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 Post subject: BSR Film
PostPosted: Tue Apr 23, 2013 4:27 pm 
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Joined: Sun Feb 03, 2013 2:43 pm
Posts: 62
Location: Philadelphia
Just wanted to give all you guys and gals a heads up! My fathers Documentary Film on Bob Sharp from 1971 is back in the studio after 40 years in the can. Bob narrates the entire first half of the film in prep for the race in which he naturally wins and takes the checkered flag! I've been doing my best to organize it's first public showing ever at the National ZCON event this August, and I'm currently coordinating all the people needed to get this done at the same time I'm currently in the process of restoring my Tribute 510 to BSR. I'm exhausted, but this is a pure labor of love for me, as Bob Sharp has been a part of my life and shaped me into my passions.. I'm looking forward to finally meeting Mr. Sharp in person, and hearing his wonderful stories first hand. I was only 10 years old the first and last time I saw the film, and my memories of it fell short of how truly great this film really is. Keep an eye out for future updates, and hope to meet you all this year even if I can only finish one of my projects.. Till then, Dave Levinson, Philadelphia


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File comment: Film back in the studio after 40 years!
Gary Levinson Credit Screen.JPG
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PostPosted: Tue Apr 23, 2013 6:29 pm 
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Joined: Wed Apr 09, 2008 5:53 pm
Posts: 14776
Location: CT
This is exciting and I can hardly wait to zee the production results.

A few years back, Bob brought several of his own private 8mm films to our monthly meeting and we spent the whole evening watching him whup the paint off the "A" Production Cobras, Corvettes and Jaguars. His 1970 240Z had been tweaked to a power/weight ratio of about 7:1, which allowed him to get the jump on the larger cars right from the start. He had to fight pretty hard to gain enough lead thru the turns (because he lost it all back on the straights), but his superior driving and reliable Datsun kept ahead of all the more powerful cars. Those were silent films (and we don't know who shot them), but it was thrilling to watch Bob's C-Production 240Z (the one you show here, HLS30-00006), take the Checkered Flag as the more powerful A & B Production cars spun off the course or blew themselves up trying to catch him. :D

Frank T

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 20, 2013 9:36 am 
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Joined: Wed Apr 09, 2008 5:53 pm
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Location: CT
Well, I have seen this video and I am here to tell y'all that it is well worth waiting for, and ZCon was the perfect venue for the release of this classic, historic flick.

Dave's dad did an excellent, professional job filming and editing this piece of Datsun history, especially compared to many of the flicks I've seen from 'back in the day'. Perspective, angle of view and sound are all excellent, and film quality is better than most we've seen from that era.

Bob Sharp Himself narrates much of the film, from the 1971 era. That's the "young Bob" talking about his impressions of the 'new' 240Z and how it differs from other cars he's driven. There are long candid close-ups of Bob enthusiastically discussing the car with his mechanics when he doesn't know he's being filmed, and some of it sounds like he suddenly understands he has discovered a 'secret weapon' against every other car on the racing circuit.

Bob then qualifies the prepared car (HLS30-00006) for the pole position and whups every other car in the race, including a pair of bloodthirsty 427 Cobras, some 427 Corvettes, Bob Tillius' famous #44 Triumph TR6, a whole passel of 'lesser' 327 Corvettes and 289 Cobras, and the usual 'also rans' of A, B, and C production....all of which practically destroy themselves (and each other) trying to catch him in his new "Japanese car".

Dave's dad shot some really exciting footage of Bob in practice, feeding the Z into sweeping, constant-radius turns at 3-digit speeds which let him drift the Z perfectly. The film was shot head-on, looking back at the nose of Bob's #33 Z racer, and slightly downward. I asked Dave how his dad had managed to get such a great shot (it was very steady) and what race car they used as a camera platform? Dave laughed and told me his dad sat backwards on the roof of a STATION WAGON doing 100mph, carrying a heavy professional camera, to get those shots! :shock:

This is a must-see video for any Z enthusiast. It was made from several reels of 8mm film (correct me if I misquoted the film size, Dave?), which had sat on a closet floor for 4 decades before being re-discovered. Sent first to Nissan North America for proper clearance to publish, the reels returned with little red flags sticking up in several areas of the film reels, meaning that Nissan had actually viewed and considered everything filmed and only objected to a few areas. So we get to zee the rest! This is a wonderfully exciting Time Capsule glimpse back into the earliest days of the Z's victorious climb to fame.

It was racing which put the Z on the American map, and it was Bob Sharp who put the first Z onto the racetrack. This was the first full-season of the first racing Z car in the world. This very film documents the dawning of the Z car climb to fame. Early Zs sold like crazy because they looked beautiful, were affordable and reliable, and beat the pants off everything around them. This film documents the dawn of that discovery, when Bob first realiZes he has a Dragon Slayer by the leash.

I also have to tell you that meeting Dave Levinson in person was worth the trip to Nashua itself. He's a larger-than-life character whose love and devotion to the old Datsun racing effort shines thru his entire personality. I was honored that Dave took time out of his insanely-busy
schedule at Nashua to give me a private viewing of this video. It was exciting to say the least ~ altho Bob's car was the only Z in the race, I recogniZed several other historic racers and cars which were familiar to my younger days, and I'm not sure I stopped grinning thru the whole video. I was always a huge fan of the 289 Cobras, but Bob's 240Z made them look like frustrated Keystone Kops trying to catch him.

Dave, Bob and RDZ are working to market this video for public sale and I hope they hurry. I want to be among the first to own my copy of this historic flick.

For those who didn't get to visit ZCon and zee this flick, you can view a silent minute of this sound film by pressing here:

http://www.zccazconvention.com/conventions/2013 and activating the video start button.

The film is called, "Some People Collect Stamps". Dave's dad surely offers a more exciting hobby to consider. 8)

Frank

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