Home / Birthday profiles / John Paul Jr. (racing driver)

Birthday profile

John Paul Jr. (racing driver)

John Paul Jr., American race car driver (died 2020)

Find birthday twinsOpen interactive profile
Born
February 19, 1960
Died
December 29, 2020
Zodiac sign
Pisces
Birth year
1960

About John Paul Jr. (racing driver)

John Lee Paul Jr. (February 19, 1960 – December 29, 2020) was an American racing driver. He competed in CART and the Indy Racing League competitions, but primarily in IMSA GT Championship, winning the title in 1982. During his career, Paul was a twice winner of the 24 Hours of Daytona, the first of these was while co-driving with his father, John Paul Sr. A few weeks later, the pair won the 1982 12 Hours of Sebring. Paul also triumphed in another major U.S. race, the 1983 Michigan 500. Beside racing with his father, Paul also joined his father in criminal activities, in particular a drug smuggling operation. In May 1986, Paul Jr. received a five-year sentence for racketeering, with the drug charges dropped. Paul Sr. was found guilty, served time for a number of crimes, and disappeared in 2001.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

John Paul Jr. (racing driver) timeline

  1. A few weeks later, the pair won the 1982 12 Hours of Sebring.
  2. He competed in CART and the Indy Racing League competitions, but primarily in IMSA GT Championship, winning the title in 1982.

The world when John Paul Jr. (racing driver) was born

John Paul Jr. (racing driver) was born in 1960. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1960

  • #1 song"The Twist" – Chubby Checker
  • Top movieThe Apartment
  • Top TV showGunsmoke
  • Best-selling bookTo Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentCassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) wins Olympic gold in boxing
  • Top headlineJFK elected as youngest US president
  • Technology milestoneFirst working laser demonstrated
  • Defining fadThe Twist dance craze
  • Notable inventionLaser
  • World population3.03 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderDwight D. Eisenhower
  • Sports championPittsburgh Pirates (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population180.7M

1960 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in John Paul Jr. (racing driver)'s birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19602026
Gas$0.31$3.45/gal
Average home$12,700$435,000
Average income$7,400$67,500
Minimum wage$1.00$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.69$11.95
Postage stamp$0.04$0.73
Population180.7M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Driver Database, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.