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Paula Murphy (June 16, 1928 – December 21, 2023) was an American automobile driver who was first and/or fastest in many speed endeavors. In 1975, she was described as "the fastest woman on wheels" by The New York Times.[1]
Biography
Murphy was born in Ohio on June 16, 1928,[2] and moved to California in 1956.[3]
As of 1975, Murphy had been "the only woman to have been allowed to drive an Indy car at speed on the track. That had been in 1963"[4] in a Studebaker car with a Novi engine.[5] Murphy was also "the first woman to drive a jet-engined car on the Salt Flats".[6] Murphy was also the "first woman licensed to drive a nitromethane-fueled car"[7] and the first woman to have a fuel funny car license from the National Hot Rod Association.[3]
In the 1960s and 1970s, she set numerous speed records, including a Mexico to Canada route, a New York to Los Angeles route, the women's land speed record, and the NASCAR women's speed record.[3] She became part of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2017.[8]
Murphy appeared as a guest on the December 1, 1963 episode of What's My Line?, introduced as "test car driver".[9]
Murphy died on December 21, 2023, at the age of 95.[10][1]
