Monday, September 8, 2014

Stars & Their Hobbies ~ Steve McQueen


"Racing is the most exciting thing there is. But unlike drugs, you get high with dignity." - Steve McQueen

Becoming a professional race car driver wasn't in the cards for Steve McQueen but that didn't stop him from pursuing racing as a hobby. Over the years he spent much of the money he made from acting on high-perfomance vehicles. His love of racing transferred over to his films too including The Great Escape (1963), Thomas Crown Affair (1968), Bullitt (1968) and the quintessential racing movie Le Mans (1971). For safety reasons, insurance companies prohibited from doing many of the racing stunts in his films, much to his dismay. But when he wasn't a filming a movie, he was free to race to his heart's desire.

Here are some vehicles McQueen owned:

Motorcycles - Triump Bonneville, Husquarna 400 CR, Indian Chief, a variety of antique motorcycles that dated from the 1920s and earlier.

Sports cars - Siata 208, Lotus XI, Porsche 356 Speedster, Jaguar XK-SS, Ferrari 250 GR Lusso

Read my review of the book Steve McQueen: A Passion for Speed here.


McQueen in the Green Ford Mustang Fastback GT390 from Bullitt (1968)


 Cycle World 1964. Source
My series Stars & Their Hobbies explores how notable actors and actresses from Hollywood history spent their free time. Click here to view a complete list of entries.

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