book
of artist conception,

a car he wanted to build one
day, and the reason I remember

it is because, not the obvious reason but,

each drawing had a
(mumbles) page, I remember,

I was about 14 years old at the time.

And so I knew that long ago

that Preston someday
wanted to build a car.

There are people that will tell you that

the big three didn't have anything to do

with Preston's demise, but,

I truthfully believe that when he came out

with the Tucker car, it
was more than they wanted.

And inasmuch as the
government was after him,

and so on, the big three
just stood in the background.

But if they would have permitted him

to go on with the Tucker, he
might have had other problems.

That's my belief.

I say that if you took
the Tucker car today,

and you put it in a
row with several of our

modern automobiles, the
Tucker will still turn heads,

there's no doubt about it.

- [Narrator] Amazingly, 46 of
the 51 Tuckers remain today,

and they still turn heads.

One lucky owner is Sharon Vick,

who talks about the Tucker's features.

- The biggest safety feature on the car

was the crash chamber,

and that's on the passenger side.

It's reinforced with steel, and,

the passenger, when
they saw they were going

to have a wreck, they were to roll down

into the crash chamber and be protected.

It was the first car to have padded dash.

It has pop-out windshields,
and they do work.

When they were testing the car at the

Indianapolis race track,
I believe a tire blew out

and the car did roll over,
and the windshields did

pop out like they were supposed to.

The other features it had which
aren't necessarily safety,

it has a rack over the back
seat where the women could put

their purchases, their packages,

their groceries and things like that.

The doors are cut back into the roof,

and that was for easy access in and out.

It drives really well,

we've probably put two or
3000 miles on it at least,

and it likes to hum along 80,

but you try and keep it down,

and it would run at 100
for quite a long time.

- [Narrator] Preston
Tucker and his dream car

quickly became and remains to this day

a part of the American car culture.

In 1956, at the age of 53,

Preston Tucker was said to
have died from a broken heart.

But his story of
imagination and perseverance

secured a place for him
in the eyes of many.

In fact, Preston Tucker
influenced one of the

world's biggest film makers, to make his

visionary tale into the reality of cinema.

(electric crackling)

- [Announcer] It was
almost too good to be true.

- Detroit, they're putting
the squeeze on him!

We can't buy steel, we can't buy anything!

So I made an appointment
with Senator Ferguson.

- What do you think, a big
smile and pat on the back

is gonna make him forget
he's a senator from Detroit?

- That's a fine idea of yours,
selling dealerships for cars

that don't exist.

- What'd he say?
- He said stay out

of the car business.

- Tucker built the thing.

(mumbles) everything
he advertised, not yet,

but enough right now to cost billions

just to keep up with him.

- You don't understand how
powerful the forces are

that are working against us!

- [Man] Ever since you
road tested the new car,

40 G-men have been following
you around the clock.

- What for?
- You made the car too good!

- [Narrator] Tucker's the
story of a young man's dream,

told with Hollywood
stars, stars whose cars

have stories of their own to tell.

- You know most Hollywood
stars love to travel in style.

And this man was no different.

(vintage singing)
♫ Swanee

♫ How I love ya, how I love ya

♫ My dear old Swanee

- Those are the immortal
sounds of the first

superstar of talking
pictures, Mister Al Jolson.

And this, was his 1933 Cadillac Fleetwood,

and as you can see,
it's luxury all the way.

Truly a great car!

A lot of Hollywood stars
prefer to own specialty cars.

Al Jolson was an all-out kind of performer

who loved his automobiles
and his audiences.

This car has been completely restored.

As beautiful as the cars in
the Harrah's collection are,

most of them were purchased
in rather poor condition,

and upgraded here.

Bill Harrah made sure the Jolson car

was restored to its original perfection,

with all the little details.

This car only cost $8000 when it was new,

and you had to be a star to
afford it back then in 1933,

which was right in the
middle of the Depression.

