1 00:00:01,440 --> 00:00:03,860 (racing car revving) 2 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 3 00:00:03,960 --> 00:00:05,580 (upbeat music) 4 00:00:05,680 --> 00:00:09,460 (racing car revving) 5 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 6 00:00:09,560 --> 00:00:12,240 (trumpet music) 7 00:00:26,640 --> 00:00:28,020 [Narrator] This is the untold story 8 00:00:28,120 --> 00:00:30,820 of the greatest movie, never made. 9 00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:32,700 A movie that would have been the world's 10 00:00:32,800 --> 00:00:36,020 first authentic motion picture about Formula 1, 11 00:00:36,120 --> 00:00:37,860 and starring the coolest man 12 00:00:37,960 --> 00:00:41,220 to ever get behind the wheel, Steve McQueen. 13 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:44,100 - As far as reality is concerned my education was very good. 14 00:00:44,200 --> 00:00:46,340 - We spent half our time keeping him out of jail. 15 00:00:46,440 --> 00:00:48,860 - It was Steve McQueen driving this movie 16 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:50,580 and he was a racer. 17 00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:52,980 - [Narrator] Of course, we can't show you that film, 18 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:56,180 but by piecing together never before seen rushes, 19 00:00:56,280 --> 00:00:58,780 along with original on-set photos, 20 00:00:58,880 --> 00:01:01,540 letters, scripts and interviews, 21 00:01:01,640 --> 00:01:04,060 we aim to give you a sense of what might have been, 22 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:07,180 for the audience and McQueen. 23 00:01:07,280 --> 00:01:11,020 - He embraced me; said "You can have anything." 24 00:01:11,120 --> 00:01:13,740 - He is impossible to take your eyes off of. 25 00:01:13,840 --> 00:01:15,220 Completely magnetic. 26 00:01:15,320 --> 00:01:17,460 - A terrible window of death. 27 00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:19,340 - I think it's a very pure thing; I'd like to learn more. 28 00:01:19,440 --> 00:01:20,420 (racing car revving) 29 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:22,580 - [Narrator] This wasn't just a race on the track. 30 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:26,260 It was a race between two massive Hollywood studios, 31 00:01:26,360 --> 00:01:29,500 determined to do whatever it took to win. 32 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:31,020 - You have to have the skill 33 00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:33,780 to create something people think is real. 34 00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:35,780 - [Christina] He was determined to make the definitive film 35 00:01:35,880 --> 00:01:36,980 about Formula 1. 36 00:01:37,080 --> 00:01:40,420 - It would have been bigger than "Jaws". 37 00:01:40,520 --> 00:01:43,660 - [Narrator] This is the story of "Day of the Champion". 38 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:45,900 (racing car revving) 39 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:48,900 ♪ People see me but they just don't know ♪ 40 00:01:49,000 --> 00:01:51,780 ♪ What's in my heart, and why I love you so ♪ 41 00:01:51,880 --> 00:01:54,420 ♪ I love you baby like a miner loves gold ♪ 42 00:01:54,520 --> 00:01:59,620 ♪ So come on baby, let the good times roll ♪ 43 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:04,400 ♪ (instrumental music) ♪ 44 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:20,300 [Narrator] The 1960s gave birth to a new America. 45 00:02:20,400 --> 00:02:22,620 The country hoped for a new direction with the election 46 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:26,460 of John F. Kennedy, only to see him shot down in Dallas. 47 00:02:26,560 --> 00:02:28,980 It sought harmony through the civil rights movement, 48 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:30,860 while protests over Vietnam 49 00:02:30,960 --> 00:02:34,500 and the Cuban Missile crisis dominated the headlines. 50 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:36,900 America's cultural impact on the world during 51 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:38,740 that decade is undeniable. 52 00:02:38,840 --> 00:02:41,980 Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Andy Warhol Elvis 53 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:44,380 and a movie industry in transition. 54 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:46,620 Old men who could not relate to the explosion 55 00:02:46,720 --> 00:02:50,060 of youth culture were swiftly moved aside. 56 00:02:50,160 --> 00:02:53,620 Films became brasher and more socially aware. 57 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:56,060 The inmates were allowed to take over the asylum, 58 00:02:56,160 --> 00:02:57,860 so long as their movies made sense 59 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:00,580 and more importantly, dollars. 60 00:03:00,680 --> 00:03:02,060 - Hollywood in the early 60s 61 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:05,180 is essentially the wheels are starting to come 62 00:03:05,280 --> 00:03:08,540 off basically since the end of the Second World War 63 00:03:08,640 --> 00:03:10,100 the breaking apart of the studio system 64 00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:12,540 is happening slowly across that period. 65 00:03:12,640 --> 00:03:15,620 And by the early '60s, 1963ish, 66 00:03:15,720 --> 00:03:20,540 you have the lowest domestic output of movies ever 67 00:03:20,640 --> 00:03:21,820 in American history. 68 00:03:21,920 --> 00:03:25,340 TV was the enemy to Hollywood for a long time 69 00:03:25,440 --> 00:03:28,140 but as they started to syndicate their movies 70 00:03:28,240 --> 00:03:31,140 into TV and realized how profitable it was, 71 00:03:31,240 --> 00:03:33,060 that barrier started to come down a bit. 72 00:03:33,160 --> 00:03:35,300 And so you had actors like Clint Eastwood 73 00:03:35,400 --> 00:03:37,940 who started out in "Rawhide" 74 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:40,620 and with Steve McQueen with "Wanted: Dead Or Alive", 75 00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:42,260 it was a very popular show. 76 00:03:42,360 --> 00:03:45,100 - [Narrator] From '58 to '61 McQueen starred 77 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:48,620 in a western TV show called "Wanted: Dead or Alive". 78 00:03:48,720 --> 00:03:52,620 His detached and mysterious acting style made this stand out 79 00:03:52,720 --> 00:03:54,420 from the average western serial. 80 00:03:54,520 --> 00:03:56,460 It not only made him a household name 81 00:03:56,560 --> 00:03:59,220 but helped to create his antihero persona, 82 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:02,620 which characterized so many of his future roles. 83 00:04:02,720 --> 00:04:04,620 His big break in the movies came thanks 84 00:04:04,720 --> 00:04:07,420 to another man with piercing blue eyes 85 00:04:07,520 --> 00:04:10,020 when Frank Sinatra sacked Sammy Davis Junior 86 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:12,300 from "Never So Few" after an argument. 87 00:04:12,400 --> 00:04:14,660 Sinatra and director John Sturges gave McQueen 88 00:04:14,760 --> 00:04:16,140 the role of Bill Ringa, 89 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:19,020 with Sinatra insisting that McQueen got plenty of close ups 90 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:22,540 and screen time after seeing something special in the, 91 00:04:22,640 --> 00:04:24,060 then 29-year-old. 92 00:04:24,160 --> 00:04:25,980 - [Actor] Josh! 93 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:27,780 - I think everyone agrees, John Sturges, 94 00:04:27,880 --> 00:04:28,980 one of his great strengths 95 00:04:29,080 --> 00:04:31,660 was he could cast what he called the gut of the picture. 96 00:04:31,760 --> 00:04:33,060 Don't worry about who's starring in it, 97 00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:35,780 that'll take care of itself but cast that gut. 98 00:04:35,880 --> 00:04:37,780 - Intuitively, a very good actor 99 00:04:37,880 --> 00:04:41,100 and exuberant about his work, he enjoyed, 100 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:44,260 a warrior, like most good actors are. 101 00:04:44,360 --> 00:04:48,100 - It was kind of a Pack picture, kind of Sinatra's Pack, 102 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:51,900 but with this one, young outsider. 103 00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:53,740 Frank kind of saw to it 104 00:04:53,840 --> 00:04:56,700 that Steve was at the right place at the right time. 105 00:04:56,800 --> 00:05:00,900 I'm talking about on the playing field, turning a scene, 106 00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:02,220 and off the playing field. 107 00:05:02,320 --> 00:05:05,020 Frank was careful that he got the help when he needed it, 108 00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:07,120 he got the angle when he needed it 109 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:11,340 and he got the brothering, 110 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:14,580 if you will, actor's coaching when he needed it. 111 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:17,660 - Certainly not an intellectual, he didn't read much. 112 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:19,220 He didn't know very much 113 00:05:19,320 --> 00:05:21,900 about what was happening in the world, 114 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:26,380 but he enjoyed life and we became very good friends. 115 00:05:26,480 --> 00:05:29,660 - [Narrator] McQueen would be the first to admit he 116 00:05:29,760 --> 00:05:30,940 was no intellectual. 117 00:05:31,040 --> 00:05:34,580 His difficult and abusive childhood giving no clues as 118 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:37,300 to the global stardom that would follow. 119 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:39,020 Born into poverty and raised 120 00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:40,660 with a great deal of insecurity, 121 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:44,340 he was abandoned by his stunt pilot father at six months, 122 00:05:44,440 --> 00:05:47,620 then sent by his alcoholic mother to live on his great, 123 00:05:47,720 --> 00:05:49,780 uncle's farm aged just three, 124 00:05:49,880 --> 00:05:52,500 he drifted through childhood committing petty crimes 125 00:05:52,600 --> 00:05:55,620 and later admitting; "I was looking for a little love, 126 00:05:55,720 --> 00:05:58,180 but there wasn't much of it around." 127 00:05:58,280 --> 00:06:00,300 - I think the stepdad relationship 128 00:06:00,400 --> 00:06:03,420 wasn't a good one, he used to beat on Steve. 129 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:06,180 His mother didn't really do anything about it 130 00:06:06,280 --> 00:06:08,860 and he never forgave her for that. 131 00:06:08,960 --> 00:06:11,780 - [Narrator] After several arrests for shoplifting 132 00:06:11,880 --> 00:06:13,380 and stealing hub caps, 133 00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:15,980 in his mid-teens McQueen ended up in a reform school 134 00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:18,900 for 'delinquent' children just outside of Los Angeles. 135 00:06:19,000 --> 00:06:20,780 - Steve ended up in Boy's Republic, 136 00:06:20,880 --> 00:06:22,500 Chino and Steve hated it at first 137 00:06:22,600 --> 00:06:26,560 and resented his mother for it greatly 138 00:06:27,480 --> 00:06:30,060 but in later life he used to go back there 139 00:06:30,160 --> 00:06:33,740 and meet the kids there and he would take items 140 00:06:33,840 --> 00:06:35,140 from his movie sets there 141 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:38,820 and I think although he maybe didn't appreciate it 142 00:06:38,920 --> 00:06:41,980 at the time, he came to appreciate it in later life 143 00:06:42,080 --> 00:06:43,500 just what it did for him. 144 00:06:43,600 --> 00:06:48,660 - His name was Mr Panter and he was the superintendent, 145 00:06:48,760 --> 00:06:51,380 I guess, of the place. 146 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:53,820 And Steve was getting into all sorts of trouble at 147 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:56,060 that time and the guy eventually took him aside 148 00:06:56,160 --> 00:06:57,860 after he tried to run away, 149 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:00,540 and of course they caught him, and he said, 150 00:07:00,640 --> 00:07:03,180 "You better adjust to some regimentation 151 00:07:03,280 --> 00:07:05,820 or you'll just be a very unhappy young man, 152 00:07:05,920 --> 00:07:07,660 in this place anyway." 153 00:07:07,760 --> 00:07:11,100 So with that, I guess he was able to learn 154 00:07:11,200 --> 00:07:14,900 that maybe a little adapting to society would be okay. 155 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:15,740 (laughs) 156 00:07:15,840 --> 00:07:16,940 - You have a choice in life 157 00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:19,580 and he made a choice that this is not the life I want 158 00:07:19,680 --> 00:07:21,780 to go down, I don't want to end up in prison, 159 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:23,780 I don't want to be just another statistic, 160 00:07:23,880 --> 00:07:25,940 I want to use this as a springboard. 161 00:07:26,040 --> 00:07:29,700 Let me use my anger, let me use my pain and my poverty 162 00:07:29,800 --> 00:07:31,340 and make it into something amazing, 163 00:07:31,440 --> 00:07:33,500 which the fact that we're talking about him now, 164 00:07:33,600 --> 00:07:36,220 so many years later, is actually what he did. 165 00:07:36,320 --> 00:07:37,580 - [Narrator] In 1947, 166 00:07:37,680 --> 00:07:40,620 and already branded as one of life's "Outsiders", 167 00:07:40,720 --> 00:07:43,940 the 17-year-old McQueen enlisted in the US Marines. 168 00:07:44,040 --> 00:07:45,860 He served as a tank driver, 169 00:07:45,960 --> 00:07:47,860 an experience that fueled his obsession 170 00:07:47,960 --> 00:07:49,980 for anything with an engine. 171 00:07:50,080 --> 00:07:53,460 Although there were occasional rebellions, 172 00:07:53,560 --> 00:07:54,860 he eventually embraced the rigor 173 00:07:54,960 --> 00:07:56,340 and discipline of military life 174 00:07:56,440 --> 00:07:59,180 and was honorably discharged in 1950. 175 00:07:59,280 --> 00:08:01,780 - He was on duty with the Navy in the Aleutian Islands, 176 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:03,620 just above the Arctic Circle. 177 00:08:03,720 --> 00:08:06,700 He was cold and he was out somewhere in his jeep 178 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:10,300 and he was heating a can of beans in the exhaust pipe 179 00:08:10,400 --> 00:08:13,540 of the jeep, a McQueen manoeuvre. 180 00:08:13,640 --> 00:08:15,620 And a General on inspection showed up 181 00:08:15,720 --> 00:08:17,340 and Steve's standing there to attention 182 00:08:17,440 --> 00:08:19,420 and the General is saying, "What's going on soldier." 183 00:08:19,520 --> 00:08:23,020 So the beans exploded and wiped out the General! 184 00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:25,780 So who but Steve McQueen could be court martialled 185 00:08:25,880 --> 00:08:28,340 for firing beans on a General, you know. 186 00:08:28,440 --> 00:08:29,940 These things just happened to him." 187 00:08:30,040 --> 00:08:31,100 - [Narrator] He was clearly aware 188 00:08:31,200 --> 00:08:34,740 of his educational disadvantage, but his extreme focus 189 00:08:34,840 --> 00:08:36,820 and life experience allowed him 190 00:08:36,920 --> 00:08:39,980 to tackle any fresh conflict he encountered. 191 00:08:40,080 --> 00:08:41,320 - Well, my scholastic standards weren't very good. 192 00:08:41,400 --> 00:08:43,140 I went as far as the eighth grade but 193 00:08:43,240 --> 00:08:45,780 as far as reality is concerned, by education was very good. 194 00:08:45,880 --> 00:08:48,200 And perhaps a man that kicks around quite a bit 195 00:08:50,040 --> 00:08:52,140 is a little stronger in quarters he needs to be stronger in 196 00:08:52,240 --> 00:08:53,900 as far as dignity is concerned, 197 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:54,740 and a little lenient 198 00:08:54,840 --> 00:08:56,900 in quarters about sensitivity and so forth. 199 00:08:57,000 --> 00:08:58,700 I think if you've been kicked around, 200 00:08:58,800 --> 00:08:59,820 you don't want to be kicked again. 201 00:08:59,920 --> 00:09:01,540 - With the G.I. Bill of Rights behind him, 202 00:09:01,640 --> 00:09:03,620 McQueen had money to learn a trade 203 00:09:03,720 --> 00:09:06,780 and settled on trying to make it a profession 204 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:08,460 in which he would meet the most girls. 205 00:09:08,560 --> 00:09:10,980 - I hitchhiked to New York and I studied there 206 00:09:11,080 --> 00:09:13,240 and got a scholarship to a dramatic school. 207 00:09:14,680 --> 00:09:17,020 Then I did a couple very small parts on television, 208 00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:20,980 and then my first Broadway show, which is a legitimate play, 209 00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:22,940 and I did two of those. 210 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:24,980 Then I came West, I hitchhiked to California, 211 00:09:25,080 --> 00:09:26,620 I was broke again. 212 00:09:26,720 --> 00:09:28,720 Then when I got to California, 213 00:09:29,160 --> 00:09:30,820 I guess they were hunting for a cowboy 214 00:09:30,920 --> 00:09:33,740 because they wanted me for a series and I did it 215 00:09:33,840 --> 00:09:37,540 and it lasted for 3 years in the United States 216 00:09:37,640 --> 00:09:39,300 and fortunately for me it was very popular. 