Johnny Dark Movie Book

36 The plot follows automotive design engineer Johnny Dark (Tony Curtis), who builds a prototype of a new sports car for his employer, Fielding Motors. When the owner refuses to sponsor the car in a Canada to Mexico road race, Johnny steals the car with the aid of the owner's granddaughter Liz Fielding (Piper Lau- rie), and runs the race against the favored driver, his ex - buddy Duke Benson (Don Taylor). The film is legendary for the road race which makes up the second half of the film, including some exciting driving sequences and a number of rare early American sports cars. But the surprise for Willys fans is the opening sequence of the film, which shows two "Fielding Motors" se- dans out on the test track. They look vaguely familiar and we soon realize that they are in fact Aero Willys sedans. The Willys front grilles consisting of a single chrome bar and a large "W" have been replaced with a series of horizontal slots, which at first make the cars look vaguely European, something like a 1953 UK Ford Consul. A chrome strip has also been added to the centerline of the hood. The Aero Willys was probably chosen to be the Fielding in the movie because it had only been around for a year, and was less familiar than many other automobiles might have been to audiences. Also perhaps be- cause the sports car chosen to play the Fielding prototype (see below) actually had Aero taillights. The two examples in the opening scene appear to be painted Raven Black and Woodstock Green. Johnny and Duke are testing the steering on the Fieldings, and Johnny talks to his boss on the 2 - way ra- dio while driving. Soon after, he swerves and runs off the track. When the mechanics rush over to the crash site, we find the car on its side and Johnny climbing out. A quick look at the underside and he finds the problem: "The Pitman arm -- a clean break!" What's really unusual though, is that the grille now has vertical slots. As Duke gets out of his car, we get a good view of the rear of the Aero rebranded as a Fielding. The car's four doors and wraparound rear window mark it as a Hurricane 6 powered Aero - Ace. The 1953 Ohio license plate makes me wonder -- was some of this shot at the Willys test track in Toledo? I have seen a report at imcdb.org that the track is the Packard Proving Grounds in Utica, MI. Possibly the same car seen in the background of the shot above, this Admiral Blue 2 - door Aero driven later in the movie by Liz Fielding, looks like a top - of - the - line Aero - Eagle. It's been given yet another variation of the Fielding grille, with a crosshatch pattern. When Johnny and Duke chat briefly outside the Fielding plant at quitting time, I spotted the CJ - 3B in the background. It's hardly noticeable, and seems coincidental rather than an intentional product placement for the new 1953 Jeep.