Wednesday, October 7, 2009

White Sands and Blue Corvettes

In the early 1990s, a movie came out that left an indelible footprint on my brain. It was called "White Sands" and starred Willem Dafoe, Mickey Rourke, with a then unknown Samuel L. Jackson.

The movie was forgettable, except for about five minutes when Willem Dafoe's character blasted along a desert highway in a vintage Corvette Sting Ray. The Nassau blue Vette, set against the barren, rust colored desert at sunset, with lightning flashes and clouds from a thunderstorm, stood out like a turquoise jewel set in adobe. The rumbling echo of exhaust harmonized with distant thunder and Patrick O'Hearn's haunting movie soundtrack.

I have dreamed of taking a drive across New Mexico in a Corvette since that movie came out. Just about any Vette would do, except for the Sunkist orange Dirk Diggler edition with gold rims. But since I am dreaming, I would want to drive a 1965 Nassau blue roadster, with a 327 small-block V8 and four-speed transmission.

3 comments:

  1. Other favorite Movie Car Moments--other than American Graffiti.
    Terms of Endearment--Jack Nicholson driving through the sand.
    The Outsiders--When Cherry shows up in her cute little car.
    Anything from Smokey and the Bandit.
    Here's a fun walk down memory lane--movies you love, movies you forgot and movies you never heard of before.
    http://www.hotrod.com/thehistoryof/hdrp_0610_top_car_movies/index.html

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  2. What year is the vintage corvette that Willem Defoe uses in White Sands?

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    Replies
    1. Russ, I think it’s either a ‘65 or ‘66. Not sure what engine or specs

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