217 00:09:39,400 --> 00:09:41,620 (hopeful music) 218 00:09:41,720 --> 00:09:43,900 - I think McQueen starts to get good notices with 219 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:47,380 "The Magnificent Seven" and he does everything he can, 220 00:09:47,480 --> 00:09:50,180 he pulls out all the stops to get the audience's attention 221 00:09:50,280 --> 00:09:51,220 in this ensemble piece, 222 00:09:51,320 --> 00:09:53,980 where Yul Brynner is really the big star. 223 00:09:54,080 --> 00:09:57,060 And stories abound about their relationship on set 224 00:09:57,160 --> 00:09:58,740 and how much he was kind of fiddling around 225 00:09:58,840 --> 00:10:00,900 in the background, and messing with his hat. 226 00:10:01,000 --> 00:10:02,980 Always doing something to draw the audience's eye 227 00:10:03,080 --> 00:10:04,260 to himself. 228 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:08,100 John Sturges was a good bit older than Steve McQueen. 229 00:10:08,200 --> 00:10:09,180 He'd come up in Hollywood 230 00:10:09,280 --> 00:10:12,860 in the 1930s as a jobbing Director. 231 00:10:12,960 --> 00:10:15,380 Really found his niche in the '50s with westerns, 232 00:10:15,480 --> 00:10:17,460 with action-oriented westerns. 233 00:10:17,560 --> 00:10:20,220 So, in 1955 he makes "Bad Day At Black Rock" which 234 00:10:20,320 --> 00:10:23,260 is sort of a contemporary western starring "Spencer Tracy". 235 00:10:23,360 --> 00:10:24,460 McQueen really was lucky 236 00:10:24,560 --> 00:10:26,900 in that Sturges was equally interested 237 00:10:27,000 --> 00:10:30,620 in cars as he was, he was kind of a man's man. 238 00:10:30,720 --> 00:10:32,660 And he had McQueen's respect 239 00:10:32,760 --> 00:10:34,900 because even at that point in his career, 240 00:10:35,000 --> 00:10:37,140 McQueen was known for being stubborn 241 00:10:37,240 --> 00:10:38,540 and sort of temperamental. 242 00:10:38,640 --> 00:10:41,780 - I think what John Sturges and Steve McQueen had in common 243 00:10:41,880 --> 00:10:46,300 was just an attitude of; "Let's get on with it!" 244 00:10:46,400 --> 00:10:49,500 There was a sort of workman-like charm about both of them. 245 00:10:49,600 --> 00:10:52,380 And that's not to say that they didn't create amazing, 246 00:10:52,480 --> 00:10:55,100 artistic and poetic moments on film together. 247 00:10:55,200 --> 00:10:57,100 And I think they both really appreciated 248 00:10:57,200 --> 00:10:58,540 that trait in one another. 249 00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:00,580 - Well, Sturges also grew up without a father 250 00:11:00,680 --> 00:11:04,660 so maybe there was a link there between them in that way. 251 00:11:04,760 --> 00:11:06,580 - [Narrator] So the street-kid had made it. 252 00:11:06,680 --> 00:11:09,500 By the age of 30, he was earning big money 253 00:11:09,600 --> 00:11:11,900 and was now a family man with a wife, Neile, 254 00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:14,420 and two children, Chad and Terry. 255 00:11:14,520 --> 00:11:16,820 - A lot of actors nowadays, you know, are making it, 256 00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:18,920 they are successful see? 257 00:11:19,640 --> 00:11:21,100 And they're very angry. 258 00:11:21,200 --> 00:11:23,300 Now what have they got to be angry about? 259 00:11:23,400 --> 00:11:25,860 If they were really broke and they had a hassle, 260 00:11:25,960 --> 00:11:27,700 But if they are successful, they should be very happy. 261 00:11:27,800 --> 00:11:29,540 I'm happy, I've got a beautiful wife, two kids, 262 00:11:29,640 --> 00:11:32,180 two houses, a couple of cars and my own film company. 263 00:11:32,280 --> 00:11:33,500 I'm not buggin' nothing! 264 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:34,340 (laughs) 265 00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:35,140 - Steve, why are you here? 266 00:11:35,240 --> 00:11:35,980 To make a picture? 267 00:11:36,080 --> 00:11:39,180 - We are doing "The War Lover", John Hersey's novel. 268 00:11:39,280 --> 00:11:40,900 It's the story of daylight bombing in World War Two 269 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:43,820 and the American flyers who fought here in London. 270 00:11:43,920 --> 00:11:45,220 There's only two things that mean anything to me, 271 00:11:45,320 --> 00:11:47,020 flying and women. 272 00:11:47,120 --> 00:11:48,380 - In that order? 273 00:11:48,480 --> 00:11:50,660 - In any order, or both together. 274 00:11:50,760 --> 00:11:52,140 (engine plane revving) 275 00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:53,420 - [Narrator] With his newfound fame 276 00:11:53,520 --> 00:11:56,580 and wealth came the opportunity to indulge his passion 277 00:11:56,680 --> 00:11:58,260 for motorcycles and cars. 278 00:11:58,360 --> 00:12:00,620 So, as well as starring opposite Robert Wagner 279 00:12:00,720 --> 00:12:02,140 and Shirley Anne Field, 280 00:12:02,240 --> 00:12:03,620 McQueen's main motivation 281 00:12:03,720 --> 00:12:05,580 for spending three months in rural Norfolk 282 00:12:05,680 --> 00:12:10,380 in 1962 was the film unit's proximity to Snetterton Circuit, 283 00:12:10,480 --> 00:12:12,780 at that time, the world's foremost school 284 00:12:12,880 --> 00:12:15,820 for people who wanted to learn to how to race cars. 285 00:12:15,920 --> 00:12:18,420 (trumpet music) 286 00:12:18,520 --> 00:12:20,500 - Yeah, when McQueen first came over here 287 00:12:20,600 --> 00:12:22,020 to film "The War Lover", 288 00:12:22,120 --> 00:12:26,620 he was really keen to drive racing cars 289 00:12:26,720 --> 00:12:28,060 and learn to drive racing cars, well, 290 00:12:28,160 --> 00:12:31,380 I think Jim Russell was an American driver 291 00:12:31,480 --> 00:12:32,660 who was actually pretty good 292 00:12:32,760 --> 00:12:34,300 and he started this new concept 293 00:12:34,400 --> 00:12:36,940 of a race driver school based at Snetterton 294 00:12:37,040 --> 00:12:39,060 and because it was the only one of its type at the time, 295 00:12:39,160 --> 00:12:42,460 it was like, "Wow what a great thing! 296 00:12:42,560 --> 00:12:43,900 You know, we can go and sit in a racing car 297 00:12:44,000 --> 00:12:45,060 and learn how to be race drivers." 298 00:12:45,160 --> 00:12:46,540 And that hadn't happened before 299 00:12:46,640 --> 00:12:47,860 and I think it's quite interesting 300 00:12:47,960 --> 00:12:49,860 that Steve McQueen knew about that 301 00:12:49,960 --> 00:12:52,260 and was attracted by that, it says a lot. 302 00:12:52,360 --> 00:12:57,140 It speaks a lot to the purity of Steve's love of racing, 303 00:12:57,240 --> 00:12:59,580 I think that he thought, "Wow, Snetterton. 304 00:12:59,680 --> 00:13:01,580 Bleak, cold, rainy, 305 00:13:01,680 --> 00:13:03,940 but it's the Jim Russell School I wanna be there!" 306 00:13:04,040 --> 00:13:05,860 - Steve, talking about cars. 307 00:13:05,960 --> 00:13:08,220 You race them and you race them very fast. 308 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:10,260 Now I don't know any other actor who does this 309 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:12,700 sort of activity the way you do. 310 00:13:12,800 --> 00:13:13,500 Why do you do it? 311 00:13:13,600 --> 00:13:15,180 Why are you in such a hurry? 312 00:13:15,280 --> 00:13:17,860 - I think perhaps a lot of it has to do with fear. 313 00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:19,460 I think that race driving is an art, 314 00:13:19,560 --> 00:13:21,380 and I don't put myself in the class 315 00:13:21,480 --> 00:13:24,580 of Stirling Moss or Dan Gurney or Phil Hill 316 00:13:24,680 --> 00:13:25,760 or some of the people who are driving here 317 00:13:25,840 --> 00:13:27,900 in your Formula 1 or your international races, 318 00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:30,540 but I remember the first time I raced I was very frightened, 319 00:13:30,640 --> 00:13:32,340 it scared me and I didn't like the idea of being frightened 320 00:13:32,440 --> 00:13:33,200 and I wanted to overcome it. 321 00:13:33,280 --> 00:13:34,460 That was one element. 322 00:13:34,560 --> 00:13:36,220 The other elements is it's a very pure thing. 323 00:13:36,320 --> 00:13:39,180 It's one of the few things in life you can't fix. 324 00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:40,060 You can't fix this. 325 00:13:40,160 --> 00:13:41,020 You can go to somebody and say; 326 00:13:41,120 --> 00:13:42,980 "I'm going to buy my way out of this." 327 00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:44,580 When you are out there by yourself you are very much 328 00:13:44,680 --> 00:13:45,820 by yourself. 329 00:13:45,920 --> 00:13:46,680 I think it's a very pure thing, 330 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:49,820 I'd like to learn more and I plan on doing a little racing 331 00:13:49,920 --> 00:13:51,780 while I'm in your county, I like to learn. 332 00:13:51,880 --> 00:13:52,980 Yes, I would. 333 00:13:53,080 --> 00:13:54,140 I think your courses are very fast 334 00:13:54,240 --> 00:13:55,540 and I could learn quite a bit from your drivers 335 00:13:55,640 --> 00:13:57,580 so I'd like to learn as much as I can. 336 00:13:57,680 --> 00:13:58,780 - The United States really 337 00:13:58,880 --> 00:14:02,540 only became aware of European-style racing, 338 00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:04,380 sports car racing, 339 00:14:04,480 --> 00:14:09,140 Formula 1 single-seater racing through the rich young men 340 00:14:09,240 --> 00:14:11,180 in California just after the war 341 00:14:11,280 --> 00:14:15,260 who started off racing hot-rod type cars on circuits 342 00:14:15,360 --> 00:14:18,820 but then found that if you had the money to buy a Ferrari 343 00:14:18,920 --> 00:14:23,020 or a Maserati from Europe, they could then win races. 344 00:14:23,120 --> 00:14:25,060 Steve McQueen, certainly, 345 00:14:25,160 --> 00:14:27,700 was much more interested in European-style racing 346 00:14:27,800 --> 00:14:30,100 and he picked up on the glamor 347 00:14:30,200 --> 00:14:33,420 and romanticism of Formula 1 racing. 348 00:14:33,520 --> 00:14:35,420 - [Narrator] One driver seemingly fitted the bill 349 00:14:35,520 --> 00:14:37,500 as McQueen's "UK racing mentor". 350 00:14:37,600 --> 00:14:40,860 A tall, slim aristocrat by the name of John Whitmore. 351 00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:43,180 His background and lifestyle could not have been 352 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:47,020 more different from rural Indiana or indeed Hollywood. 353 00:14:47,120 --> 00:14:50,180 - We grew up knowing each other very well. 354 00:14:50,280 --> 00:14:55,280 And he had a lovely house that he had in Balfour Place 355 00:14:56,400 --> 00:15:00,180 just one back from Park Lane. 356 00:15:00,280 --> 00:15:03,740 He was one of Jimmy Clark's best friends 357 00:15:03,840 --> 00:15:05,260 and one of my best friends. 358 00:15:05,360 --> 00:15:08,540 But John, he wasn't a gentleman racing driver. 359 00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:13,540 He was a racing driver er no gentlemanly manners 360 00:15:13,640 --> 00:15:14,380 or anything like that. 361 00:15:14,480 --> 00:15:15,540 Of course, he was well-mannered, 362 00:15:15,640 --> 00:15:17,620 of course he was so well, educated, 363 00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:20,540 but he just wanted to be one of the boys. 364 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:24,580 - Steve was over here making a black 365 00:15:24,680 --> 00:15:28,200 and white film actually. 366 00:15:29,320 --> 00:15:34,320 And he and I just happened to meet and we got talking 367 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:36,260 and we talked for about two hours 368 00:15:36,360 --> 00:15:38,900 and found that we had a lot of common interests. 369 00:15:39,000 --> 00:15:41,140 Steve was riding motorcycles, 370 00:15:41,240 --> 00:15:42,820 he was a very good motorcyclist 371 00:15:42,920 --> 00:15:45,060 and also was interested in cars. 372 00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:48,580 - And y then, Steve had done his Jim Russell course 373 00:15:48,680 --> 00:15:52,380 and John Whitmore was a massive hot shot in Minis 374 00:15:52,480 --> 00:15:53,980 and it was a perfect thing. 375 00:15:54,080 --> 00:15:59,140 It says a lot about Steve that he wanted to race Minis. 376 00:15:59,240 --> 00:16:01,820 I think that shows that he'd thought it through 377 00:16:01,920 --> 00:16:04,260 and it was exactly the right sort of category 378 00:16:04,360 --> 00:16:05,980 of racing for him. 379 00:16:06,080 --> 00:16:08,540 - McQueen was very competitive at that level 380 00:16:08,640 --> 00:16:11,220 and there was that great race at Brands Hatch 381 00:16:11,320 --> 00:16:13,060 when Whitmore and Carlisle 382 00:16:13,160 --> 00:16:15,060 and McQueen were backing together 383 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:18,080 and McQueen very nearly beat Carlisle to the flag. 384 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:22,540 - John Whitmore, I knew from early days 385 00:16:22,640 --> 00:16:26,140 because in fact we both raced at Sebring together 386 00:16:26,240 --> 00:16:27,740 in the same car. 387 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:30,900 But he was a great friend of Steve McQueen's 388 00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:33,260 and he was keen to race in England 389 00:16:33,360 --> 00:16:37,580 and John Whitmore had already won a saloon car championship. 390 00:16:37,680 --> 00:16:41,140 So he lent Steve McQueen his Mini 391 00:16:41,240 --> 00:16:45,620 to race at the beginning of October at Brands Hatch. 392 00:16:45,720 --> 00:16:48,900 The race was amazing. 393 00:16:49,000 --> 00:16:54,000 There were five of us Minis who were continually passing 394 00:16:54,400 --> 00:16:56,260 and re-passing each other. 395 00:16:56,360 --> 00:16:57,380 (guitar music) 396 00:16:57,480 --> 00:16:58,620 I was told we were the three 397 00:16:58,720 --> 00:17:00,500 of us together going round a corner. 398 00:17:00,600 --> 00:17:05,140 Anyhow the race ended with Vic Alford winning, me behind, 399 00:17:05,240 --> 00:17:07,520 just in front of Steve McQueen. 400 00:17:08,680 --> 00:17:11,780 And the commentator had gone absolutely mad 401 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:13,860 and demanded that we, us three, 402 00:17:13,960 --> 00:17:15,820 should go up onto the podium. 403 00:17:15,920 --> 00:17:17,900 It was very exciting. 404 00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:19,980 Oh, you can't ask him now but I don't know what he thought 405 00:17:20,080 --> 00:17:21,580 about that! 406 00:17:21,680 --> 00:17:23,900 But he was a good sport. 407 00:17:24,000 --> 00:17:27,540 He did drive me back to London on one occasion 408 00:17:27,640 --> 00:17:29,220 and he was charming. 409 00:17:29,320 --> 00:17:33,140 Chatty, talkative, wonderful blue eyes. 410 00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:35,420 He behaved extremely well! 411 00:17:35,520 --> 00:17:36,940 (laughs) 412 00:17:37,040 --> 00:17:40,700 - There was a Mini, a small car, 413 00:17:40,800 --> 00:17:43,700 on the side of the M1 and I was going down 414 00:17:43,800 --> 00:17:46,420 in my bigger car going a bit faster 415 00:17:46,520 --> 00:17:49,340 and as we went passed the Mini, 416 00:17:49,440 --> 00:17:53,500 there were two girls and Steve said, "Stop." 417 00:17:53,600 --> 00:17:55,540 And I said, "You can't stop on the M1, 418 00:17:55,640 --> 00:17:56,560 you know, you're not allowed to do that." 419 00:17:56,640 --> 00:17:58,260 And he said "Oh yes, 420 00:17:58,360 --> 00:18:00,780 you know, you ran out of petrol or something like that, 421 00:18:00,880 --> 00:18:01,860 you can stop." 422 00:18:01,960 --> 00:18:05,220 He jumped out of my car, took a bag with him, 423 00:18:05,320 --> 00:18:07,020 and jumped into the Mini. 424 00:18:07,120 --> 00:18:11,580 And he stayed in the car with these two girls 425 00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:14,460 and nobody saw him for two days. 426 00:18:14,560 --> 00:18:17,160 (upbeat music) 427 00:18:22,640 --> 00:18:24,060 - [Narrator] The result of racing Minis 428 00:18:24,160 --> 00:18:26,420 and his Jim Russell course was the addition of a 429 00:18:26,520 --> 00:18:29,660 so-called Asphalt Rider in his future contracts. 430 00:18:29,760 --> 00:18:31,260 Nothing was to get in the way 431 00:18:31,360 --> 00:18:33,180 of his love for cars and bikes. 432 00:18:33,280 --> 00:18:36,140 So, in 1963, with "The War Lover" 433 00:18:36,240 --> 00:18:38,460 and many laps of English racetracks behind him, 434 00:18:38,560 --> 00:18:40,060 Steve McQueen once again teamed up 435 00:18:40,160 --> 00:18:42,300 with director John Sturges for what was 436 00:18:42,400 --> 00:18:46,020 to become one of the most iconic movies of the 20th Century. 437 00:18:46,120 --> 00:18:47,620 And with the character of Captain Hilts 438 00:18:47,720 --> 00:18:48,540 in "The Great Escape", 439 00:18:48,640 --> 00:18:52,580 he cemented his status as a bonafide "Hollywood Superstar". 440 00:18:52,680 --> 00:18:57,680 - He looked at James Garner, who was "The Scrounger", 441 00:18:58,000 --> 00:19:00,420 he looked at Charles Bronson with his pick 442 00:19:00,520 --> 00:19:05,580 and he knew I'm the star of this movie 443 00:19:05,680 --> 00:19:06,820 and I've got nothing here. 444 00:19:06,920 --> 00:19:09,460 Sturges was big enough to give Steve 445 00:19:09,560 --> 00:19:11,580 that opportunity to go away and come back 446 00:19:11,680 --> 00:19:13,020 with his own ideas and that was 447 00:19:13,120 --> 00:19:16,540 where the motorcycling across the Alps 448 00:19:16,640 --> 00:19:19,260 and all that kind of thing, 449 00:19:19,360 --> 00:19:23,380 really took off and made Steve the huge star after that. 450 00:19:23,480 --> 00:19:25,740 - We spent half our time keeping him out of jail. 451 00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:28,620 Every time he'd show up at work there'd be this collection 452 00:19:28,720 --> 00:19:32,940 of police who would come in and they'd all come over to me 453 00:19:33,040 --> 00:19:36,140 and we'd have a consultation with Steve over, 454 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:39,580 "You cannot drive through flocks of chickens 455 00:19:39,680 --> 00:19:42,420 and you cannot go off into the woods 456 00:19:42,520 --> 00:19:45,500 and back onto the road to pass somebody," and so on. 457 00:19:45,600 --> 00:19:46,580 - Wasn't it a while ago 458 00:19:46,680 --> 00:19:49,220 that the studios prohibited you doing any racing 459 00:19:49,320 --> 00:19:51,660 while you were actually in production? 