Now I'm going to tell you
the story of two brothers,

Fred and Augie Duesenberg.

They were car builders
in Indianapolis, Indiana,

and a lot of the technology
and the ideas that they got

came from Speedway racing,

and the would take those
ideas and apply them

to some of the most magnificent
passenger cars ever built.

The Duesenbergs were
awesome, the Duesenberg

straight-eight dual overhead cam engine

originally developed for racing
was a legendary performer.

In the late 1920s the Duesenberg company

was absorbed into E.L.
Cord's growing conglomerate

in Albert, Indiana.

It was after this merger
that the legendary

Model-J was born.

Now needless to say,
the Model-J Duesenberg

was the hot item in Hollywood,
everybody wanted one!

James Cagney had one, Billy Rose,

the great producer had one, and this one,

this Model-J Duesenberg
was owned by the great

screen legend, Clark Gable.

And here to tell us a little
bit more about Clark Gable

and this fine automobile is the director

of the Berry Automobile
Museum, Skip Marketti.

Skip welcome to the show!

- Thank you Ed, thank you for inviting me.

- Let's talk a little bit
about this Clark Gable

Duesenberg here, quite an automobile.

- Yes.
- Now Clark Gable not only

liked to drive these cars, but
sort of a relaxation thing,

he really like to work on these cars.

- Yes, he and his good
friend Gary Cooper were

rivals on-screen and also
rivals in the automobile hobby.

They both owned Duesenbergs,
they both raced them,

at (mumbles) Dry Lake, and,

they both liked to work on their cars.

This one particular was designed

by Clark Gable with the
help of a stylist at

Bohman and Schwartz
Corporation, W. Everet Miller.

Clark had a lot of input
in the style of the car,

the swoopy fenders, the
laid-back windshield,

the dual rear-mounted spares which

legend has that he wanted
the spares on the rear

so that he could easily work on the engine

without having to work
over the side-mount spares.

- Now Skip brings up a good point.

Bohman and Schwartz were car
builders here in California.

What's interesting about that is,

is that the Dusenberg
brothers, back in Indianapolis,

only built the chassis,
and then sent them out

to a variety of different coach builders

throughout the United States.

- That's correct.

Bohman and Schwartz were the
coach builders to the stars,

in Pasadena, California.

They were a company that took
over the coach building trade

from Murphy, of Pasadena.

Murphy was an earlier company.

Both Mister Bohman and Mister
Schwartz had worked for

Murphy Corporation in
Pasadena, and took over

the company upon Walter Murphy's death.

They'd built some of the finest,

most beautiful automobile creations.

Most of the Duesenberg
bodies, I say the most

prolific Duesenberg bodies were Murphy's,

and then later Bohman and Schwartz.

- This would mean too then
that no two were ever alike.

- Never, all Duesenberg coach work

was dissimilar in some way.

They had owner's input for
details like upholstery,

how the windshield slanted,
various things like this.

It was a true, coach-built automobile.

- Now these cars were
very big, very heavy,

but they were very powerful
and extremely fast.

And these particular cars had a first!

They had a monitoring system in them.

- Yeah, the monitoring system

monitored the chassis
lubrication, which was

automatically lubricated
about every 50 miles,

when to add water to your battery,

and two other similar functions.

They were electrically
actuated red and green lights

on either side of the dash board.

- Now this car also played
a role in the affair

of Carole Lombard and Clark Gable,

did it not?
- Yes, yes.

It was a central part of their affair.

Clark Gable and the
beautiful Carole Lombard,

went on several excursions
in this beautiful automobile.

And unfortunately after her death

during World War II,

Clark stopped driving the
car and put the car away,

and it was not driven by him ever again.

- If a man can bridge the
gap between life and death,

I mean if he can live on after he's dead,

then maybe he was a great man.

James Dean said that, and perhaps he knew

something about the
future, because he became

even a greater star, after he was

killed in an automobile accident in 1955.

