FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS

Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw for his films of the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. He was nicknamed the “King of Cool” and used the alias Harvey Mushman in motor races.

McQueen received an Academy Award nomination for his role in The Sand Pebbles (1966). His other popular films include Love With the Proper Stranger (1963), The Cincinnati Kid (1965), Nevada Smith (1966), The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), Bullitt (1968), Le Mans (1971), The Getaway (1972), and Papillon (1973). In addition, he starred in the all-star ensemble films The Magnificent Seven (1960), The Great Escape (1963), and The Towering Inferno (1974).

In 1974, McQueen became the highest-paid movie star in the world, although he did not act in film for another four years. He was combative with directors and producers, but his popularity placed him in high demand and enabled him to command the largest salaries.

Stunts, motor racing and flying

He was inducted in the Off-road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1978. In 1971, McQueen’s Solar Productions funded the classic motorcycle documentary On Any Sunday, in which McQueen is featured, along with racing legends Mert Lawwill and Malcolm Smith. The same year, he also appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine riding a Husqvarna dirt bike.

McQueen designed a motorsports bucket seat, for which a patent was issued in 1971.

In a segment filmed for The Ed Sullivan Show, McQueen drove Sullivan around a desert area in a dune buggy at high speed. Afterward, Sullivan said, “That was a ‘helluva’ ride!”

By testimony of McQueen’s son, Chad, Steve owned around 100 classic motorcycles, as well as around 100 exotics and vintage cars, including:

• Porsche 917, Porsche 908, and Ferrari 512 race cars from the Le Mans film
• Porsche 911S (used in the opening sequence of the Le Mans film)
• 1963 Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso
• 1967 Ferrari 275GTB/4
• 1956 Jaguar XKSS (right-hand drive) (now on exhibit at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California)
• 1958 Porsche 356 Speedster 1600 Super (black exterior, interior and top) (McQueen drove the car in numerous SCCA racing events) (now in property of his son Chad)
• 1968 Ford GT40 (Gulf liveried) (used in the Le Mans film)^[72]
• 1953 Siata 208s (McQueen replaced the Siata badges with Ferrari badges and called it his “little Ferrari”)
• 1967 Mini Cooper-S (McQueen had the car customized by Lee Brown with changes including a single foglight, a wood dash, a recessed antenna and a custom brown paint job)
• 1951 Chevrolet Styline De Lux Convertible (used in The Hunter, McQueen bought the car in 1979 after filming ended)
• 1952 Chevrolet 3800 pickup camper conversion (McQueen used the truck for cross-country camping trips. It was the last car he rode in before his death)
• 1950 Hudson Commodore convertible
• 1952 Hudson Wasp 2-door sedan
• 1953 Hudson Hornet 4-door Sedan
• 1956 GMC Suburban
• 1958 GMC Pickup Truck (Reportedly one of McQueen’s favorite cars, it is powered by a 336 Ci V8 which has been modified. The tag “MQ3188” is a reference to the ID number assigned to him when he was in reform school)
• 1931 Lincoln Club Sedan
• 1935 Chrysler Airflow Imperial Sedan
• 1969 Chevrolet Baja Hickey race truck (originally debuted at the 1968 Mexican 1000 Rally and was driven by Cliff Coleman, Johnny Diaz, Mickey Thompson and others during its racing career; said to be the first truck specifically constructed by GM for use in the Mexican 1000; McQueen bought it from General Motors in 1970)

In spite of numerous attempts, McQueen was never able to purchase the Ford Mustang GT 390 he drove in Bullitt, which featured a modified drivetrain that suited McQueen’s driving style. One of the two Mustangs used in the film was badly damaged, judged beyond repair, and believed to have been scrapped until it surfaced in Mexico in 2017, while the other one, which McQueen attempted to purchase in 1977, is hidden from the public eye. At the 2018 North American International Auto Show the GT 390 was displayed, in its current non-restored condition, with the 2019 Ford Mustang “Bullitt”.

McQueen also flew and owned, among other aircraft, a 1945 Stearman, tail number N3188, (his student number in reform school), a 1946 Piper J-3 Cub, and an award-winning 1931 Pitcairn PA-8 biplane, flown in the US Mail Service by famed World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker. They were hangared at Santa Paula Airport an hour northwest of Hollywood, where he lived his final days.

