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Moonshine and NASCAR

by Adam Finley, posted Feb 4th 2007 6:04PM

moonshineOn February 6 at 9 p.m., the National Geographic Channel will air Moonshine, a one-hour documentary about the history of moonshine and how the outlawed liquor led to one of the most popular sports franchises of all time, NASCAR.

The special will feature the last interview ever conducted with racing legend and NASCAR announcer Benny Parsons, who passed away last month. Also featured in the documentary is Junior Johnson, who almost faced jail time for transporting moonshine when he was younger.

When prohibition struck in the '20s, skilled drivers were recruited to transport moonshine, a corn-based concoction introduced to the South by Scots-Irish immigrants. What was once a way to evade the law soon evolved into the sport of stock car racing, and later into the phenomenon known as NASCAR. Let that be a lesson to anyone currently breaking the law: your unlawful exploits just might be the next big thing in sports.

You can watch a preview clip of Moonshine here.

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theburn16

benny parsons died last month, not last year

February 05 2007 at 10:39 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Hill

Junior Johnson DID do time but was later pardoned.

February 05 2007 at 2:39 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
treegoat

I never knew that about Nascar! Can't wait to tell my grandmother - yes, she is way into the races. And probably was into moonshine too.

February 04 2007 at 10:03 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply

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