460 00:19:51,760 --> 00:19:52,500 - Ssssh! 461 00:19:52,600 --> 00:19:53,420 - I mean I see all 462 00:19:53,520 --> 00:19:55,380 kinds of executive-looking people standing around 463 00:19:55,480 --> 00:19:56,540 with their fingers crossed! 464 00:19:56,640 --> 00:19:59,260 - Well, they're being real nice to me on this film. 465 00:19:59,360 --> 00:20:02,980 - Steve drove faster than made sense 466 00:20:03,080 --> 00:20:05,740 and Steve's emotional outlet 467 00:20:05,840 --> 00:20:08,100 when he was troubled was drive a car. 468 00:20:08,200 --> 00:20:12,340 - So one of the amazing things about McQueen was really 469 00:20:12,440 --> 00:20:15,540 for the first time since silent cinema and the "Daredevils" 470 00:20:15,640 --> 00:20:18,140 of silent cinema like Harold Lloyd and Buster Keaton, 471 00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:21,660 he was someone who made it very clear that he did a lot 472 00:20:21,760 --> 00:20:25,300 of his own stunt work, and was celebrated because of that. 473 00:20:25,400 --> 00:20:28,100 People loved to see him do actions scenes 474 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:29,700 because they knew it was for real. 475 00:20:29,800 --> 00:20:33,180 But Steve McQueen really started that in the modern era. 476 00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:35,060 - You've got to remember about Steve, 477 00:20:35,160 --> 00:20:37,340 he not only loved cars 478 00:20:37,440 --> 00:20:41,940 and loved everything to do with mechanical things, 479 00:20:42,040 --> 00:20:44,340 but he was also very good at it. 480 00:20:44,440 --> 00:20:48,340 Steve was very good at handling automobiles, 481 00:20:48,440 --> 00:20:50,500 that's why he could race competitively. 482 00:20:50,600 --> 00:20:51,340 There's another issue, 483 00:20:51,440 --> 00:20:54,380 too, that people have mentioned and it's absolutely true. 484 00:20:54,480 --> 00:20:57,980 There is the, I don't like the term "macho", 485 00:20:58,080 --> 00:21:00,700 but he had that thing about, 486 00:21:00,800 --> 00:21:02,580 I don't want people doubling me 487 00:21:02,680 --> 00:21:07,680 and then I have to face my peers saying, "Here comes candy." 488 00:21:08,080 --> 00:21:09,220 - [Narrator] The cavalier leading man 489 00:21:09,320 --> 00:21:11,500 might seem like a director's worst nightmare. 490 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:14,380 Let alone the studio's insurance company. 491 00:21:14,480 --> 00:21:18,020 But it showed Sturges that McQueen was the real deal 492 00:21:18,120 --> 00:21:20,100 and his love of blurring the lines between acting, 493 00:21:20,200 --> 00:21:23,040 action and reality brought them even closer together. 494 00:21:25,680 --> 00:21:27,500 With McQueen's insistence on doing most 495 00:21:27,600 --> 00:21:30,060 of his own motorbike stunts in "The Great Escape", 496 00:21:30,160 --> 00:21:33,700 only an insurance clause kept him from doing that jump, 497 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:36,460 which whetted his appetite for more onscreen action. 498 00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:39,180 And what better subject than the machinery with which he was 499 00:21:39,280 --> 00:21:41,280 so in love. 500 00:21:42,720 --> 00:21:44,380 - [Steve] I don't like acting when it's "Playing house"? 501 00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:47,260 You know, I believe that I try to extract out 502 00:21:47,360 --> 00:21:49,580 of my life the same reality 503 00:21:49,680 --> 00:21:51,680 that I am existing in if I'm working. 504 00:21:52,400 --> 00:21:55,540 - Anyone watching films in 2020 probably doesn't appreciate 505 00:21:55,640 --> 00:21:58,100 the difference between an actor and a movie star. 506 00:21:58,200 --> 00:22:02,140 But in the 1960s and 1970s, there was a huge difference. 507 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:04,980 It was a choice of getting a script and turning up 508 00:22:05,080 --> 00:22:07,380 and doing your job, which an actor did. 509 00:22:07,480 --> 00:22:10,140 A movie star had control; they could change scenes. 510 00:22:10,240 --> 00:22:12,100 - [James] Well there were lots of actors. 511 00:22:12,200 --> 00:22:14,540 Movie stars are much rarer. 512 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:19,140 - As a movie star, he's impossible to take your eyes off of. 513 00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:24,060 Completely magnetic, I think attractive to men and women 514 00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:27,500 because he has a salt of the earth energy. 515 00:22:27,600 --> 00:22:29,820 He doesn't put on airs and graces. 516 00:22:29,920 --> 00:22:32,460 He feels like he has the hands of a mechanic, 517 00:22:32,560 --> 00:22:35,020 he has the face of somebody who has lived. 518 00:22:35,120 --> 00:22:36,260 - After "The Great Escape", 519 00:22:36,360 --> 00:22:39,980 it took his movie star capabilities to another level. 520 00:22:40,080 --> 00:22:42,900 So for him it was very important to make a film 521 00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:44,420 that he was passionate about. 522 00:22:44,520 --> 00:22:47,700 - So we move into Warner Bros, we have a six-picture deal. 523 00:22:47,800 --> 00:22:50,260 When we had our moving in party 524 00:22:50,360 --> 00:22:52,460 with all the William Morris people there, 525 00:22:52,560 --> 00:22:54,740 trying to make a joke I said, 526 00:22:54,840 --> 00:22:57,340 "We're going to make a picture about racing. 527 00:22:57,440 --> 00:22:59,820 That'll be the end of this company and our relationship!" 528 00:22:59,920 --> 00:23:01,220 And we all had a big laugh. 529 00:23:01,320 --> 00:23:03,260 Turned out not to be that funny. 530 00:23:03,360 --> 00:23:06,540 - What McQueen and Sturges wanted to do 531 00:23:06,640 --> 00:23:10,580 was to exploit highly charged writing, 532 00:23:10,680 --> 00:23:13,100 intelligent writing about sport. 533 00:23:13,200 --> 00:23:15,540 It hadn't really happened before 534 00:23:15,640 --> 00:23:18,540 and a lot of it came consciously or subconsciously 535 00:23:18,640 --> 00:23:21,540 from the style of writing that one had seen 536 00:23:21,640 --> 00:23:24,220 with Hemingway's "Death in the Afternoon". 537 00:23:24,320 --> 00:23:26,340 It was dramatizing death. 538 00:23:26,440 --> 00:23:29,460 It was acknowledging that it was a central part 539 00:23:29,560 --> 00:23:30,260 of what was going on. 540 00:23:30,360 --> 00:23:33,580 - Well, it was Hemingway's great statement about 541 00:23:33,680 --> 00:23:35,380 there are only three sports; bullfighting, 542 00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:37,020 mountaineering and motor racing. 543 00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:39,120 All the others are just games. 544 00:23:39,840 --> 00:23:42,780 - [Narrator] So motor racing was maybe the next logical step 545 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:47,220 and in 1963 a book by American photojournalist Robert Daley, 546 00:23:47,320 --> 00:23:49,340 shed new light onto Grand Prix racing, 547 00:23:49,440 --> 00:23:50,940 exposing the sometimes, 548 00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:53,460 uncomfortable truth about the less glamorous 549 00:23:53,560 --> 00:23:55,700 and often deadly nature of the sport. 550 00:23:55,800 --> 00:24:00,180 - "The Cruel Sport" came out with a lot of fanfare 551 00:24:00,280 --> 00:24:04,100 and being a nerd of motor racing, 552 00:24:04,200 --> 00:24:07,100 I was very nervous about "The Cruel Sport", 553 00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:09,500 but we all had to be because we knew 554 00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:12,940 it was gonna have things in there that you aren't supposed 555 00:24:13,040 --> 00:24:14,860 to be talking about or showing. 556 00:24:14,960 --> 00:24:16,300 - [Nigel] Well, the more I read the book, 557 00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:21,400 the more I realized how different it was from most writing 558 00:24:21,760 --> 00:24:23,140 about the sport at that time. 559 00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:25,240 It was unflinching. 560 00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:30,140 - The sport at that time was poorly managed 561 00:24:30,240 --> 00:24:35,240 and in those days, the drivers were sitting in a fuel tank. 562 00:24:35,680 --> 00:24:38,180 It was all wrapping around you. 563 00:24:38,280 --> 00:24:40,260 And when you had an impact, 564 00:24:40,360 --> 00:24:42,180 they usually caught fire in a big way 565 00:24:42,280 --> 00:24:43,740 and they never got it out. 566 00:24:43,840 --> 00:24:44,620 They never got it out. 567 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:49,260 So it was a colorful, glamorous and exciting window, 568 00:24:49,360 --> 00:24:52,060 but a terrible window of death. 569 00:24:52,160 --> 00:24:55,780 - Daley was facing the fact that motor racing was 570 00:24:55,880 --> 00:24:57,620 so dangerous in those days. 571 00:24:57,720 --> 00:25:00,500 OK he was making that the theme of his books; 572 00:25:00,600 --> 00:25:03,060 maybe he was glorifying it. 573 00:25:03,160 --> 00:25:06,900 But he was writing about it intelligently and openly. 574 00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:10,500 - Helen and I counted 57 people 575 00:25:10,600 --> 00:25:12,540 who died who were our friends. 576 00:25:12,640 --> 00:25:14,700 We traveled with them, we holidayed with them, 577 00:25:14,800 --> 00:25:17,060 we raced with them, we dined with them, 578 00:25:17,160 --> 00:25:21,420 it was just one big happy family. 579 00:25:21,520 --> 00:25:26,060 - "The Cruel Sport" highlighted the number of accidents 580 00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:28,500 and the number of deaths and various serious injuries 581 00:25:28,600 --> 00:25:33,180 that were taking place in motor sport to the shock, 582 00:25:33,280 --> 00:25:36,500 I think, of the people involved in motor sport. 583 00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:38,340 But the Americans got hold of that in a way 584 00:25:38,440 --> 00:25:41,460 that you could touch and feel and you could smell the blood. 585 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:44,660 And I think this was the role of "The Cruel Sport", 586 00:25:44,760 --> 00:25:48,020 it opened the doors to a Steve McQueen 587 00:25:48,120 --> 00:25:50,660 to be able to go to a Warner Bros and say; 588 00:25:50,760 --> 00:25:51,980 "This is Formula 1, 589 00:25:52,080 --> 00:25:54,860 and this is what I want to make a movie about." 590 00:25:54,960 --> 00:25:56,700 (dramatic music) 591 00:25:56,800 --> 00:25:59,260 - [Craig] "John secured the rights to 'The Cruel Sport' 592 00:25:59,360 --> 00:26:01,300 and we started developing a script. 593 00:26:01,400 --> 00:26:03,820 In Sturges' mind, there was only one actor 594 00:26:03,920 --> 00:26:05,620 who had the skills to play the lead 595 00:26:05,720 --> 00:26:08,280 in a realistic film about car racing." 596 00:26:09,360 --> 00:26:11,180 - [Narrator] The ingredients were all there. 597 00:26:11,280 --> 00:26:13,020 Dangerous and dramatic source material 598 00:26:13,120 --> 00:26:15,420 would give the film legitimacy. 599 00:26:15,520 --> 00:26:17,500 The glamor and excitement of the swinging '60s 600 00:26:17,600 --> 00:26:19,420 would provide the perfect backdrop. 601 00:26:19,520 --> 00:26:22,420 Surely this would be a guaranteed Hollywood hit? 602 00:26:22,520 --> 00:26:26,580 It was to be called, "Day of The Champion". 603 00:26:26,680 --> 00:26:31,620 - Somehow or other there was a magic about the '60s. 604 00:26:31,720 --> 00:26:35,620 Carnaby Street was there, sex was safe, 605 00:26:35,720 --> 00:26:39,220 motor racing was dangerous, it was glamorous, 606 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:41,320 it was colorful, it was exciting, 607 00:26:42,360 --> 00:26:46,620 and everybody would come to Monaco every year. 608 00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:49,620 It was a special time because Princess Grace was 609 00:26:49,720 --> 00:26:51,860 like a magnet to Hollywood 610 00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:54,820 so all the big stars would come as well. 611 00:26:54,920 --> 00:26:57,100 It's just a different culture altogether 612 00:26:57,200 --> 00:26:59,980 and I just feel so fortunate 613 00:27:00,080 --> 00:27:01,780 that I was living in that window. 614 00:27:01,880 --> 00:27:03,900 - [Richard] Well, Steve always had this concept 615 00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:05,900 that he wanted his racing movie 616 00:27:06,000 --> 00:27:09,780 that he would eventually make to be authentic. 617 00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:12,220 It had to be a film that his racing buddies 618 00:27:12,320 --> 00:27:13,540 would appreciate. 619 00:27:13,640 --> 00:27:15,500 - So, the script of "Day of the Champion" 620 00:27:15,600 --> 00:27:20,140 certainly has more of a traditional narrative to it. 621 00:27:20,240 --> 00:27:22,660 There is a romance 622 00:27:22,760 --> 00:27:26,180 with a posh British girl called Kyla Bonham. 623 00:27:26,280 --> 00:27:28,380 (laughs) 624 00:27:28,480 --> 00:27:31,460 I think she crashes her Jaguar in a field. 625 00:27:31,560 --> 00:27:33,560 And that's how the romance starts. 626 00:27:34,800 --> 00:27:36,780 But even when you look at the script now, 627 00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:40,140 it's certainly more about the racing than it is 628 00:27:40,240 --> 00:27:41,500 about the characters. 629 00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:42,860 - [Narrator] The mark of the film was 630 00:27:42,960 --> 00:27:44,820 to be absolute authenticity. 631 00:27:44,920 --> 00:27:47,020 No compromise when it came to accuracy 632 00:27:47,120 --> 00:27:48,540 and attention to detail. 633 00:27:48,640 --> 00:27:51,340 Stirling Moss, who had retired from full-time racing 634 00:27:51,440 --> 00:27:54,020 after his crash at Goodwood in 1962, 635 00:27:54,120 --> 00:27:57,340 was hired by McQueen and Sturges as a technical consultant 636 00:27:57,440 --> 00:27:59,380 for the "Day of the Champion" team. 637 00:27:59,480 --> 00:28:01,740 - You know, there was a time when Grand Prix drivers 638 00:28:01,840 --> 00:28:03,260 were household names in America. 639 00:28:03,360 --> 00:28:04,900 In the days of when there were two races, 640 00:28:05,000 --> 00:28:06,060 one at Long Beach at the start 641 00:28:06,160 --> 00:28:10,180 of the year and one at Watkins Glen at the end of the year. 642 00:28:10,280 --> 00:28:11,980 Used to have huge crowds at those races 643 00:28:12,080 --> 00:28:15,540 and knowledgeable crowds who really knew who Jim Clark was 644 00:28:15,640 --> 00:28:16,580 and what he had done. 645 00:28:16,680 --> 00:28:19,020 And Stirling Moss, periodically, 646 00:28:19,120 --> 00:28:21,660 raced in America in the late '50s 647 00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:23,980 on so he was the kind of pioneer if you like, 648 00:28:24,080 --> 00:28:26,100 in that respect. 649 00:28:26,200 --> 00:28:29,780 And that was where the drivers began to know, 650 00:28:29,880 --> 00:28:31,180 the James Garner's and so on, 651 00:28:31,280 --> 00:28:36,220 who were American US film stars who liked racing. 652 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:39,580 - Stirling Moss was way ahead of his time 653 00:28:39,680 --> 00:28:42,140 as an ambassador of the sport 654 00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:44,540 and as an ambassador of his own brand. 655 00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:45,700 He had a great name. 656 00:28:45,800 --> 00:28:47,580 He always said, "If I'd have been christened Hamish, 657 00:28:47,680 --> 00:28:50,100 I wouldn't be as well-known as I was." 658 00:28:50,200 --> 00:28:52,140 But he worked really hard I mean he'd win a race 659 00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:53,900 and that night he would always make a point 660 00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:56,220 of going out into the town and meeting people 661 00:28:56,320 --> 00:28:57,900 and going to the movies, wherever he was. 662 00:28:58,000 --> 00:28:59,660 And then he'd go to Hong Kong and order a new suit. 663 00:28:59,760 --> 00:29:01,340 But it was all in the newspapers. 664 00:29:01,440 --> 00:29:02,500 The press loved him. 665 00:29:02,600 --> 00:29:03,980 Stirling was a big, 666 00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:08,660 big name and it was interesting that Stirling was involved 667 00:29:08,760 --> 00:29:10,740 with "The Day of the Champion" 668 00:29:10,840 --> 00:29:14,740 because he was a team owner by the time 669 00:29:14,840 --> 00:29:17,900 that happened and one of his drivers was Sir John Whitmore. 670 00:29:18,000 --> 00:29:20,940 And Whitmore would have said to Steve McQueen; 671 00:29:21,040 --> 00:29:22,460 "You've got to get Stirling Moss involved, 672 00:29:22,560 --> 00:29:24,660 I know Stirling very well, I drive for him." 673 00:29:24,760 --> 00:29:27,280 And that's how that would've all come together. 674 00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:30,100 - [Craig] There was a benefit dinner in Hollywood the Night 675 00:29:30,200 --> 00:29:33,100 before our film was to be announced to the trade newspapers 676 00:29:33,200 --> 00:29:35,460 and by chance John Sturges was seated next 677 00:29:35,560 --> 00:29:36,420 to fellow director, 678 00:29:36,520 --> 00:29:39,260 John Frankenheimer who had just directed "The Train" 679 00:29:39,360 --> 00:29:40,180 with Burt Lancaster 680 00:29:40,280 --> 00:29:43,020 and "The Manchurian Candidate" prior to that. 681 00:29:43,120 --> 00:29:45,780 Frankenheimer was a long-time admirer of Sturges 682 00:29:45,880 --> 00:29:49,380 and he gushed to his idol about this film he was preparing. 