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12 unusual facts about Seabiscuit


Agua Caliente Racetrack

Both Phar Lap and Seabiscuit ran and won the Agua Caliente Handicap, which for a time was the richest in North America.

Betsy von Furstenberg

In 1950, Furstenberg's parents announced her engagement to Peter Stewart Howard, a stepson of socialite George Vanderbilt and a grandson of Charles S. Howard, the owner of the racehorse Seabiscuit.

Colony Palms Hotel

It re-opened after a 2007 renovation, and features the "Winner's Circle Suite" in honor of previous owners, Robert S. and Andrea Leeds Howard (owners of the racehorse Seabiscuit).

Confederate Honey

It is 1861 (B.Sea., that is "Before Seabiscuit"), and Colonel O'Hairoil, a literal blueblood in the literally bluegrass country of Kentucky, presides over rich tobacco and cotton plantations.

Even as IOU

Riding high on their win, the boys come across two swindlers who trick them into buying retired race horse, Seabasket (a play on Seabiscuit).

Gold Rush Daze

After an anachronistic gag in which an illegally parked horse identifies himself as Seabiscuit, the young prospector is seen stepping into the scene.

Laura Hillenbrand

Hillenbrand's first book was the acclaimed Seabiscuit: An American Legend (2001), a nonfiction account of the career of the great racehorse Seabiscuit, for which she won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year in 2001.

Rancho Seco Nuclear Generating Station

In cooperation with the Nature Conservancy, SMUD dedicated in June 2006 the Howard Ranch Nature Trail, a seven-mile (11 km) long trail that follows riparian and marsh habitat along Rancho Seco Lake and the adjoining Howard Ranch that once belonged to the owner of the famous racehorse Seabiscuit.

Riddlewood, Pennsylvania

Sam Riddle regained some notoriety in recent years because of his mention in the popular film and book Seabiscuit.

Ridgewood Ranch

It is probably best known for being the final resting place of the racehorse Seabiscuit.

The Shops at Tanforan

One of Tanforan's most famous residents while it was used as a racetrack was Seabiscuit, who was stabled there for a time.

The Story of Seabiscuit

The film is a fictionalized account of the career of the racehorse Seabiscuit (1933–1947) with a subplot involving the romance between the niece (Temple) of a horse trainer (Barry Fitzgerald) and a jockey (Lon McCallister).


Adam Hauck

Some of Adam's recent work can be seen in the DVD documentary features he has written and produced for Gary Ross's Seabiscuit, James Cameron's Ghosts of the Abyss, Joss Whedon's Serenity, and Joe Carnahan's crime thriller Smokin' Aces.

Belle Meade Plantation

The bloodlines of Belle Meade Plantation, primarily due to the success of "Bonnie Scotland, a Belle Meade foundation stud, include famous descendants such as Secretariat, Funny Cide, Seabiscuit, Giacamo, Mine That Bird, Smarty Jones, and Barbaro, Since the 1990s, every horse that has run the Kentucky Derby is a blood descendent of Belle Meade Plantation foundations.

Charles Kurtsinger

Laura Hillenbrand's bestselling book, Seabiscuit: An American Legend, recounts the story and in the movie version Kurtsinger was played by retired Hall of Fame jockey Chris McCarron.

Charles S. Howard

According to Laura Hillenbrand's biography of Seabiscuit, Howard's early car dealership in San Francisco was given a boost by the hand of fate; on the day of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, he was one of the few individuals who had operational vehicles in the city, and was thus able to help the rescue effort significantly.

Corey Black

He served as a stunt double for actor Tobey Maguire, who he taught the posturing of a professional jockey, and played the role of the jockey (Harry Richards) on Rosemont, William duPont, Jr.'s horse that beat Seabiscuit in the 1937 Santa Anita Handicap.

Pat Skipper

On film, he played Carducci in the (1996) action/horror film Hellraiser IV: Bloodline, Mason Strode from Halloween, Seabiscuit's Vet from Seabiscuit (2003), Bob from Fits and Starts, and Agent Ellroy from Chain of Command.

Popcorn Deelites

As Seabiscuit, he played alongside Jeff Bridges as Seabiscuit's owner Charles S. Howard, Tobey Maguire as jockey Red Pollard, Chris Cooper as trainer Tom Smith, Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens as the "Ice Man" George Woolf, and Hall of Famer Chris McCarron as Charles Kurtsinger, another Hall of Fame jockey.

Popcorn Deelites also starred in the title role of the 2003 Oscar-nominated Seabiscuit.

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption is a 2010 non-fiction book by Laura Hillenbrand, author of the best-selling book Seabiscuit: An American Legend.