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Founding father France Sr.'s diverse interests went beyond stock carsPosted: Thursday February 14, 2002 3:49 PMBy Mike Fish, CNNSI.com DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Even in the formative years of NASCAR, politicians and celebrities enjoyed an association with the stock car crowd. President Richard Nixon was a fan. So, too, was the radio/TV entertainer Arthur Godfrey, and the original owner of the Dallas Cowboys, Clint Murchinson. And the strong ties can be traced to Bill France Sr., founder of NASCAR. William Henry Getty France was not only a towering force in the sport -- standing 6-foot-6 -- but also a player of some significance on the national political scene, according to newly released federal files. France, who died in 1992, was chairman of the Florida delegation to the 1972 Democratic National Convention and head of the state's George Wallace for President committee. When Wallace failed to secure the party's nomination, France surfaced as national vice chairman of Democrats for Nixon. Nixon was appreciative enough that a couple of years later, on Valentine's Day 1974, his office requested an expedited background check of France, who was under consideration for an unspecified presidential appointment, according to FBI files obtained by CNNSI.com through the Freedom of Information Act. France, then 64, didn't land a Washington gig, which was probably for the best, considering Nixon was in the throes of the Watergate scandal and fighting for his political life. "It doesn't surprise me, though I was not aware of that," NASCAR vice president Jim Hunter said of the White House's consideration. "He was always interested in politics. That is something Bill France Jr. has also been very interested in." Throughout the 135-page FBI file, France Sr. is spoken of in generally glowing terms, particularly by business associates and friends interviewed for background checks. He is variously described as "a man of even temperament ... an upright citizen ... a great patriot ... a person of high integrity ... a highly competent professional."
The files shine a revealing light on France and the upstart sport, including his 1946 arrest for conspiracy to violate gas rationing regulations (charges were apparently dismissed for lack of witnesses) that is referenced in three separate background checks. There are also details of his and the sport's cozy relationship with the FBI, along with a series of ugly death threats against General Motors racecar drivers in the mid-1980s, including Dale Earnhardt prior to the 1986 Daytona 500.
A friend of the FBIIn 1968, FBI director J. Edgar Hoover was recipient of a memorandum from the Special Agent in Charge (SAC) in Jacksonville, Fla., recommending France as a contact for the office because of "the extraordinary services he can render the FBI." The letter described France as a contact for FBI agents in Daytona Beach, while detailing a host of advantages to being friends with the "Father" of stock car racing:
Hunter said he believes Murchinson loaned money to develop the racing facility. The two men apparently developed a fast friendship after France provided him a flight on his plane after Murchinson's had broken down. "One of the things I remember most about Senior is his being a truly patriotic guy," said Hunter, who has been associated with NASCAR since 1961. "He was military. He and Mendel Rivers, when Mendel Rivers was chairman of the House Armed Forces Committee, were good pals. Mendel, for a period after he retired from Congress, was NASCAR's commissioner. "Senior was very warm. He was a communicator, sort of like President Reagan. He connected with people." And with the FBI. It is apparently not unusual for the FBI to establish contact with influential civic and corporate leaders. If the local office is working a money laundering case, as an example, it benefits the FBI to have a friendly bank president who can promptly facilitate a meeting with local bankers. As for the use of France or anyone else's private aircraft, the FBI is legally required to reimburse the individual, but a local contact can provide an ease of convenience. "It's just a case that a lot of times the FBI's aircraft won't be available and they'll look for someone who has an aircraft that can be provided quickly," explained Oliver "Buck" Revell, former FBI associate executive director.
Interest from the White HouseThe initial hint of a relationship between the NASCAR founder and President Nixon is revealed in a 1972 memorandum, in which the FBI is requested to do a name check. Again, this is apparently a common practice that dates back to the Franklin Roosevelt administration, where the FBI runs checks to keep the President from being embarrassed by the individuals he associates with. According to the file, the only red flag on France was a 1946 record revealing he'd been charged in Jacksonville, Fla., with conspiracy to violate Office of Price Administration regulations. The arrest surfaced again in 1974, this time during a full field investigation, when France was up for a presidential appointment. But once more federal investigators were befuddled because they couldn't find a document trail. The records showed only that France was fingerprinted by the U.S. Marshall in Jacksonville on March 8, 1946, and released on a $1,000 temporary bond. In an interview during the course of the FBI investigation in 1974, France volunteered that he'd been involved in an alleged sale of gasoline in violation of rationing regulations. His file describes him, at the time, as being a self-employed organizer/director of motor sports events in Daytona. He told agents he never made any further court appearances and that the case was dismissed "because the Government was unable to produce any witness" against him. "I wonder if that had something to do with one of those early races, where they ran on the beach?" Hunter speculated. "My guess is with rationing gas and not knowing how it worked, if maybe Bill needed gas to run the races on the beach. That might not have been considered [appropriate]." Revell, who was the No. 3 man in the FBI when he retired in 1994, doubts that an arrest almost 30 years earlier on a regulatory issue would have impacted possible appointment to a committee or commission. "The bureau doesn't evaluate that information, anyway," he said. "It's sent to the White House counsel's office and they would evaluate whether or not this was a significant matter and if it would impact the appointment." In a lengthy report to the White House, then FBI director Clarence Kelley notes: "Investigation favorable, except for the arrest..." The FBI verified his credit, uncovered no derogatory information and founded that his references highly recommended him. An unidentified reference from Jacksonville described France as a "very good friend of Governor George C. Wallace ... very patriotic American and is conservative in his political philosophy." France's 1974 biography revealed depth in a diversity of fields:
Death threatsVicious hate mail and death threats are nothing new to the sport. The FBI files reveal Dale Earnhardt was the subject of death threats in 1987 and H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler, head of Lowe's Motor Speedway, said authorities investigated a threat against Earnhardt at the Charlotte track as recently as the late 1990s. "Some guy in a bar made a threat about Earnhardt, and eventually the police found the guy two or three days later," Wheeler said. "The guy said he was tanked up and really didn't mean it. But that shakes you up, because we had to increase security and everything else." NASCAR received some of its more serious threats in 1985 and 1986. According to FBI files, Bill France Jr. (son of Bill France Sr.), then the president of NASCAR, turned over three hand-printed letters addressed to him at the sanctioning body's Daytona Beach office. All were postmarked Roanoke, Va., and written by a Ford racing fan outraged over rule changes that he deemed gave General Motors cars an unfair advantage.
In a June 28, 1985, letter, the writer claimed to be part of a group of 40 angry Ford fans, warning: "For every rule change, there will be some NASCAR personal or a member of their families will die." He further threatened sexual assault on female family members over 12 years of age. Leading up to the 1986 Daytona 500, the writer specifically targeted Earnhardt and a GM driver if he were to win the pole for the race. Subsequent letters to NASCAR and GM warned that any GM driver who won a race risked death to himself or a family member. The only way to stop the threats, NASCAR was told, was to "let General Motors race the last year model cars ... also cut the horsepower back on all General Motors cars to no more than 300 HP and give back to Ford the big carburetors." There is nothing in federal files indicating an arrest was ever made, but records indicate the FBI routinely gets involved in threats or extortion against athletes and other celebrities. "Anytime the fans are very heavily involved you are going to get that nut fringe," Revell said. "Other than taking notes and making sure there's proper dissemination, there's not much else that can be done."
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