26 replies to this topic

[Darren Galpin]

I was contacted recently regarding the birth and death dates of F1 drivers. Looking through my data, I realised it was full of holes. I've tried to flesh it out as best I can, but I'm still missing things. Can anyone supply the data to fill in this missing things below?



Barber, John (GB) b ~1929
Bianco, Gino (BRZ) b ?
Blanchard, Harry (USA) b ? d 31/1/1960
Cantoni, Heitel (URU) b ?
Chamberlain, Jay (USA) b ?
Changy, Alain de (B) b ?
Crespo, Alberto (I) B ? d ?/?/1991
Creus, Antonio (E) b ?
Daponte, Jorge (RA) b 5/6/1923 d ?/3/1963
Dochnal, Frank J (USA) b ?
Fry, Joe (GB) b ?/?/1915 d 29/7/1950
Gonzalez, Oscar (URU) b ?
Jones, Tom (CDN) b ?
Jover, Juan (E) b ?
Kavanagh, Ken (AUS) b ?
Kessler, Bruce (USA) b ?
Krakau, Willi (D) b ?
Kuhnke, Kurt (D) b ?
Londono-Bridge, Ricardo (Col) b ?
Lucienbonnet, Jean (F) b ? d 19/8/1962
Merkel, Harry (D) b ?
Moss, Bill (GB) b ?
O'Brien, Robert (USA) b ?
Oppitzhauser, Karl (DK) b ?
Pian, Alfredo (RA) b ?
Prinoth, Ernesto (I) b ?
Richardson, Ken (GB) b ?
Riu, Giovanni de (I) b ?
Rudaz, Jean-Claude (CH) b ?
Seiffert, Gunther (D) b ?
Serafini, Dorino (I) b 22/7/1909 d ?/7 or 8/2000
Settember, Tony (USA) b ?/?/1930
Testut, Andre (MC) b ?
Thiele, Alfonse (I/USA) b ?/?/1922
Uria, Alberto (URU) b ?
Zapico, Emilio (E) b ?/?/1944


Thanks for your time.

[Marcel Schot]

With a little help from Forix:

Bianco, Gino (BRZ) b 22/07/1916 d ??/??/1983
Blanchard, Harry (USA) b 30/06/1931 d 31/1/1960
Cantoni, Heitel (URU) b ??/??/1896
Chamberlain, Jay (USA) b 29/12/1925
Crespo, Alberto (I) B 16/01/1930 d 14/08/1991
Creus, Antonio (E) b ??/??/1922
Daponte, Jorge (RA) b 5/6/1923 d 9/3/1963
Fry, Joe (GB) b 26/10/1915 d 29/7/1950
Jover, Juan (E) b ??/??/1903 d ??/??/1960
Kavanagh, Ken (AUS) b 12/12/1923
Kessler, Bruce (USA) b ??/??/???? d ??/??/1958
Krakau, Willi (D) b ??/??/???? d ??/??/1995
Londono-Bridge, Ricardo (Col) b 08/08/1949
Moss, Bill (GB) b ??/??/1933
Pian, Alfredo (RA) b 21/10/1912 d 25/07/1990
Prinoth, Ernesto (I) b ??/??/1923 d ??/12/1980
Richardson, Ken (GB) b 21/08/1911
Riu, Giovanni de (I) b 10/03/1924
Rudaz, Jean-Claude (CH) b 23/07/1942
Serafini, Dorino (I) b 22/07/1909 d 03/07/2000
Testut, Andre (MC) b 13/04/1926

Serafini's date of death comes from this month's 8W solution (I found it before on a website of which I can't recall the URL and there's an obituary in this month's Motorsport)

[Racer.Demon]

If anyone comes up with *anything* on Tom Jones...;)

[Ray Bell]

This is yet another thread where I am stricken with amazement with what you people can turn up!
Interesting to see that Serafino could be alive this year, 91 at time of death... fascinating to talk to people who've been around that long. Ken McKinney is 92 or 93, and last year I put together a story about his memories of his introduction to racing in the mid- to late-twenties, and his competing in the Australian GP of 1928. That was the first Australian GP, the real first one.
Ken Richardson is a bit of a surprise... when I read the BRM book I concluded he was much younger, but he was already 40 when he was with the team.

[Kuwashima]

Well RD, you may be interested in this regarding Tom Jones (of course you may already know it, but...