683 00:29:49,480 --> 00:29:50,860 "It's about car racing!" 684 00:29:50,960 --> 00:29:52,540 Frankenheimer claimed. 685 00:29:52,640 --> 00:29:55,700 Sturges just kept picking at his meal. 686 00:29:55,800 --> 00:29:58,260 "Car racing, really?" 687 00:29:58,360 --> 00:30:01,340 "We're calling it, 'Grand Prix,'" Frankenheimer added. 688 00:30:01,440 --> 00:30:03,220 "I'm basing it on this fantastic booked 689 00:30:03,320 --> 00:30:06,340 I've discovered called 'The Cruel Sport'." 690 00:30:06,440 --> 00:30:09,180 Sturges just kept picking at his food. 691 00:30:09,280 --> 00:30:11,420 As it turned out, while Sturges was making a deal 692 00:30:11,520 --> 00:30:13,500 for the book with the author's agent, 693 00:30:13,600 --> 00:30:15,940 Frankenheimer was making the same deal with 694 00:30:16,040 --> 00:30:17,780 the author himself, Robert Daley. 695 00:30:17,880 --> 00:30:18,620 Apparently, Daley 696 00:30:18,720 --> 00:30:21,340 and his agent didn't communicate very well, or very often. 697 00:30:21,440 --> 00:30:23,740 So, the day after that dinner, 698 00:30:23,840 --> 00:30:26,180 both movies based on the same book were announced 699 00:30:26,280 --> 00:30:29,060 to the trade papers, and the real race was on. 700 00:30:29,160 --> 00:30:31,420 Both sides were determined to do whatever 701 00:30:31,520 --> 00:30:34,660 and spend whatever it took to win. 702 00:30:34,760 --> 00:30:36,780 - Frankenheimer was really from a generation of directors 703 00:30:36,880 --> 00:30:39,660 that had cut their teeth on literally hundreds 704 00:30:39,760 --> 00:30:41,220 of television dramas. 705 00:30:41,320 --> 00:30:44,660 He had a string of really popular films 706 00:30:44,760 --> 00:30:47,340 that borrowed from the realism 707 00:30:47,440 --> 00:30:50,700 and the low budget black and white of television, 708 00:30:50,800 --> 00:30:53,140 with some more highbrow influences 709 00:30:53,240 --> 00:30:55,740 and progressive politics often were involved. 710 00:30:55,840 --> 00:30:58,500 So Frankenheimer belonged more to the late '60s than 711 00:30:58,600 --> 00:31:01,260 the early '60s in terms of his subject matter. 712 00:31:01,360 --> 00:31:03,060 - It seemed to me at the time 713 00:31:03,160 --> 00:31:05,460 that we could do two kinds of movies. 714 00:31:05,560 --> 00:31:08,400 We could either do "Test Pilot" ? 715 00:31:09,520 --> 00:31:12,460 Which is one driver with his mechanic going 716 00:31:12,560 --> 00:31:14,900 through the whole thing and finally getting up to Formula 1. 717 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:17,020 Or we could do "Grand Hotel", 718 00:31:17,120 --> 00:31:19,140 which is to take a group of people 719 00:31:19,240 --> 00:31:22,540 and put them in one situation and see what happens. 720 00:31:22,640 --> 00:31:25,100 Which is basically what "Grand Hotel" was. 721 00:31:25,200 --> 00:31:27,100 So we chose to do "Grand Hotel". 722 00:31:27,200 --> 00:31:30,060 - Steve was originally slated to do that movie 723 00:31:30,160 --> 00:31:32,300 but he couldn't get along with Frankenheimer 724 00:31:32,400 --> 00:31:35,140 and so that lasted about 30 minutes and Steve was out 725 00:31:35,240 --> 00:31:37,240 and I was in. 726 00:31:37,680 --> 00:31:40,380 - Well, it's never really been totally clear 727 00:31:40,480 --> 00:31:41,220 to me what happened. 728 00:31:41,320 --> 00:31:43,420 He had this disastrous meeting 729 00:31:43,520 --> 00:31:45,980 with my partner, Edward Lewis. 730 00:31:46,080 --> 00:31:48,380 It's a meeting that I should've been at 731 00:31:48,480 --> 00:31:51,740 and for professional reasons I was doing something else, 732 00:31:51,840 --> 00:31:55,260 so I said to my partner; "You take the meeting with Steve." 733 00:31:55,360 --> 00:31:58,500 Well, it just was a disaster and what happened 734 00:31:58,600 --> 00:32:00,900 was Steve walked out of the movie 735 00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:04,300 and we were without Steve McQueen. 736 00:32:04,400 --> 00:32:07,340 I still think if we'd had Steve McQueen in that movie, 737 00:32:07,440 --> 00:32:10,740 it would have been bigger than "Jaws". 738 00:32:10,840 --> 00:32:11,580 - [Interviewer] Really? 739 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:12,420 I mean, yeah. 740 00:32:12,520 --> 00:32:14,340 I mean that's my contention. 741 00:32:14,440 --> 00:32:18,340 - He was definitely number one choice for "Grand Prix". 742 00:32:18,440 --> 00:32:21,860 I think in hindsight, MGM got off lightly there 743 00:32:21,960 --> 00:32:24,860 because Steve would not have been an actor 744 00:32:24,960 --> 00:32:28,380 that would have just executed a script as they wanted. 745 00:32:28,480 --> 00:32:31,460 He was so passionate about racing that he would have wanted 746 00:32:31,560 --> 00:32:34,020 to have brought his own ideas to that movie. 747 00:32:34,120 --> 00:32:36,740 What they got with James Garner would have been an actor 748 00:32:36,840 --> 00:32:39,700 who was a lot easier to handle let's say, 749 00:32:39,800 --> 00:32:43,580 in terms of executing a proper movie script, 750 00:32:43,680 --> 00:32:48,500 as opposed to wanting to create the definitive racing movie. 751 00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:52,420 - So, when I got the part in "Grand Prix", 752 00:32:52,520 --> 00:32:55,660 I called him and I said, "Steve I want to tell you 753 00:32:55,760 --> 00:32:56,520 before you hear it from somebody else, 754 00:32:56,600 --> 00:32:58,460 that I'm gonna do 'Grand Prix'." 755 00:32:58,560 --> 00:33:00,460 Well, there was about a twenty-dollar silence 756 00:33:00,560 --> 00:33:01,900 there on the telephone! 757 00:33:02,000 --> 00:33:02,740 (laughs) 758 00:33:02,840 --> 00:33:04,940 He didn't know what to say and finally he said, 759 00:33:05,040 --> 00:33:07,700 "Oh that's great, great, I'm glad to hear it." 760 00:33:07,800 --> 00:33:09,060 He didn't talk to me for about a year 761 00:33:09,160 --> 00:33:11,740 and a half and we were next-door neighbors! 762 00:33:11,840 --> 00:33:12,580 (laughs) 763 00:33:12,680 --> 00:33:14,380 - One of the things that really disappointed McQueen 764 00:33:14,480 --> 00:33:17,460 was Garner didn't have the love for cars that he had. 765 00:33:17,560 --> 00:33:21,420 It wasn't a personal obsession with cars or racing 766 00:33:21,520 --> 00:33:23,380 to Garner, it was another job. 767 00:33:23,480 --> 00:33:24,700 - So when you look at the script, 768 00:33:24,800 --> 00:33:28,020 it does seem like McQueen wanted to show off 769 00:33:28,120 --> 00:33:32,300 a little bit some of his racing skills with Formula 1 cars, 770 00:33:32,400 --> 00:33:35,580 Formula 2 cars, sports cars, a Mini-Cooper, 771 00:33:35,680 --> 00:33:39,140 which could be a little nod back to his years racing 772 00:33:39,240 --> 00:33:41,140 with John Whitmore in a Mini. 773 00:33:41,240 --> 00:33:44,260 It's definitely all about McQueen's prowess 774 00:33:44,360 --> 00:33:45,260 behind the wheel. 775 00:33:45,360 --> 00:33:47,860 - With the arguments and egos seemingly smoothed 776 00:33:47,960 --> 00:33:49,980 and top billing for each movie established, 777 00:33:50,080 --> 00:33:53,540 Warner Bros released this memo proudly declaring 778 00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:55,140 that "Day of the Champion" was up 779 00:33:55,240 --> 00:33:58,580 and running with an all-star crew and technical line up. 780 00:33:58,680 --> 00:34:00,700 - [Announcer] "From Warner Bros Studios, Burbank, 781 00:34:00,800 --> 00:34:03,460 California, Jack L. Warner announced today 782 00:34:03,560 --> 00:34:06,100 that photography on a multi-million-dollar picture 783 00:34:06,200 --> 00:34:09,580 "Day of the Champion" will commence in Europe this summer. 784 00:34:09,680 --> 00:34:11,900 Filming will include the "Grand Prix" of Germany 785 00:34:12,000 --> 00:34:15,100 at the famed Nurburgring Circuit on August 1st. 786 00:34:15,200 --> 00:34:16,620 John Sturges will produce 787 00:34:16,720 --> 00:34:19,660 and direct and Steve McQueen will star in the Technicolor 788 00:34:19,760 --> 00:34:22,500 and Panavision production which is being financed 789 00:34:22,600 --> 00:34:25,340 and distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. 790 00:34:25,440 --> 00:34:27,300 Stirling Moss, one of the legendary figures 791 00:34:27,400 --> 00:34:28,860 in the world of motor racing, 792 00:34:28,960 --> 00:34:31,980 is serving as production consultant and Sir John Whitmore, 793 00:34:32,080 --> 00:34:33,860 noted English sports car racer, 794 00:34:33,960 --> 00:34:35,700 is acting as technical advisor. 795 00:34:35,800 --> 00:34:38,300 Sturges and cinematographer John Wilcox 796 00:34:38,400 --> 00:34:41,260 will utilize four Panavision cameras to capture 797 00:34:41,360 --> 00:34:42,460 the exciting action. 798 00:34:42,560 --> 00:34:44,260 - [Geoff] I'd been working with 799 00:34:44,360 --> 00:34:47,220 the Director of Photography John Wilcox 800 00:34:47,320 --> 00:34:50,380 for a number of years as his First Assistant Cameraman. 801 00:34:50,480 --> 00:34:54,060 John Sturges was a great name and it sounds a great film 802 00:34:54,160 --> 00:34:56,420 and Steve McQueen and motor racing. 803 00:34:56,520 --> 00:34:57,740 Yes, why not? 804 00:34:57,840 --> 00:35:01,900 - [Simon] We all expected that a motor racing film directed 805 00:35:02,000 --> 00:35:04,980 by Sturges and starring Steve McQueen was going 806 00:35:05,080 --> 00:35:06,140 to be wonderful. 807 00:35:06,240 --> 00:35:09,540 We didn't really have very much view about Frankenheimer 808 00:35:09,640 --> 00:35:12,020 and "Grand Prix" and James Garner. 809 00:35:12,120 --> 00:35:14,700 - The McQueen movie looked like the serious one, 810 00:35:14,800 --> 00:35:15,620 if you like. 811 00:35:15,720 --> 00:35:18,020 - [Narrator] So the warring films were literally off 812 00:35:18,120 --> 00:35:19,900 to the races as both Warner 813 00:35:20,000 --> 00:35:25,060 and MGM sent recce crews to the 1965 Monaco Grand Prix. 814 00:35:25,160 --> 00:35:28,380 The first race in that year's Formula 1 World Championship. 815 00:35:28,480 --> 00:35:30,620 (racing car revving) 816 00:35:30,720 --> 00:35:34,620 - So '65 Monaco was an interesting race altogether 817 00:35:34,720 --> 00:35:36,220 because well for a number of reasons. 818 00:35:36,320 --> 00:35:37,420 One, Jim Clark wasn't there 819 00:35:37,520 --> 00:35:40,220 'cause he was away winning the Indy 500. 820 00:35:40,320 --> 00:35:43,620 Two, Graham Hill won the race having spun early on, 821 00:35:43,720 --> 00:35:45,500 climbed out of his car, 822 00:35:45,600 --> 00:35:47,260 got back into his car and then continued 823 00:35:47,360 --> 00:35:48,100 and went on to win the race. 824 00:35:48,200 --> 00:35:51,740 And three, you had the crews from MGM 825 00:35:51,840 --> 00:35:55,900 and Warner Bros there in Monaco in this tiny principality, 826 00:35:56,000 --> 00:35:59,460 both receiving for the movies they we're gonna make. 827 00:35:59,560 --> 00:36:02,060 And you can only imagine what that would have been like, 828 00:36:02,160 --> 00:36:03,660 in terms of a vying for position, 829 00:36:03,760 --> 00:36:06,060 there aren't many great positions at Monaco 830 00:36:06,160 --> 00:36:08,060 because the marshals had to be standing somewhere 831 00:36:08,160 --> 00:36:10,300 and there isn't a lot of space anyway. 832 00:36:10,400 --> 00:36:13,100 There definitely would have been some serious discussions 833 00:36:13,200 --> 00:36:14,660 between the two groups. 834 00:36:14,760 --> 00:36:16,260 You can imagine, I guess, 835 00:36:16,360 --> 00:36:20,180 the impact it would have made to have had Jim Clark winning 836 00:36:20,280 --> 00:36:24,500 the Indy 500 the same weekend and for the movie crews 837 00:36:24,600 --> 00:36:26,140 at Monaco this was like "Wow! 838 00:36:26,240 --> 00:36:28,060 What a world this is." 839 00:36:28,160 --> 00:36:31,400 (upbeat trumpet music) 840 00:36:34,880 --> 00:36:37,960 (racing car revving) 841 00:36:42,240 --> 00:36:45,380 ♪ I said can't explain it ♪ 842 00:36:45,480 --> 00:36:49,100 ♪ Yeah, down in my soul ♪ 843 00:36:49,200 --> 00:36:52,660 ♪ I feel hot and cold ♪ 844 00:36:52,760 --> 00:36:55,060 ♪ I said can't explain it ♪ 845 00:36:55,160 --> 00:36:57,500 (congregation applauds) 846 00:36:57,600 --> 00:37:00,360 (dramatic music) 847 00:37:04,080 --> 00:37:06,060 - [Narrator] As well as the thrill of being in Monaco 848 00:37:06,160 --> 00:37:08,780 and hanging around with his new racing driver chums, 849 00:37:08,880 --> 00:37:10,180 McQueen, along with Sturges, 850 00:37:10,280 --> 00:37:13,500 Bob Relyea and their racing consultant Stirling Moss, 851 00:37:13,600 --> 00:37:14,980 had used the trip to pay a visit 852 00:37:15,080 --> 00:37:17,440 to an unassuming garage in Woking, Surrey. 853 00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:20,340 The Alan Mann Racing Company not 854 00:37:20,440 --> 00:37:22,740 only modified and raced Ford road cars 855 00:37:22,840 --> 00:37:25,060 in the British Touring Car Championship 856 00:37:25,160 --> 00:37:27,140 but they had also developed a handy sideline 857 00:37:27,240 --> 00:37:29,540 in adapting cars for the Silver Screen. 858 00:37:29,640 --> 00:37:33,420 Bond's DB5 Aston Martin and "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" being 859 00:37:33,520 --> 00:37:34,620 the most iconic. 860 00:37:34,720 --> 00:37:37,180 So, it was no surprise when they were instructed 861 00:37:37,280 --> 00:37:41,980 to acquire and develop cars to use in "Day of the Champion". 862 00:37:42,080 --> 00:37:44,140 - My father's background in motor racing 863 00:37:44,240 --> 00:37:45,940 was really it was all tied up with Ford 864 00:37:46,040 --> 00:37:47,020 from the very beginning. 865 00:37:47,120 --> 00:37:49,780 He met Steve McQueen through John Whitmore who I think 866 00:37:49,880 --> 00:37:52,420 was a friend of Steve's early on in the '60s 867 00:37:52,520 --> 00:37:55,260 and they'd shared Mini driving together 868 00:37:55,360 --> 00:37:58,660 and been motorcycle racing in California 869 00:37:58,760 --> 00:38:02,740 and all part of that group of friends I think 870 00:38:02,840 --> 00:38:03,940 that they met each other 871 00:38:04,040 --> 00:38:06,020 and Steve was obviously a big fan of racing 872 00:38:06,120 --> 00:38:08,060 and so they had a bit in common. 873 00:38:08,160 --> 00:38:11,260 He was asked to prepare the cars for the film 874 00:38:11,360 --> 00:38:16,140 and manage the racing scenes of he film and also build one 875 00:38:16,240 --> 00:38:20,460 of the camera cars, which was a modified Lola T70. 876 00:38:20,560 --> 00:38:22,820 The cars had been prepared to a certain extent 877 00:38:22,920 --> 00:38:26,460 and they came to review some of the pictures 878 00:38:26,560 --> 00:38:28,700 that they needed to shoot and the angles 879 00:38:28,800 --> 00:38:32,100 and how they were practically going to make the film. 880 00:38:32,200 --> 00:38:35,300 And presumably make some requests about engineering 881 00:38:35,400 --> 00:38:37,460 on the cars to allow them to do so. 882 00:38:37,560 --> 00:38:41,460 My dad said McQueen was quite absorbed 883 00:38:41,560 --> 00:38:45,900 by all the racing detail and the car preparation, 884 00:38:46,000 --> 00:38:48,780 and all the mechanics of the operation 885 00:38:48,880 --> 00:38:50,060 and yeah was very friendly 886 00:38:50,160 --> 00:38:53,060 with all the team members and everything. 887 00:38:53,160 --> 00:38:57,300 But he also was obviously quite a colorful character 888 00:38:57,400 --> 00:39:02,300 and after hours was quite good company. 889 00:39:02,400 --> 00:39:04,380 But I think he was kicked out of The Dorchester Hotel 890 00:39:04,480 --> 00:39:08,020 when he decided in his suite to cook up some chili 891 00:39:08,120 --> 00:39:10,820 or beans or something and fell asleep, 892 00:39:10,920 --> 00:39:14,540 naked on the bed and it dried out and caught fire. 893 00:39:14,640 --> 00:39:17,060 Ran down the corridor to try and find a fire extinguisher 894 00:39:17,160 --> 00:39:18,820 and the next morning at breakfast, 895 00:39:18,920 --> 00:39:20,820 he saw all his bags in the lobby area, 896 00:39:20,920 --> 00:39:22,500 all having been packed up 897 00:39:22,600 --> 00:39:25,660 and asked Sturges where they were going that day 898 00:39:25,760 --> 00:39:27,020 and he said, "Well we're not going anywhere, 899 00:39:27,120 --> 00:39:30,060 I think that's just a polite way of kicking you out." 900 00:39:30,160 --> 00:39:33,160 (suspenseful music) 901 00:39:34,560 --> 00:39:38,180 ♪ It's so too beautiful ♪ 902 00:39:38,280 --> 00:39:41,980 ♪ It's so too beautiful ♪ 903 00:39:42,080 --> 00:39:42,820 ♪ It's so too beautiful ♪ 904 00:39:42,920 --> 00:39:44,900 - [Narrator] The claims of the Warner Bros memo were, 905 00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:46,660 so far, proving true. 906 00:39:46,760 --> 00:39:48,500 McQueen and "Day of the Champion" seemed 907 00:39:48,600 --> 00:39:50,340 to be several steps ahead of Frankenheimer 908 00:39:50,440 --> 00:39:53,620 and MGM in the battle to the silver screen 909 00:39:53,720 --> 00:39:55,500 and had everything in place to capture 910 00:39:55,600 --> 00:39:58,820 the 1965 German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring 911 00:39:58,920 --> 00:40:01,380 in true technicolor glory. 912 00:40:01,480 --> 00:40:05,000 What they captured that day has never been publicly seen. 913 00:40:07,600 --> 00:40:11,240 (helicopter engine revving) 914 00:40:12,400 --> 00:40:15,800 (congregations applauds) 915 00:40:17,200 --> 00:40:20,360 (slow dramatic music) 916 00:40:25,320 --> 00:40:28,440 (racing car revving) 917 00:40:49,320 --> 00:40:50,080 - [Peter] I mean the thing about 918 00:40:50,160 --> 00:40:52,620 this is we never saw any footage. 919 00:40:52,720 --> 00:40:53,620 We saw a little bit of black 920 00:40:53,720 --> 00:40:55,720 and white Movietone News perhaps. 921 00:40:57,080 --> 00:40:57,820 It was in color. 922 00:40:57,920 --> 00:40:59,920 It actually happened in color! 923 00:41:00,880 --> 00:41:03,960 (racing car revving) 924 00:41:09,680 --> 00:41:11,760 - It's amazing, very relaxed. 