THE TV ALMANAC

[Music] tv almanac news and features from the world of [Music] leisure [Music] it's been a long time since an automobile turned the head of a new yorker but recently two cars caught his attention a replica of henry ford's original quadricycle built in 1893 and the aurora ford motor company's latest experimental and styling idea car it's described as a luxury lounge station wagon a veritable laboratory on wheels containing 23 new automotive features the swivel front seat faces the central lounge area with a curved sofa [Music] and a romper room children's area in the rear can be isolated by means of a power operated glass partition the windshield extends near the roof and turns from transparent to opaque at the touch of a button [Music] the aurora is the star of ford's exhibit of practical dream cars at the new york world's fair and the wonder rotunda will also feature the quad recycle which might be described as the first of the practical dream cars back in 1893. ever want to fly like a bird well we're in torrey pines california to witness some real experts do precisely that during the 18th annual soaring championships and you're joining thousands of enthusiasts who annually watch and participate in this fast-growing sport pilots bring their powerless aircraft from all parts of the country for this annual event the only power comes from the rapid acceleration of a mercury marauder as it launches the sail plane into the air to catch a rising air current coming in from the ocean once in the air soaring pilots try to attain the greatest altitude the longest duration of sustained flight and the greatest distance from their point of departure here a fast-moving mercury marauder moves down the launching strip and another competitor is airborne torrey pines is considered to be one of the three finest lighter ports in the world its popularity is partly due to the constant westerly trade winds from the ocean which create a good updraft at the cliffs of torrey pines many worlds records have been established here dating back to 1883. some of them were set by colonel and mrs charles a lindbergh these graceful craft have established some remarkable records paul bichel attained an altitude of more than 46 000 feet and he also flew from sun valley idaho to saskatchewan canada a record distance of 557 miles [Applause] [Music] here's one of the concluding events spot landing and ray prankie brings his plane within inches of the target post it's good for the championship trophy and a bus from glider queen lenoir plumber [Music] the glamour and glitter of the new york world's player these unusual night scenes show ford motor companies wonder rotunda in the transportation section of the exposition inside the quadricycle henry ford's first car built in 1896 is contrasted with ford's sporty new mustang the rotunda section also contains the international gardens villages which capture the historic essence of 11 nations of the world the italian scene an authentic venetian city square shows the detailed animation ford's magic skyway ride was officially opened by henry ford second accompanied by fair president robert moses and walt disney whose organization created portions of the ford show riding in the comfort of new convertibles visitors see the beginnings of life on earth with prehistoric monsters chewing the lifelike scenery it's the disney touch at its best the dawn of man and the hero of the hour the inventor of the wheels the last time tunnel takes visitors into a space city of the future appropriately visitors next disembark to see a display of styling experimental cars of the future the allegro the cougar and the latest in luxurious highway travel the aurora already as many as 40 000 visitors a day are touring the ford exhibit which will add up to many millions during the new york world's fair [Music] here's the formula for a weekend of family fun start with an outstanding vacation area such as grand lakes in oklahoma form a caravan of friends who have pickup campers and travel trailers and don't forget the family making sure they are properly entertained on route with these basic ingredients any location looks like paradise but the wigan's family and friends pick an especially pretty spot in a remote area where they form a circle of their camping units walt has a dreamer pickup camper mounted on an f-254 chassis and ken delang's mustang pulls the popular scotsman travel trailer another happy ingredient is of course a boat which can be floated easily by backing the sturdy f-250 down a launching ramp [Applause] walt and his friends are part of the fastest growing group of outdoor enthusiasts in the country families with weekend wanderlust who pack all the basic living needs into efficiently designed camping units and search out the beauty spots of the country while fishing is the main interest of these weekend vacationers you'll find camping units on the beach in the mountains at hunting lodges and in all state and national parks over half a million are on the road today and that figure will be more than doubled by 1967. [Music] walt finds pleasure in roaming the wilds on a lightweight motorcycle with his son kim and though he doesn't have much fishing luck his companions display the results of their pescatorial skill in other words they skunked walls and by walkie-talkie