Along with an acting career with more than 80 credits dating back to 1944, Tommy Ivo had a concurrent career as a professional drag racer that ran from the late 1950s to the early 1980s. "TV Tommy" Ivo combined his need for speed with a flair for showmanship as he raced both gasoline- and nitroglycerin-fueled (AKA Top Fuel) dragsters, giving the sport vital exposure in the 1960s and 1970s. Ivo was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2005.