(AP) – Robert Glenn "Junior" Johnson, a moonshine runner turned
NASCAR driver described as "The Last American Hero" by author
Tom Wolfe in a 1965 article for Esquire, died Friday.

NASCAR announced the death of Johnson, the winner of 50 races as
a driver and 132 as an owner. He was a member of the inaugural class
inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010.

A native of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, Johnson was named
one of NASCAR’s greatest drivers in 1998 after a 14-year career that
ended  in 1966 and included a win in the 1960 Daytona 500. He honed
his driving skills running moonshine through the North Carolina hills,
a crime for  which he received a federal conviction in 1956 and a full
presidential pardon in 1986 from President Ronald Reagan.

   
    
    

SANDY KOZEL

 
It’s a Wonderful Life, a 1946 Christmas fantasy drama film produced and
directed by Frank Capra and starring James Stewart, premiered in New
York on this day. The film is one of the most beloved in American cinema,
and has become traditional viewing during the Christmas season. It is 
now considered one of the greatest films of all time. It was nominated
for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and had been\ rated
as one of the 100 best American films ever made by the American Film
Institute.

        Frank Russell Capra             James "Jimmy" Maitland Stewart
(May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997)      (May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991)