925 00:41:14,320 --> 00:41:16,180 Great footage though. 926 00:41:16,280 --> 00:41:19,040 (dramatic music) 927 00:41:20,360 --> 00:41:23,440 (racing car revving) 928 00:41:33,720 --> 00:41:37,900 - [Windsor] And there's Stirl in the camera car. 929 00:41:38,000 --> 00:41:41,020 - [Samuelson] You had a 400-foot roll of film, 930 00:41:41,120 --> 00:41:44,540 so you had about our minutes in each go 931 00:41:44,640 --> 00:41:46,780 and then you had to reload because this 932 00:41:46,880 --> 00:41:51,500 was obviously decades before there was digital, 933 00:41:51,600 --> 00:41:54,600 so we were on 35 millimeter Eastman Color. 934 00:41:55,880 --> 00:42:00,740 Samuelson Film Service was run by four brothers, 935 00:42:00,840 --> 00:42:03,300 three of whom were my uncles, 936 00:42:03,400 --> 00:42:08,400 and one was my dad and David was the technical partner 937 00:42:10,560 --> 00:42:12,740 and he was responsible for all manner 938 00:42:12,840 --> 00:42:15,300 of extraordinary bits of brand new, 939 00:42:15,400 --> 00:42:18,220 never-been-thought-of-before technology 940 00:42:18,320 --> 00:42:21,220 and a number of his things are still used. 941 00:42:21,320 --> 00:42:24,140 He built some of it for "Day of the Champion". 942 00:42:24,240 --> 00:42:26,900 (upbeat music) 943 00:42:27,000 --> 00:42:28,180 (racing car revving) 944 00:42:28,280 --> 00:42:29,980 - There is a racing car flat out 945 00:42:30,080 --> 00:42:32,220 and all you can see around it is green. 946 00:42:32,320 --> 00:42:34,320 Nothing else. 947 00:42:35,120 --> 00:42:37,120 - The Carousel. 948 00:42:38,240 --> 00:42:39,900 I mean it was a wonderful racetrack, 949 00:42:40,000 --> 00:42:42,560 it was a terrific racetrack, but crazy. 950 00:42:46,760 --> 00:42:51,420 You know, 14.7 miles, 187 corners per lap. 951 00:42:51,520 --> 00:42:53,220 - You know, it was a great race in so many ways. 952 00:42:53,320 --> 00:42:54,060 This is the race 953 00:42:54,160 --> 00:42:56,780 in which Jim Clark clinched the '65 World Championship. 954 00:42:56,880 --> 00:42:59,380 It's just amazing footage to have seen it 955 00:42:59,480 --> 00:43:01,420 after all this time. 956 00:43:01,520 --> 00:43:05,420 There's Jimmy after the race and the mechanics running, 957 00:43:05,520 --> 00:43:06,260 that's real film. 958 00:43:06,360 --> 00:43:09,740 It's just amazing. 959 00:43:09,840 --> 00:43:12,260 And what a trio on the podium. 960 00:43:12,360 --> 00:43:16,300 Jim Clark in the middle, Dan Guerney, Graham Hill, 961 00:43:16,400 --> 00:43:18,500 doesn't get much better than that in terms of 962 00:43:18,600 --> 00:43:19,580 the drivers you had to beat. 963 00:43:19,680 --> 00:43:21,820 And then for Jim Clark at that moment he's driving off 964 00:43:21,920 --> 00:43:24,780 in the Merc and he's just won his second World Championship, 965 00:43:24,880 --> 00:43:27,700 in the same year he's won the Indy 500. 966 00:43:27,800 --> 00:43:29,800 No driver will ever do that. 967 00:43:31,800 --> 00:43:36,540 - One of the guy's around us I knew, and he was a driver, 968 00:43:36,640 --> 00:43:39,140 he used to drive camera cars and he said, 969 00:43:39,240 --> 00:43:42,500 "Well, I brought some American guys up." 970 00:43:42,600 --> 00:43:43,340 "Oh, yeah? 971 00:43:43,440 --> 00:43:44,180 Where are they?" 972 00:43:44,280 --> 00:43:45,020 "In the Ferrari pit." 973 00:43:45,120 --> 00:43:47,120 I said, "Oh that's interesting." 974 00:43:47,600 --> 00:43:49,600 So, I said to John Sturges, 975 00:43:50,200 --> 00:43:53,980 "You've got some Americans in the Ferrari pit. 976 00:43:54,080 --> 00:43:56,180 It probably might be the director." 977 00:43:56,280 --> 00:43:59,900 And I remember Sturges being very, very upset about it. 978 00:44:00,000 --> 00:44:03,060 There was obviously a bit of animosity going on 979 00:44:03,160 --> 00:44:05,160 between the two. 980 00:44:06,040 --> 00:44:08,980 - [Samuelson] We very explicitly used Panavision, 981 00:44:09,080 --> 00:44:10,940 not just any old Panavision, 982 00:44:11,040 --> 00:44:15,460 but we shot it in a 2.35 ratio meaning the screen, 983 00:44:15,560 --> 00:44:20,380 the shape of the frame is 2.35 times as wide as it is tall. 984 00:44:20,480 --> 00:44:22,780 It's called Panavision Anamorphic 985 00:44:22,880 --> 00:44:25,700 and that gives you the shape you want 986 00:44:25,800 --> 00:44:27,780 for a motor racing film 987 00:44:27,880 --> 00:44:30,780 because you are certainly wider than 988 00:44:30,880 --> 00:44:35,880 a regular 1.85 television kind of shape of frame. 989 00:44:37,160 --> 00:44:37,920 - It's interesting to remember 990 00:44:38,000 --> 00:44:39,620 that they then stayed at the Nurburgring 991 00:44:39,720 --> 00:44:42,740 and filmed the week after that race, 992 00:44:42,840 --> 00:44:45,300 ostensibly to test the camera mounts they were gonna put 993 00:44:45,400 --> 00:44:47,580 on the cars and that's where Alan Mann came 994 00:44:47,680 --> 00:44:50,740 in as obviously camera mounts were gonna be 995 00:44:50,840 --> 00:44:53,100 part of his brief. 996 00:44:53,200 --> 00:44:58,200 And this has to be seen against the '62 accident 997 00:44:58,680 --> 00:44:59,500 at the Nurburgring. 998 00:44:59,600 --> 00:45:02,580 In practice, Graham Hill had a camera on the BRM 999 00:45:02,680 --> 00:45:06,140 and it came off and he had a big shunt, very big shunt. 1000 00:45:06,240 --> 00:45:09,180 Very lucky to get away with his life in that accident. 1001 00:45:09,280 --> 00:45:10,020 So here we are, 1002 00:45:10,120 --> 00:45:13,500 long before on board cameras even became a phrase, 1003 00:45:13,600 --> 00:45:16,540 we have Warner Bros with Alan Mann, 1004 00:45:16,640 --> 00:45:20,980 with John Whitmore and Stirling Moss hiring the Nurburgring, 1005 00:45:21,080 --> 00:45:23,220 the 14-mile circuit. 1006 00:45:23,320 --> 00:45:25,740 Some of the footage we see is an indication of 1007 00:45:25,840 --> 00:45:28,360 how good that was and how good it would have been. 1008 00:45:29,560 --> 00:45:31,500 - [Robert] When you start to deal with cameras 1009 00:45:31,600 --> 00:45:34,940 on cars at very high speed, 1010 00:45:35,040 --> 00:45:36,900 you have a number of built-in problems. 1011 00:45:37,000 --> 00:45:38,780 If the track is wet, 1012 00:45:38,880 --> 00:45:40,820 there is water flying around the lenses. 1013 00:45:40,920 --> 00:45:43,860 There has to be design the cameras so they become 1014 00:45:43,960 --> 00:45:45,540 as aerodynamic as the car is 1015 00:45:45,640 --> 00:45:47,640 to avoid getting water all over them. 1016 00:45:48,560 --> 00:45:53,060 It requires mounts that do not disturb the aerodynamics 1017 00:45:53,160 --> 00:45:55,980 of the car too much and can be balanced in 1018 00:45:56,080 --> 00:45:57,180 some other way so the car can 1019 00:45:57,280 --> 00:45:59,860 still handle at competitive speeds. 1020 00:45:59,960 --> 00:46:02,540 This requires some trial and error, 1021 00:46:02,640 --> 00:46:04,900 it requires the drivers to take the cars out and see 1022 00:46:05,000 --> 00:46:06,540 when camera's in certain position, 1023 00:46:06,640 --> 00:46:09,740 how the car stills handles so they can adjust accordingly. 1024 00:46:09,840 --> 00:46:12,300 It requires the cars that are around them to sense 1025 00:46:12,400 --> 00:46:14,400 what problems that driver has 1026 00:46:15,040 --> 00:46:17,380 and about 10 or 12 of our drivers 1027 00:46:17,480 --> 00:46:19,260 have been in this same situation, 1028 00:46:19,360 --> 00:46:22,220 including Steve, to deal with a car 1029 00:46:22,320 --> 00:46:26,180 that has a new set up aerodynamically because of camera 1030 00:46:26,280 --> 00:46:28,980 or cameras placed on it. 1031 00:46:29,080 --> 00:46:33,660 - [Samuelson] So we had to build mounts that were able 1032 00:46:33,760 --> 00:46:35,860 to cope with that, not fall off. 1033 00:46:35,960 --> 00:46:38,940 So not only did the mount have to not fall off, 1034 00:46:39,040 --> 00:46:42,900 but the consequences of it falling off would have been dire 1035 00:46:43,000 --> 00:46:48,000 for whoever was in the car behind and got a 40-pound piece 1036 00:46:48,880 --> 00:46:51,460 of filming equipment into their head. 1037 00:46:51,560 --> 00:46:52,540 That wouldn't have been good. 1038 00:46:52,640 --> 00:46:55,700 So it was all done very very carefully. 1039 00:46:55,800 --> 00:46:56,900 - [John] You have to have the skill 1040 00:46:57,000 --> 00:47:00,220 to create something people think is real. 1041 00:47:00,320 --> 00:47:01,900 Now we were in a good area to do that. 1042 00:47:02,000 --> 00:47:04,940 Steve is a race driver and he looks like a race driver 1043 00:47:05,040 --> 00:47:07,380 and he understands race drivers, he knows them all. 1044 00:47:07,480 --> 00:47:09,260 He can drive a car. 1045 00:47:09,360 --> 00:47:11,660 We had the real cars, we had the real circuit. 1046 00:47:11,760 --> 00:47:14,100 So that part was alright. 1047 00:47:14,200 --> 00:47:17,660 - [Geoff] MGM claimed they had the shooting rights 1048 00:47:17,760 --> 00:47:19,540 with all the "Grand Prix" circuits. 1049 00:47:19,640 --> 00:47:21,540 The Nurburgring was under question 1050 00:47:21,640 --> 00:47:23,860 because Warner Bros claim they had it 1051 00:47:23,960 --> 00:47:25,260 and there was going to be a court case 1052 00:47:25,360 --> 00:47:28,160 and they'd be looking for evidence to sue each other. 1053 00:47:29,160 --> 00:47:31,340 I was also told that there 1054 00:47:31,440 --> 00:47:34,900 was a 16 millimeter crew filming us filming. 1055 00:47:35,000 --> 00:47:37,900 We never saw anybody, it may have been true, 1056 00:47:38,000 --> 00:47:40,900 it may not have been true, but we also slipped into 1057 00:47:41,000 --> 00:47:44,300 some film cans with the dummy labels and put sand 1058 00:47:44,400 --> 00:47:46,300 in them. 1059 00:47:46,400 --> 00:47:48,380 If somebody's going to steal our rushes, 1060 00:47:48,480 --> 00:47:50,060 they might steal the wrong rushes 1061 00:47:50,160 --> 00:47:52,440 and they'd find they'd got a can full of sand. 1062 00:47:54,000 --> 00:47:55,820 - Stirling always remembered that day 1063 00:47:55,920 --> 00:47:57,460 and made the point of saying 1064 00:47:57,560 --> 00:48:01,020 that when he drove at the Nurburgring, 1065 00:48:01,120 --> 00:48:04,260 doing some filming for "Day of the Champion", 1066 00:48:04,360 --> 00:48:06,940 he just said, "That day boy I just felt like I had 1067 00:48:07,040 --> 00:48:09,140 when I won there in '61." 1068 00:48:09,240 --> 00:48:11,500 (car racing revving) 1069 00:48:11,600 --> 00:48:12,980 - [Narrator] "Day of the Champion" was off 1070 00:48:13,080 --> 00:48:14,460 to a flying start. 1071 00:48:14,560 --> 00:48:16,820 This truly breathtaking footage 1072 00:48:16,920 --> 00:48:18,940 was just what McQueen and Sturges had hoped for 1073 00:48:19,040 --> 00:48:20,420 and put them substantially ahead 1074 00:48:20,520 --> 00:48:22,740 of Frankenheimer and MGM. 1075 00:48:22,840 --> 00:48:24,740 Warner Bros even cheekily released 1076 00:48:24,840 --> 00:48:27,500 this poster to further rub salt into the wounds, 1077 00:48:27,600 --> 00:48:29,140 knowing full well that Frankenheimer 1078 00:48:29,240 --> 00:48:30,220 and Garner would not be up 1079 00:48:30,320 --> 00:48:31,940 and running with principal photography 1080 00:48:32,040 --> 00:48:35,820 for another nine months at the start of the '66 F1 season. 1081 00:48:35,920 --> 00:48:38,460 - And I think it's also interesting to think about 1082 00:48:38,560 --> 00:48:41,860 why Jim Clark and Jackie Stewart originally signed 1083 00:48:41,960 --> 00:48:44,940 with Steve McQueen and not with Frankenheimer 1084 00:48:45,040 --> 00:48:45,740 and "Grand Prix". 1085 00:48:45,840 --> 00:48:49,220 In my opinion it's because it was Steve McQueen driving 1086 00:48:49,320 --> 00:48:51,340 this movie and he was a racer, 1087 00:48:51,440 --> 00:48:53,100 as well as he was an actor and a star. 1088 00:48:53,200 --> 00:48:58,140 Whereas "Grand Prix" was driven by a movie director 1089 00:48:58,240 --> 00:49:01,300 like Frankenheimer, and in the minds of Jimmy and Jackie, 1090 00:49:01,400 --> 00:49:03,660 probably more Jimmy than Jackie, 1091 00:49:03,760 --> 00:49:06,140 "Grand Prix" was going to be all about crashes 1092 00:49:06,240 --> 00:49:08,780 and spectacular this and lots of things 1093 00:49:08,880 --> 00:49:10,980 that weren't true to life. 1094 00:49:11,080 --> 00:49:14,860 Whereas Steve McQueen, with this closely knit group, 1095 00:49:14,960 --> 00:49:17,980 could produce a film that was gonna be more 1096 00:49:18,080 --> 00:49:22,660 about racing drivers and who racing drivers are 1097 00:49:22,760 --> 00:49:25,620 and the craft that they create. 1098 00:49:25,720 --> 00:49:29,780 - I think Jimmy and I thought 1099 00:49:29,880 --> 00:49:32,340 that everybody was going with Frankenheimer, 1100 00:49:32,440 --> 00:49:34,900 why don't we go with McQueen? 1101 00:49:35,000 --> 00:49:37,000 And Steve McQueen, 1102 00:49:37,400 --> 00:49:41,420 in those days was bigger than Frankenheimer. 1103 00:49:41,520 --> 00:49:42,900 - Well, who wants to get married? 1104 00:49:43,000 --> 00:49:45,100 - And I think that was one of the things. 1105 00:49:45,200 --> 00:49:47,720 And he was making great movies. 1106 00:49:49,120 --> 00:49:51,980 - [Man] Steve McQueen works by instinct, reflex, 1107 00:49:52,080 --> 00:49:54,260 unconsciously concealed know-how. 1108 00:49:54,360 --> 00:49:57,700 Above all is his reverence to authenticity. 1109 00:49:57,800 --> 00:50:00,940 - And Jimmy and I didn't talk an awful lot about it. 1110 00:50:01,040 --> 00:50:02,940 We just decided it was a good idea. 1111 00:50:03,040 --> 00:50:07,580 Everybody else was going to "Grand Prix" 1112 00:50:07,680 --> 00:50:10,060 and we decided to go with Steve. 1113 00:50:10,160 --> 00:50:13,420 - [Narrator] In a memo from September 1965 John Sturges, 1114 00:50:13,520 --> 00:50:15,420 states that principal filming with McQueen 1115 00:50:15,520 --> 00:50:17,220 will start the following spring 1116 00:50:17,320 --> 00:50:19,900 after he has finished directing "Ice Station Zebra", 1117 00:50:20,000 --> 00:50:24,140 ironically for MGM, and McQueen has completed his next film, 1118 00:50:24,240 --> 00:50:25,740 "The Sand Pebbles". 1119 00:50:25,840 --> 00:50:27,620 - He took on "The Sand Pebbles" knowing 1120 00:50:27,720 --> 00:50:29,980 that the book had been a hit. 1121 00:50:30,080 --> 00:50:34,140 The book was about the Chinese Civil War in the 1920s. 1122 00:50:34,240 --> 00:50:36,700 - [Richard] He of course respected Robert Wise greatly, 1123 00:50:36,800 --> 00:50:38,740 who'd directed "West Side Story", 1124 00:50:38,840 --> 00:50:40,100 "The Sound of Music", 1125 00:50:40,200 --> 00:50:42,760 so I think he saw a lot of potential in that movie. 1126 00:50:43,760 --> 00:50:46,180 - [Narrator] Back in Europe, John Frankenheimer, 1127 00:50:46,280 --> 00:50:48,380 realizing he would have a big task on his hands 1128 00:50:48,480 --> 00:50:51,220 to get his racing epic released ahead of Warner's, 1129 00:50:51,320 --> 00:50:55,140 had stayed with the traveling F1 circus throughout 1965. 1130 00:50:55,240 --> 00:50:56,860 Embedding himself in the lifestyle 1131 00:50:56,960 --> 00:50:59,860 and the culture of "The Cruel Sport". 1132 00:50:59,960 --> 00:51:00,700 - In the meantime, 1133 00:51:00,800 --> 00:51:04,700 I had been going to all the races and they all knew me 1134 00:51:04,800 --> 00:51:06,660 as somebody who was going to make a movie. 1135 00:51:06,760 --> 00:51:08,180 And they knew nothing about movies, 1136 00:51:08,280 --> 00:51:10,260 I mean they knew nothing about the movies I'd ever made, 1137 00:51:10,360 --> 00:51:13,180 I don't think they'd ever seen most of them. 1138 00:51:13,280 --> 00:51:15,940 Those cameras, turn them on as soon as you get up 1139 00:51:16,040 --> 00:51:17,300 to speed here. 1140 00:51:17,400 --> 00:51:19,460 But they did know that I was really very very interested 1141 00:51:19,560 --> 00:51:23,460 in cars and they did know that I raced on an amateur basis, 1142 00:51:23,560 --> 00:51:27,420 so at least I knew something about what they did. 1143 00:51:27,520 --> 00:51:28,260 Come on! 1144 00:51:28,360 --> 00:51:29,300 Get somebody to push here! 1145 00:51:29,400 --> 00:51:30,540 Push! 1146 00:51:30,640 --> 00:51:33,260 And I became friendly with some of them, 1147 00:51:33,360 --> 00:51:37,260 like Graham Hill and Phil Hill and Richie Ginther. 1148 00:51:37,360 --> 00:51:38,140 Everyone was very, 1149 00:51:38,240 --> 00:51:41,420 very sceptical of another film being made about racing. 1150 00:51:41,520 --> 00:51:42,620 In fact to the point where Ferrari said 1151 00:51:42,720 --> 00:51:44,720 they didn't want anything to do with it. 1152 00:51:46,680 --> 00:51:49,660 He just said "You go make your movie, 1153 00:51:49,760 --> 00:51:51,540 it has nothing to do with what we do 1154 00:51:51,640 --> 00:51:54,700 and you can't use the word Ferrari in this picture 1155 00:51:54,800 --> 00:51:57,780 or have any of my cars or anything like that." 1156 00:51:57,880 --> 00:51:59,140 - [Announcer] They get you like- 1157 00:51:59,240 --> 00:52:01,460 - Oh my God get out! 1158 00:52:01,560 --> 00:52:04,340 Oh Jesus look, give his guy hell this driver. 1159 00:52:04,440 --> 00:52:05,300 He's coming out. 1160 00:52:05,400 --> 00:52:06,500 Get out of here! 1161 00:52:06,600 --> 00:52:07,940 Come on get out! 1162 00:52:08,040 --> 00:52:10,660 So, we were lucky enough, not lucky enough, 1163 00:52:10,760 --> 00:52:14,180 if you'll forgive me, smart enough to go to Carrol Shelby 1164 00:52:14,280 --> 00:52:16,660 who had great credentials. 