But James Dean was different.

He had a unique style all his own.

And back in the '50s,
everyone wanted to be

just like James Dean.

He was the kind of guy who
marched to a different drummer.

James Dean was one movie star who always

seemed real to us, we could relate to him.

He came from the bright lights of Broadway

to Hollywood, and made only three films

in his short career, East of Eden,

Giant, and his most popular
film, Rebel Without a Cause,

which costarred Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo,

and this 1949, two-door Mercury coupe.

In fact, this car was the
inspiration for the first

of the custom car designers.

They'd take off all the excess chrome,

to give it a sleeker look.

It was called nosing and decking.

All things considered,
I'd say this 1949 Mercury

was the perfect choice,
when Warner Brothers

needed a hot car to costar with James Dean

in Rebel Without a Cause.

- [Narrator] Elvis Aron Presley was the

King of Rock and Roll.

He filled Graceland with
hundreds of big boy toys,

and his love of fancy and
exotic cars was no exception.

One Memphis auto dealer
recalls selling more than

100 luxury cars to the king.

Along with this pink Cadillac,

Elvis loved this white limo,

equipped with all the comforts,

including gold trimmed
interior, a small bar,

a refrigerator and TV set.

His vast collection of amazing automobiles

prove just one thing...
Elvis sure knew how to party.

♫ Let's have a party
♫ Let's have a party

♫ Let's have a party
♫ Let's have a party

♫ Step into the store
and let's, buy some more

♫ Let's have a party tonight

♫ We're gonna have a
♫ Have a

♫ Party, tonight
♫ Tonight

- In Hollywood, anything is possible.

- Well that's true, and
of course automobiles

do take on a personality all their own.

There are cars that can think,

automobiles that can talk.

Classic example is the
KITT car that you saw with

David Hasselhoff, in the
TV series Knight Rider.

KITT will talk to everybody.

- [KITT] That's right Jim.

I love to welcome people here
to the Universal Studios tour,

and I'll talk to everybody.

I'm located right next to
the new Star Trek exhibit.

As for my name, KITT, that stands for

Knight Industries 2000.

I was on the television show Knight Rider.

David Hasselhoff, who
played Michael Knight,

drove me to fame.

We were together on network
television for four years.

What makes me so special is,

I am an ultra-advanced computer,

and built with enough hi-tech devices

to make even Robocop jealous.

I'm programmed to save human lives.

I can also trace phone calls,

monitor action through a
built-in television camera,

detect nearby explosives, and of course,

play video games in my spare time.

I can attain speeds in
excess of 300 miles an hour.

My sleek body style is
molded in the shape of

a 1980 Trans Am Firebird, and
is made of super plas-steel,

which is even stronger than the heat tiles

on the US space shuttle.

This makes me virtually indestructible.

- And here it is, a real
favorite of Steven Spielberg's.

He used it in his hit
movie Back to the Future,

a real box office smash.

While you're on your
Universal Studio's tour,

you'll see many of the
sets from that movie,

including the clock tower
that was struck by lightning,

which eventually enabled
Michael J. Fox and

his time machine to get back home.

And this is the machine he did it in,

a really zapped up DeLorean!

But this is Hollywood, where
reality is in the script.

According to Doctor Emmett
Brown, the whacked-out

scientist played by Christopher Lloyd in

Back to the Future, the
secret of time travel lies

in the flux capacitator, a
computerized graphic gizmo

that looks a little like a divining rod.

The energy converter
on the back of the car

takes in plutonium and
creates a nuclear reaction.

Then, you're on your away.

And oh, don't forget that extra supply of

plutonium for the return trip.

- I'm in north Hollywood,
at Jay Ohrberg's Star Cars.

Now Jay has managed to
amass and accumulate

the biggest collection of television

and movie cars in the world.

Cars with personalities, like this,

the longest convertible
limousine in the world,

built out of a Mercedes or
two, it's over 40 feet long.

