Category Archives: Classics

Tour De France Videos: Guides For The “Jerseys, Domestiques & Grimpeurs”

Four different jerseys to battle for and an almost indistinguishable array of flags on arms and across chests — but what do they all mean and how does a rider earn the right to wear one?

These loyal ‘servants’ to their leaders will rarely win a race, though will often be seen at the front of the pack. But what exactly do they do and how does this help their team’s challenge for honours?

What is grimpeur, and what are the key characteristics of these flyweight climbers that excel when to road heads high above the treeline?

Classic Cars: “1964 Ferrari 250 GT/L Berlinetta Lusso”

RM Sotheby's logoRide along with Global Head of Auctions, Gord Duff as he drives chassis 5379, the 235th Lusso produced, and the only example ever provided in this Avorio over Rosso color combination. Purchased by the late Dr. Raymond Boniface in 1974, the Lusso would go on to be part of his collection of outstanding Italian cars and subsequently was a regular guest at many FCA and concours events over the next 30 years. Having been driven just 46,770 miles at the time of cataloging, this highly original Lusso is full of character—offering a glimpse into 45 years of keen custodianship, exhibition history, provenance, and everything else that comes with driving a classic, blue-chip Ferrari in America.

Classic Cars: “1959 Ferrari 250 GT Coupe”(Video)

Turn your volume all the way up and watch as RM Sotheby’s Car Specialist Barney Ruprecht takes the stunning and rare 1959 Ferrari 250 GT Coupe by Pinin Farina for a cruise on the open road. Combining brisk performance with distinctive styling, the unique chassis no. 1433 GT, the 185th of 353 examples built, sports numerous bespoke details, including chromed door sills and a 410 Superamerica-style air intake on the hood. Fitted with its original numbers-matching engine, 1433 GT is among the finest available, accompanied by the lauded Ferrari Classiche certification and finished in elegant colors of Blu with an Argento roof making it truly one of a kind.

Sports & Apparel: The History Of The “Nike Air Jordan” Basketball Shoes

Christie's Logo‘Michael Jordan’s tremendous impact on basketball and sneakers is universally acknowledged, and it can be easy to think there aren’t any new stories to add to the legend,’ says John McPheters, co-founder and CEO of Stadium Goods. ‘But as we’ve seen with The Last Dance and now with our Original Air auction at Christie’s, there are still lesser-known narratives in the legacy that create great interest.’

‘The shoes span art, pop culture and sports history,’

 

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Michael Jordan ended his first season as a professional basketball player with the Chicago Bulls by being crowned Rookie of the Year. It was the summer of 1985 and Jordan was soon to become one of the most recognised people on the planet.

The New York Times described his debut performance as ‘phenomenal’, and Sports Illustrated declared ‘A Star Is Born’ when he made the front cover.

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History Of Auto Design: The Family Origins Of The “Porsche 911” (Gestalten)

GestaltenWhen Ferdinand Alexander Porsche entered the family business in 1958, he filled an unknown vacuum. An experimental visionary who wanted to challenge tradition, he elevated the design legacy of this famous German brand. From working in the engineering office to craftily creating an icon amongst sportscars, writer Ulf Porschardt reveals how Ferdinand Alexander’s sketches evolved to become a cultural symbol.

Count Goertz designed a prestigious, muscular sports car for the Zuffenhausen-based company that was more reminiscent of a Ferrari or a Maserati…

The Goertzian design was in love with the grand gesture. The same year Roland Barthes declared the car to be the equivalent of the great Gothic cathedrals, and in his popular and shamelessly cited work Mythologies, considered it a major creation of the epoch, passionately conceived by numerous nameless artists. In the style of pop art, Barthes enacted an intellectual and cultural upgrading of the automobile, without the hyper-modern pathos of the futurists.

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Travel & Driving Videos: A “1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta” In Swiss Alps

Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta SWB 1961

One of the most notable GT racers of its time, the 1959 250 GT Berlinetta SWB used a short (2,400 mm (94.5 in)) wheelbase for better handling. Of the 176 examples built, both steel and aluminum bodies were used in various road (“lusso”) and racing trims. Engine output ranged from 240 PS (177 kW; 237 hp) to 280 PS (206 kW; 276 hp). The “lusso” road car version was originally fitted with 185VR15 Pirelli Cinturato (CA67).

