Gangster-bought Duesenberg Model J/SJ heads to auction ...

1931 Duesenberg Model SJ Disappearing Top Convertible Coupe. Photo by Darin Schnabel, courtesy RM Auctions.

What drives one into a life of crime other than the prospect of easy money? And what does one spend that easy money on other than flashy cars? Doubtless, most original owners of Duesenbergs were law-abiding citizens, but it would be tantamount to historical revisionism to suggest that not one Duesenberg purchaser funded it from ill-gotten gains, and one such Duesenberg, a Murphy-bodied 1931 Duesenberg Model J/SJ disappearing top convertible coupe, will cross the block next month in Monterey.

Described as totally and completely numbers-matching, the Duesenberg carries the same engine (J-345), crankshaft (345), chassis (2367) and body (925) that was delivered to its original owner, William Collins (reported by RM Auctions to be a figure in New York?s criminal underground). Collins reportedly owned the car for a single day before his death, and it was then acquired by Philadelphia bootlegger Mickey Duffy. When Duffy was shot down in Atlantic City, the car was passed on to Duffy?s business associate Owney Madden, owner of Harlem?s infamous Cotton Club. After passing through the hands of less notable owners, the car appeared in a December 1953 Motor Trend classified ad, offered for the now-unbelievable selling price of $150.

Restored to its original condition by owner Eldon Eby in the late 1970s, the Duesenberg later received a conversion to SJ (supercharged) specifications, when it was fitted with its extremely rare Monel side exhaust. In 1982, the car won both Best Duesenberg and Best in Show at the ACD Club National Reunion, and it was exhibited at the Pebble Beach Concours d?Elegance in 1983 and 1984. Though Eldon Eby sold the car in the early 1980s, fate reunited the two when a new owner placed an ad for an experienced Duesenberg mechanic; Eby, now retired and living near the car?s current owner, answered the ad to discover the job was caring for the Duesenberg he?d known best. Chassis 2367 will be offered for sale by RM Auctions as part of the company?s Monterey sale with an anticipated selling price is $2 million to $2.5 million.

1929 Duesenberg Model J Disappearing Top Convertible Coupe. Photo courtesy Gooding & Company.

Collins?s SJ, as expected, will not be the only Duesenberg to cross the block at Monterey this year, nor the only one with an interesting history. One of the other two, a 1929 Duesenberg Model J, also features a Murphy body and was originally purchased as a chassis only (number 2134, claimed to be the very first chassis-only order submitted to Duesenberg) by the wife of department store magnate Harry Robinson. The frame, complete with engine J-108, was sent to the Walter M. Murphy Company, where the disappearing top convertible coupe body was styled with input from the Robinsons. Unusual for the time, both the body and the chassis were sprayed in white per the client?s request.

In 1934, the car was used by Ginger Rogers in The Gay Divorcee, then ultimately passed through a string of owners in the ensuing decades. Since the mid-2000s, the car has received both mechanical attention (including engine, transmission and differential work) and, most recently, a concours-quality restoration carried out by Fran Roxas, completed in 2010. Restored to its original specification and color, the car won Best of Show at the 2012 Celebration of Automobiles at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and earned a feature spot in Fred Roe?s book, Duesenberg: The Pursuit of Perfection.

At RM Auctions? 2012 Monterey sale, chassis 2134 sold for $1,897,500, but it?s back on the market again just one year later. This time, auction house Gooding & Company expects the car to sell for between $2.25 million and $2.75 million when the car crosses the stage.

1930 Duesenberg Model J Torpedo Phaeton. Photo by John Hollansworth, Jr., courtesy Mecum Auctions.

Last of this year?s Monterey Duesenbergs, but not least, the 1930 Duesenberg Model J Torpedo Phaeton, chassis 2276, began its life wearing limousine coachwork from the Judkins Company. First purchased by William Sandow, the car was later used by the wife of E.L. Cord, before being sold to John de Noira in 1937. Pacific Auto Rental, de Noira?s company specializing in car rentals for the movie industry, owned the Duesenberg until 1985, and the car appeared in such films as Al Capone (1955), Howard Hughes (1977), City Heat (1984) and at least 11 others.

Upon purchasing the car in 1985, Fred and Dave Weber asked coachbuilder Fran Roxas to rebody the car in a style similar to a Walker LaGrande Torpedo Phaeton, while retaining the car?s original chassis and drivetrain. Since the completion of this restoration, the car has racked up numerous awards (including ?Most Outstanding Open Car, 1921-1930? at the 2008 Greenwich Concours d?Elegance) in the hands of several owners. Sold in January of 2013 for $698,500 at Bonhams?s Boca Raton auction, the car will be offered for the second time in 2013 by Mecum Auctions in Monterey. No pre-auction estimate for it has been released.

Gooding & Company?s 2013 Pebble Beach auction will take place from August 17-18 at the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center; for more information, visit GoodingCo.com. Mecum?s Monterey auction will take place August 15-17 at the Hyatt Regency Monterey; for more information, visit Mecum.com. RM Auctions? Monterey sale will take place on August 16-17 at the Portola Hotel & Spa and Monterey Conference Center; for more information, visit RMAuctions.com.

Source: http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2013/07/18/gangster-owned-duesenberg-model-sj-heads-to-auction/

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