Don “The Snake” Prudhomme at the Petersen on Nov 10th.

A friend of mine sent me this press release... so I thought I'd post it up for you guys to see.

- Joe

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(LOS ANGELES, October 1, 2010) Petersen Automotive Museum is celebrating the opening of the exciting new exhibit, NHRA: Sixty Years of Thunder by paying tribute to one of the sport’s most iconic figures – Don “The Snake” Prudhomme – during their annual Tribute Night on Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2010.

Match Race Madness Panel Discussion
The day will begin with the 2 p.m. panel discussion, Match Race Madness, featuring drag racing’s greatest rivalry: Snake vs. ****oose. Prudhomme will be joined by arch-rival Tom “The ****oose” McEwen to tell the tales of their days of traveling the United States from race track to race track, their much-publicized grudge matches, the business partnership they formed called, “Wildlife Racing,” and their pioneering work in non-automotive sponsorship with Mattel’s Hot Wheels.

An Evening with Don “The Snake” Prudhomme
At 5:30 p.m., An Evening with Don “The Snake” Prudhomme will begin. A ****tail hour with Prudhomme, McEwen, and honored guests Roland Leong, Tommy Ivo, Carroll Shelby, Ed Pink and many others will be followed by a fabulous dinner buffet. Special guest Dave McClelland, the Voice of the NHRA and longtime friend of Don Prudhomme, will be the Master of Ceremonies. The evening will continue with a short film featuring The Snake’s history and several other drag racing icons will share their stories of the legend. A live auction of amazing racing memorabilia will follow with proceeds going to the Petersen’s educational programs. Guests will also be able to preview the items that will be in the Bonham’s and ****erfield’s Motorcycles and Memorabilia auction on Saturday, Nov. 13.



NHRA: Sixty Years of Thunder
If that’s not enough, guests will also be the first to see Petersen Automotive Museum’s newest exhibit, NHRA: Sixty Years of Thunder. This exciting new exhibit will cover the history of the National Hot Rod ***ociation, from its early creation as a way to get street racing off of the public highways and on to sanctioned drag strips, through six decades of nitro, tire smoke and thunder. Guests will have an experience rich with historic photography, exciting videos, interactive displays and of course, race cars with the combined power output of 50,000 horses! This exhibit opens at the gala and runs through May 29, 2011.

Tickets
Tickets for An Evening With Don “The Snake” Prudhomme are $125 each. Tickets for the Match Race Madness panel discussion are $50 each. A combined ticket for both events is $150, a $25 savings. Special pricing is available for certain levels of Petersen Automotive Museum Membership. For more information call (323) 964-6325, or to buy your tickets on-line, go to www.petersen.org. Event proceeds support the Petersen Automotive Museum’s educational and cultural mission.

Honoree: Don “The Snake” Prudhomme
In the early days of his drag racing career, Don Prudhomme worked as a crew member for drag racing icon “T.V.” Tommy Ivo. In 1962, Prudhomme achieved his first Top Fuel win at the Smoker’s March Meet in Bakersfield, California. From 1962 through 1964, Don teamed up with Tom Greer and legendary engine builder Keith Black, and built the famous Greer, Black & Prudhomme Top Fueler (on display in NHRA: 60 Years of Thunder) which won nearly every west coast event. Prudhomme went on to drive Roland Leong's "Hawaiian" Top Fuel dragster, and won his first NHRA race, the 1965 Winternationals in Pomona, California. He then switched to Funny Cars in the 1970s and won four straight NHRA Funny Car World Championships between 1975 and 1978 and had seven NHRA U.S. Nationals wins. He was the first Funny Car driver to go 5 seconds in the quarter mile and the first to top 250 mph.

Don Prudhomme’s quick reaction times earned him the nickname, “The Snake.” He teamed up with his friend and rival, Tom “The ****oose” McEwen to form the team “Wildlife Racing,” and they were hired by track owners to race each other in grudge matches around the country. But the real money came when they were sponsored by Mattel's “Hot Wheels,” the first non-automotive sponsor in NHRA history.

The Snake last raced on his “Final Strike Tour” in 1994, but stayed active in other areas of the sport. Until his retirement earlier this year, Don “The Snake” Prudhomme was a car owner running a Top Fuel Dragster Team and two Funny Car teams. Prudhomme has 49 career wins as a driver, and 59 career wins as an owner.

www.petersen.org

 

Damn thats cool. I've never seen that shot before!

thanks man
- Joe

 

The Petersen Automotive Museum is also going to light off a couple of Cacklefest dragsters on the roof of our parking structure sometime during the evening. The accompanying exhibit, NHRA: Sixty Years of Thunder is coming out great and not only features great drag cars, but tons of photos and videos and ephemera from NHRA history! Here is a photo! Seating for An Evening with Don The Snake Prudhomme is limited, but there are a few tickets left. Go to www.petersen.org to buy your tickets before it is too late!

 

Are you Leslie by chance??