EDITOR’S NOTE: 43: The Richard Petty Story was on the CBS Late Movie on May 13, 1987.
When this biopic about NASCAR’s winningest driver was made, stock-car racing hadn’t yet vaulted from regional popularity in the South to nationwide notoriety. Races didn’t find their way to national television until a few years later, so that might explain why producers brought only meager resources to bear on this project, likely expecting only limited exhibition opportunities.
All of which is a polite way of saying that 43: The Richard Petty Story, which sorta-kinda stars Petty as himself, is a cheap-looking quickie with a dopey script, juiced only slightly by the inclusion of footage from real NASCAR races. It’s not much of a tribute to a sport’s reigning champ, but one gets the impression that no one involved took the project seriously, except, of course, Petty himself. As for the remark about him sorta-kinda starring, chances are the producers quickly realized Petty had zero acting talent and not much more charisma, relegating him to a minor supporting role despite his name in the title. Seasoned actor Darren McGavin gets much more screen time as Petty’s father.
The flick opens with a simple framing device. After Richard wipes out in a race, his father, Lee Petty (McGavin), gathers with family members at a hospital to await news of Richard’s condition. This triggers memories of the time when Lee stumbled into a career as a stock-car racer during the sport’s early days. Specifically, Lee tried to buy a car from a redneck, only to get trapped in the car—alongside young Richard—while the redneck, a moonshine runner, sped down country roads to avoid capture by police. Exposure to fast cars, combined with other circumstances—such as the family home burning down—prompted Lee to become a racer, albeit one prone to costly wipeouts and fierce competitiveness. Eventually, Richard joins the family trade, and in one scene, Lee berates officials into changing the race results, awarding Richard’s win to Lee.
Director and writer Edward J. Lakso wrote episodes of Airwolf, The Fall Guy, Planet of the Apes and The Six Million Dollar Man and directed Brother on the Run and Head On.
You can watch this on YouTube.
