Hi, All;
There are a few racers that I believe are just something special. This posting is about one of those, the late, great Phil Hill.
While I was growing up, I could hardly wait to read the newest issue of Road & Track magazine. I was then, and still am, a fan of sports car racing, but could be classed as a Formula One zealot! Today, I often drive twenty miles at 3:00 am to watch Formula One races live, with other similarly sick individuals.
I became aware of Phil Hill’s driving exploits through written race reports, then by watching him race at Southern California tracks. It was his racing in Europe that gave him a certain other worldly quality, though. The fact that he was racing for Ferrari cemented his reputation for me. Had I known how “interesting” it could be to drive for Enzo Ferrari, I would have elevated Hill’s status even higher! First of all, the money wasn’t enough to really qualify as a profession, probably. Drivers paid most of their own expenses, drove from race to race, worked at testing for many hours, and had abuse heaped on them for bad results. Add to all of the preceding, the fact that at any time, you could be killed, and it makes one wonder why anyone would do it.
There were some drivers that clearly had to do it, they were like clones of Jim Morrison (of “The Doors”), or another person that you knew wouldn’t live long. Phil Hill didn’t appear to be one of those, though. A friend once told me that he had read an account saying that Phil became so nervous before a major race, that he had to eat baby food for a week prior to that race! At first, I was shocked, then it occurred to me that he understood the risks, or he just wanted to do the best possible job, and not embarrass himself. Either way, that sounded oddly rational.
Phil Hill also had interests outside of auto racing. Through his co-ownership of the auto restoration company, Hill and Vaughn, he restored some of the most beautiful collector cars in the World. He had other interests also. I had a friend that was an enthusiast of steam cars, and worked unceasingly on designing steam-powered autos, but he also loved what he called “reproducing pianos.” I was told, in clear terms that they weren’t “player pianos!” They would exactly reproduce the original performance of the pianist. Unlike common player pianos, these were something quite special. My friend, Richard Smith, told me that he had found a great source of parts for the pianos, a man called Phil Hill, who lived in Santa Monica, California. In all the times that my friend had talked to Phil Hill, Phil hadn’t told Richard that he was the former World Driving Champion! From what I’ve heard, that was Phil Hill’s way.
As I said, Phil Hill was always one of my heroes. When I saw him at an event in Los Angeles, I asked if I could take his photo. He very kindly stood, in spite of his trouble in walking and standing. He probably didn’t think twice about the encounter, but I was quite excited by it. I knew that the portrait that I would draw from that photo would be one of my favorites.
Fast forward to the following year, again in December, in Los Angeles, and there I was, and so was Phil. His strength had diminished, as his son Derek was pushing him around in a wheelchair, but he was there. As I knew I would, I had finished the portrait. Now the only question was whether to ask Phil to autograph it. Parkinson’s had clearly taken over much of his body, but others were having things signed, so I went over to him also. I asked if he would sign his likeness, and he took the pen, and started. Almost immediately, I regretted asking for the autograph! He was obviously exerting tremendous effort to control his hand enough to do the autograph, by the time he was finished, I was sweating! I thanked him, and rushed away, shaken.
I showed the portrait to many people, but mostly just friends. One day, my pal, the noted photojournalist, Tim Considine, called to ask if he could use two of my Phil Hill portraits for Phil’s eightieth birthday party! I asked Tim about how it would be used, and he said that the two images would bracket the video presentation that would run on the big screens as people talked about Phil Hill’s life. I brought the originals over to Tim’s house, so he could photograph them, and incorporate them into the video. To say that I was proud to be asked to use them, would have been a gross understatement.
The next time that I showed them in public wasn’t as happy. I was asked to the viewing of Phil Hill’s body at a small church in Santa Monica, California. I took the originals along, in order to show Phil’s widow, Alma, but though I did show them to others, she was totally surrounded by friends, so she didn’t get to see them.
Below is the image that he posed for (the second one was inspired by photo taken by the remarkable racer and photographer, Denise McCluggage). I hope you enjoy them. The second image isn’t signed, it would have been torture to have Phil sign it too!
