Frank Mundy's home in Atlanta was like a museum that paid tribute to stock-car racing and a driver who helped pioneer the sport.
The driver would be Mundy himself, who was present at NASCAR's start in 1947. He was part of a group of drivers, owners and mechanics who met in Daytona Beach to form the NASCAR stock-car racing organization. Mr. Mundy talked about the historic meeting in a 1999 article that appeared in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
"[In 1947,] 23 or 24 of us got together on the roof of the Streamline Hotel, which is still there, one block from the beach in Daytona," he said. "I believe I'm the last person still living that formed NASCAR."
Darryl Aldridge lived across the street from Mundy and his wife, Mae, for years in Buckhead. He said Mr. Mundy talked fondly of racing's pioneering days.
"He was very proud of his racing career, and soon as he saw you, he'd start telling you all about it," Mr. Aldridge said. "It was like a race-car museum over there. He paved the way for the guys who are making the money they are making today, though he himself wasn't in it during the lucrative times."
Mr. Mundy started out as a motorcycle and stunt-car driver who crashed through burning walls. As a stock-car driver, he competed in an era that was more dangerous than today, said Rick Minter, who covers the sport for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
"It's not like now," he said, noting today's safety features. "You could get hurt pretty badly back in those days. He took a chance. When he got out of racing, he still stay involved, but not as a racer. The thing I remember the most about him was that he was perfect about his clothes and when he traveled, he stayed at the best hotels and ate at the best restaurants."
Frank Mundy, 90, of Atlanta died Thursday from complications of a fall and related health issues at Westminster Commons. There are no funeral arrangements at this time.
His real name was Francisco Eduardo Melendez. The Georgia native — who was born in Atlanta and lived his early years in an orphanage in Macon — adopted a new name when he got into racing. He added a nickname, too — "The Rebel."
In his racing career, The Rebel was no joke. Career highlights: 53 career starts; three victories; six poles; won $12,655. He left NASCAR briefly in 1952 after a disagreement with founder Bill France Sr. to race in the American Automobile Association circuit. There, he twice won that organization's championship. When he left racing in 1956, Mr. Mundy amassed wealth selling boats and outboard motors.
Mr. Aldridge, a neighbor since the mid-1990s, said Mae and Frank Mundy have no children or relatives. The old-school racer treated the Aldridges like family.
"He would bring stuff over here and leave it at our doorsteps all the time," Mr. Aldridge said. "He'd go out and buy 10 pairs of shoes and give nine pairs away to other people. That's just how generous he was."
In later years, the Aldridges looked after the Mundys as their health declined. Last year, the couple moved into Westminster Commons, where his wife resides.
"He was always trying to take care of us and help us out," Mr. Aldridge said, "but the tides switched in recent years because he had no family. We'd take over Christmas dinners, that kind of thing."
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