TODAY’S ALMANAC

Question of the Day

Is it true that Mount Washington, New Hampshire, is the windiest location in the world? What was the highest gust ever recorded?The windiest place in the world is Commonwealth Bay, George V Coast, Antarctica, where winds reach 200 mph. The highest surface wind speed, 251 mph, was recorded on Australia’s Barrow Island during Cyclone Olivia in 1996. Previously, 231 mph was recorded on top of Mount Washington, New Hampshire (on April 12, 1934).

Advice of the Day

Polish your floor with club soda to make it sparkle.

Home Hint of the Day

Slate roof maintenance starts on the ground. From there, inspect the roof to check for missing, cracked, or loose tiles. Use binoculars to get a closer look.

Word of the Day

Moon’s phasesThe continually changing appearance of the Moon, caused by the different angles at which it is illuminated by the Sun. First Quarter: The right half of the Moon is illuminated, as seen from the Northern Hemisphere. Full: The Sun and the Moon are in opposition; the entire disk of the Moon is illuminated as viewed from Earth. Last Quarter: The left half of the Moon is illuminated, as seen from the Northern Hemisphere. New: The Sun and the Moon are in conjunction; the entire disk of the Moon is darkened as viewed from Earth.

Puzzle of the Day

What word of six letters contains six words, besides itself, without transposing?Herein

Died

• Pope Gregory XI – 1378
• Wilhelm Beer (astronomer) – 1850
• Yuri Gagarin (first man in space) – 1968
• Easley Blackwood (bridge game expert) – 1992
• Ferry Porsche (automobile manufacturer) – 1998
• Dudley Moore (actor) – 2002
• Billy Wilder (Oscar-winning filmmaker) – 2002
• Milton Berle (comedian) – 2002
• Edward J. Piszek (once made too many crab cakes for a local bar and threw the extras in a freezer, an accident that led to a frozen seafood empire, Mrs. Paul’s Kitchens) – 2004

Born

• Nathaniel Currier (lithographer) – 1813
• Wilhelm Roentgen (physicist) – 1845
• Henry Royce (automobile manufacturer) – 1863
• Patty Smith Hill (educator) – 1868
• Gloria Swanson (actress) – 1899
• Snooky Lanson (singer) – 1914
• Sarah Vaughan (jazz singer) – 1924
• David Janssen (actor) – 1930
• Michael York (actor) – 1942
• Quentin Tarantino (actor, director, & writer) – 1963
• Mariah Carey (singer) – 1970
• Stacy Fergie” Ferguson” (singer) – 1975
• Brenda Song (actress) – 1988

Events

• British General William Howe, his troops, and many Tories, sailed from Boston’s outer harbor for Halifax, Nova Scotia, after evacuating the city– 1776
• The first steam fire engine was tested in New York City– 1841
• A corkscrew was patented by M.L. Byrn of New York City– 1860
• Andrew Rankin received a patent for the urinal– 1866
• Regina made capital of N.W.T.– 1883
• First cherry trees, a gift from Japan, planted on Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C.– 1912
• Seattle Metropolitans became first U.S. hockey team to win the Stanley Cup– 1917
• Steve McQueen made his debut on a Goodyear Playhouse episode called The Chivington Raid”“– 1955
• Nikita Khrushchev became Premier of the Soviet Union in addition to first secretary of the Communist Party– 1958
• 9.2-magnitude earthquake, Prince William Sound, Alaska– 1964
• Marlon Brando turned down an Oscar for his performance in The Godfather as a gesture of support for the Indians occupying the Wounded Knee reservation in South Dakota– 1973
• A Dutch KLM 747 collided on takeoff with a Pan American 747 at Tenerife in the Canary Islands, killing 582 people– 1977
• Mt. St. Helens erupted after 123-year dormancy, starting a series of events that led to a cataclysmic eruption on May 18.– 1980
• X-43A Scramjet flew at Mach 7– 2004
• 25-pound 2-ounce burbot caught in Lake Diefenbaker, Saskatchewan– 2010
• 50-pound carp caught in MacArthur Park Lake in Los Angeles, California– 2017
• Almost 800 students of the Pike County Elementary School in Zebulon, Georgia, wished janitor Haze Mabry a happy 80th birthday– 2019

Weather

• Series of spring dust storms in Kansas blotted out sun, 70 mph westerly gale– 1880
• This was the last of three days of snow that brought 50 inches to the Black Hills of South Dakota– 1950
• Fatal tornadoes occurred in the United States on this day and on the 27th of every month though August – as well as in November.– 1994
• A fast-moving blizzard swept through eastern Newfoundland– 2006

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