After seeing Mikes post above, I (probably like most here) googled Playland San Francisco, viewed pics and a couple videos about Playland (and its demolition in 1972). In the search, an image of a color postcard came up, Playland Model Car Raceways, showing the same overhead view along with one from another angle (looks like there was an overhead walkway), as well as a shot of the front of the building (which has MODEL CAR RACEWAYS in big letters spanning the front) with a parking area full of 50s-60s automobiles.
I believe that the photos of the actual Playland raceway (the overhead views and outdoor shot) were taken by the famous racing photographer of the 60s - 80s, the late Pete Biro (who passed away in 2019). I say this because, before he passed away, Biro was auctioning off hundreds of his original slides on eBay, along with digital copies of some of them on cds. Most were from Can-Am and F1 races from that period, with some Indy and NASCAR, as Biro was contracted by Goodyear for 30 years (as well as shooting and writing for Car & Driver, Road & Track, and Sports Illustrated). I bid on many of his photos, won a few, copied more from his auction postings.
One group really caught my attention - 4 slides, all color, of the Playland raceway including the purple mile. These were unusual for Biro, as they were done in the larger medium-format, 2 x 2 size rather than 35mm. I was outbid on all four, but copied them. Im speculating that these slides were taken early in Biros career, as a commercial shoot for Playland or their advertising agency, or perhaps for AMCR, as the overhead shot of the Sovereign track is also used in at least one AMCR print ad in the magazine.
I havent yet figured out how to post photos to Slotblog, but Ill try to email the eBay copies of the Biro slides to Mike to see if theyre of any use.
George emailed me the below.
I rotated and cropped them.
If I can get him to start a separate thread, I'll edit his post, inserting them, so he can get proper credit.
This is the "worse" of the bunch. You can see a reflection of George, or the Ebayer.
This is a real good one. Super crisp. While it was obviously taken at the same time as some of the iconic photos, it is not the same as the ones in Matt's link, in post #21. Among other things, there is more people at the HO track on the table, by the Purple Mile's first Finger. Also, with less cropping, it shows the whole drag strip. Note how anything blue (or purple?), really stands out.
IMO, here's the big winner, a pic of both the Yellow, and a Red, with a couple of large boat models on display, and apparently a race being held on the Yellow, with a red vested race director, using a portable(?) PA. It appears the Red Imperial is the "red headed stepchild" of the moment, with a few lanes available. Note how the blue shirts and jackets stand out, just like the previous photo.