Development of the 250 GT SWB Berlinetta was handled by Giotto BizzarriniCarlo Chiti, and young Mauro Forghieri, the same team that later produced the 250 GTODisc brakes were a first on a Ferrari GT, and the combination of low weight, high power, and well-sorted suspension made it competitive. It was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October and quickly began selling and racing. The SWB Berlinetta won Ferrari the GT class of the 1961 Constructor’s Championship. Also won 1960, 1961 and 1962 Tour de France Automobile before giving ground to the GTO’s.

In 2004, Sports Car International placed the 250 GT SWB seventh on a list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s, and Motor Trend Classic placed it fifth on a list of the ten “Greatest Ferraris of all time”.

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Literary Profiles: The “Sparkling, Perfect” Prose Of P.G. Wodehouse (BBC)

From BBC Culture (June 2, 2020):

P.G._Wodehouse_-_My_Man_Jeeves_-_1st_American_edition_(1920_printing)_-_CropWith every sparkling joke, every well-meaning and innocent character, every farcical tussle with angry swans and pet Pekingese, every utopian description of a stroll around the grounds of a pal’s stately home or a flutter on the choir boys’ hundred yards handicap at a summer village fete, he wanted to whisk us far away from our worries.

If we’re talking about culture that makes people happy, we have to start with the works of PG Wodehouse. There are two reasons why. One reason is that making people happy was Wodehouse’s overriding ambition. The other reason is that he was better at it than any other writer in history.

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P. G. Wodehouse: A Brief History

P.G. WodehouseThe author of almost a hundred books and the creator of Jeeves, Blandings Castle, Psmith, Ukridge, Uncle Fred and Mr Mulliner, P. G. Wodehouse was born in 1881 and educated at Dulwich College. After two years with the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank he became a full-time writer, contributing to a variety of periodicals including Punch and the Globe. He married in 1914.

As well as his novels and short stories, he wrote lyrics for musical comedies with Guy Bolton and Jerome Kern, and at one time had five musicals running simultaneously on Broadway. His time in Hollywood also provided much source material for fiction.

At the age of ninty-three, in the New Year’s Honours List of 1975, he received a long-overdue knighthood, only to die on St Valentine’s Day some forty-five days later.

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Classics Cars: Design House “Zagato” Defined “Italian Style” In 1960’s

Zagato Logo
Zagato is an independent coachbuilding company and total design centre located northwest of Milan in the Terrazzano frazione of Rho, Lombardy, Italy.

1961 Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ Prototipo - Zagato

1967 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 Zagato

The 1960s: Fuoriserie cars

The higher demand for special bodies required a passage from a handcraft to an industrially-based organization. Elio Zagato found a larger location at 30 Via Arese in Terrazzano (northwest of Milan), very close to Arese where Alfa Romeo would have chosen soon to establish its new plants. In 1960 Ugo Zagato was awarded with the Compasso d’Oro design prize for the design of the Fiat Abarth 1000 Zagato. In this period the mission of Zagato was to design special bodies to be assembled in series and fitted with mechanical parts and interiors supplied by major constructors. Under the partnership with Alfa Romeo the Giulia SZ, the TZ, TZ2, 2600 SZ, the 1750 4R and the Junior Zagato were born. In partnership with Lancia, Zagato continued the “Sport” series with the Lancia Appia Sport, the Flaminia Sport and Super Sport, the Flavia Sport and Supersport and the Fulvia Sport and Sport Spider. In addition there were some for special customers: Osca, Lamborghini, Bristol, Rover, Honda and Fiat.

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Fiction: “Hercule Poirot” Created 100 Years Ago In 1920 By Agatha Christie

From Open Magazine (May 29, 2020):

Hercule Poirot
Hercule Poirot

And with The Mysterious Affair at Styles (published a 100 years ago, in 1920) Christie would introduce readers to Monsieur Hercule Poirot, an old Belgian detective who resembled Holmes superficially (‘eccentric detective, stooge assistant’, as the author would admit in her autobiography later) but whose psychological insights and near-mystical idiosyncrasies would make him arguably the most successful and beloved literary sleuth of all time.

IN 1916, THE 26-year-old Agatha Christie finished writing her first detective novel at Dartmoor, a quiet upland in Devon, UK, known for its beautiful granite hilltops. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had published The Hound of the Baskervilles, in 1902, which would become one of the most widely read Sherlock Holmes adventures—and the story was set in this same corner of the world, Dartmoor.

Books like Murder on the Orient Express (1934), The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926)  and Death on the Nile (1937) remain some of the bestselling murder mysteries in the world today, over eight decades after their original publication (Christie’s net sales for all of her books combined are over two billion now).

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