1165 00:52:16,760 --> 00:52:19,420 And Carrol Shelby kind of embraced us 1166 00:52:19,520 --> 00:52:23,740 and he kind of opened up a lot of doors, 1167 00:52:23,840 --> 00:52:27,580 including arranging to have the replicas 1168 00:52:27,680 --> 00:52:29,500 of all the cars made. 1169 00:52:29,600 --> 00:52:32,660 And he took charge of that. 1170 00:52:32,760 --> 00:52:33,860 And through Carrol Shelby, 1171 00:52:33,960 --> 00:52:36,660 I got to Dan Gurney who was a great friend 1172 00:52:36,760 --> 00:52:39,980 of Shelby's and also to Phil Hill. 1173 00:52:40,080 --> 00:52:42,080 Yeah, but this doesn't work. 1174 00:52:42,560 --> 00:52:45,380 And I signed these guys up. 1175 00:52:45,480 --> 00:52:47,820 And I actually I paid them money, 1176 00:52:47,920 --> 00:52:49,780 which also helped, 1177 00:52:49,880 --> 00:52:50,820 convince them that maybe 1178 00:52:50,920 --> 00:52:52,220 this was a good idea! 1179 00:52:52,320 --> 00:52:57,420 And for 2 years exclusivity to movies, to me. 1180 00:52:57,520 --> 00:53:01,300 (congregation chatting) 1181 00:53:01,400 --> 00:53:03,060 Cut! 1182 00:53:03,160 --> 00:53:06,680 Cut! 1183 00:53:07,680 --> 00:53:09,680 Get everybody in here again. 1184 00:53:10,200 --> 00:53:11,140 - For John Frankenheimer, 1185 00:53:11,240 --> 00:53:14,460 Phil Hill was manor from heaven because he still was very, 1186 00:53:14,560 --> 00:53:16,300 very quick but he was kind of available, 1187 00:53:16,400 --> 00:53:18,340 and he was American, and he was intelligent, 1188 00:53:18,440 --> 00:53:20,260 and he loved photography. 1189 00:53:20,360 --> 00:53:24,300 This was the perfect man to drive that side 1190 00:53:24,400 --> 00:53:25,780 of things for "Grand Prix". 1191 00:53:25,880 --> 00:53:28,020 - [Alan] I've just seen the most terrible skid there. 1192 00:53:28,120 --> 00:53:29,380 What happened to Yves Montand? 1193 00:53:29,480 --> 00:53:31,860 - Well, that's what he was supposed to do! 1194 00:53:31,960 --> 00:53:33,380 - [Alan] He wasn't supposed to go all over the pavement? 1195 00:53:33,480 --> 00:53:34,300 - Oh yeah! 1196 00:53:34,400 --> 00:53:36,020 Up all over the kerb and swing around backwards! 1197 00:53:36,120 --> 00:53:37,900 Wasn't that a beautiful job though? 1198 00:53:38,000 --> 00:53:39,020 He's like a stunt driver! 1199 00:53:39,120 --> 00:53:40,780 - Are you serious? - Ha! 1200 00:53:40,880 --> 00:53:42,660 No. (laughs) 1201 00:53:42,760 --> 00:53:44,860 - Well, he was a wonderful guy. 1202 00:53:44,960 --> 00:53:49,180 He was a great driver, but also the most delightful guy, 1203 00:53:49,280 --> 00:53:50,100 the most delightful bloke. 1204 00:53:50,200 --> 00:53:52,460 Very, very dry sense of humor, 1205 00:53:52,560 --> 00:53:55,260 one of the funniest people I've ever met. 1206 00:53:55,360 --> 00:53:59,100 And also, probably as intelligent as anybody 1207 00:53:59,200 --> 00:54:00,620 who ever drove a racing car. 1208 00:54:00,720 --> 00:54:03,860 He must have been enormously helpful to Frankenheimer. 1209 00:54:03,960 --> 00:54:05,580 Just because he was such a bright man. 1210 00:54:05,680 --> 00:54:07,580 Daley had written extensively, of course, 1211 00:54:07,680 --> 00:54:08,620 about Phil Hill because he 1212 00:54:08,720 --> 00:54:11,180 was America's first World Champion. 1213 00:54:11,280 --> 00:54:12,900 - [Narrator] With Frankenheimer buying friends up 1214 00:54:13,000 --> 00:54:14,620 and down the grid, he was now starting 1215 00:54:14,720 --> 00:54:17,100 to close the gap to "Day of the Champion". 1216 00:54:17,200 --> 00:54:18,940 Garner and the other stars were learning 1217 00:54:19,040 --> 00:54:21,860 what Grand Prix racing was all about, 1218 00:54:21,960 --> 00:54:24,860 but McQueen was still in Taiwan and "The Sand Pebbles" 1219 00:54:24,960 --> 00:54:27,500 was starting to spiral out of control. 1220 00:54:27,600 --> 00:54:30,200 (upbeat music) 1221 00:54:37,600 --> 00:54:39,980 - The plan was to go and shoot "The Sand Pebbles" 1222 00:54:40,080 --> 00:54:42,580 and ideally they'd be back to shoot "Day of the Champion" 1223 00:54:42,680 --> 00:54:46,180 in '66 at the end of "The Sand Pebbles". 1224 00:54:46,280 --> 00:54:48,980 - The shoot in some ways is as memorable 1225 00:54:49,080 --> 00:54:51,740 as the film because it was supposed to be a nine-week shoot 1226 00:54:51,840 --> 00:54:54,420 and it ended up taking something like seven months. 1227 00:54:54,520 --> 00:54:55,860 - [Richard] The conditions over there 1228 00:54:55,960 --> 00:54:58,380 in Taiwan were horrendous. 1229 00:54:58,480 --> 00:55:01,340 Everyone got ill, Steve included. 1230 00:55:01,440 --> 00:55:04,140 (upbeat music) 1231 00:55:04,240 --> 00:55:05,260 - [Craig] We knew that the first team 1232 00:55:05,360 --> 00:55:06,820 to get their picture shot, 1233 00:55:06,920 --> 00:55:10,180 edited, scored and into theaters before the other guy 1234 00:55:10,280 --> 00:55:11,580 would be the winner. 1235 00:55:11,680 --> 00:55:12,460 Neither side wanted 1236 00:55:12,560 --> 00:55:15,220 to be the second racing picture out that year. 1237 00:55:15,320 --> 00:55:18,380 (racing car revving) 1238 00:55:18,480 --> 00:55:20,660 - [Narrator] Sturges and his crew could still continue 1239 00:55:20,760 --> 00:55:22,620 to capture stunning race footage 1240 00:55:22,720 --> 00:55:25,940 while they waited for McQueen to return from the Far East. 1241 00:55:26,040 --> 00:55:29,820 They regrouped and in late April '66 headed to Oulton Park 1242 00:55:29,920 --> 00:55:33,540 in Cheshire to shoot a round of the British GT Championship, 1243 00:55:33,640 --> 00:55:36,100 which would double for a sports car race described 1244 00:55:36,200 --> 00:55:38,920 in the loose "Day of the Champion" script. 1245 00:55:39,960 --> 00:55:41,220 - There was The Steering Wheel Club 1246 00:55:41,320 --> 00:55:44,060 in the south of Park Lane 1247 00:55:44,160 --> 00:55:46,620 where all the motor racing enthusiasts used to go. 1248 00:55:46,720 --> 00:55:48,300 And Stirling had started 1249 00:55:48,400 --> 00:55:50,340 The Stirling Moss Automobile Racing Team 1250 00:55:50,440 --> 00:55:53,380 and so I drove his Elan which was his car 1251 00:55:53,480 --> 00:55:56,380 and then I entered my own cars under his name. 1252 00:55:56,480 --> 00:55:59,620 (racing car revving) 1253 00:55:59,720 --> 00:56:03,900 There was agreement that this car should be repainted 1254 00:56:04,000 --> 00:56:08,580 in the colors that Steve McQueen planned to have 1255 00:56:08,680 --> 00:56:13,180 in his film, so it was repainted to a green 1256 00:56:13,280 --> 00:56:16,220 and I drove the car in this race and was filmed. 1257 00:56:16,320 --> 00:56:19,620 Well, we had the name "PEARCE" on the car 1258 00:56:19,720 --> 00:56:22,260 because that was the name that Steve McQueen 1259 00:56:22,360 --> 00:56:23,620 was being given in the film. 1260 00:56:23,720 --> 00:56:26,420 - Of course, what you have to remember is that in the '50s 1261 00:56:26,520 --> 00:56:29,940 and '60s, a top driver wouldn't just drive Formula 1 1262 00:56:30,040 --> 00:56:32,580 as happens today, they would drive sports cars, 1263 00:56:32,680 --> 00:56:34,260 he would do the Le Mans 24 hours, 1264 00:56:34,360 --> 00:56:36,660 he would probably race in touring cars as well 1265 00:56:36,760 --> 00:56:39,060 and that's why it was completely appropriate 1266 00:56:39,160 --> 00:56:43,940 that McQueen's character in the film drives single-seaters, 1267 00:56:44,040 --> 00:56:45,780 but also drives sports cars. 1268 00:56:45,880 --> 00:56:47,880 That's how it was in those days. 1269 00:56:49,280 --> 00:56:51,340 - Bloody hell was I in the front row? 1270 00:56:51,440 --> 00:56:53,580 Six, well, I just fucked up the start. 1271 00:56:53,680 --> 00:56:56,760 (racing car revving) 1272 00:56:59,120 --> 00:57:02,060 Part of the deal was that I should wear a helmet 1273 00:57:02,160 --> 00:57:04,500 which was approved by Steve McQueen 1274 00:57:04,600 --> 00:57:08,620 and then the production team sent me the photograph 1275 00:57:08,720 --> 00:57:10,500 with the words which said; 1276 00:57:10,600 --> 00:57:13,500 "If this is what Dunlop overalls achieve, 1277 00:57:13,600 --> 00:57:16,060 then I think we'll go with Firestone." 1278 00:57:16,160 --> 00:57:19,600 So, I was in fact Steve McQueen's double. 1279 00:57:21,760 --> 00:57:23,340 - [Narrator] The pieces of the puzzle were falling 1280 00:57:23,440 --> 00:57:25,460 into place for "Day of the Champion". 1281 00:57:25,560 --> 00:57:28,340 But with the start of the 1966 Formula 1 season 1282 00:57:28,440 --> 00:57:31,540 in Monaco just a month away they needed their Hollywood icon 1283 00:57:31,640 --> 00:57:34,100 back from Taiwan and ready to race. 1284 00:57:34,200 --> 00:57:36,700 Frankenheimer and MGM were about to descend 1285 00:57:36,800 --> 00:57:40,540 on the principality to get their movie underway with a bang! 1286 00:57:40,640 --> 00:57:43,560 (racing car bangs) 1287 00:57:46,440 --> 00:57:49,740 (trumpet music) 1288 00:57:49,840 --> 00:57:51,780 Late May 1966. 1289 00:57:51,880 --> 00:57:53,660 Steve McQueen is in Taiwan, 1290 00:57:53,760 --> 00:57:55,740 behind schedule on "The Sand Pebbles" 1291 00:57:55,840 --> 00:57:56,980 and desperate to get back 1292 00:57:57,080 --> 00:58:00,300 to Europe to star in his dream Formula 1 movie project 1293 00:58:00,400 --> 00:58:02,260 "Day of the Champion". 1294 00:58:02,360 --> 00:58:06,100 In Monaco, MGM and John Frankenheimer are underway 1295 00:58:06,200 --> 00:58:08,340 with their rival picture, "Grand Prix". 1296 00:58:08,440 --> 00:58:10,620 Nine months behind "Day of the Champion" 1297 00:58:10,720 --> 00:58:14,260 but now shooting real race scenes, with real actors, 1298 00:58:14,360 --> 00:58:15,460 in real race cars. 1299 00:58:15,560 --> 00:58:18,720 (racing cars revving) 1300 00:58:22,480 --> 00:58:23,980 - [Announcer] These are the Cinerama cameras 1301 00:58:24,080 --> 00:58:25,780 of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1302 00:58:25,880 --> 00:58:28,260 about to attempt one of the most challenging feats 1303 00:58:28,360 --> 00:58:31,860 in motion picture history with these exciting, 1304 00:58:31,960 --> 00:58:34,660 international stars from America, 1305 00:58:34,760 --> 00:58:37,860 James Garner; the celebrated French star, 1306 00:58:37,960 --> 00:58:40,940 Yves Montand; Italy's sensational young talent, 1307 00:58:41,040 --> 00:58:44,740 Antonio Sabato; and England's Brian Bedford. 1308 00:58:44,840 --> 00:58:47,060 For Frankenheimer, for any film maker, 1309 00:58:47,160 --> 00:58:49,160 this is a monumental challenge. 1310 00:58:50,600 --> 00:58:52,540 Less than an hour before the actual race, 1311 00:58:52,640 --> 00:58:54,860 he is staging his own start. 1312 00:58:54,960 --> 00:58:56,280 - [Frankenheimer] Well, what we hope to be able to do is 1313 00:58:56,360 --> 00:58:57,160 to show them what a real race 1314 00:58:57,240 --> 00:58:59,320 is really like from the driver's viewpoint 1315 00:59:00,680 --> 00:59:03,940 - [Announcer] The crowds are real, so is the excitement. 1316 00:59:04,040 --> 00:59:07,060 And for Frankenheimer, the suspense is very real. 1317 00:59:07,160 --> 00:59:10,140 This is not a studio; these are not stuntmen. 1318 00:59:10,240 --> 00:59:11,020 In just seconds, 1319 00:59:11,120 --> 00:59:13,220 Phil Hill in the camera car will lead Garner, 1320 00:59:13,320 --> 00:59:15,780 Montand and the others around the Monaco circuit 1321 00:59:15,880 --> 00:59:19,340 at actual speeds of over 125 miles an hour. 1322 00:59:19,440 --> 00:59:21,060 (racing car engine revs) 1323 00:59:21,160 --> 00:59:22,540 - [Frankenheimer] In Monte Carlo, 1324 00:59:22,640 --> 00:59:26,460 they began to see we knew what we were doing. 1325 00:59:26,560 --> 00:59:28,700 We were very well organized, 1326 00:59:28,800 --> 00:59:32,540 we went out there and we were doing real stuff. 1327 00:59:32,640 --> 00:59:35,020 And that began to get their attention. 1328 00:59:35,120 --> 00:59:36,900 (racing cars engines revs) 1329 00:59:37,000 --> 00:59:39,760 (crowd chatting) 1330 00:59:41,160 --> 00:59:44,020 - [Windsor] 1966 Monaco, I mean you can't 1331 00:59:44,120 --> 00:59:45,020 even get your head around it 1332 00:59:45,120 --> 00:59:48,300 in terms of today's standards of operation. 1333 00:59:48,400 --> 00:59:49,900 Princess Grace was just the beginning of it. 1334 00:59:50,000 --> 00:59:51,340 She was there obviously. 1335 00:59:51,440 --> 00:59:53,740 It was Jackie Stewart's second Grand Prix win but 1336 00:59:53,840 --> 00:59:54,980 while all this was going on, 1337 00:59:55,080 --> 00:59:56,380 Frankenheimer in his mind 1338 00:59:56,480 --> 00:59:58,740 was creating another Monaco Grand Prix, 1339 00:59:58,840 --> 01:00:01,180 which was the "Grand Prix", "Grand Prix". 1340 01:00:01,280 --> 01:00:03,860 And to think about that happening today 1341 01:00:03,960 --> 01:00:06,100 and to have the camera cars there in the way they did, 1342 01:00:06,200 --> 01:00:08,780 and the changing liveries of the cars 1343 01:00:08,880 --> 01:00:10,060 and of the driver's helmet. 1344 01:00:10,160 --> 01:00:12,260 - You know, one of the few people who wasn't involved 1345 01:00:12,360 --> 01:00:14,940 in either movie was John Surtees. 1346 01:00:15,040 --> 01:00:18,580 He got absolutely fed up to the teeth with it, 1347 01:00:18,680 --> 01:00:20,820 he had it up to here. 1348 01:00:20,920 --> 01:00:24,020 "Bloody film people I wish they'd push off!" 1349 01:00:24,120 --> 01:00:25,420 But of course typical John, 1350 01:00:25,520 --> 01:00:30,220 he just said, "But well, you know, there's always a way 1351 01:00:30,320 --> 01:00:34,020 around these things and the Hollywood people stuff 1352 01:00:34,120 --> 01:00:36,480 their mouths with money and stop them talking." 1353 01:00:37,360 --> 01:00:38,420 - It didn't worry me at all. 1354 01:00:38,520 --> 01:00:43,540 It didn't, Francoise Hardy occasionally would upset me. 1355 01:00:43,640 --> 01:00:46,940 She was a very pretty looking girl walking down the pits. 1356 01:00:47,040 --> 01:00:48,380 It really didn't matter. 1357 01:00:48,480 --> 01:00:51,700 I can't say at any time was it an intrusion 1358 01:00:51,800 --> 01:00:56,780 into my preparation for a race or in the race at all. 1359 01:00:56,880 --> 01:00:58,540 It didn't bother me at all. 1360 01:00:58,640 --> 01:01:01,820 - But, generally, the chaos would have been incredible 1361 01:01:01,920 --> 01:01:04,860 and whilst Jackie was accepting 1362 01:01:04,960 --> 01:01:06,460 the trophy from Princess Grace, 1363 01:01:06,560 --> 01:01:08,060 just a little bit further down the road, 1364 01:01:08,160 --> 01:01:11,340 there was Sarti, Yves Montand, 1365 01:01:11,440 --> 01:01:14,840 accepting the trophy for the "Grand Prix" Grand Prix. 1366 01:01:16,960 --> 01:01:19,380 - [Alan] Their own winner will need a victor's cup 1367 01:01:19,480 --> 01:01:21,420 but they plan to use the excitement at the end of 1368 01:01:21,520 --> 01:01:24,500 the race to slip a cuckoo into the nest to film the man 1369 01:01:24,600 --> 01:01:26,420 who won the celluloid race, 1370 01:01:26,520 --> 01:01:29,920 wearing an open wreath and looking modest, as well he might. 1371 01:01:31,440 --> 01:01:34,220 The actual winner today is Jackie Stewart. 1372 01:01:34,320 --> 01:01:35,460 As his car comes home, 1373 01:01:35,560 --> 01:01:38,780 Yves Montand, face glistening with instant sweat, 1374 01:01:38,880 --> 01:01:41,000 prepares for his moment of hollow victory. 1375 01:01:42,040 --> 01:01:45,540 - I was not aware of it, I was perfectly naive. 1376 01:01:45,640 --> 01:01:46,860 (laughs) 1377 01:01:46,960 --> 01:01:49,540 And you know, when you win a Grand Prix, 1378 01:01:49,640 --> 01:01:50,780 in Monaco in those days, 1379 01:01:50,880 --> 01:01:52,380 the Grand Prix was 100 laps. 1380 01:01:52,480 --> 01:01:57,480 Something like 8,600 gear changes, all by hand, 1381 01:01:57,840 --> 01:02:00,700 and you were fairly tired when it was finished. 1382 01:02:00,800 --> 01:02:03,820 (crowd applauds) 1383 01:02:03,920 --> 01:02:07,140 - When you're in a car, particularly a Formula car, 1384 01:02:07,240 --> 01:02:10,860 but any car, you cannot think of anything else. 1385 01:02:10,960 --> 01:02:12,620 I mean if you don't think of going 1386 01:02:12,720 --> 01:02:13,980 from one point to another, 1387 01:02:14,080 --> 01:02:18,460 from your braking point to your gearing down 1388 01:02:18,560 --> 01:02:23,060 to make your turn into a corner, if you stray from that, 1389 01:02:23,160 --> 01:02:25,100 and you worry about where that camera 1390 01:02:25,200 --> 01:02:28,280 is or anything like that, then you're off the course. 1391 01:02:29,760 --> 01:02:32,460 So, we strictly do not worry about it, 1392 01:02:32,560 --> 01:02:34,860 we'll do our acting in the pits. 1393 01:02:34,960 --> 01:02:35,720 - [Narrator] Another member of the 1394 01:02:35,800 --> 01:02:39,060 "Day of the Champion" team was also in Monaco that weekend. 1395 01:02:39,160 --> 01:02:41,180 Stirling Moss was keeping a close eye 1396 01:02:41,280 --> 01:02:44,100 on Frankenheimer's team and sent a telegram back 1397 01:02:44,200 --> 01:02:47,020 to the Alan Mann garage after seeing how the cars 1398 01:02:47,120 --> 01:02:49,700 on "Grand Prix" were slowing down the filming. 1399 01:02:49,800 --> 01:02:52,420 - [Announcer] "Dear Alan, Having just returned 1400 01:02:52,520 --> 01:02:55,420 from Monte Carlo and seeing how the other lot are operating, 1401 01:02:55,520 --> 01:02:57,420 I feel we need to make some adjustments 1402 01:02:57,520 --> 01:02:59,860 to our cars so we don't have to stop and start 1403 01:02:59,960 --> 01:03:02,100 with such regularity. 1404 01:03:02,200 --> 01:03:05,180 Please can you start to adjust the compression rates, 1405 01:03:05,280 --> 01:03:09,300 dampers and engine idle before we get to Germany. 1406 01:03:09,400 --> 01:03:12,180 Kind regards, Stirling Moss." 1407 01:03:12,280 --> 01:03:13,460 - [Narrator] Panic was also setting 1408 01:03:13,560 --> 01:03:15,540 in amongst the Warners' management. 1409 01:03:15,640 --> 01:03:17,420 Panic about McQueen's physical condition 1410 01:03:17,520 --> 01:03:19,420 but also about the unrealistic schedule 1411 01:03:19,520 --> 01:03:20,820 of 'Day of the Champion', 1412 01:03:20,920 --> 01:03:23,740 given their A-list star was still in Taiwan, 1413 01:03:23,840 --> 01:03:26,740 where 'The Sand Pebbles' was seriously over-running. 1414 01:03:26,840 --> 01:03:28,340 By June 1966, 1415 01:03:28,440 --> 01:03:31,260 John Sturges was already in London to work on pre-production 1416 01:03:31,360 --> 01:03:33,740 for the remaining 'Day of the Champion' shoots, 1417 01:03:33,840 --> 01:03:36,860 when he received an extraordinary telegram. 