Speed Danger Death These words were splashed across the cover of Hot Rod, warning readers Written in 1950, this book gives an historical look at the dangers of teens and reckless driving After WWII, cars became accessible, and teens were now hitting the roads for excitement Many horrific accidents occurred all over the country Felsen was specifically approachedSpeed Danger Death These words were splashed across the cover of Hot Rod, warning readers Written in 1950, this book gives an historical look at the dangers of teens and reckless driving After WWII, cars became accessible, and teens were now hitting the roads for excitement Many horrific accidents occurred all over the country Felsen was specifically approached to write a book about the dangers of teen drivers Bud Crayne was the typical tough guy with a chip on his shoulder Dressed in a black leather jacket, black boots, and blue jeans, he was not the clean cut kid Adults cursed him, while teens admired him He drove fast and wild His idea was to drive your way out of any trouble While it worked for Bud, others weren t as fortunate A couple of horrific wrecks make him question his need for speed Stephen King, when interviewed for an article called Reading While Famous, named Felsen as one of four authors who most influenced him when he was young He actually used Hot Rod and Henry Gregor Felsen as a book Ben Hanscom was reading in the book It.
Henry Gregor Felsen
Felsen was born and attended school in Brooklyn, N.Y.C.He taught part time at Drake University 1964 1969 , and in 1977 left Iowa to spend his remaining years traveling After struggling financially during the Depression, Felsen sold nine books and hundreds of stories in his first eighteen months of full time freelance writing in the early 1940s After war service with the Marine Corps, during which he edited the corps magazine Leatherneck and also wrote magazine articles while stationed in the Pacific, he returned to Iowa where he lived for most of his life Felsen was a prolific author He wrote than 60 books and hundreds of articles and short stories Felsen s most popular writings were his car series books The series Hot Rod, Street Rod, Rag Top, Crash Club was especially popular with teenage males, and sold than eight million copies Hot Rod 1950 was the most popular title and remained on the best seller list for 27 years Even though his books were about young men, fast cars, and girlfriends, Felsen used many of them to moralistically explore the evils of drug abuse, sexism, and racism He claimed that I was years ahead of my time to approach and explore these topics in literature aimed at the young reader The car series also appealed to young readers because it realistically paralleled the car culture of the 1950s and the craze of hot rodding The realism in his writing was also evident in the unhappy endings and heroes who were often rebels Felsen s books reflected the morals, values, and prejudices of the time.He is also credited with one screenplay, the 1968 film Fever Heat, based on his novel of the same name which had been published under the pen name of Angus Vicker.Felsen was married twice and had two children and two stepchildren In 1977 he left West Des Moines to move to Vermont and later lived in Michigan Felsen spent much of the last two decades of his life traveling He lived in Grandville, Michigan, and died of a heart ailment in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1995.
Hot Rod Network Classic Muscle Cars, Custom Roadsters Prestige Motorsports brings the classic Ford FE into the st century with fuel injection and Read More Hot Rod Rod Kimble is a naf, a slacker living in a small US town with his mom, his younger brother, and his stepfather whose respect he craves He also misses his dead dad, whom he thinks was Evel Knievel s back up. Hot rodHot rods are typically old, classic or modern American cars with large engines modified for faster speed The origin of the term hot rod is unclear For example, some claim that the term hot refers to the vehicle being stolen. Hot Rod Rotten Tomatoes Amateur stuntman Rod Kimble has a problem his step father Frank is a jerk Frank picks on Rod, tosses him around like a rag doll in their weekly sparring sessions and definitely doesn t respect HOT ROD Network YouTube HOT ROD Drag Week is a racing road trip, with radical street legal drag cars racing times in four days and driving , plus miles on public roads to get from track to track. Hot Rod film Hot Rod is a American comedy film co written, directed by, and starring members of The Lonely Island Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer.The film stars Samberg as amateur stuntman Rod Kimble, whose step father, Frank Ian McShane continuously mocks and disrespects him.
