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- The Orange County Register, Santa Ana, California, 23 Aug 19
Motor Sports Magnate Bassett Dies
Funeral services for John Irving Bassett will be held Wednesday at 11 a.m. at
Fairhaven Memorial Park in Santa Ana. Bassett was a major influence in motor
sports for 25 years. Bassett, 46, died last Friday at his home in Weir Canyon.
Born in Long Beach, Bassett was a 1958 graduate of Santa Ana High and h
lived in Orange County most of his life. No cause of death was given. Bassett
was a designer and manufacturer of performance headers and other racing
products for the marine racing industry, and auto, motorcycle and BMX bicycle
racing. In recent years, Bassett had been involved in motor sports on a
national level. Bassett Racing is based in Orange and his teams of drivers and
mechanics competed throughout the country in pro stock-car drag races,
including the US Nationals at Indianapolis, the Winter Nationals and the
Winston Finals. After graduating from high school, Bassett joined the pioneers
of drag racing in the developing and experimenting which helped turn the sport
into a major industry. Beginning in 1960 in a garage on West 2nd Street in
Santa Ana, Bassett, then 18, built a multimillion-dollar business with
distributors in the US and Europe. He also raised Arabian show horses as a
hobby at his Orange Park Acres ranch. Lynn Rose, a longtime writer for the
marine industry's "Custom Boat And Engine" magazine said, "For 25 years
Bassett has been considered a leader and foremost contributor to the world of
motor sports." Bassett is survived by his former wife, Elaine Goode of Santa
Ana, three sons: Paul, executive vice president of Bassett Racing;
professional tennis player Darrin; and Ward, a student at Saddleback College.
The Orange County Register, Santa Ana, California, 27 Aug 19
Police now say sportsman Bassett apparently was slain
Author: Steve Eddy Edition: Evening Metro Section
Motor sports entrepreneur John Irving Bassett, found dead in his Anaheim Hills
apartment a week ago, was the victim of a homicide, police said Frida
"At first it appeared to be a natural death, but something unusual came up
during the autopsy," Anaheim police Lt. Peter DePaola said. "There are still
tests to be completed, but we've definitely decided it was not a natural
death. We are investigating the case as a homicide."
DePaola would not say how Bassett died. Toxicological tests are under way.
Bassett, 46, father of three sons, was found Aug. 19 in his Anaheim Hil
apartment near Santa Ana Canyon and Weir Canyon roads.
DaPaola said police were called after Bassett's estranged wife became worried
because she had not heard from him. She contacted the apartment maintenance
man, who opened the door and discovered Bassett's body.
Bassett was a designer and manufacturer of high-performance racing products
for the marine racing industry and auto, motorcycle and bicycle-motocro
racing.
In recent years, he had been involved in motor sports on a national level.
Bassett Racing headquarters are on West Collins Avenue in Orange.
His teams of drivers and mechanics competed throughout the nation in
professional stock-car drag races, including the US Nationals at Indianapolis,
the Winternationals in Pomona and the Winston Finals.
DePaola said there was no apparent link between Bassett's death and the March
slayings of motor sports czar Mickey Thompson and his wife in the driveway of
their Los Angeles County home. The Thompsons were gunned execution-style, and
no one has been arrested.
Funeral services for Bassett were held Wednesday in Santa Ana.
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Bassett Family Association Database
1942 - 1988 (46 years)
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