And yet behind me here is a bar,

and behind that is a heart-shaped hot tub,

just the thing you need
to go driving around town.

This is quite a collection,
and let's take a

closeup look at it, right now!

Jay Ohrberg has built and accumulated

over 175 famous cars, and I'm sure

you recognize the Pacman rod.

Now much like Pacman, this vehicle

turns when you least expect it,

and I think you put the quarters

right down here in these slots.

Now I've got another famous
car, right over here.

On the Universal lot there's
a pretty famous address,

1313 Mockingbird Lane, The Munsters,

and out in front you saw
this car parked a lot.

When they were driving it, Fred Gwynne

was right behind the wheel
there, who played Herman.

And way in the back, sat Yvonne
De Carlo who played Lily.

And they certainly had lots
of horsepower to work with.

Let's move into the science
fiction category now,

from the famous movie Blade Runner,

this car is almost a cult hero.

It was driven by Harrison Ford,

and it's a super cop
car that could not only

run down the bad guys on the highway,

but if it needed to, it could
fly over 'em and catch 'em.

(energetic music)
- The earliest images that

came from Hollywood screen,
proved that filmmakers

knew how to make a scene
exciting, use a car.

Whether it was tumbling,
crashing, skidding,

burning or bashing,
Tinseltown quickly learned

that it took a special breed of driver

to make an auto scene spectacular.

So was born the Stunt Driver.

The task was to crash the
car, make it look real,

and hopefully walk away
to do it one more time.

As time went on, some movies featured

the automobile as the center of attention.

Once such film was the 1977 thriller,

aptly entitled, The Car.

Effects teams built five identical cars,

only to see them filmed and destroyed.

One exciting stunt called for the auto

to skid and roll five times,

finally tumbling right over
the sheriff and his deputy.

Precision timing and steel nerves,

along with accurate planning,

led to a successful and spectacular bit.

The 1986 critically
acclaimed hit, directed by

Rob Reiner, Stand by Me,
called for stunt driver

Brian Carson to fill in
for Kiefer Sutherland.

Carson's perfect timing
created a white-knuckle ride,

as he avoided a head-on
collision in a 1950 Ford.

The lumber truck swerved right on cue,

and the meticulous planning paid off.

Carson was once again called into service,

this time in 1985's Crime Wave.

Set in Detroit, his car
is rammed from behind

on a highway, as fiery
pyrotechnics add to the realism.

(energetic music)

It seems that man has always
liked to dance with the demons,

perhaps with a touch of insanity.

It may be a death wish,

or just the sparkle of fame and fortune.

For whatever reason,
there have always been

audiences to watch these thrill seekers

take on the specter of death.

The first stunt drivers were the

International Congress of Dare Devils.

Soon, Lucky Teter, King
of the Dare Devils,

created a show of precision driving

that was designed to thrill fans.

But after a jump led to a fatal crash,

his became a ghost car.

Lucky (mumbles) was famous
for endless rolls in his auto,

but he also defied death by
crashing into flaming walls.

However, daredevil Jimmy
Lynch met the Grim Reaper

in a ramp-to-ramp jump.

The Chitwood family still
thrills audiences today.

Professional stunt driver Brian Carson

began his career in the early '70s,

doing dive-bomber crashes and barrel rolls

at local fairgrounds across America.

Some competitions pitted
one driver against another,

with the grand prize going to the one

who could roll their car the most times.

Carson progressed to
sidewinder rolls and bus jumps,

all the time keeping one step ahead

of becoming a mere memory.

Today, Brian Carson, along
with his movie stunt driving,

thrills crowds by heading his ghost cars

square into the fiery face of death!

- Although many concept,
idea and dream cars

have been produced over
the last half century,

very few remain.

Most were destroyed by the manufacturers.

It was their way of
protecting their secrets.

That makes these cars here at the

Berry Automobile Museum
that much more important.

These cars are truly works of art,

as finely crafted as
any piece of sculpture.

