ScreenTime photos on Flickr

M. Murphy Company of Pasadena was contracted by Duesenberg to build a plethora of body styles for the Model J series. Renowned for its elegant lines, Murphy was responsible for crafting the "disappearing top" we see here. At the time, most convertibles had a stack of canvas piled on the rear deck when the top was down. Murphy designed a panel that enclosed the folded top within, creating a smooth and sophisticated silhouette. In addition, this design featured the thin-framed Clear Vision windshield, reverse hinged doors, and fully disappearing side windows. In recognition of its sporty aesthetic, this car (J-395) was owned by Pacific Auto Rentals, which served the film industry, and as a result, it enjoyed significant screentime.

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From RM Sotheby's Miami 2025 refering to the same engine number as in the car shown here, J-395. It should be noted, however, that contrary to the lot description, this car DID NOT win Third in Class at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 2024. This car won no prize at Pebble that year. 2024 Pebble prize winners listed by Magneto magazine.

1931 Duesenberg Model J 'Disappearing Top' Convertible Coupe by Murphy

$4,000,000 - $4,500,000 USD | Not Sold

Miami 2025, Lot 250

o One of the very finest examples of the most sought-after Duesenberg style

o A Hollywood legend with numerous period film appearances

o Retains original chassis, firewall, engine, and coachwork, as-delivered

o Award-winner at the 2024 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance [NOT TRUE; see 2024 Pebble prize winners listed by Magneto magazine]

o ACD Club Certified Category 1 (D-146)

Undoubtedly one of the best-known and most beautiful body styles on the great Model J Duesenberg chassis was the “Disappearing Top” Convertible Coupe, a clean, elegant, and sporting creation of the Walter M. Murphy Company of Pasadena, California. Among the best-known survivors of the roughly 25 built, body number 921 was delivered to Duesenberg on 4 May 1930, and installed on chassis and firewall number 2414 with engine number J-395, tested that August. Significantly, the car has remained intact, with all of these components, including the original crankshaft numbered 395, since new.

According to the records of Duesenberg historian Dwight Schooling, J-395’s earliest known owner was Blake Garner of Chicago, who possessed it in 1936. Cyrus “Blake” Garner was a young, wealthy investment banker who later moved to Hollywood, becoming well-known as a film producer and as a playboy frequently named in the gossip columns as a companion and would-be husband of actresses. It is likely that the Model J first moved to Glitter Gulch under his auspices. In 1941 it was photographed by contemporary Duesenberg owner Jim Talmadge at a Los Angeles gas station, finished in a distinctive pale yellow and green livery that it would retain for over 40 years.

Around this time George Schweiger Jr. purchased the car for his company Pacific Auto Rental. Operating out of a rather nondescript warehouse at 310 South Berendo Street, Pacific Auto Rental served a very useful purpose in Hollywood, the supplying of prop cars to film studios with a catalogue that covered virtually every imaginable type of vehicle. It supplied Norma Desmond’s Isotta Fraschini for Sunset Boulevard and Mercedes-Benzes for Hogan’s Heroes. The firm was, ironically, notably publicity-shy. George Schweiger Sr., who succeeded his son following the former’s untimely passing, often told journalists interested in photographing his premises, “I get paid for photos of my cars.”

Pacific Auto Rental sold J-395 in May 1949, but after two brief stints with owners in Coalinga, California, it returned to the fold in 1956 and remained part of the fleet for the duration of the company’s existence. Its best-known appearance was in the 1962 psychological thriller Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? alongside Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, in which it serves as both a pivotal figure in the film’s opening scenes and as a symbol of diva starlet Blanche Hudson’s success. “I don’t get it,” one character says to another, admiring it on a film studio lot. “What do they make monsters like this for?” To which another answers, “For Blanche Hudson!”

Buxom Jayne Mansfield, a legendary sex symbol of the era, posed with the Duesenberg for publicity photos. During the 1970s it became a regular in the television series Bring ‘Em Back Alive, and in 1978 it made a cameo in the film Gable and Lombard. In August 1970 the car was even the subject of a feature article in Car Classics magazine, with photos for which, one would have to assume, Mr. Schweiger was well-compensated. Road-tester Alan Campbell noted, “The motor spins to life the minute the starter is touched, and on the road the massive machine hums like a locomotive...More than one policeman gave the Duesenberg a friendly wave of approval instead of a ticket. The speed creeps up on you. Driving at what I thought was 30 mph I was shocked to look down and see the speedometer registering 45 mph on Wilshire Boulevard!”

Following Mr. Schweiger’s passing, the whole of the Pacific Auto Rentals fleet was sold to the Imperial Palace of Las Vegas, which cherry-picked the cars and sold the remainder at a now-legendary auction on the lawn of the Ambassador Hotel on 18 August 1995. The late, renowned collector Oscar Davis successfully bid on J-395, which he had refinished by Mike Fennel in cream with a maroon chassis before, ironically, selling it back to the Imperial Palace, reportedly as the 50th Duesenberg in their vast collection. Soon thereafter it was inspected by the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Club and awarded Category 1 Certification (D-146).

Following the dispersal of the Imperial Palace fleet in 1998, respected collectors and well-known friends to many Chris and Kathleen Koch purchased J-395. The Kochs reportedly invested some $500,000 in restoration of the Model J, with a full mechanical rebuild undertaken by the acclaimed Duesenberg specialist Brian Joseph’s Classic & Exotic Service of Troy, Michigan, and cosmetic restoration and final assembly by noted craftsman Steve Cooley of Tavares, Florida. Afterward, the car was judged First in Class at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 2005 [THIS IS TRUE], the first of no fewer than 18 victories it would achieve in the next two years. In 2008, the Model J became part of the legendary Andrews Collection in Texas, where it resided alongside several other outstanding Duesenbergs and many other superb Full Classics.

The immediate prior owner acquired J-395 in 2015 and it was soon submitted to Mr. Joseph’s Classic & Exotic Service for comprehensive mechanical sorting and cosmetic improvements, including proper adjustments of the valve and cam timing, ensuring that all gauges function, installing new front wheel bearings, and properly rebuilding the Watson Stabilators. Most importantly, the car was fitted with a high-speed ring and pinion, so that, true to the Duesenberg mystique, it is a car which likes to go fast. In current ownership it has been fitted with new carpeting and a new top to the proper original design, and has had the fuel system rebuilt and attention given to some of the major chrome pieces. It returned to the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 2024, winning Third in Class [NOT TRUE; as per concours results, third place in the G: Duesenberg class went to the 1935 Duesenberg J Walker Torpedo Phaeton], an impressive achievement some twenty years after its original restoration!

Now offered solely due to a realignment of its owner’s collection, it remains in fine overall condition with an impressive history file testifying to its provenance and excellence as one of the best surviving Murphy “Disappearing Top” Convertible Coupes.

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It's the big day we've been waiting for - the 2024 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance!

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We saw so many great vehicles and sights during Monterey Car Week!