they alert the camp area to heat up the skillet while the kids watch the portable television mrs wiggins begins the evening meal all the basic comforts of the modern kitchen are built into this compact campus [Music] the triumphant fishermen return [Music] and in no time at all their catch is transformed into a delectable delicacy or walk here's the kind of pastoral scene that makes weekend wanderlust worthwhile a campfire on the shores of a beautiful lake and after dinner coffee with family and close friends it's the secret ingredient that's making family camping weekends the fastest growing pastime in the nation this is the cobra ford sports car which is built by the shelby american company in venice california the aluminum body shell conceals a collection of high performance items that would make the most devoted car buff jump for joy disc brakes dual carburation independent suspension rack and pinion steering and the 289 cubic inch ford fair lane engine it's easy to recognize because of its distinctive profile however a growing number of professional sports car drivers are more familiar with this rear view of the cobra they literally chased it most of 1963 as it easily won the manufacturer's championship in its first year of competition it is the fastest production car in the world from 0 to 100 miles per hour in 10 and 6 10 seconds and even at top speed its handling characteristics are superb there's a feeling of absolute control even as you go through the most treacherous cornering situation here at riverside or through the s turns [Music] or a controlled drift through turn six rack and pinion steering permits real accuracy through turns seven and eight into the straightaway run the tack all the way up to the red line touch the disc brakes and downshift as you approach turn nine stay on the inside and then go wide past the pit area [Music] the cobra ford is indeed a very quick automobile precisely what carol shelby had in mind back in 1962 when he conceived the idea of combining a proven sports car chassis with a reliable american production engine the success of his original prototype caught the attention of ken miles a top-flight english driver and phil remington who had built the scarabs for lance reventlo this team of top flight racing experts was duly impressed when the newly developed ford 289 cubic inch engine showed its stuff on the dynamometer it could produce an honest 271 horsepower at 6000 rpm and reliability tests proved it could deliver that kind of power all day long [Music] therefore it wasn't too long before the shelby racing team took the cobra forward to the races it was comparatively unknown when it showed up at sebring in march of 1963. this was an fia sanctioned 12-hour endurance race and though a few curious sports car buffs looked over the cobras they weren't given much of a chance against the powerful ferraris that had dominated the race in the past but recognition was quick at the end of the first lap the cobra driven by phil hill was leading the field including the highly touted ferrari at 10 that evening another cobra driven by ken miles got the checkered flag winning its class shelby's cobra fords were successfully off to the races during the next seven months they won or placed first in class in 25 straight races eight of the events counted toward the coveted manufacturer's trophy sponsored by the united states road racing club and even before the mid-ohio classic at mansfield ohio the cobra had clinched the trophy at the end of the season the cobra ford had 111 points ferrari was second with 28 corvette third with 19 and jaguar was fourth with 12 points [Music] early in 1964 the shelby team of cobras once again appeared at sebring though the colorful texan was temporarily confined to a wheelchair with a knee injury his cobras were fit and ready to challenge the ferraris once more and this time shelby was shooting for motor racing's top prize the world gt manufacturers championship the 12-hour endurance race begins with the traditional le mans start [Music] it is one of the major gt events counting toward the coveted manufacturer's trophy one-of-a-kind prototypes also compete in a special class although they are not eligible to win points toward the manufacturer's championship as in the past the finely tuned ferraris leave their fields but for the first time they are challenged at every turn by an american production car shelby's cobra force midway in the 12-hour test both the ferraris and cobras are one two three in their respective classes [Music] with only an hour to go the cobra driven by dan gurney and bob johnson is actually leading one of the fastest prototypes but it's eliminated when it rams the back end of a slower car with faulty taillights at 10 o'clock the checkered flag and the ferraris and cobras finish one two three in their classes ferrari proved the superiority of their prototypes and the cobra forge prove they're the fastest most durable production cars in the world the ferrari gt are beaten for the first time as the cobra takes a whopping 16 point lead in the world gt manufacturers championship the cobra ford crew celebrate their victory and carol shelby well he's out of his wheelchair and very likely often running to capture the first world trophy ever to be won by an american production car [Music] you