Retro Indy: Gentlemen, start your movie viewing. Hollywood has long loved the Indy 500

Indianapolis Star

09-05-2025

(Editor's note: This story originally appeared in 2017.)
Fast cars, rivalries, race scenes, handsome drivers with grit and determination and beautiful women who stick by them. That's Hollywood's take on racing at the Indianapolis 500.With practice for the 109th running of the Indy 500 scheduled to start May 13, here's a sampling of some of the many films made over the years starring the race. Some were even filmed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "Speedway" (1929): Featured both silent and sound-synchronized sequences. Two-thirds of the scenes were filmed around Indianapolis and one can easily spot landmarks, such as Monument Circle. Fourteen cameras were used to shoot "time trials" and the race. This is the first feature film to focus on Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
"The Crowd Roars" (1932): James Cagney and Joan Blondell star in this movie directed by Goshen native Howard Hawks. Cagney tries to keep his brother out of the racing business. Atmospheric and crash scenes were filmed in Indianapolis. Drivers Billy Arnold, who served as technical advisor to the film, Ralph Hepburn, Wilbur Shaw, Stubby Stubblefield and Harry Hartz were cast as themselves.
"Straightaway" (1933): Tim McCoy stars as a racer bound for the Indy 500. McCoy's brother is framed for murder, and gangsters try to fix the "guilty" verdict if McCoy's brother wins the Indy 500.
"Speed" (1936): Jimmy Stewart, Wendy Barrie and Una Merkel star in this 60-minute B-movie about an engineer and test driver who enter the 500-Mile Race to test the new carburetor design.
"Speed to Spare" (1937): Charles Quigley stars as racer Tommy Morton, who tracks down his long-lost brother Larry 'Skids' Brannigan, who becomes his rival.
"Road Demon" (1938): Henry Archer stars as a truck driver by day, dirt track racer at night who convinces his boss to back a race car. Race sequences filmed at the Indy 500. Bill "Bojangles" Robinson plays a tap-dancing junkyard owner.
"Indianapolis Speedway" (1939): A remake of "The Crowd Roars," that stars Pat O'Brien, John Payne and Ann Sheridan. Extra footage from "The Crowd Roars" was used in this movie.
"Sport Chumpions" (1941): A Warner Bros. classic cartoon that features the "Indianapolis Speed Classic." Brief but amusing."The Big Wheel" (1949): Mickey Rooney is the son of a race driver who tries to clear his name after running over a teammate in a California midget race. He makes his way to Indianapolis and, in Hollywood fashion, crosses the finish line with his car on fire, jumping from the racer just before it explodes.
"To Please a Lady" (1950): Clark Gable stars as a ruthless midget racer whose reckless driving causes the death of another driver. Barbara Stanwyck plays a newspaper columnist who wants him banned from the sport of racing. A crew of 70 from MGM Studios set up shop at the Speedway to film and 14 cameras trained on the racing, crowd and action scenes.
"Roar of the Crowd" (1953): Drivers Duke Nalon, Johnnie Parsons and Henry Banks play themselves. Howard Duff's character is the son of a racer, who makes a deal with his girlfriend that he will quit racing once he races in the Indianapolis 500. He's injured during qualifying and quits before she gives in and he finally qualifies. Stock footage of the race was used.
"Winning" (1969): This movie features an all-star cast of Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, and Robert Wagner. Newman plays racer Frank Capua, who marries Woodward's character. Wagner portrays Luther Erding, Capua's rival, who sleeps with Woodward's character. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is featured and the Speedway Motel has a cameo.