Speak John (1958–1980) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

who was the 1985 Champion broodmare sire in North America.

Background

Speak John was bred and raced by Max Gluck's

Elmendorf Farm Elmendorf Farm is a Kentucky Thoroughbred horse farm in Fayette County, Kentucky, involved with horse racing since the 19th century. Once the North Elkhorn Farm, many owners and tenants have occupied the area, even during the American Civil War. M ...

. He was trained in

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under trainer

Farrell Jones Farrell (anglicization of the Irish ''Ó Fearghail'') is a surname and may refer to: * Farrell (surname) * Farrell Lines, shipping company (acquired by Maersk) * Farrell, Mississippi, a census-designated place in Mississippi * Farrell, Nevada, ...

Racing career

Speak John recorded his biggest wins in the

Del Mar Derby The Caesars Sportsbook Del Mar Derby is an American thoroughbred horse race run annually during the first week of September at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A Grade II race open to three-year-old horses, it is contested on turf over a ...

Del Mar Racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is an event venue in Del Mar, California. It hosts the annual San Diego County Fair. The venue sits on a property along the Pacific Ocean coastline. It includes the Del Mar Racetrack, built in 1936 by the Del Mar Thoroug ...

and the Las Vegas Handicap at

Bay Meadows Bay Meadows was a horse racing track in San Mateo, California from 1934 until 2008, in the San Francisco Bay Area in the United States. History Built on the site of an old airfield, Bay Meadows Racecourse was the longest continually operating ...

Stud record

Retired to

stud Stud may refer to: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay bar in San Francisco * ...

duty at his birthplace near

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

, Speak John sired a number of good runners including multiple stakes winner

Verbatim Verbatim means word for word. It may refer to: * ''Verbatim'' (album), a 1996 album by Bob Ostertag * "Verbatim" (song), a 2015 song by Blackbear * Verbatim (brand), a brand of storage media and flash memory * Verbatim (horse) Verbatim (1965 ...

, and the 1973

American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly The American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing Horse racing is an equestrianism, equestrian performance activity, typically involving ...

Talking Picture A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed befo ...

. Belle de Jour, another daughter of Speak John, was the dam of Spend A Buck, the 1985

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

winner and

American Horse of the Year The American Award for Horse of the Year, or simply Horse of the Year, one of the Eclipse Awards, is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. Because Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States has no governing body to san ...

. In 1985, Talking Picture's daughter, Easy To Copy, won the

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Premio Legnano in

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.''Ocala Star-Banner'' (Florida) - June 19, 1985
/ref> Her winnings, along with those of Spend A Buck, earned Speak John

Leading broodmare sire in North America The list below shows the leading Thoroughbred sire of broodmares in North America for each year since 1924. This is determined by the amount of prize money won during the year by racehorses which were foaled by a daughter of the sire. The most f ...

honors in 1985. Speak John was also the damsire of 2005

Dubai World Cup The Dubai World Cup (Arabic: كأس دبي العالمي) is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually since 1996 and contested at the Meydan Racecourse in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The race is operate ...

winner, Roses in May, and to Overskate, voted an unprecedented nine

Sovereign Award {{refimprove, date=October 2021 The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing. The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Y ...

s while racing in

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and the United States. Speak John died on August 9, 1980, and was buried in the Elmendorf Farm cemetery.

Pedigree

External links

Speak John's pedigree and partial racing stats

References

{{reflist 1958 racehorse births 1980 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States United States Champion Thoroughbred Sires American Champion Thoroughbred broodmare sires Thoroughbred family 1-l Chefs-de-Race