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| Preston Tucker behind the wheel of a Tucker '48 |
I've been fascinated with the tragic tale of the Tucker Automobile Company since I first read about them in Motor Trend magazine way back in the spring of 1971- the intriguing suspenseful story of the man who invented the revolutionary new car that was going to sweep the industry. It had all of the elements of a great drama- a handsome protagonist, a daring invention, an evil colluding band of companies out to stop him and preserve the status quo- in short, the story of just about every important invention ever conceived.
And of course by now, you are aware that the car did not succeed. Accused of securities fraud, Tucker was ultimately acquitted but the company collapsed after producing only fifty-one rear-engined, air cooled automobiles with cyclops headlamps and pop out safety windshields.
Recently I stumbled upon the 1948 promotional film "Tucker- The Man and the Car" which is a fifteen minute color promotional film from 1947. It's full of fascinating scenes involving the Tucker car being demonstrated, paraded, demonstrated and ultimately even rolled over three times. Also footage of designer Alex Tremulis and even Preston Tucker himself.
So step back sixty-fours years and check out "Tucker: The Man and The Car:"
GROWING UP, my father always talked about the Tucker, but as a kid, I never believed it's capabilities, now that I've found this online, I doubt I will ever get the computer back from myn father when he sees this
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