1946-1949 – The Dominant Blue Crowns

After 4 years of war, it was uncertain there would be an Indianapolis 500, but three time winner Wilbur Shaw didn’t want to see the Speedway go the way of the wrecking ball, so he looked for interested buyers who would preserve the Speedway. He found such a buyer in Anton “Tony” Hulman Jr. It would take a miracle to get the track ready for a race in May of 1946, but amazingly Tony and Wilbur pulled it off and the 1946 ‘500’ was a success.
As most pre-war cars had been stored away, there were only a handful of new cars built for the 1946 ‘500’, one of them being the Novi. Former driver turned car owner Lou Moore liked the idea of the sleek cigar shaped front drive Novi and he built two smaller versions with Offenhauser engines for 1947 and thus the Blue Crown Spark Plug Specials were born.
The 1947 race saw the controversial “EZY” sign given to both Blue Crown drivers Mauri Rose and Bill Holland, but only Rookie Holland, who was leading at the time, slowed which allowed veteran Rose to pass and win his second ‘500’. In 1948 the powerful Novi driven by Duke Nalon did lead, but a mix up on fuel during the last pit stop cost Duke the race and gave Rose his third win and Holland second yet again. 1949 saw Duke leading early from the pole, but his bid for a win was cut short by a spectacular wreck caught here in never before seen COLOR film (see still picture above). After coming home second two years in a row to Blue Crown teammate Rose, Bill Holland would finally prevail and win the 1949 ‘500’.

“The Dominant Blue Crowns” brings you 60 minutes of COLOR & B&W film in DVD format with music, engine sounds and narration from the exciting post war era of 1946 through 1949 highlighted by three wins of the Blue Crown team! There is also approx. 15 minutes of B&W BONUS footage from 1948 and 1949 which has music only (no engine sounds or narration).