This is a 1953 Chrysler special,
designed by Virgil Exner.

The Chrysler Special is powered by a

180-horsepower Hemi V-8 engine.

A lot of styling elements,
such as the grill,

wheel arches and roof line were later

used in production models.

The body of this car was produced by Ghia.

Giacento Ghia began his
career as an apprentice

to an Italian carriage maker
at the turn of the century.

By the 1920s, Ghia and
his partner were building

car coaches for a large
and illustrious clientele.

The 1953 Fiat Supersonic was
also built at the Ghia factory.

The actress Lana Turner once
owned one of these cars.

The body style used on the Supersonic

was later adapted to other vehicles,

like this 1954 DeSoto Adventurer II.

The DeSoto was highly accessorized,
it had electric windows,

an electric powered sliding rear window,

a radio, a heater, and a matching
two-piece set of luggage.

After the Corvette was introduced in 1953,

other companies began to investigate

producing fiberglass sports cars.

Take a look at this 1954 Plymouth
Belmont, built by Briggs.

It debuted at the 1954
Saint Louis Auto Show.

This is a 1962 Aston Martin
with a body by Zagato.

It is one of only 19 ever built.

The Italian coachwork is very shapely.

Today's aerodynamics is an
accepted part of car design,

but back in the 1950s, this
was not necessarily the case.

In 1955, when this Ghia coupe
known as Gilda was produced,

it caused an international shiver.

The car is constructed
of lightweight aluminum

and mounted on a tubular frame.

This car built in 1958, established the

British manufacturer Jaguar
as a performance leader.

This model is unique because
of its Italian Bertone body.

The engine incorporates a
special high performance

head design and an extra
carburetor for extra horsepower.

And this is the car that
ushered Jaguar into the 1960s,

the legendary E-Type.

It's profile made it an instant classic,

as did its V10 engine.

This car remains at the top of the list

of Jaguar collectors.

From the grill to the taillights,
it's perfection in design.

This 1962 Dual-Ghia is
truly a car of the stars.

Dual Motors only produced
about 100 of these cars.

Highly sought after in Hollywood,

their owners included Frank Sinatra,

Peter Lawford and Eddie Fisher.

This Corvette show car was built in 1964,

one year after the
introduction of the Stingray.

15 coats of candy apple
red lacquer were applied

over a gold base to achieve
this spectacular finish.

The enlarged grill and altered
hood would later be used

in the 1965 through '67 styling.

Note the unique side exhausts
and dual sport mirrors.

The mirrors eventually
became a factory option.

The Corvette's fuel-injected engine was

chrome plated for the show.

This show car was displayed
at the Detroit auto show,

and the New York World's Fair.

From the time production
began 40 years ago,

right up to today, the
Corvette has represented

some of the most advanced
automotive styling.

This one-off Chrysler show
car was built in 1967.

It is called the Dodge Deroo.

The name is derived from
an old Anglo-Saxon word

meaning dart, and it's no coincidence

that this car was built
on a Dodge Dart chassis.

(pensive music)
- And in case you're curious,

there really is a ghost car.

This 1940 see-through
Pontiac was one of the

top attractions at the
1939 New York World's Fair.

Produced at a cost of
$25,000, the Ghost Car's body

was made of the then
revolutionary materials

of Plexiglass and Lucite.

Two versions of the clear
plastic car were made in 1939.

And one is actually
still in existence today.

Perhaps someday it will
make a ghost appearance

in your neighborhood.

(whooshing)
- I hope you've enjoyed

probing into the mysteries behind these

fabulous cars as much as I have.

Not every automobile comes
with a mystery attached to it,

but they do all have the
power to transport us

wherever we want to go
with speed and comfort.

I hope that you'll give them
the respect they deserve,

keep your eyes and ears
open and drive safely.

Now for all of us here on the program,

I'd like to say thanks for looking in.

(pleasant music)