Amazon Prime’s docuseries, ‘Earnhardt’, is promised to be a gripping tale about NASCAR’s biggest superstar. It is more than a tribute, rather, an in-depth dive, giving fans a perspective on the human side of Dale Earnhardt, along with his persona as a race car driver. But this also presented a stage for both Dale Jr. and Kelley Earnhardt to shed light on their childhood stories and how tricky it was growing up under the wing of the Intimidator.
Now, racing was everything for Dale Jr., but he wasn’t allowed to race right from the get-go. Although we know how good of a race car driver he is, little did we know he could’ve been an artist. Yes, the sort that paints on canvas and etches out portraits, that kind of artist. Growing up, Dale Jr. used to paint and draw to capture the moments that transpired on the racetrack, and he was actually good at it. The only trouble he had with this hobby was, he still wanted to be a race car driver, and although he could’ve mastered the art, he had other plans for his future.
“I love drawing cars, I wasn’t an artist in the sense that you might imagine. I like to talk about cars, race cars, look at cars, touch race cars, work on them and I love to draw them. Would get images out of a book and draw the images. I love drawing crashes because of the dynamics of the image itself and part flying and bending and twisting metal. I’d take art in school because I could draw race cars and get an easy grade. I learned how to shade, learned how to do a better job at drawing race cars over time, and I really enjoyed that.” Dale Jr. said to KickintheTires at the premiere of the docuseries, Earnhardt.
But what happened? Why didn’t Jr. continue to paint? “Don’t know I was that talented at it, I guess my dad and Theresa thought that it was something I might want to pursue. I was scared that, that might move me any further from any chance to become a driver. It freaked me out, I was like, ‘Oh no! Not doing that! I want to race. What do I got to do to drive a car, not draw them for a living?” He explained further.
Now, life with his stepmother, Teresa, wasn’t easy from the get-go. There were a lot of rules and regulations in place when both Jr. and Kelley moved in with their father after their house went up in flames. They lived with Brend, their mom, but after the fire, Earnhardt took them in. The docuseries touches upon the uneasy relationship between the kids and Teresa. Talk about rules, Dale Jr. wasn’t allowed to watch wrestling as he would enact the stunts himself, using his pillow. But his passion for racing couldn’t be contained, which is why he didn’t continue with art.
DAYTONA BEACH, FL – FEBRUARY 4: Dale Earnhardt Sr. & Dale Earnhard, Jr. pose together at the raceway in Daytona Beach, Florida. The Earhnardts and Andy Pilgram earned second in the GTS category during the 2001 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. (Photo by ISC Archives/CQ-Roll Call Group via Getty Images)
Well, the NASCAR fans would be glad that Jr. dropped the paint brushes for the race helmet. He might not have been as successful as his father in claiming multiple championships, but he surely scripted his spot as the poster boy for the sport in the modern era. He does have 26 Cup Series wins and Daytona 500 triumphs, which goes to show he was a true Earnhardt at heart. Had it not been for his issues with concussions, we might have seen him enjoy his racing more. Not only that, he is still the most influential voice in NASCAR and has grown to be a successful business with his media production house, Xfinity race team, and projects like High Rock Vodka.
Interestingly, before this docuseries went live, NASCAR’s new partner, Prime Video, was put to the test. He didn’t believe that they could make a series that could beat the Dale doc, as he knew there wasn’t enough material for them to weave a story. But once the final version dropped at the premiere, it even left the JRM co-owner shocked.
Prime Video caught Dale Jr. off guard
Ryan McGee’s Dale doc was seen as the gold standard for any Earnhardt-related documentaries. So, when Oscar-winning producer Brian Grazer and Ron Howard took on the task of making a new docuseries, they knew they would need to match McGee’s work or perhaps even do a better job. One tricky part about it was collecting video material or rare video footage. And this is where they did a good job.
“There was a video of Ralph Earnhardt he’s being interviewed at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1959. It’s the only footage of Ralph taking… he died before I was born. This is the only time I could hear the sound of his voice, he might cock his head when he talks, mannerisms, yeah. They found more videos that I didn’t even know existed, that Dad never saw.” Jr. said this on the Bless Your Hardt podcast.
You can only imagine the untold stories and visuals that Prime Video has managed to stitch together in the four-part docuseries. There’s one more reason to get the free 30-day trial subscription to Amazon Prime if you haven’t already. The two episodes of this docuseries are already out, and two more will be released later this weekend.
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