Fon de Portago and the Kiss of Death

[snakeeyes]

I sent this little tale in e-mail form to Cal and Big Bob a long time back, but thought I would share it with the rest of the forum since it seemed appropriate for our new history section. It is more "legend" than anything, although the events are documented, but I have always found it a fascinating saga of the romance and danger of racing, especially back in the Fifties (not to mention an example of the mysterious power women hold over us!).

It goes like this:

Count Alfonso de Portago, "Fon" to his friends, was a wealthy playboy and Ferrari team driver in the Fifties. Handsome and daring (some would say overly so), he counted among his many girlfriends an American "B" movie actress named Linda Christian. Not unlike many of his colleagues from that era, Fon had a reputation for almost seeking out death; he reputedly spoke frequently about how he would never live to see old age.

Fon drove one of the legendary 335S Ferraris in the last Mille Miglia, held in 1957. The 335S was an absolute brute to wield around the 1,000 mile racecourse, but de Portago loved it for it's race-winning potential. Driving like a man possessed, Portago was well up in the standings as he and his codriver came through one of the last checkpoints, in Bologna.

To the delight of the crowd, Linda Christian appeared and rushed up to the momentarily stationary Ferrari, where she leaned into the cockpit and gave Portago a kiss that doubtlessly left the male contingent of spectators drooling and the females jealous. Portago tore away from the checkpoint.

Earlier in the race, he had noticed strange noises eminating from the rear of the car; there is a photo of him arriving at a previous checkpoint and pointing behind him for the mechanics to inspect the rear suspension. As always, however, whatever concerns this gave him were buried, and he flew away from Bologna in search of the overall victory.

A few miles down the road, a piece of the rear end broke, sending his 335S careening into the crowd at high speed. Portago, his codriver, and something like a dozen spectators were killed.

His accident caused an uproar that killed the Mille Miglia, as well.

Christian's unexpected action during the pit stop in Bologna has become known as "the Kiss of Death". I had heard about it for years but was not aware that anyone had captured part of it on film, until a friend sent me this photo. It is blurry and was taken just after the "kiss", but Christian can clearly be seen standing on the far side of the Ferrari. It is very likely the last picture taken of him before his death.

A small but interesting moment in motor racing history...

Bob