Hulman/George

Having already put Hulman & Co. on the national scene with his Clabber Girl ad campaign, Tony Hulman took a chance and bought a ramshackle track at the corner of 16th Street and Georgetown Road. The gambit put “Indy” in the vocabulary of every sports fan in the world. “The Hulmans are more than the most prominent citizens of the city,” says former senator Birch Bayh. “They’re the most prominent citizens of Indiana.”


The Patriarch - Anton “Tony” Hulman (1901–1977)
When Tony Hulman first bought the Speedway, his wife Mary Fendrich Hulman was skeptical. “She said she thought he had bought a pig in a poke,” says great-grandson Tony George Jr. But he poured nearly every penny he made back into the facility—new entrances, more grandstands, a museum—and built the track’s 500-mile race into an American institution.


The Shooting
In early May 1976, Mari Hulman George—daughter of Tony Hulman—filed for divorce from her husband, former racecar driver Elmer George. Later that month, on race day, Elmer was killed in a gunfight with family horse trainer Guy Trolinger, whom Mari later admitted was her boyfriend. A grand jury eventually found Trolinger had acted in self-defense.


The Split
Perhaps the most controversial move current Speedway CEO Tony George Sr. ever made was the 1996 formation of the Indy Racing League, which spurred a split with Championship Auto Racing Teams. The move led many to deride Tony Sr. as a power monger. “That wasn’t the case at all,” says Indy 500 winner A.J. Foyt. “He was just doing what he thought was best for the 500.”

The Local Descendants

Mari Hulman George, 74, chairman of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The only daughter of Tony and Mary Fendrich Hulman, Mari Hulman George took over chairmanship when her mother’s health gave way. “I think it was a great burden on her,” says Foyt. “She was just thrown in there.” She was named one of the 400 richest people in America by Forbes magazine in 1997, but she disdains the spotlight.

Tony George Sr., 49, president andCEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The early part of Tony Sr.’s life was turbulent, to say the least. Following the shooting death of his father, he drove in racing series around the country. His first marriage, to Lisa Dawn Clark, ended in a bitter divorce during which his drug use became public. But while his sisters—Nancy, Josie, and Katherine—sat on the board, Tony took charge of the Speedway in 1989. He brought the wildly popular NASCAR to the Brickyard in 1994, and recently welcomed the motorcyclists of MotoGP.

Tony George Jr., 24, manager of business development for IRL develop-ment series Firestone Indy Lights
Tony Jr. grew up around the track, even painting and building tire barriers when he was in high school. His goal is to follow in his dad’s footsteps. “I’ve been to every 500 since I was born,” he says. “And when I walk through the tunnel, I still get goosebumps.”

Ed Carpenter, 28, stepson of Tony Sr. and driver for the Vision Racing team
Ed Carpenter began his racing career at age 8, just after his mother married the Hulman heir. And he hasn’t ruled out also taking a role at the Speedway office. “It’s the family business,” he says.

The Legacy

Besides a racing team, a racing series, and the Hulman-George Family Trust, all the family has left in Indy is its most recognizable landmark—a 2.5-mile oval of asphalt and brick. “There are nicer tracks, and other races,” says A.J. Foyt. “But the Indianapolis 500 is the only one the whole world knows.”