Out of the 132 victories credited to cars owned by Johnson, Waltrip won 43, not to mention championships in 1981, 1982, and 1985. Johnson had himself been one of NASCAR’s premier drivers prior to his retirement in 1966. Dubbed “the last American hero” by author Tom Wolfe in a 1965 Esquire article, Johnson began his racing career as an avocation. NASCAR founder William H. G. France tried to persuade him to run a full schedule by saying he wanted Johnson to “commit” himself. As recounted by Johnson, his reply to France was, “I’m not committed to racing. I’m a bootlegger. I don’t race on the track; I race down the highway. It’s the same situation as when you’re having bacon and eggs for breakfast. That bacon comes from the pig. He was committed. The egg comes from a chicken. She was involved. “Where NASCAR was concerned, at that time, I was involved.” What led Johnson to become committed was a stint in federal prison, one that ended just a few months before he won the 1960 Daytona 500.
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