Picture this: it’s Christmas morning, snow is softly falling outside and your special someone opens up the front door to see a raven black convertible wrapped in a gigantic red bow in the driveway.
Except instead of some newfangled 2019 model, it’s Marilyn Monroe’s 1956 Ford Thunderbird.
That could be you come December 25th … assuming you’re the highest bidder when the car hits the auction block November 17th. The sale is part of Julien’s Auctions’ annual Icons & Idols: Hollywood event, with the expected going rate estimated between $300K-$500K.
While the low end of that estimate is four times the going rate of a ‘56 Thunderbird in pristine condition, this is a true piece of Monroe memorabilia.
In fact, according to the press release, the convertible was most likely given as a Christmas present, purchased on December 20, 1955, and gifted by her business partner and photographer Milton Greene. Monroe loved it so much she apparently drove it to her private wedding ceremony to playwright and fiancé Arthur Miller in June 1956.
Here they are in NYC with the top down:
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The black-and-white cruiser is loaded with a 312-cubic-inch V8 that puts out 225 HP, Ford-O-Matic automatic transmission and both a canvas convertible top as well as a killer porthole hard top. While most “driver and passenger touch surfaces” remain unchanged, the car has undergone a frame-off restoration by Prestige Thunderbird in Santa Fe Springs, CA, and an engine rebuild (with a current odometer reading of 30,399).
Of course, the holiday gifting is just a suggestion. But if you don’t have a significant other to dote upon, this could be your saving grace. There are few better pick-up lines than “Want to take a ride in Marilyn Monroe’s Thunderbird?”
Images via Julien’s Auctions
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