David E. Davis Jr., journalist, author, magazine founder, advertising executive, raconteur and friend passed away Sunday, March 27 at age 80 following a complicated medical procedure that he faced with courage and confidence.
With his passing the world of automotive journalism has lost one of its great, legendary characters. During his long productive life in the fast lane of cars and motorsports he made his mark in many fields. For me, he will forever be the man who took over Car and Driver magazine in the early ’60s and made it into a world-class irreverent journal of note. He launched the tongue-in-cheek “Gurney for President” campaign in 1964 that was an enormous success with American motorsports fans, and is but one example of David’s many fabulous PR ideas, all born out of enthusiasm and love for our sport at a time when the sport and we were young. He was a giant in his field and we will miss him.
by Dan Gurney
