Old Cars Weekly – 22 August 2019

http://www.oldcarsweekly.com August22, 2019 ❘ 31

Union City Body Co. coupe, J-406

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Although introduced in 1928, a two-passenger coupe with

a rumble seat was not cataloged by Duesenberg for the

Model J until 1931. As a result, very few rumble seat coupes

are known to have been built on the Duesenberg Model J chas-

sis. Four of the coupe bodies that were built were originally

designed to customer order; the other two bodies were of the

design illustrated in the 1931 Duesenberg catalog and built by

the Union City Body Co. Both of these cataloged coupes, one

of which is pictured here, were sold in 1931.

The story of one of those Union City Body Co. coupes was

previously told in Old Cars; it is the car that lost its body in

the 1940s, but Jay Leno recently had a replacement body built

for its original chassis and engine. The other coupe, J-406, is

altogether lost.

Rollston panel/opera

brougham town car, J-568

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A one-of-a-kind Duesenberg

Model J town car that was butch-

ered early in life received a reprieve,

only to be completely discarded al-

together. Its sad story begins in the

shadow of actress Marion Davies’

spotlight.

Davies was a multiple Duesen-

berg owner, her fi rst having been

a Hibbard & Darrin transformable

cabriolet (a convertible sedan whose

roof could be positioned in several

ways, including as a town car). After

her Hibbard & Darrin-bodied Model J,

a very modern, streamlined town car

body was drawn for Davies, but she

rejected this design in favor of a very

dated panel brougham town car built

by Rollston. This panel brougham

carried cane work on the rear com-

partment and a “six fender” design in

which there was a break between the

front and rear running boards. When

Davies received this Rollston panel

brougham in 1935, its archaic styling

with squared body edges was at least

10 years out of date. When J.L. Elbert

sent a survey to known past and pres-

ent Duesenberg owners for his forthcoming book, Davies re-

plied, “...I bought the [opera brougham] in 1935 at the New

York Automobile Show. It was exhibited in Chicago, with my

permission. I have always considered the Duesenberg the fi n-

est car that was ever manufactured. It is too sad that they are

not producing anymore....”

According to Randy Ema, the panel brougham’s rear

compartment was cut off so it could be used on a Hollywood

movie set and the rest was made into a truck after Davies’

ownership. Realizing the studio still had the rear section, a

subsequent owner tried to correct this blasphemous move by

retrieving the rear compartment and installing it back on the

car. The work was subpar, but at least the panel brougham

was whole again. It would not remain whole for much longer,

however. The car was later broken down for parts and only its

engine lives on, now powering a Packard convertible coupe.

Locke town car, J-400

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Just one body was built by Locke & Co. of New York

City for the Model J chassis, a quite formal landualet

body in which only the area above the rear doors was fi xed; the

areas above the chauffeur and rear seat could be opened. The

car was opulently dressed with burled wood in the division and

also trimming the remainder of the rear compartment. It also

had a roof rack; rope pulls on the rear doors; and other fi ne

materials. The cowl was raked rearward in line with the split

V windshield, and the car featured an unusual beltline mold-

ing across the doors. This long-wheelbase Model J was painted

three shades of green and delivered in 1930. Its history isn’t

well tracked, but it is known to have not survived.

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