’30 Pierce and Led Zeppelin

The credits further obscure the year, and offer limited info. on the ownership, as you indicate. Though I’m by no means an expert, it appears to be a Club Sedan from ’30 (or a carryover) by the bumper, hub cap profile, and individual cowl doors, along with the higher interior door handles. A closer look at the car, frame-by-frame, reveals a black/yellow 1973 California license plate with the numbers HJV 907.

I’ll admit this gangster sketch is very strange with all of the clichés. Pinstripe suits, loud ties, and handkerchiefs in the pockets, and of course the Thompsons with the “Type C”, 100-round drums. Lotsa firepower there from an unlikely ride. Would expect such a drive-by from one of the early Ford V8s, or a straight-8 Essex Terraplane, or a Buick. I guess you don’t want my type at the movies ; )

Thanks for the info. about the California plates, and this was also confirmed by a good friend of mine who indicated that the black/yellow are almost a trademark. Perhaps this color combination/range extended from 1963-1968, or beyond? “School me” on that as I’m unfamiliar with western plates. He also said that the car was owned by John Bonham, and is familiar with Bonham’s “hobby” in the dragster circuit, but more so the drummer’s interest in classic cars. This is the sort of knowledge that comes of being a bassist for Badfinger, and running parallel and performing with Zeppelin and bands of that era, I guess. Funny how one stumbles upon, and arrives at answers for these car questions quite unexpectedly…

As for the Pierce particulars, the headlights and parking lights are of the curved prism type of ’30, and the courtesy lights on the splash aprons are also round, matching the indications for the same year. Interesting that the spare brackets are also without mirrors, though I don’t have the faintest for all of the bespoke features for the As, Bs, or Cs. Some of this is in the ’30 Pierce parts catalog/schematics.

Anyway, my research indicates that there was a mirror mount point in the clamp for ’31 that wasn’t there in ’30, at least, so that would limit the model-year range, but I know there were carryovers of earlier parts in later years within the company, and various owners’ modifications later on.

I appreciate everyone’s contribution to this post. Perhaps I’ve made more of one car than needs to be, but it’s a Pierce-Arrow after all…