[dutchmunsinger]

Hi, I was from Chgo's SouthSide and now out in KS.

In my 50s/retired now.. but when I was 38, I suddenly had a whole 'nother ball o' wax thrown at me, I had been adopted by a Chicago stepfather ---- and my birthfather was a real Wild Child, a stock car driver named "Dutch". ~~~what who?!

Well that might explain the looks thrown at me when I was 17 and totally entranced by stock car racing on TV in the early 70s. By 19-20, I had spent many races over at Santa Fe Speedway in Willowbrook IL. ( I had no clue there was a "Raceway Park" involved in my own making until 1993-94. ) Obviously my sport preference is soaked with my father's DNA. I am his daughter.

Folks in this sport are SO kind; over the last 15 years ''Since The Revelation'', I have researched & written & called & inquired and they have kindly sent me track photos of him, newspaper cut-outs, tons of pages of race results, and a lot of email info about him.

I had read most of the newspapers on microfilm in/near Chgo IL and I got his name "Dutch" popping up at a few SAFE circuit races '54-55. And he liked to use his last address: "TX", which all the old IL drivers remembered. He seemed to change his "from" as it suited him. The guy was from Iowa.

a few years back, a gal was browsing online one day. she thought of HER mystery driver dad, and put his name in. I popped up #1. 20mins later we were half-sisters just 3hrs apart and I had all the real deal info on him. [yeah, a little hard to find a guy on just his nickname. ] and I held my first photo of him. It was like looking in a mirror. AH! No wonder my poor old mother frowned at me like THAT.

since meeting my sister and her mother, I've spent the last 4 years getting anything else I can on the real Man, what was he like off the track, did he have a day job, etc.. Interviewing "all" his surviving exwives and some known ex-girlfriends in their 70s and 80s now can be real tricky.

I am piecing together his Biography ...and so far he has Fascinated the heck out of me.

Most "Sports Results" on microfilm --even one-line mentions can be full of NEW info-- and interviews with men/women who knew him were better than ALL of his marriage license applications...cos he sure had a lot of imagination ...and he sure couldn't count the "exwives"... I keep finding them, hahaha..

I had some trouble with his facts/bio "after he left the ol' farm" from his own family in Iowa. He led such a colorful life --- but his generation had totally whitewashed his life --as they wanted it to be-- whiter than Wonder Bread. for an offspring like me researching --but with no background knowledge-- his obits [they wrote up 3 of them] could leave you screwed up on your charts for decades.

So, as you can see, I have to check the sports results at every race track in the IMCA SAFE/NASCAR MARC circuits from Phoenix to Detroit to Syracuse to Phila and Daytona. etc etc etc for 1954-1959. but hey, I don't mind.

Mun singer. 1921-1960, from Tabor IA, died on a rural cornfield IL highway. Aged 38yrs. He raced with the best of them.

Thanks for reading this, if you chance across him in something, could you please relay it to me?

~~~~~~~~~ I appreciate everything, no matter how simple or insignificant it may be. I was given an old tattered 2x3 scrap of blue paper from his death wallet, it had only a phone number and a street address. but it was deliberately "scrambled" like a code. I deciphered it and was able to track down his best childhood friend and WWII buddy, still living and so happy to be able to talk about him and meet me ..... so simply everything I can find "helps".

Sincerely,
PD Niles

[LSC9901]

Interesting story !! Welcome to GTG. Certainly cannot promise you any info but if you visit our NASCAR and Motorsports forums you may just find some info. We have some "experienced" posters among us and they may well have tidbits of info for you. Good luck.