1418 01:03:36,960 --> 01:03:39,420 - [Announcer] "Dear John, It is needless to tell you 1419 01:03:39,520 --> 01:03:42,140 that I am very worried because of the possibility 1420 01:03:42,240 --> 01:03:44,340 of "Grand Prix" coming out in Cinerama 1421 01:03:44,440 --> 01:03:46,700 or any other format ahead of our picture. 1422 01:03:46,800 --> 01:03:49,380 I would not put it by these boys to release their picture 1423 01:03:49,480 --> 01:03:51,700 on 35 millimeter at the same time 1424 01:03:51,800 --> 01:03:53,800 that it's released in Cinerama. 1425 01:03:54,200 --> 01:03:56,660 Isn't there some way you can start your pre-production 1426 01:03:56,760 --> 01:03:59,740 sooner and also have McQueen get over to England sooner, 1427 01:03:59,840 --> 01:04:01,780 or something of this order? 1428 01:04:01,880 --> 01:04:04,700 I would hate like hell to be given the bird and huge laugh 1429 01:04:04,800 --> 01:04:06,800 by all concerned with GRAND PRIX. 1430 01:04:07,760 --> 01:04:09,580 I don't want to say I would not have gone into this 1431 01:04:09,680 --> 01:04:12,300 if I had known of the unfortunate delay that has been caused 1432 01:04:12,400 --> 01:04:14,260 by "The Sand Pebbles". 1433 01:04:14,360 --> 01:04:15,860 What about phoning Bob Wise to see 1434 01:04:15,960 --> 01:04:18,580 if he can release McQueen earlier? 1435 01:04:18,680 --> 01:04:21,820 Again, in closing, see if you can't beat GRAND PRIX 1436 01:04:21,920 --> 01:04:23,380 after you leave the starting gate. 1437 01:04:23,480 --> 01:04:25,480 Jack Warner." 1438 01:04:28,280 --> 01:04:30,560 (chuckles) 1439 01:04:34,480 --> 01:04:37,080 (racing bangs) 1440 01:04:41,000 --> 01:04:44,180 - (chuckles) just blown out. 1441 01:04:44,280 --> 01:04:45,020 - That's your job. 1442 01:04:45,120 --> 01:04:47,180 No wait a minute, that's your job to make it really look 1443 01:04:47,280 --> 01:04:49,280 like, where's Beady Eyes? 1444 01:04:50,000 --> 01:04:51,980 - [Narrator] With production moving at a frantic pace 1445 01:04:52,080 --> 01:04:53,580 for "Grand Prix" in Monaco, 1446 01:04:53,680 --> 01:04:55,580 an unscripted halt is brought to proceedings 1447 01:04:55,680 --> 01:04:57,220 when local shop keepers protest 1448 01:04:57,320 --> 01:04:59,440 about street closures harming their trade. 1449 01:05:00,920 --> 01:05:04,020 Tempers flare, proving that even Hollywood's 1450 01:05:04,120 --> 01:05:07,940 most consummate leading men can still lose their cool. 1451 01:05:08,040 --> 01:05:09,500 - I am freezing my ass off, 1452 01:05:09,600 --> 01:05:12,340 now get your butt out of here or I'm gonna throw you 1453 01:05:12,440 --> 01:05:14,440 in the fucking water! 1454 01:05:15,400 --> 01:05:16,380 Just get out or I'm gonna bust you, 1455 01:05:16,480 --> 01:05:17,300 I'm gonna put in there 1456 01:05:17,400 --> 01:05:19,400 and I'm gonna hold you under now get out! 1457 01:05:21,080 --> 01:05:22,140 What is your problem? 1458 01:05:22,240 --> 01:05:24,940 I am freezing to death out here for a half hour 1459 01:05:25,040 --> 01:05:26,020 while you talk! 1460 01:05:26,120 --> 01:05:28,260 If you want to talk, I'll talk to you later. 1461 01:05:28,360 --> 01:05:30,360 How much money do you want? 1462 01:05:30,920 --> 01:05:32,220 - I speak English, Mr Garner. 1463 01:05:32,320 --> 01:05:33,900 - Well then you get the hell out of that shot 1464 01:05:34,000 --> 01:05:35,020 or I'm gonna put you out! 1465 01:05:35,120 --> 01:05:36,100 - [French Male] Yes sir. 1466 01:05:36,200 --> 01:05:38,780 - [James] I tell you! 1467 01:05:38,880 --> 01:05:42,040 You better count to 60 and get your ass out of here! 1468 01:05:45,840 --> 01:05:48,760 (racing car bangs) 1469 01:05:49,920 --> 01:05:51,900 - After Monte Carlo was over, 1470 01:05:52,000 --> 01:05:56,260 I put together a quick 30 minutes of stuff I shot 1471 01:05:56,360 --> 01:05:58,020 at Monte Carlo, 1472 01:05:58,120 --> 01:06:02,820 called Ferrari and asked him if he would look at it. 1473 01:06:02,920 --> 01:06:05,340 He said 'well I don't have any projection equipment, 1474 01:06:05,440 --> 01:06:06,460 I don't have anything like that. 1475 01:06:06,560 --> 01:06:09,140 I said, "Just tell me you'll look at it." 1476 01:06:09,240 --> 01:06:10,540 So he said "Yes I will." 1477 01:06:10,640 --> 01:06:14,040 So I shut the movie down, chartered a plane, 1478 01:06:15,120 --> 01:06:16,980 brought the film, a projectionist, 1479 01:06:17,080 --> 01:06:20,300 projectors and everything else to Maranello, 1480 01:06:20,400 --> 01:06:24,480 to his office, set it up and ran him the 30 minutes. 1481 01:06:25,400 --> 01:06:27,140 When it was over the lights came up, 1482 01:06:27,240 --> 01:06:32,300 he embraced me, he said, "You can have anything." 1483 01:06:32,400 --> 01:06:35,220 And he said, "I don't even want to talk to you about money 1484 01:06:35,320 --> 01:06:36,460 because I don't want any money from you, 1485 01:06:36,560 --> 01:06:38,220 because when Ferrari gives you something, 1486 01:06:38,320 --> 01:06:39,340 he gives it to you." 1487 01:06:39,440 --> 01:06:40,900 So he never charged us a penny. 1488 01:06:41,000 --> 01:06:44,580 He gave us the Ferrari team, he gave us the factory, 1489 01:06:44,680 --> 01:06:45,700 he gave us everything! 1490 01:06:45,800 --> 01:06:47,780 Well, of course, once we got that kind of acceptance 1491 01:06:47,880 --> 01:06:50,620 from Ferrari, I mean that was that. 1492 01:06:50,720 --> 01:06:51,940 - "We were less than a week away 1493 01:06:52,040 --> 01:06:54,260 from filming principal photography in Germany 1494 01:06:54,360 --> 01:06:56,500 in July of 1966 and Steve McQueen 1495 01:06:56,600 --> 01:06:58,940 was still busy filming "The Sand Pebbles". 1496 01:06:59,040 --> 01:07:00,100 At midnight one evening, 1497 01:07:00,200 --> 01:07:02,500 Jack Warner called my office at Pinewood Studios. 1498 01:07:02,600 --> 01:07:03,740 "How are ya, Bob?" 1499 01:07:03,840 --> 01:07:06,180 "Well, I'm cramming to get everything in order 1500 01:07:06,280 --> 01:07:08,540 before I leave for Germany, how are you, Jack?" 1501 01:07:08,640 --> 01:07:09,820 "I'm great, great thanks. 1502 01:07:09,920 --> 01:07:12,700 Right Bob, listen, about that racing picture: 1503 01:07:12,800 --> 01:07:14,140 close it down." 1504 01:07:14,240 --> 01:07:15,580 "Excuse me?" 1505 01:07:15,680 --> 01:07:18,940 "Listen," Bob said, "Bob Wise won't release McQueen." 1506 01:07:19,040 --> 01:07:21,980 That means "Grand Prix" will be first to the theaters, 1507 01:07:22,080 --> 01:07:25,380 and am not gonna to be second so shut it down." 1508 01:07:25,480 --> 01:07:28,540 "But, we've already got loads of footage, 1509 01:07:28,640 --> 01:07:31,020 I've got an entire crew in Germany ready to go, 1510 01:07:31,120 --> 01:07:33,060 you've already committed a ton of money. 1511 01:07:33,160 --> 01:07:34,500 Bob, listen to me. 1512 01:07:34,600 --> 01:07:38,760 Send everybody home and shut it down now, it's over." 1513 01:07:41,320 --> 01:07:45,180 - McQueen went mad on the set of "The Sand Pebbles". 1514 01:07:45,280 --> 01:07:48,500 Sturges tried to get him to leave as soon as possible, 1515 01:07:48,600 --> 01:07:50,220 but Robert Wise wouldn't let McQueen go. 1516 01:07:50,320 --> 01:07:51,020 He needed him. 1517 01:07:51,120 --> 01:07:51,920 His wife said to him at the time 1518 01:07:52,000 --> 01:07:55,180 "You can't get that angry because you turned down 1519 01:07:55,280 --> 01:07:58,780 this role," but that didn't really stop him. 1520 01:07:58,880 --> 01:08:01,220 He was determined to make the definitive film 1521 01:08:01,320 --> 01:08:05,980 about Formula 1, about motor racing and yeah, 1522 01:08:06,080 --> 01:08:07,860 he'd been beaten to the punch. 1523 01:08:07,960 --> 01:08:08,660 - I think the trucks were 1524 01:08:08,760 --> 01:08:11,860 in Dover already about to depart for the Rheims Grand Prix 1525 01:08:11,960 --> 01:08:14,740 when a telegram came in from Warner Bros 1526 01:08:14,840 --> 01:08:19,060 to say stop all transport and the whole thing's canceled 1527 01:08:19,160 --> 01:08:21,160 and go back to base. 1528 01:08:22,400 --> 01:08:23,140 - [Craig] The next morning, 1529 01:08:23,240 --> 01:08:24,980 I called Sturges to give him the news. 1530 01:08:25,080 --> 01:08:27,540 He was completely void of any emotion. 1531 01:08:27,640 --> 01:08:29,780 "Well that's that", he said. 1532 01:08:29,880 --> 01:08:32,980 I said, "Sorry John, we would've made a great film, 1533 01:08:33,080 --> 01:08:34,500 I'm sure of it. 1534 01:08:34,600 --> 01:08:37,140 Well, I think I'll take a few weeks vacation," John mused. 1535 01:08:37,240 --> 01:08:39,620 "Maybe I'll go to Europe." 1536 01:08:39,720 --> 01:08:42,100 - Before departing for the continent, Sturges, 1537 01:08:42,200 --> 01:08:43,340 ever the gentleman, 1538 01:08:43,440 --> 01:08:46,300 sent a telegram to Alan Mann conveying his deep regret 1539 01:08:46,400 --> 01:08:49,020 over the collapse of "Day of the Champion." 1540 01:08:49,120 --> 01:08:52,380 - [Announcer] "Dear Alan, As all of us are depressed 1541 01:08:52,480 --> 01:08:55,300 and unhappy over the collapse of the project. 1542 01:08:55,400 --> 01:08:57,620 I think we would have achieved some marvellous results 1543 01:08:57,720 --> 01:08:58,900 and it's a shame to miss the fun 1544 01:08:59,000 --> 01:09:01,080 and excitement we'd have had getting them. 1545 01:09:02,000 --> 01:09:04,540 You must know I'm very grateful for the enthusiasm 1546 01:09:04,640 --> 01:09:05,820 and efficient help you gave us 1547 01:09:05,920 --> 01:09:08,420 and I'm truly sorry for any disruption 1548 01:09:08,520 --> 01:09:10,520 there has been to your plans. 1549 01:09:11,720 --> 01:09:14,140 I look forward to when we meet again and once more, 1550 01:09:14,240 --> 01:09:16,100 my thanks for Le Mans. 1551 01:09:16,200 --> 01:09:18,820 With all the best, John." 1552 01:09:18,920 --> 01:09:20,700 - He had quite a good relationship with Sturges 1553 01:09:20,800 --> 01:09:23,740 and they were obviously both disappointed 1554 01:09:23,840 --> 01:09:28,860 that it didn't come to any fruition but they obviously had 1555 01:09:28,960 --> 01:09:30,620 some mutual respect for each other. 1556 01:09:30,720 --> 01:09:33,420 - I had a letter from Brookwood Productions, 1557 01:09:33,520 --> 01:09:35,620 Pinewood Studios, 'Regret, 1558 01:09:35,720 --> 01:09:38,900 here's a cheque for two weeks money. 1559 01:09:39,000 --> 01:09:43,020 Steve McQueen is ill and he cannot make this shoot. 1560 01:09:43,120 --> 01:09:45,820 - [Narrator] With Frankenheimer seemingly victorious, 1561 01:09:45,920 --> 01:09:47,460 his Cinerama circus moved 1562 01:09:47,560 --> 01:09:49,540 onto other locations around Europe. 1563 01:09:49,640 --> 01:09:52,860 Filming in Clermont Ferrand, Spa-Francorchamps, 1564 01:09:52,960 --> 01:09:55,060 Brands Hatch and Monza. 1565 01:09:55,160 --> 01:09:57,420 Not content with the drivers he had already signed 1566 01:09:57,520 --> 01:09:58,780 to exclusive deals, 1567 01:09:58,880 --> 01:10:01,900 he also wanted the two remaining big F1 stars 1568 01:10:02,000 --> 01:10:03,580 who had signed to Warner. 1569 01:10:03,680 --> 01:10:07,420 - My understanding is that the insurance company, 1570 01:10:07,520 --> 01:10:09,180 that was what we were told, 1571 01:10:09,280 --> 01:10:12,260 that the insurance company wouldn't allow Steve 1572 01:10:12,360 --> 01:10:17,020 to do a full-blown motor racing series 1573 01:10:17,120 --> 01:10:20,500 that we was directly involved in. 1574 01:10:20,600 --> 01:10:24,260 So, when that fell through, 1575 01:10:24,360 --> 01:10:28,660 Frankenheimer already had the program going and in fact, 1576 01:10:28,760 --> 01:10:30,860 I don't know how long after we were told 1577 01:10:30,960 --> 01:10:32,960 that the movie wasn't going to happen, 1578 01:10:34,120 --> 01:10:36,940 Frankenheimer offered me another amount 1579 01:10:37,040 --> 01:10:40,020 of money to do some stuff with him 1580 01:10:40,120 --> 01:10:43,620 because one of the featured drivers in his movie 1581 01:10:43,720 --> 01:10:46,460 was wearing my helmet colors. 1582 01:10:46,560 --> 01:10:48,980 And so I got paid twice really! 1583 01:10:49,080 --> 01:10:50,580 And so did Jimmy. 1584 01:10:50,680 --> 01:10:51,380 (laughs) 1585 01:10:51,480 --> 01:10:56,660 - We got these guys to drive for us at $200 dollars a day. 1586 01:10:56,760 --> 01:11:00,940 So you put it in today's dollars that's $2000 dollars a day. 1587 01:11:01,040 --> 01:11:04,660 The picture in 1966 all-in 1588 01:11:04,760 --> 01:11:07,180 with accelerated post-production cost about nine 1589 01:11:07,280 --> 01:11:08,340 and a half million. 1590 01:11:08,440 --> 01:11:10,820 - Put that in the context of today's Formula 1 and imagine 1591 01:11:10,920 --> 01:11:13,180 what it would be like having a Hollywood crew 1592 01:11:13,280 --> 01:11:15,460 in the pit lane at a proper Formula 1 race, 1593 01:11:15,560 --> 01:11:17,100 it would never happen in a million years. 1594 01:11:17,200 --> 01:11:20,100 But Frankenheimer was able to do that and to his credit, 1595 01:11:20,200 --> 01:11:22,660 and I think to the credit of the actors involved, 1596 01:11:22,760 --> 01:11:24,180 it all worked. 1597 01:11:24,280 --> 01:11:27,340 Probably it was the Francoise Hardy accept of it all! 1598 01:11:27,440 --> 01:11:29,660 The drivers found her very friendly to the eye, 1599 01:11:29,760 --> 01:11:33,260 I think, but no in general I think they did a very good job 1600 01:11:33,360 --> 01:11:35,220 of understanding what it was all about 1601 01:11:35,320 --> 01:11:36,980 and they became part of the fabric 1602 01:11:37,080 --> 01:11:40,060 of Formula 1 throughout that '66 season. 1603 01:11:40,160 --> 01:11:42,260 - "Making a picture is a strange thing 1604 01:11:42,360 --> 01:11:44,420 because everybody hates you when you are making it. 1605 01:11:44,520 --> 01:11:47,780 It's when the picture comes out that they say, "Oh boy, 1606 01:11:47,880 --> 01:11:49,820 you know, it's really pretty good." 1607 01:11:49,920 --> 01:11:52,620 Or visa versa, everybody loves you when you are making it 1608 01:11:52,720 --> 01:11:54,900 and the picture comes out and you never work again you know. 1609 01:11:55,000 --> 01:11:56,980 It can work that way too!" 1610 01:11:57,080 --> 01:12:00,160 (racing car revving) 1611 01:12:04,080 --> 01:12:06,540 - [Narrator] August 1966 and Steve McQueen 1612 01:12:06,640 --> 01:12:08,820 is finally back in California after wrapping 1613 01:12:08,920 --> 01:12:10,660 on "The Sand Pebbles". 1614 01:12:10,760 --> 01:12:12,420 Six months behind schedule 1615 01:12:12,520 --> 01:12:16,260 and his dream Formula 1 movie project in tatters. 1616 01:12:16,360 --> 01:12:18,780 - Steve was exhausted after "The Sand Pebbles", 1617 01:12:18,880 --> 01:12:22,060 probably he did his best acting of his career possibly 1618 01:12:22,160 --> 01:12:25,980 with the exception of "Papillon" and he'd put so much 1619 01:12:26,080 --> 01:12:28,580 of himself and his energy into "The Sand Pebbles" 1620 01:12:28,680 --> 01:12:30,260 that he needed a rest. 1621 01:12:30,360 --> 01:12:31,140 There was no way he could go 1622 01:12:31,240 --> 01:12:33,900 and make "Day of the Champion" after that. 1623 01:12:34,000 --> 01:12:37,100 He and Bob Relyea, his great producer friend, 1624 01:12:37,200 --> 01:12:38,780 they felt they'd got their butts kicked 1625 01:12:38,880 --> 01:12:41,900 when "Day of the Champion" didn't get made. 1626 01:12:42,000 --> 01:12:44,740 - But by early '67, McQueen was back riding 1627 01:12:44,840 --> 01:12:46,100 the crest of a wave. 1628 01:12:46,200 --> 01:12:50,020 "The Sand Pebbles" was a critical and box office hit. 1629 01:12:50,120 --> 01:12:51,620 - The only thing that McQueen seemed 1630 01:12:51,720 --> 01:12:53,300 to really focus on when he got back 1631 01:12:53,400 --> 01:12:57,180 to America was the Oscars campaign for "The Sand Pebbles". 1632 01:12:57,280 --> 01:13:01,340 He was determined that he deserved a Best Actor nominee 1633 01:13:01,440 --> 01:13:03,100 and he did in fact get it. 1634 01:13:03,200 --> 01:13:06,500 A little bit of brokenness, I think, comes to that role, 1635 01:13:06,600 --> 01:13:07,700 aided and abetted by the fact 1636 01:13:07,800 --> 01:13:10,700 that he actually quite ill through a lot of the filming 1637 01:13:10,800 --> 01:13:14,380 so he does actually look kind of dissipated or off-kilter 1638 01:13:14,480 --> 01:13:17,900 in some of the scenes and that was a way to throw himself 1639 01:13:18,000 --> 01:13:19,180 into something which, 1640 01:13:19,280 --> 01:13:20,900 was not colored by the disappointment 1641 01:13:21,000 --> 01:13:23,980 of not being able to make this passion project. 1642 01:13:24,080 --> 01:13:25,420 - McQueen must have been gutted 1643 01:13:25,520 --> 01:13:27,740 to think that he got his first Oscar nomination 1644 01:13:27,840 --> 01:13:31,060 for a film that actually stopped him making the film he had 1645 01:13:31,160 --> 01:13:32,780 always dreamt of making. 1646 01:13:32,880 --> 01:13:34,820 - [Richard] "Sand Pebbles" and "Grand Prix" were released 1647 01:13:34,920 --> 01:13:37,380 the same week in December '66. 1648 01:13:37,480 --> 01:13:39,140 - [Christina] "Grand Prix" was a huge success. 1649 01:13:39,240 --> 01:13:41,940 It was up against "The Sand Pebbles" at the Oscars 1650 01:13:42,040 --> 01:13:46,380 in several categories and it won three Oscars 1651 01:13:46,480 --> 01:13:49,060 so that really added probably insult to injury, 1652 01:13:49,160 --> 01:13:50,300 in some ways, for McQueen. 1653 01:13:50,400 --> 01:13:52,900 - At that time, there was, 1654 01:13:53,000 --> 01:13:56,220 you could get little hand grenade-looking things made 1655 01:13:56,320 --> 01:13:59,700 of compressed paper with a small French banger inside. 1656 01:13:59,800 --> 01:14:02,660 James Garner's and Steve McQueen's houses were adjacent 1657 01:14:02,760 --> 01:14:04,260 to each other in Hollywood 1658 01:14:04,360 --> 01:14:07,860 and Steve's was a little uphill from Garner's and so he used 1659 01:14:07,960 --> 01:14:11,180 to throw his grenades down into the yard 1660 01:14:11,280 --> 01:14:14,140 of Garner's house and illicit a big police reaction 1661 01:14:14,240 --> 01:14:15,660 and everything and wait for all that 1662 01:14:15,760 --> 01:14:18,980 to dissipate and lob another one over 1663 01:14:19,080 --> 01:14:20,460 and generally wind him up. 1664 01:14:20,560 --> 01:14:22,860 - Finally his son, Chad, 1665 01:14:22,960 --> 01:14:25,160 made him go and take him to see "Grand Prix" 1666 01:14:26,600 --> 01:14:29,380 and from that time on we were talking again. 