I'm not sure when I first saw Linda Vaughn. I know for certain that it was in a Hot Rod magazine. I'm also sure that it was in a Hurst Stick Shift ad, and it was definitely a jaw dropping discovery! She immediately replaced Barbara Eden as my adolescent dream girl. She's been described as "larger than life" and as "having a presence", but that's just code for VA-VA-VA-VOOM!!!!! Which itself is code for "that woman is so sexy that I'm speechless". She looked great in any of her many "Miss Hurst Golden Shifter" (I swear that was her title) outfits, from her big blond bouffant all the way down to her signature white go - go boots. It didn't matter if she was sportin' a mini - skirt or gold lame stretch pants and revealing top, she was breathtaking. Goodbye Jeannie, hello Linda!

Linda was born in Dalton, Georgia to humble beginnings, and almost humble every-thing's. If you've never been to North Georgia, it is a beautiful mountainous region, decorated with green as far as the eye can see. But there is nothing, and I mean nothing, else there. Unless you count carpet factories and chicken farms. The latter is as breathtaking as the mountains, but in a bad way if you're unlucky enough to get downwind! But that's going in the opposite direction, so let's do a bootleg 180 right about heah.... A local beauty contest, it was Miss Poultry or something like that, catapulted her to fame as Miss Hurst Golden Shifter and into our hearts and minds. The story goes that our Georgia peach won the job over another voluptuous contender , because, as legend goes the other girl had false teeth. No big deal, except the other girls teeth kept falling out ! What was bad teeth for one contestant became the big time for Linda, and it also put Hurst on the map. The product recognition was genius and they played it for all it was worth. Linda traveled endlessly across the country (and eventually the world), representing Hurst in skin tight and very revealing costumes. Many of you are thinking "ah, yes ..." in your minds right now, you know what they looked like! You women do too! And think about this - what's better than the smell of racing fuel, burning rubber, and a buxom blond standing on the back of a car clutching a twenty foot stick shift?!?!!? There's nothing subtle in the south after you get out of the parlor and down in the dirt (where the real action is).

Everything was bigger in the 60's - car's, burger's, hair, and life in general. We weren't so compartmentalized and formatted yet. And Miss Vaughn criss crossed the Auto racing world deftly, spreading the Hurst Good Vibe message like a revival tent preacher spreads The Word. She didn't shout, but she had as much impact. And behind the smile (and let's face it - boobs) revealed a strong will and a natural knack for business. A lot like one of her heroes Dolly Parton. Sexy but smart, and never going down to the gutter to get attention. Linda became the, as someone once described it, "The By God Queen Of Racing In America" in short order, and short skirts. She knew what brung her to the dance though, and was never shy about it. She quipped once that; "When you've got boobs as big as mine, you're guilty until proven innocent". Another great line form our cantilevered beauty was (to paraphrase); " When I spill something on the table it never goes into my lap". Typical Southern euphemisms. Don't fool yourself, every Southern Belle has a ton of these witticisms in them, it's something they're born with! You expect a good ol' boy to come up with gems like these, but when a lady with an accent as arresting as Scarlet O'hara's does it with such ease it's an amazing thing to behold.

Over time, Hurst had to hire a bevy of beauties because the demand was so great. They were dubbed "The Hurstettes", and they were "I suppose so" fill - in's when Vaughn couldn't show. Linda just couldn't be everywhere at once, she was spanning the globe by now, including entertaining the troops in Viet Nam and appearing in movies like "Gumball Rally" and "Stroker Ace" with Burt Reynolds. And her NHRA, NASCAR and other track appearances were still met with as much fanfare as ever. You expceted her to come rolling down the track holding onto the shifter just as much as you expected the "Star Spangled Banner"! The outfits became more and more outlandish, the hair was as wild as ever, and her smile was as brilliant as the sun gleaming off all the chrome. But she always reamined a lady, she spurned more than one advance from Playboy and Penthouse, and God knows who else. True class, she always has had class.

She has described herself as having a heart as big as her breasts, but she also has brains, common sense, and an ambassadors disposition. She was promoted to V.P. of Public Relations with Hurst Industries as her Trophy Queen career wound down. She brokered many a deal, including making sure that every Nascar car was Hurst equipped over time, and that every NHRA racer had at least one Hurst product on board. And the fans, ever faithful, still roared whenever she made a rare appearacne at their local track.

Last we heard she was still in the business, working for Prolong Super Lubricants (Shutup! I couldn't possibly make that up!), and still making apperances at Car Shows and select races. She's still as famous and revered wherever she goes, and she can still flash a sincere Southern Belle smile. Not bad for a skinny kid from the North Georgia Mountains ....