Apparently he is a member of the Canadian Motorsports Hall of Fame!! (Along with other such luminaries as Al Pease).

I contacted the Hall for more information on them, and someone from there replied, with NO info whatsoever except their home phone numbers (can you believe it!).They said you may as well contact them directly!

I have not done so yet, quite simply because I don't have the guts to call some Canadian number out of the blue from Australia and ask some guy about his life (and birthdate ).

Still, if someone (perhaps who lives in Canada) is willing to do so, I would be happy to give them the number I was given...or even if they're willing to drop past the CMHF and see if there's a display on him or something.

{OF COURSE, IT COULD BE ANOTHER TOM JONES ALTOGETHER (and I would feel very stupid )}

[Ray Bell]

Of course, ringing and saying "It's Kuwashima here from the Formula One Rejects site here, can I get some details from you..." might put them off a little, too!

[Kuwashima]

Yep Ray, you've pretty much summed it up there ;)

[Felix Muelas]

Known as it is that the "holes" in the lists of drivers´dates are not exactly simple to fill in, let me share with those of you interested the recent discovery of my compatriote Juan Jover dates:
Born 23 november 1923 in Barcelona
Died in a road accident near Sitges some day of July 1960.

Felix

Marcel, I´ll be telling Joao Paulo about it, don´t worry
;-)

[Barry Lake]

I also had 12 December 1923 listed as the birth date of Ken Kavanagh. I looked in the book “Australia’s Motorcycle Heroes 1949-1989” to see if I could double-check this. Despite a 14 page story on Kavanagh and an exact date of when he first joined a motorcycle club, there is no birth date. They do say he was 36 when he retired early in 1960 – which fits.
An interesting thing I hadn’t known previously is that Kavanagh says in the story that he raced his Maserati 250F in South America early in 1958 before returning to run it in England and on the Continent.
Does anyone know anything about Kavanagh in these South American races? The only race I have information on is the Argentine GP and he isn’t listed as entering that.
If anyone lives near, or is planning to travel near Bergamo in northern Italy, they could call in and ask him. In 1989 he was running a small dry-cleaning business there and driving an old Citroen. Whether or not he still has the dry cleaning business at 73 years of age I do not know, but I understand he still lives there. He shouldn’t be too hard to find.
In case some are not aware, Kavanagh was a top international motorcycle GP rider from 1951 to 1960, winning outright in GPs and the Isle of Man. He also raced speedway solos and rode as passenger on speedway sidecars early in his career, yet only once was ever injured – having two stitches to a cut in his face after a fall.

[jarama]

Isn't a lot, but...

Antonio Creus, born in 1922.

[Paul Hartshorne]

Note to Kuwashima:
There is at least one other Canadian racing driver called Tom Jones; he's the older brother of former F3000 racer John Jones.

While John Jones was racing in F3000 in Europe in 1987, his two brothers Tom Jones (about 10 or years older than John) and Hunter Jones (about two years younger than John) came over to do some FF1600 in the UK. Tom was said to have been in racing for many years. Surely not 20 though, so he must be a different Tom Jones!

[Francis]

Barry,

Jean Behra was entered in Ken Kavanagh's Maserati 250F for the Argentine Grand Prix in 1958 as #4.

He qualified 4th for the race and finished in 5th place.

[Don Capps]

Barry,

Buried inside my 250F article is some information on Ken Kavanagh's Maserati adventures. He was top-notch rider for Moto-Guzzi for those in the dark.

He bought telaio 2527 and here are his GP/F1 efforts, the Formula Libre events being worked on by someone far more dedicated than I am!

1958/01/19 Jean Behra (Ken Kavanagh), #4, GP de la Republica Argentina/ Buenos Aires, 5th

1958/04/07 Ken Kavanagh (Ken Kavanagh), #5, Glover Trophy/ Goodwood, did not start

1958/04/13 Ken Kavanagh (Ken Kavanagh), #14, GP di Siracusa/ Siracusa, 6th

1958/04/19 Ken Kavanagh (Ken Kavanagh), #14, B.A.R.C. "200"/ Aintree, retired – leaking header tank

1958/05/03 Ken Kavanagh (Ken Kavanagh), #12, International Trophy/ Silverstone, 18th

1958/05/18 Ken Kavanagh (Ken Kavanagh), #50, GP de Monaco/ Monte Carlo, did not qualify

1958/06/15 Ken Kavanagh (Ken Kavanagh), #34, GP de Belgique/ Spa-Francorchamps, did not start – engine

1959/03/30 Ken Kavanagh (Ken Kavanagh), #6, Glover Trophy/ Goodwood, retired – crash

[Barry Lake]

Thanks Francis and Don
The story I read certainly sounded as though Kavanagh had raced the car himself in South America but I know of no other races there in that year. Perhaps there were some Formula Libre events that have not made our various history books, or perhaps Kavanagh was speaking only of an enjoyable trip to Argentina to alow Behra to drive his car.
At least now I know that his car went there for the Argentine GP.