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Tim
My brother introduced this book to me in High School. I enjoyed it then and reread it about 20 years ago and enjoyed it then, but it did not have the impact on me then that it did when I was a high school student. I loved cars and working on cars then, and just like the main character I went on to study engineering in college because of this book. If I had it to do over again I think I would study business and open an auto repair business :) Great book that captures an era of Americana that is o [...]
I read most of the car books that Felsen wrote when I was in junior high back in the '60s. I can only vaguely remember them these days but I know I enjoyed them and that was a good age to read them. They were simple stories of guys with their first cars but did contain good lessons on life and such as simple as they were. I would recommend them to boys in the junior high age frame.
My thoughts on this book are influenced by the fact that I read it at age 15 about 40 years ago. I was living in a small rural community and really looking forward to getting my learners permit. Back then at that age it seemed like a great read. I even picked up a few driving techniques. );-]For me it was the right book at the right time.Reading it today would be a much different experience. Driving and cars are much more complicated.
I probably read this 3 or 4 times back in the early 60's when I was in junior high school. It seemed like high drama and romance. My stars are based on my memory of it, I doubt reading it today would yield more than 3 stars. Well to be honest, I doubt I could be bothered with it today.
Hot Rod is what made me want to be a writer. I'm not the only one. Stephen King, among others, has also cited the book and it's author Henry Gregor Felsen a major youth inspiration. . Though I'd forgotten most of the story (except the Signal 30 ending) I've thought of the book fondly for decades. I suppose today some do-good parents group would demand its withdrawal from the library due to violent content. Screw them. When the 60th aniversary edition was published with an intro by Felsen's daugh [...]
This book is horrible, but at the same time oh so good.It's a strange combination of exploitation style pulp, morality plays and 'Blood on the Windshield' style drivers education films. The story itself and the writing is average or below formula pulp relying heavily on pop-culture and current slang in a sad attempt to make it relevant but the humor is greatly compounded if one realizes that much of the 'technical' info regarding the actual mechanics of autos is complete gibberish and from time [...]
As a teenage boy in the 1950s, I was for a period of time addicted to the books of Henry Gregor Felson. Even then, I found the writing to be simplistic, cliche-ridden and not at all challenging. Even so, these tales of adolescent acting out, speed, and cars from the age of Blackboard Jungle, James Dean and Bye, Bye Birdie remain an important component in modern culture for me.
This incredibly entertaining book was the first I ever read cover to cover in my reading career. I was in second grade and just could not put it down. I don't know for sure what made me remember it now, but just HAD to read it again. It hasn't changed but I have. Still, what a great read for young readers, especially for boys who would all be into hotrods if they know what they are!
Felson was a literary safety nazi. His books on car culture are fictionalized lectures on his concept of automotive safety. I have no doubt he was in the crowd that wanted a national 55 MPH limit, mandatory auto insurance and the rest of the regulatory morrass involving automobiles and travel.
I enjoyed this book thoroughly when I read it at the age of 15, but it doesn't impress me as much now. It's still interesting and enjoyable, especially to motorheads, but it's now more of a time capsule than currently significant. Boys new to car-lust will enjoy it.
This book, originally published in 1950 is a gem and totally holds up over time. It might be a bit heavy handed in the teenager learns a lesson department; but, the writing is excellent and the descriptions of driving, racing and undertaking of a car project are compelling and interesting.
I read this book in jr. high school. One of only a hand full of books I read in school. Making up for it now - I read profusely now. Figured I'd read it once again.
I have read most of Felsen's "car" books. I read them in the early 80's. I loved them. I was into the car culture. They had the strong moral story of tragedy.
Hadn't read this since middle school. Found a copy at a thrift store. Interesting to read about the cultural differences from the 50s and now. People don't tune on their cars like this anymore.
Henry Gregor Felsen
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Henry Gregor Felsen
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