114 replies to this topic

[jm70]

See that guy standing by the car in the background? That would be me. I was an Observer with Cal Club/SCCA at the time. Think that was the biggest Mayday call I ever had. Jim signed this photo for me about 5 years ago at Road America. When I explained it to him, he turned to book around and signed it up side down.

[claudius140]

See that guy standing by the car in the background? That would be me. I was an Observer with Cal Club/SCCA at the time. Think that was the biggest Mayday call I ever had. Jim signed this photo for me about 5 years ago at Road America. When I explained it to him, he turned to book around and signed it up side down.

@JM70

You must have heard a big 'bang' at the time (is that, maybe, why these cars are sometimes called 'big bangers'?).
Nice that Jim made the gesture of signing upside down (did he get back to earth that way?).

[ZOOOM]

Lothar Motschenbacher at the Glen in 1972
Lothar in his McLaren Mk 8D.


Photo - Dave Friedman
copyright Dave Friedman- 2009

COOOOL!... The only Can Am car I actually worked on...

ZOOOM

[Jerry Entin]

Lothar Motschenbacher at Watkins Glen USRRC in 1967
Pete Timmperman of Firestone tires next to Lothar.
A funny story Lothar told me was about 10 years ago he was at Ontario Raceway and he stopped a guy and asked him for directions. Lothar looked at him and he said Lothar it's me Pete.
They hadn't seen each other in many years.



photo - Ben Weston
copyright - 2009 Ben Weston

Edited by Jerry Entin, 12 January 2010 - 10:28.

[Jerry Entin]

Tyson Martin and Hedy and Olivia and Lothar Motschenbacher
Tyson Martin is the Fiance of Hedy Motschenbacher. This was taken at the recent Legends of Riverside.

[Jerry Entin]

Peter Reinhart and Lothar Motschenbacher in 1966

Peter had come over from Germany and was Lothars crew chief for the 1966 season. He then went to Penske racing where he was George Follmers crew chief.

photo: Seann Burgess
scanned for site Ike Smith

Edited by Jerry Entin, 27 April 2010 - 13:56.

[Jerry Entin]

Lothar and Mariyln Motschenbacher in 1966
This is at Mid Ohio in 1966.

photo: Dan Lipetz collection

Edited by Jerry Entin, 21 April 2010 - 19:02.

[Jerry Entin]

Lothar at Stardust Raceway
In the front in black is Sparky or William Curtiss, across from him Walt Levenstein and at the back John Morton and Bob Rockerfeller in the middle in white shirt.

I will tell the forum members a Sparky story now:
Harvey Lasiter and Sparky were helping me on my car in the CanAm at Elkhart Lake in 1967.

After the race we went to a party at Siebkens Hotel and when it was time to go home, we were staying in Sheboygan,which was around 20 minutes away. We told Sparky we were heading out.

Sparky said he would get a ride back and that we should go. In the morning we asked Sparky who had brought him back to the room. He told us he rode his motorcycle back to the hotel. We looked out the window and there was a brand new Honda.

He was with us and didn't have a motorcycle. He had talked someone at Siebkens into letting him ride their brand new bike around the corner. From there he headed back to the hotel in Sheboygan. That will give you an idea who Sparky was.


photo- Lothar Motschenbacher collection

Edited by Jerry Entin, 21 April 2010 - 01:28.

[Jerry Entin]

Mark Donohue and Roger Penske and Lothar Motschenbacher


photo: Dan Lipetz collection

[Jerry Entin]

Lothar Motschenbacher testing his new McLaren Mk 18 F-5000 car
This is at Willow Springs in Southern California.


photo: Gil Munz
scanned for site Ike Smith

Edited by Jerry Entin, 14 January 2011 - 02:42.

[scran]

Recently purchased Dave Friedman's book: McLaren Sports Racing Cars.

Lots of pictures in it of Lothar in several different sports cars (not just McLarens).

Although I have only had a quick flick - one that caught my eye was a pic of Lother racing that also featured a certain Jerry Entin in the caption.


I assume that is one and the same from here? Jerry - are you aware of the picture? (I can provide page number etc if you want).


Dave

Edited by scran, 17 January 2011 - 01:38.

[Amphicar]

As Michael Caine would say - not a lot of people know that in 1974 Lothar Motschenbacher successfully sued the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company for "an actionable misappropriation of the driver's identity" in a TV commercial:

Motschenbacher v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., 498 F.2d 821 (9th Cir. 1974).

In Motschenbacher, the Ninth Circuit held that a photograph depicting distinctive aspects of a race car driver's car was an actionable misappropriation of the driver's identity under California law.

Lothar Motschenbacher, a professional race car driver, sued R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and the William Esty Company for injunctive relief and damages, alleging misappropriation of his name, likeness, and personality in a television commercial. The commercial "utilized a 'stock' color photograph depicting several racing cars on a racetrack. Plaintiff's car appear[ed] in the foreground, and although Plaintiff is the driver, his facial features [were] not visible." Motschenbacher, 498 F.2d at 822.

The United States District Court for the Central District of California, Judge Manuel L. Real, granted summary judgment in favor of the Defendants who had altered the photograph by changing the numbers on all racing cars depicted, transforming Motschenbacher's number '11' into '71' . . . attaching a "wire-like device known as a 'spoiler' to plaintiff's car, . . . [and] add[ing] the word 'Winston', the name of their product, to that spoiler . . ." Id.

The Ninth Circuit (Circuit Judges Koelsch, Hufstedler, and Trask) reversed, holding that California courts would afford legal protection to an individual's proprietary interest in his own identity. According to the Court, the fact that Motschenbacher's "likeness" was unrecognizable in the commercial and that R.J. Reynolds had changed the number of Motschenbacher's racing car from "11" to "71" and added a "spoiler" to the car did not preclude a finding that Motschenbacher was identifiable as the plaintiff in view of automobile's distinctive markings: white pinstriping, oval medallion, and red color.

I've never previously seen or heard a spoiler being described as a "wire-like device". I wonder which car it was - several of LM's sports racers in the late 60s and early 70s were red with white pinstriping and an oval (number) medallion but presumably it must have been a car that was not running with a spoiler to begin with. The McLaren M6B would seem to fit the bill - and I've found Lothar's M6B offered for sale here. Some nice photos of a good-looking car but at $265,000 a bit out of my price range. I wonder how the current price compares to the amount of Lothar's damages back in '74?

Edited by Amphicar, 17 January 2011 - 18:44.

[Jerry Entin]

Lothar Motschenbacher coming down what is called the Corkscrew in 1969
This is at Monterey, Califonia and the red car next to Lothar's #11 McLaren is Ron Dykes in a Chrysler Hemi powered Lola. Behind Lothar is John Cordts in a McLaren Mk 6. This is the ex Jo Bonnier car currently owned by Bob Lee.


photo: as posted on CanAm History site of Facebook
photographer unknown

Edited by Jerry Entin, 24 January 2011 - 23:56.

[Jerry Entin]

Lothar Motschenbacher and Scooter Patrick
This was from the recent Legends of Riverside lll


Tom Malloy and Lothar and Doug Stokes


photos : Albert Wong

Edited by Jerry Entin, 24 April 2011 - 14:01.

[Jerry Entin]

Lothar Motschenbacher with Harvey Lasiter.

This is a recently found photo that Dave Dawdy is allowing the forum members to enjoy,

Photo: Fred Hacke
scanned for site: David Dawdy