Jim Kirby's 1968 Harrell Funny Car for Sale!

[MotownMadman]

Tom,
Obviously I wasnt serious about letting the attorneys chase the car, and I dont agree with using anyones name for the purposes of making a copy/clone or whatever the politically correct name may be these days, or using a family name for the purposes of profit. However, to use the name in a non-profit and non-malicious way in the course of preserving history should not be a problem. Obviously this type of situation is something that has to be a case by case basis to be overseen by family, but if the car came originally with a certain name or design it should be allowed to be restored to original. For example, suppose the Yenko family decided to protect their name to the point that if you were to restore your Yenko no stripes were available due to family rights, so then you have a set made to bring your car back to original and the family takes you to court to make you remove them. Now you have a Yenko which could never be original again. That does not seem fair, and yes this is an extreme example, but if history shows through photographs or documents that a car had certain designs or names when initially built then that car should be allowed under law to retain it's originality thereby preserving it's history. The new ZL-1 with the Harrell name on the side is a different matter. That is an after the fact situation that would certainly require permission from the family or rights holder, I am in complete agreement, but a car that obviously at some point had the permission to use that name should be allowed to do so in the absence of a document from Mr. Harrell to Mr. Kirby from that initial time period stating the rights were withdrawn. In the course of restoring a famous Rembrandt the signature requires to be gone over and repaired, suppose the Rembrandt family came forward and said "No, permission is not allocated for the Rembrandt name to be used" So all Rembrandt works have to have the signatures removed because the family requests it? I do believe the families in these type of collector car situations should pay close attention and be treated with respect over the name, but at the same time the advocate of preserving the history of these cars and the hobby in general should be allowed to preserve and maintain the history of these vehicles. If the car had that name when built, then it should be allowed to keep the name to maintain it's originality. IMO
Thanks,
Motown [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/flag.gif[/img]

[396L35]

Tom, I didn't speak with Valerie this morning, even though it would be an honor, it was an individual interested in the car that happens to know the Harrell family. Your right, I shouldn't have bashed Valerie last night on the rights of her fathers name, but I feel the same way Matt does on this subject: If the car came with it, and you can clearly see it still on the car, then why not let history be told the way it was. I don't want to see this car having to be repainted, over the rights of someones name, it should be left alone and enjoyed by all that see it. If I am out of line let me know???? But in all respect for the Harrell family I think Dick would love to see the car as it was back when he was teamed up with Kirby and Valerie has to see that this is a piece of racing history that her father was heavily involved with and loved...Mark [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/flag.gif[/img]

[sYc]

Mark, no problem here. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/flag.gif[/img] A sticky situation to say the least. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/dunno.gif[/img]

[sYc]

Let me see if I understand what you are saying. If the family gives us what we want, which is use of the name for free, that is great, we respect them. But, if they try to profit from the name, then we should say the hell with them and just do it anyway. Sorry, I respectfully disagree. I guess that is why I am the only one who ever went to the trouble to ask/recieve permission from the Yenko family/estate to use the Yenko name. And, why I helped both the Harrell and Gibb families trade mark their logos, when I could have done it myself, and generated a lot of $$. Sorry, but to me, there are right ways and wrong ways of doing things.

[whitetop]

Tom Clary

Through a nice windfall I just bought the following companies: Cragar, Don Hardy and B&M. Effective immediately remove the above mentioned names & logos from the side of your '68 F/C or we will pursue this matter in court.

Motown your last post is the most common sense I've heard on this site in along time and I agree 100%.

[sYc]

Make jest, poke fun, what ever, make light of the situation, that is fine. But, remember, members of the Harrell, Yenko, Gibb, Rosen, Nickey and maybe even other supercar family members frequent this site. I would imagine they are not too excited about the tone of this thread, and may be even harder to deal with in the future. And, who could blame them. I know I would be hestitate to bid/negotiate on the Kirby car right now, knowing I might need to deal with the Harrell family in the future.

[moparts]

Using a name such as Dick Harrell, or others to gain a profit from what you are doing or selling falls into a different category than having a car with a name on it.
In the case of this car, as I stated before I think the biggest problem was in the wording of the ebay ad. The car is not an original Dick Harrell funny car; it is an original Jim Kirby funny car that was run under the Dick Harrell banner for a year or two. If I remember the story right Dick installed the blown engine in exchange for the use of the car for this time period. So with taking that into consideration it is a Jim Kirby funny car with a Dick Harrell engine. Whatís that make the engine worth? The wording of the ad could have (and I say could have because it may or may not make a difference) a great deal of influence on the price of the car. I think this was an honest mistake and applaud them for stopping the ad to fix the problem. I do believe that it would benefit them to talk to Valerie and get things straightened out to get the name back on the car. The car is a great piece of history the way it is, Jim Kirby history!

Just my 02 worth....ok maybe 03

[sYc]

A point to ponder. Anytime one of the supercar families agree to the use of their family name/logo on a car, they are actually "authenicating" it. A very big issue in this day and time. This alone can make a car worth 2-3 -? times more then another similar car. Are not they entitled to a portion of this windfall?

[bkhpah]

Has anyone even asked Valarie what her ideas are? I have talked to her. She is very nice and I respect her. Most of you have never spoke to her or heard any of the things that have happened to her over her fathers cars or business. But yet you bash her anyway because it does not agree with your feelings. The Harrell family should have a say in what goes on. I know some things are in the works that would make most Harrell fans stand up and cheer. Things that are being looked into by Valarie and others that are close to her and who she respects. The way this thread started, I wonder why they even care sometimes. If it weren't for Harrell, maybe some of your other Supercars Dealer {Yenko, Nickey etc.} may have never been realized. Let's hear the Harrell side of things..BKH [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beers.gif[/img]

[55chevy]

I agree with Brian. I'd say before anyone says any more about the Harrells, you should spend some time over here.
Enjoy. http://www.dickharrell.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl
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