[Francis]

There was the Buenos Aires City Grand Prix held in 1958. It was a Formula Libre race and I think it was held on or around the 2nd February.

It was won by Juan Manuel Fangio in a Maserati 250F, so Ken Kavanagh may have raced his car in this event.

[Mickey]

Excuse my ignorance, and I certainly don't mean to sound irreverent, but what sort of name is Londono-Bridge, Ricardo? Obviously it sounds like some Colombian went to London, saw London Bridge, and liked the name of it a bit too much. Anyone care to shed some light on this?

[Felix Muelas]

Mickey

We will.

Although you were not intended to sound "irreverent" it sounds to me that you actually found an ingenious gag to illustrate your self-declared ignorance.

Now, if you really want to know something about Ricardo, please go to http://www.racer.dem...8w/8w-1099.html and you will hopefully find some details.

Sorry if you think this is a bit of an over-reaction. Actually, if you dare to translate my name into English you will find something very close to "Happy Teeth", that, even sounding funny, it´s not a nickname, but probably the combined efforts of my father and mother...

But very similar things happen when some other nationalities´ names are translated into Spanish...as you might very well imagine.

Un abrazo,

Felix Muelas

[Felix Muelas]

After the article on Ricardo was published, we received a very interesting mail from François-Luc Beaudoin, a Canadian guy that enclosed some extra info about races where Londono-Bridge had been participating between 1979 and 1985.

In case it is of any interest, here it goes...

Date Race No. Car Chassis Entrant Res. Group Reason retired Grid Drivers

17.3.1979 12 h Sebring 97 Porsche Turbo 50. GTX (16.) DNF 11. Ricardo Londono/George Garces 18.

25.11.1979 250 mil Daytona Finale 92 Porsche Turbo 18. GTX (7.) DNF 12. Ricardo Londono 7.

3.2.1980 24 h Daytona 46 Porsche Carrera 7. GTO (2.) 28. Mauricio De Narvaez/Albert Naon/Ricardo Londono 26.

22.3.1980 12 h Sebring 46 Porsche Carrera 26. GTO (10.) DNF 44. Mauricio De Narvaez/Ricardo Londono 6.

24.5.1980 Can-Am Golden State 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 6. Ricardo Londono 11.

8.6.1980 Can-Am Mid-Ohio 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 11. Ricardo Londono

5. 22.6.1980 Can-Am Mosport 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 5. - 7. Ricardo Londono 6.

20.7.1980 Can-Am Road America 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 6. Ricardo Londono 8.

10.8.1980 Can-Am Brainerd 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 8. Ricardo Londono 13.

24.8.1980 Can-Am Trois-Rivieres 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 13. Ricardo Londono 14.

7.9.1980 Can-Am Road Atlanta 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 14. - Ricardo Londono 9.

19.10.1980 Can-Am Laguna Seca 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing 9. 11. Ricardo Londono 6.

26.10.1980 Can-Am Riverside 33 Lola T530 Chevrolet HU6 Londono Bridge Racing Team 6. Ricardo Londono 33.

1.2.1981 24 h Daytona 25 BMW M1 33. GTO (11.) DNF 22. Dave Cowart/Kenper Miller/Ricardo Londono 79.

19.3.1983 12 h Sebring 39 Phoenix JG-1 Chevrolet 79. GTP (18.) 3. John Gunn/Ricardo Londono 6.

4.7.1983 250 mil Daytona 39 Phoenix JG1 Chevrolet 6. GTP (5.) 3. John Gunn/Ricardo Londono 36.

20.5.1984 500 km Charlotte 33 Chevrolet Corvette 36. GTO (12.) DNF 20. Ricardo Londono/Tommy Riggins 53.

