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Maverick Marsalis – Photographer

He began working on automobiles at age fourteen for his uncle’s company, Spectrum Automotive, in Houston, Texas.

Encouraged by?friends and family that worked at the renowned Houston Porsche dealership South Point Porsche Audi, Marsalis set his sights on California arriving in March of 1995 to attend the?American Film Institute, however dropped out after one year due to family difficulties.

After working for two years at Barnes Motor sports in Atlanta (Snellville) Georgia, Marsalis returned to Los Angeles California to complete his education. After graduating AFI in 2000, Marsalis worked in film production for companies like Image Entertainment, HBO, Showtime, Playboy TV, Sony Pictures and Producers Aaron Spelling and Zalman King. While working for King, Marsalis designed many of his well known creations such as the Yellow Fever and The Cow Hide 928.

In 2004, Marsalis left his various positions in film production and marked himself an ?Independent Film Maker? by developing his own screenplays and landing his film short ?THE DRIVE BY CHRONICLES? in the prestigious Sundance Film Festival and his screenplay ?RES BOY? in the Sundance Film Institute Screenwriters Laboratory. This bolstered Marsalis? confidence and he started his own film production company The Zia Nation Syndicate LLC and his automotive and product design company called ASAP Design

Marsalis gained more exposure in the Automotive tuning culture in 2006 as a result of winning the Chrysler Performance West car show with his design and creation of a modified 1970 Dodge Challenger RT/SE called the Yellow Fever.?In 2007 added yet another trophy on mantel by taking best in class at the prestigious Santa Barbara Region Porsche Club of America with his 1986 Porsche 944 Turbo ASAP Mohave. In 2007, Marsalis began development a line of? “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die-cast_toy” o “Die-cast toy” die cast?replicas of many of his famous designs partnering with the makers of?Jada Toys?in the creation of Jada?s Street Sweepers series. Jada Toys is developing several of Marsalis’s famous, award winning designs like Yellow Fever, Vader, Big Red and El Outrage I & II. As of 2008, Marsalis continues to operate ASAP Design, develop feature film projects and provide design consultations to car designers and tuners. Marsalis also finds time to serve with The Big Brothers of Los Angeles, Van Nuys Chapter. Marsalis lives in Southern?California.

In 2008, Marsalis began limited production (25 vehicles in total) of the Vader. Also known as the ASAP TT, the Vader was designed by Marsalis in 2004 during his studies the Art Center College of Design and a public unveiling at the SEMA trade show in November 2006.

Marsalis has won widespread recognition for the excellence and originality of his automotive designs and creations. In November 1999, Marsalis became the one of the youngest persons to be inducted into the Muscle Car Hall of Fame.

Additionally, Marsalis was inducted into the Otis Chandler Car Museum Hall of Fame in 2004, the American Muscle Car Show Hall of Fame in 2005, and the Houston Hot Rod and Custom Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2006. Marsalis has also won the following awards for his work: Houston?s Most Beautiful Porsche Award in 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. Some of these cars were designed by Marsalis and completed by other builders including such as, David Beal and Chris Barnes. The Texas Flying Mile Speed Award 200 MPH Club in 2008 @ 202 MPH with his ASAP 1989 928 Flying Shark.

 Tagged:  1970 Dodge Challenger, 1970 Dodge Challenger Rt, 1986 Porsche 944, Aaron Spelling, American Film Institute, Chrysler Performance West, Dodge Challenger, Family Difficulties, Film Production Company, Independent Film Maker, Jada Toys, Playboy Tv, Porsche 944, Porsche Audi, Porsche Club Of America, Porsche Dealership, Sundance Film Festival, Sundance Film Institute, Yellow Fever, Zalman King February 11, 2010

The Beginning Of The Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins were founded in 1966 and are they play their home games at Dolphins Stadium in South Florida. The Dolphins have enjoyed tremendous success since they were born and most of that success was overseen by legendary head coach Don Shula, but with the recent great play overseen by head coach Tony Sparano there is every reason to believe that the Dolphins have returned to their winning ways.



The Miami Dolphins made their first super Bowl in 1971, but lost to the Dallas Cowboys. They more than made up for the loss during the next season however. The Dolphins won all fourteen of their regular season games, two playoff games, and Super Bowl VII, which made them the first, and only, NFL team to have a perfect season. To this day the 1972 Dolphins are the gold standard in the NFL.



The 1972 Dolphins were led by Don Shula who, to this day, is one of the most recognizable faces of the Dolphins franchise. Coach Shula led the Dolphins for twenty-six NFL seasons during which the Dolphins only posted two losing seasons. He won an NFL record 347 wins during his Hall of Fame coaching career.



After Don Shula the most recognizable Dolphin would be quarterback Dan Marino. Marino was chosen twenty-seventh in the 1983 NFL draft. There were five quarterbacks chosen ahead of Marino in the draft, and even though two of them went on to the NFL Hall of Fame, none were better. Unfortunately, Marino was never on a team that was able to win a Super Bowl, but he has either held, or still holds, nearly every Dolphins and NFL passing record.



The Miami Dolphins have long been one of the NFL’s elite franchises and with their recent play they are poised to remain one for years to come. The AFC East has been dominated by the Patriots for the past several years until the Dolphins 2008 season. They won the AFC East title by going back to basics. They played tough, hard nosed, defense, and had a well balanced offense featuring a very strong running game.



Coach Sparano also introduced the rest of the NFL to the wildcat offense in which he had a running back line up under center and the quarterback line up as a wideout. The offensive formation wreaked havoc on the rest of the NFL. As other teams saw this offensive formation become successful many of them developed their own version of the offense.



A unique problem faces many visitors to Dolphins Stadium. The Dolphins are one of the few NFL teams that wear their white jerseys at home. This forces the visiting team to wear their dark jerseys in the brutal heat of South Florida. This is just one of the many ways the Dolphins have found a way to win in the NFL since 1966.



The Dolphins are one of the leagues most venerable franchises. They have had eight players inducted into the pro football Hall of Fame, they have retired the numbers of three former players, they’ve won thirteen division championships, six conference championships, and two Super Bowls. As far as NFL teams go there are few better than the Miami Dolphins.

 Tagged:  1972 Dolphins, 1983 Nfl Draft, Afc East, Coach Don, Coach Shula, Dallas Cowboys, Dolphins Stadium, Don Shula, Head Coach Tony, Miami Dolphins, Nfl Draft, Nfl Hall Of Fame, Nfl Passing Record, Nfl Record, Nfl Seasons, Nfl Team, Quarterback Dan Marino, Regular Season Games, Super Bowl Vii, Tony Sparano, Worldwide Tourism, Xtreme Sport February 8, 2010