1667 01:14:29,480 --> 01:14:32,140 But Steve was a wild kid, he was a wild kid. 1668 01:14:32,240 --> 01:14:33,420 He didn't know where he wanted to be 1669 01:14:33,520 --> 01:14:35,140 or what he wanted to do. 1670 01:14:35,240 --> 01:14:38,340 - Tell him exactly where Garner's going to pass him. 1671 01:14:38,440 --> 01:14:39,300 Jimmy Garner! 1672 01:14:39,400 --> 01:14:40,100 Jimmy Garner! 1673 01:14:40,200 --> 01:14:41,860 Where is the exact place you pass him? 1674 01:14:41,960 --> 01:14:46,060 - Just before the overpass, he's gone that way. 1675 01:14:46,160 --> 01:14:49,640 Just before the overpass, alright we gotta go. 1676 01:14:51,400 --> 01:14:54,020 (chuckles) 1677 01:14:54,120 --> 01:14:55,380 Which side? 1678 01:14:55,480 --> 01:14:56,220 Which side? 1679 01:14:56,320 --> 01:14:58,320 - I pass him on the left! 1680 01:14:59,680 --> 01:15:00,380 - Okay! 1681 01:15:00,480 --> 01:15:02,940 Okay! 1682 01:15:03,040 --> 01:15:06,900 - When I first saw "Grand Prix", sitting at a cinema, 1683 01:15:07,000 --> 01:15:08,420 the impact was tremendous 1684 01:15:08,520 --> 01:15:10,860 because you were seeing Formula 1 cars racing 1685 01:15:10,960 --> 01:15:15,740 on a big screen, in color, close-ups on the drivers. 1686 01:15:15,840 --> 01:15:18,300 There was a whole depth there 1687 01:15:18,400 --> 01:15:20,180 which we never had on television. 1688 01:15:20,280 --> 01:15:24,100 Television coverage in the 1960s was extremely primitive 1689 01:15:24,200 --> 01:15:26,420 and for people who'd never been to a motor race, 1690 01:15:26,520 --> 01:15:29,300 which is where a lot of the audience would have come from, 1691 01:15:29,400 --> 01:15:30,940 they would have seen this on television, 1692 01:15:31,040 --> 01:15:35,460 but the impact of seeing it on a proper cinema screen. 1693 01:15:35,560 --> 01:15:36,980 Enormous. 1694 01:15:37,080 --> 01:15:38,020 - Frankenheimer did hire me 1695 01:15:38,120 --> 01:15:39,700 as a consultant when he was thinking 1696 01:15:39,800 --> 01:15:42,220 about doing a "Grand Prix 2". 1697 01:15:42,320 --> 01:15:44,620 I'm talking early '80s now. 1698 01:15:44,720 --> 01:15:46,380 But then of course like everybody at that time, 1699 01:15:46,480 --> 01:15:50,460 he was completely shocked at how much Formula 1 i.e. 1700 01:15:50,560 --> 01:15:53,180 Bernie Ecclestone wanted in order to have the same 1701 01:15:53,280 --> 01:15:55,340 sort of access that he'd back in '66 1702 01:15:55,440 --> 01:15:57,780 and at that point it became a non-starter, 1703 01:15:57,880 --> 01:16:00,180 like a lot of other movies that people have tried 1704 01:16:00,280 --> 01:16:01,660 to make about Formula 1. 1705 01:16:01,760 --> 01:16:02,520 - [Nigel] I will always be grateful 1706 01:16:02,600 --> 01:16:06,180 that "Grand Prix" exists because apart from anything else, 1707 01:16:06,280 --> 01:16:08,660 it amounts to such, in effect, 1708 01:16:08,760 --> 01:16:12,820 a record of how Formula 1 was in the '60s. 1709 01:16:12,920 --> 01:16:14,820 - [Narrator] During the second half of the 1960s, 1710 01:16:14,920 --> 01:16:18,300 Steve McQueen's Hollywood career went stratospheric. 1711 01:16:18,400 --> 01:16:20,620 The outsider had made it inside, 1712 01:16:20,720 --> 01:16:23,260 becoming the highest paid actor in the world. 1713 01:16:23,360 --> 01:16:25,100 His disappointment over the failure of 1714 01:16:25,200 --> 01:16:28,220 "Day of the Champion" only served to fuel his obsession 1715 01:16:28,320 --> 01:16:30,180 with cars in the movies. 1716 01:16:30,280 --> 01:16:34,020 In 1968, "Bullit"' was the result of his efforts. 1717 01:16:34,120 --> 01:16:36,420 Again, he insisted on doing the majority 1718 01:16:36,520 --> 01:16:38,060 of the stunt work involved 1719 01:16:38,160 --> 01:16:40,060 and this is widely considered 1720 01:16:40,160 --> 01:16:43,020 to be the greatest car chase of all time. 1721 01:16:43,120 --> 01:16:47,940 (brakes screeching) (racing car revving) 1722 01:16:48,040 --> 01:16:50,940 - Those mid '60s years were the hottest years 1723 01:16:51,040 --> 01:16:51,740 of his career. 1724 01:16:51,840 --> 01:16:54,540 He had five hits one after the other, 1725 01:16:54,640 --> 01:16:56,780 starting with "The Cincinnati Kid", 1726 01:16:56,880 --> 01:16:58,780 and "Nevada Smith", "The Sand Pebbles", 1727 01:16:58,880 --> 01:17:01,380 "The Thomas Crown Affair", and "Bullitt". 1728 01:17:01,480 --> 01:17:03,300 Now if we'd have seen "Day of the Champion" 1729 01:17:03,400 --> 01:17:04,340 in the middle of that, 1730 01:17:04,440 --> 01:17:06,700 we might never have seen "The Thomas Crown Affair" 1731 01:17:06,800 --> 01:17:07,700 and "Bullitt". 1732 01:17:07,800 --> 01:17:10,020 - [Narrator] But he was still obsessed with his dream 1733 01:17:10,120 --> 01:17:12,580 of a motor racing film and now had a great deal 1734 01:17:12,680 --> 01:17:16,260 of star power, the juice as he called it. 1735 01:17:16,360 --> 01:17:18,460 He did, of course, finally make that movie. 1736 01:17:18,560 --> 01:17:22,420 "Le Mans" was released in 1971. 1737 01:17:22,520 --> 01:17:23,260 - [James] With "Bullitt", 1738 01:17:23,360 --> 01:17:25,940 "Thomas Crown" being such massive hits, essentially, 1739 01:17:26,040 --> 01:17:27,780 he's allowed to do whatever he wants to do. 1740 01:17:27,880 --> 01:17:30,140 That's when "Le Mans" comes back into the mix 1741 01:17:30,240 --> 01:17:35,020 and he thinks I am gonna make the ultimate racing car movie. 1742 01:17:35,120 --> 01:17:37,220 - By the time he got to "Le Mans", 1743 01:17:37,320 --> 01:17:39,060 he was feeling so much pressure that 1744 01:17:39,160 --> 01:17:41,540 this film had to succeed 1745 01:17:41,640 --> 01:17:44,700 that it definitely affected his personal relationships, 1746 01:17:44,800 --> 01:17:47,900 with his wife, with his friend Robert Relyea, 1747 01:17:48,000 --> 01:17:52,700 with his director friend from over a decade, John Sturges. 1748 01:17:52,800 --> 01:17:56,540 I think he was dead set that this movie had to be a success. 1749 01:17:56,640 --> 01:17:59,260 - [John] I think, at least from my standpoint, 1750 01:17:59,360 --> 01:18:00,340 in an action film, 1751 01:18:00,440 --> 01:18:04,140 it gives you an opportunity to put people under pressure. 1752 01:18:04,240 --> 01:18:06,220 And when they're under pressure, they're emotions, 1753 01:18:06,320 --> 01:18:07,980 good or bad, come out. 1754 01:18:08,080 --> 01:18:10,420 What you're really looking for is emotion. 1755 01:18:10,520 --> 01:18:12,660 A fight is no more meaningful than 1756 01:18:12,760 --> 01:18:15,420 how much care somebody wins. 1757 01:18:15,520 --> 01:18:18,180 Two unknown people could beat each other to death, 1758 01:18:18,280 --> 01:18:21,220 balanced on a girder, 40 stories in the air, 1759 01:18:21,320 --> 01:18:23,820 you wouldn't care unless you were pulling for one 1760 01:18:23,920 --> 01:18:24,820 or the other. 1761 01:18:24,920 --> 01:18:26,140 - [Interviewer] I think the thing 1762 01:18:26,240 --> 01:18:27,300 that fascinated most people 1763 01:18:27,400 --> 01:18:29,900 about "Bullitt" was that sensational car chase 1764 01:18:30,000 --> 01:18:31,660 in San Francisco. 1765 01:18:31,760 --> 01:18:34,780 Are you going to try for anything like that in this film? 1766 01:18:34,880 --> 01:18:37,740 - [John] Well, we hope to do as well of course. 1767 01:18:37,840 --> 01:18:40,540 It won't be a chase in any sense 1768 01:18:40,640 --> 01:18:43,380 and they will be cars driven under control as they 1769 01:18:43,480 --> 01:18:44,460 are here in the circuit, 1770 01:18:44,560 --> 01:18:47,900 as opposed to a kind of flat-out stunt. 1771 01:18:48,000 --> 01:18:51,260 It's similar in that there are cars and there is speed, 1772 01:18:51,360 --> 01:18:53,260 but totally different otherwise. 1773 01:18:53,360 --> 01:18:56,220 (racing car revving) 1774 01:18:56,320 --> 01:18:58,860 - [Natasha] When something is a passion project, 1775 01:18:58,960 --> 01:19:01,500 logic goes out of the window. 1776 01:19:01,600 --> 01:19:04,020 For McQueen, it stopped being about creating 1777 01:19:04,120 --> 01:19:07,100 an amazing piece of cinema and it became 1778 01:19:07,200 --> 01:19:08,380 about fulfilling a dream 1779 01:19:08,480 --> 01:19:10,180 and those two are never going to marry, 1780 01:19:10,280 --> 01:19:13,220 even more so when Sturges left the project. 1781 01:19:13,320 --> 01:19:15,780 - [Samuelson] Steve, who's production company 1782 01:19:15,880 --> 01:19:17,880 was making the film, 1783 01:19:18,200 --> 01:19:21,140 really didn't know how you make a film, 1784 01:19:21,240 --> 01:19:25,380 how you string a script together, how you block a scene, 1785 01:19:25,480 --> 01:19:28,660 and I think it must have been awful for John Sturges. 1786 01:19:28,760 --> 01:19:33,220 Steve was very, very famous 1787 01:19:33,320 --> 01:19:37,500 and also I think in many ways, out of control. 1788 01:19:37,600 --> 01:19:39,460 - [Christina] I think "Le Mans" is a cult classic 1789 01:19:39,560 --> 01:19:41,140 because it, 1790 01:19:41,240 --> 01:19:45,700 yes, largely appeals to people that are really interested 1791 01:19:45,800 --> 01:19:48,460 and passionate about cars and racing, 1792 01:19:48,560 --> 01:19:50,540 but that film kind of speaks 1793 01:19:50,640 --> 01:19:52,980 to a particular style of filmmaking 1794 01:19:53,080 --> 01:19:56,180 which is unique to its moment 1795 01:19:56,280 --> 01:19:58,980 and had this kind of existentialism to it, 1796 01:19:59,080 --> 01:20:00,540 this kind of minimalism, 1797 01:20:00,640 --> 01:20:04,780 this story which was completely self-contained 1798 01:20:04,880 --> 01:20:09,880 which didn't need the various complications of traditional, 1799 01:20:10,440 --> 01:20:12,380 classical Hollywood cinema. 1800 01:20:12,480 --> 01:20:13,620 - I felt very strongly 1801 01:20:13,720 --> 01:20:17,960 that racing would be a great background to a story. 1802 01:20:19,240 --> 01:20:24,180 I believe that Steve felt racing would be a great film 1803 01:20:24,280 --> 01:20:26,280 with some story around it. 1804 01:20:26,880 --> 01:20:30,620 It may be oversimplifying but even if it is that simple, 1805 01:20:30,720 --> 01:20:32,100 that's a big difference. 1806 01:20:32,200 --> 01:20:34,620 - Well, I'll go with you that we concentrate on the race, 1807 01:20:34,720 --> 01:20:38,260 yes, whether anything else is kept to a minimum or not, 1808 01:20:38,360 --> 01:20:39,620 I don't know. 1809 01:20:39,720 --> 01:20:41,260 - [Samuelson] I don't think Steve really cared 1810 01:20:41,360 --> 01:20:45,100 about the story and the love interest and so forth. 1811 01:20:45,200 --> 01:20:48,480 He just wanted to film the definitive, 1812 01:20:49,720 --> 01:20:52,400 really documentary of cars going fast 1813 01:20:53,440 --> 01:20:57,460 and the fiction side of it was I think a bit shrug. 1814 01:20:57,560 --> 01:20:59,100 - I don't know if anybody's ever discovered 1815 01:20:59,200 --> 01:21:01,140 the beginnings of a plot. 1816 01:21:01,240 --> 01:21:02,340 (laughs) 1817 01:21:02,440 --> 01:21:04,860 I don't think I ever detected one! 1818 01:21:04,960 --> 01:21:06,580 (chuckles) 1819 01:21:06,680 --> 01:21:08,880 - [Robert] Steve has from the beginning, 1820 01:21:10,280 --> 01:21:15,380 pushed and insisted upon a reality approach to the picture. 1821 01:21:15,480 --> 01:21:18,180 The real cars that were really in the race, 1822 01:21:18,280 --> 01:21:19,820 driving at real speed. 1823 01:21:19,920 --> 01:21:23,340 Not trick photography, not rear projection, 1824 01:21:23,440 --> 01:21:25,380 not on a location that looks like "Le Mans" 1825 01:21:25,480 --> 01:21:26,220 for a certain time, 1826 01:21:26,320 --> 01:21:28,680 but racing conditions with the actual machinery. 1827 01:21:30,320 --> 01:21:32,260 - If you look at the script for "Day of the Champion", 1828 01:21:32,360 --> 01:21:36,700 it's actually quite similar to "Grand Prix" in certain ways. 1829 01:21:36,800 --> 01:21:38,940 Much more of a traditional narrative 1830 01:21:39,040 --> 01:21:40,420 than "Le Mans" ended up being. 1831 01:21:40,520 --> 01:21:41,300 And like "Grand Prix", 1832 01:21:41,400 --> 01:21:43,860 it follows several drivers over a whole season. 1833 01:21:43,960 --> 01:21:47,620 There are elements that were retained for "Le Man". 1834 01:21:47,720 --> 01:21:50,220 He's called Mike Pearce in the original script, 1835 01:21:50,320 --> 01:21:52,420 Mike Delaney, of course, in "Le Mans". 1836 01:21:52,520 --> 01:21:55,500 But there are still a couple of lines 1837 01:21:55,600 --> 01:21:56,780 in the "Day of the Champion" script 1838 01:21:56,880 --> 01:21:59,900 that end up in the finished version of "Le Mans". 1839 01:22:00,000 --> 01:22:02,020 - [Christina] McQueen says in "Le Mans" that... 1840 01:22:02,120 --> 01:22:04,660 - Racing's important to men who do it well. 1841 01:22:04,760 --> 01:22:06,760 Racing, it's life. 1842 01:22:08,240 --> 01:22:11,080 Anything that happens before or after, it's just waiting. 1843 01:22:12,200 --> 01:22:13,120 - [Christina] That's actually originally 1844 01:22:13,200 --> 01:22:14,860 from "Day of the Champion". 1845 01:22:14,960 --> 01:22:18,740 - [Martullo] Do you remember a man called Karl Wallenda, 1846 01:22:18,840 --> 01:22:21,840 the greatest of the high wire walkers? 1847 01:22:24,000 --> 01:22:29,100 After he fell and was broken, when he went back, he said, 1848 01:22:29,200 --> 01:22:31,400 "To be on the wire is life. 1849 01:22:32,480 --> 01:22:35,420 The rest is waiting". 1850 01:22:35,520 --> 01:22:37,580 This was a wise man, do you know that? 1851 01:22:37,680 --> 01:22:38,820 (hopeful music) 1852 01:22:38,920 --> 01:22:40,920 - [Mike] I hope so... 1853 01:22:41,280 --> 01:22:44,020 - [Martullo] Only those of us who have been on the wire, 1854 01:22:44,120 --> 01:22:47,100 who have held the wheel, only us. 1855 01:22:47,200 --> 01:22:49,860 No one else, the others, they cannot know 1856 01:22:49,960 --> 01:22:52,940 and it is foolish to try and tell them. 1857 01:22:53,040 --> 01:22:55,040 Never try and tell anybody. 1858 01:22:55,960 --> 01:22:58,580 They know or they can never know. 1859 01:22:58,680 --> 01:23:01,360 (hopeful music) 1860 01:23:06,520 --> 01:23:08,300 - [Narrator] "Day of the Champion" remains one 1861 01:23:08,400 --> 01:23:12,340 of Hollywood's great "What Ifs" Fragments of rushes 1862 01:23:12,440 --> 01:23:15,660 and an impoverished script are all that remain 1863 01:23:15,760 --> 01:23:19,180 of the dream project of one of the great movie stars 1864 01:23:19,280 --> 01:23:21,280 of the 20th century. 1865 01:23:22,400 --> 01:23:27,420 A contemporary F1 movie has not been achieved since 1966, 1866 01:23:27,520 --> 01:23:31,480 while the sport grew exponentially over the next 50 years. 1867 01:23:33,200 --> 01:23:34,420 After "Le Mans", 1868 01:23:34,520 --> 01:23:38,620 McQueen never did hit the highs of the 60s again. 1869 01:23:38,720 --> 01:23:40,500 He divorced and remarried. 1870 01:23:40,600 --> 01:23:43,180 Then, divorced and remarried. 1871 01:23:43,280 --> 01:23:45,420 His relationships with Sturges 1872 01:23:45,520 --> 01:23:49,320 and Relyea remained strained for the next decade. 1873 01:23:52,640 --> 01:23:54,300 - I think the best movie stars work 1874 01:23:54,400 --> 01:23:57,060 on variations on a theme, 1875 01:23:57,160 --> 01:23:59,300 in a way, or variations on a persona 1876 01:23:59,400 --> 01:24:00,220 that's always existed. 1877 01:24:00,320 --> 01:24:03,860 And so McQueen feels like Americana, 1878 01:24:03,960 --> 01:24:07,460 I think, to us now and, you know, 1879 01:24:07,560 --> 01:24:08,900 a slightly more old-fashioned, 1880 01:24:09,000 --> 01:24:11,820 traditionalism that I think people kind of yearn for. 1881 01:24:11,920 --> 01:24:14,580 - Steve McQueen, away from the camera, 1882 01:24:14,680 --> 01:24:17,800 was a very complex 1883 01:24:18,760 --> 01:24:22,220 person with lots of moods, 1884 01:24:22,320 --> 01:24:24,480 lots of swings of those moods, 1885 01:24:25,520 --> 01:24:28,820 one of the most loyal people I've ever known. 1886 01:24:28,920 --> 01:24:30,920 Very street smart. 1887 01:24:33,320 --> 01:24:36,080 (dramatic music) 1888 01:24:39,240 --> 01:24:42,260 (racing car revving) 1889 01:24:42,360 --> 01:24:47,360 ♪ I'm gonna raise a fuss, I'm gonna raise a holler ♪ 1890 01:24:48,320 --> 01:24:53,320 ♪ About a-workin' all summer just to try to earn a dollar ♪ 1891 01:24:54,680 --> 01:24:57,940 ♪ Every time I call my baby, try to get a date ♪ 1892 01:24:58,040 --> 01:25:01,420 ♪ My boss says, "no dice son, you gotta work late" ♪ 1893 01:25:01,520 --> 01:25:04,180 ♪ Sometimes I wonder what I'm a-gonna do ♪ 1894 01:25:04,280 --> 01:25:08,220 ♪ But there ain't no cure for the summertime blues ♪ 1895 01:25:08,320 --> 01:25:09,940 - But more important to Steve 1896 01:25:10,040 --> 01:25:13,220 than anything in the world would be to be remembered 1897 01:25:13,320 --> 01:25:15,740 as being a good human being, not a good actor, 1898 01:25:15,840 --> 01:25:18,700 and most of all was respected by his peers. 1899 01:25:18,800 --> 01:25:20,580 That the other race drivers, 1900 01:25:20,680 --> 01:25:22,220 whether they thought he was an actor or not, 1901 01:25:22,320 --> 01:25:25,340 thought he could cut it on an even field 1902 01:25:25,440 --> 01:25:29,300 and I think the idea of getting respect from other people, 1903 01:25:29,400 --> 01:25:31,780 which probably goes all the way back to Boys Republic, 1904 01:25:31,880 --> 01:25:34,980 was probably what he would want more than anything else. 1905 01:25:35,080 --> 01:25:36,080 ♪ Sometimes I wonder what I'm a-gonna do ♪ 1906 01:25:36,160 --> 01:25:40,220 ♪ But there ain't no cure for the summertime blues ♪ 1907 01:25:40,320 --> 01:25:45,100 (racing car revving) (dramatic music) 1908 01:25:45,200 --> 01:25:47,620 - You see the problem here, man, is you gotta be happy. 1909 01:25:47,720 --> 01:25:48,460 If you're not happy, 1910 01:25:48,560 --> 01:25:50,560 you might as well chuck the whole business. 1911 01:25:52,680 --> 01:25:55,100 (dramatic music) 1912 01:25:55,200 --> 01:25:57,880 (hopeful music)