25.11.1984 3 h Daytona 23 Chevrolet Corvette 53. GTO (18.) DNF 40. Ricardo Londono/Luis Londono 31.

2.1985 Miami - GTO 39 Pontiac Firebird 31. GTO (31.) DNF

The info is believed to be taken from Martin Kreijci's World of Sport Prototypes.

:-)

Felix Muelas

[Mickey]

Thanks Felix, I found the info in the 8W article very interesting and informative. While I don't think you have over-reacted, I've actually looked at my post where, if not irriverent, I actually did sound a bit pompous. That wasn't my intention at all. Besides, I'm Italian (last name is Lostia) so I understand your point of view.

The resemblance in RLB's name to that English landmark is amazing, however.

Abbraccio ricambiato

Michele Lostia.

[Felix Muelas]

Originally posted by Felix Muelas
...let me share with those of you interested the recent discovery of my compatriote Juan Jover dates:
Born 23 november 1923 in Barcelona
Died in a road accident near Sitges some day of July 1960.

The date of his death was 28th JUNE 1960

Originally posted by jarama
Antonio Creus, born in 1922.

New discoveries : Antonio CREUS y Rubín de Celis was born in Madrid 28th October 1924, and died of illness 19th February 1996

And finally, we got the correct dates for poor Emilio Rodriguez ZAPICO
Born in León 21st May 1944
Died in a stupid road accident 6th August 1996

Thanks should be extended to Javier del Arco, that quotes all these dates in his "Montjuic, 40 years of Motor Racing"

Felix

[Milan Fistonic]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Barry Lake

An interesting thing I hadn’t known previously is that Kavanagh says in the story that he raced his Maserati 250F in South America early in 1958 before returning to run it in England and on the Continent.
Does anyone know anything about Kavanagh in these South American races? The only race I have information on is the Argentine GP and he isn’t listed as entering that.[QUOTE]

Barry

From Autosport February 14, 1958

Grand Prix of Buenos Aires

Ken Kavanagh qualified his Maserati 250F 19th (and last) on the grid for the above race. His time was 2m 34.5s whereas Fangio's pole time was 2m 14.8s. The race was run in two heats and Kavanagh retired from heat one somewhere between lap 5 and lap 10 with mechanical trouble. There was only a half-hour gap between heats and Kavanagh was unable to repair his car in time for heat two.

An interesting thing happened at the start of heat one. Behra and Menditeguy were not there to start in their Maserati 250Fs (they had got the start time wrong and arrived at the Autodrome after the start) so Scarlatti and Godia took over their cars while Bonnier was aboard Godia's 250F. On lap 3 Godia stopped to hand over the car to Menditeguy and Scarlatti did likewise for Behra one lap later.[p][Edited by Milan Fistonic on 11-20-2000]

[Richard Jenkins]

Through Forix which has really excelled itself lately & through other research:
Tony Settember b. 13 April 1930
Alberto Uria b. 7 January 1924 - I know he is no longer alive but I have no death date
Alfonso Thiele b. 5 April 1922
Kurt Kuhnke b. 30 April 1910

Any other recent deaths could well be on my similar thread "Are They Still Alive?"

[Barry Lake]

Milan

Belated thanks for the interesting information on ken Kavanagh in the Buenos Aires GP.
I only just came across it.

[alfredaustria]

Hi all! Perhaps has anyone information about John Barber? Is he still alive? Thanks - Regards from Vienna - Alfred

[Richard Jenkins]

Originally posted by alfredaustria
Hi all! Perhaps has anyone information about John Barber? Is he still alive? Thanks - Regards from Vienna - Alfred

Pffff... Does the Yeti exist? How long will the credit crunch last? How long is a piece of string?

The answer is about the same for John Barber. FWIW, we believe he's still alive, as there's been nothing to say otherwise both officially or family wise. But as for a contact address/autograph etc, don't hold your hopes out for much, unless there's someone out there who knows any different...

[fines]

Originally posted by Richie Jenkins


Pffff... Does the Yeti exist? How long will the credit crunch last? How long is a piece of string?

In order: No, five months and Planck length. As for Barber, I don't know.

[Gabrci]

Originally posted by alfredaustria
Hi all! Perhaps has anyone information about John Barber? Is he still alive? Thanks - Regards from Vienna - Alfred

Just to add to what Richie summed up pretty well, the BRDC doesn't have any record of him either.