13 replies to this topic

[Matthew Norton]

Just come back from holiday and thought that some of you may be able to shed a little light on the following topic.

Bought my father in law a small 1959 motorsport book written by a chap called Douglas Armstrong. Does anyone know much about this author as my father in law, despite his extensive knowledge on the subject, hadn't really heard of him before. I will 'do a search' to see what I can find but if anyone fancies sharing some facts that would be helpful.

Thanks,

Matt.

[Milan Fistonic]

He was the editor of Automobile Year from 1963 to 1981.

[Vitesse2]

No relation (AFAIK)

[Doug Nye]

Douglas Armstrong, rotund, moustachioed past editor of 'Motor Racing' - the British monthly magazine - became something of a specialist upon eating out around the motor racing venues of the world. Wrote regular features and columns on same. Keen and experienced on motorcycles as well as cars.

Good bloke - kind of typical 1950s-bred motoring writer, luminar of the British Guild of Motoring Writers, contributed to umpteen publications worldwide, extremely sociable and generally well liked. Not perhaps a great expert on anything but a good dependable journeyman journo.

Travelled around generally with great Australian journalist chum, the late - and equally likeable - Harold 'Dev' Dvooretsky who wrote - I think - for the Sydney newspapers and who came to Europe initially to cover Jack Brabham's increasingly successful exploits with Cooper. Douggie Armstrong is still around, I believe, retired today...living in Windlesham, Surrey.

I remember a classic scene one night in a Milan hotel during Italian GP weekend, 1969 I think. Douggie at the head of a thoroughly whistled party of journos who had just fallen back into the hotel after some very liquid freebie reception somewhere in town.

Waiting for the lift to arrive on the ground floor.

Ding!

Lift arrives.

Doors purr open.

There before us, with left arm straight to the side, right arm crooked at the elbow, fore-arm across midrift, stands a vision. A male. He's dressed in two-tone cream and oxblood cowboy boots, with chromium toe-caps, yellow check trousers, he has a white belt, an orange shirt, a violent green bootlace tie, and a white jacket with large chequered pattern picked out in gold, and there are rhinestones on the lapels and cuffs. He's wearing an NY Yacht Club baseball cap.

"Good God!" rings out Douggie's sharp, crystal clear, ex-military English tones: "An Amewican!"

DCN

[Paul Newby]

IIRC Doug Armstrong wrote a column for the Australian monthly magazine Motor Manual up to the early '80s. I can't check because I've just thrown them out!

I think he also had a fascination concerning Skoda racing history (I know that sounds like an oxymoron but they did build a couple of svelte sports racers in the late '50s.)

[humphries]

One of the first books I acquired was by Douglas Armstrong. It was called "The Worlds Racing Cars and Sports Cars" published in 1958 by Macdonald. In format a sort of introductory guide to the racing car manufacturers similar to Jenks' more in-depth "Racing Car Review" series. Albert Douglas did the same kind of thing with the Ian Allen Ltd "ABC Sports Cars" which I also had bought for me by my elder sister.

Come to think of it the first ever motor racing book I ever had was "The Chequered Flag" by DOUGLAS Rutherford published by Collins in 1956; a book I read over and over again when I was 12.

It was the book responsible for me getting hooked on motor racing.

These Douglas's have got a lot to answer for! And they are still at it!!

Ding Dong! Would you bloody believed it the Initial City Link driver has just, this very minute, delivered my Volume 2 of the BRM book and yes with matching serial number. It gets spooky.

[D-Type]

So we can expect no postings from you for a fortnight!

[David Beard]

Bought my father in law a small 1959 motorsport book written by a chap called Douglas Armstrong. Does anyone know much about this author as my father in law, despite his extensive knowledge on the subject, hadn't really heard of him before. I will 'do a search' to see what I can find but if anyone fancies sharing some facts that would be helpful.

....Matt Norton

Douglas Armstrong, rotund, moustachioed past editor of 'Motor Racing' - the British monthly magazine - became something of a specialist upon eating out around the motor racing venues of the world. Wrote regular features and columns on same. Keen and experienced on motorcycles as well as cars.

.....Doug Nye


By some amazing coincidence, my son in law bought me The World's Racing Car & Sports Cars" by Douglas Armstrong whilst on holiday in Northumberland. I only received it last night. I too was not familiar with the author...I thought about E Mailing Vitesse2 to ask if it was his dad. (apparently not)

It's a rather engaging tome-ette. Quite a few photos not familiar to me, perhaps the odd miscaption, but even a page on the Kharkov Six "F1" car. It says Doug Armstrong was editor of "Sports Cars Illustrated" When did the latter expire, and "Motor Racing" magazine start? Was Doug Armstrong DCN's boss then, at "Motor Racing"?


"Rotund, moustachioed" chaps are usually good eggs. Some, however, have bizarre sons-in-law.
This is mine...a photo if anyone cares to peep ;) Click here Matt Norton

[Vitesse2]

Originally posted by David Beard
I thought about E Mailing Vitesse2 to ask if it was his dad. (apparently not)

Most definitely not, although longer-established TNfers will remember that I posted about him in an Intro thread - he was Jack Armstrong, one of the early BBC TV weather men.

[Matthew Norton]

many thanks to all of you who have offered me some constructive info on Armstrong.


David, the coincidence is remarkable! However, by the sounds of it one or two others on the forum also have the same book so may be it won't be worth as much as I had hoped!

I hoped you asked your son in law before posting the incriminating photo! He may share the same name but I can honestly deny ever wearing my boxers on the outside of my trousers! I would post a picture to prove it but I am sure that the nostalgia forum wasn't designed to be that sort of site ;)

on a more serious note thanks to others for teaching someone who doesn't know an awful lot about motorsport something new!

Matt.

[Doug Nye]

Originally posted by humphries
Come to think of it the first ever motor racing book I ever had was "The Chequered Flag" by DOUGLAS Rutherford published by Collins in 1956; a book I read over and over again when I was 12..

Douglas Rutherford was a master at Eton - I think that was actually his pseudonym but I know who to ask. Frank Williams's former landlord - later sponsor liaison manager - Sheridan Thynne (Frank's landlord in the sense that he owned the sofa that Frank rented in the London flat they shared with Piers Courage and others) gave 'Rutherford' a very pointed critique of his book 'The Chequered Flag' during lessons at Eton one day, a critique which 'Rutherford' apparently took very well indeed...

DCN

[Ray Bell]

The name fits in well with a couple others that became familiar to me forty years ago...

Jerry Sloniger, Ian Fraser, wasn't there a Doug Blain too?

[David McKinney]

Familiar names to me, too
Ian Fraser has been in the UK for many years.
Douglas (not Doug any more, it seems) is also here, and has recently taken up racing with IIRC a Morgan

[ian senior]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by David Beard
[B] ....Matt Norton



It's a rather engaging tome-ette. Quite a few photos not familiar to me, perhaps the odd miscaption, but even a page on the Kharkov Six "F1" car. It says Doug Armstrong was editor of "Sports Cars Illustrated" When did the latter expire, and "Motor Racing" magazine start? Was Doug Armstrong DCN's boss then, at "Motor Racing"?


Sports Cars Illustrated, or Cars Illustrated as it later became known, transmogrified into Cars and Car Conversions, or at least it did according to the latest edition of that particular journal. It's not one of my usual reads, and in fact I thought it had died long ago, but I saw the latest copy in a shop t'other day and had a look at the potted history article that was inside to celebrate its anniversary. Ho hum.