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Recently acquired a large box of old auto photos. Included was
this Pierce. Seems to have NY lights and a beautiful body design.
This is the most inspiring custom bodied American car from the mid-
twenties that has taken over my emotions. Did the scrap drives get it?
Can anybody enlighten us about its origins and present status?
Tony,
I absolutely agree. I came across about 500 photos. Most earlier and many
of the Oakland and Walnut Creek areas. This photo stunned me. For the era
the design is remarkable. The hubcaps are Pierce. The Photo on the back says Pierce, but I know nothing else. In the 8×10 photo the car is simply beautiful.
This car is pictured in one of the more recent Pierce Arrow books and I believe it is the car owned by the silent screen star Richard Dix.It is a RHD Pierce Arrow.
Body tag is clear in the photo, maybe it can be enlarged.
Can anyone identify the venue? It is pretty distinctive and may hold some clues
Gorgeous! What kind of spoked wheels are those?
It is quite possible this is an updated body on an older Pierce Arrow.The wheels appear to be 25 inch Firestone rims.It was rather common in those days to update an older expensive car with new coachwork and a more current tire rim size.
I can’t make out the body builder but the tires are 33 x 5 which
means 23 inch wheels.
I would suspect then the car was updated about 1923-1924.
Updates usually have styling cues from its earlier composition. Owners had
a sentimental attachment to the car or their bank account. This car screams
a top custom designer and deep pockets. Plato would have used this car as the
peak of perfection in his pursuit of the meaning of truth. The wheels are not
left-overs from an update, and are indicators of its construction date.
Looks like Holbrook coachwork to me………but just a guess. Definitely a BIG dollar car when new.
Cover photo of the Arrow series 05 model 4
Information provided: The back of the photograph is inked -1929 Pierce-Arrow Don Lee body. It is an earlier RHD model. It shows considerable alteration, beginning with smaller wheels and ending with substantial body revisions that would not be out of character for a Don Lee body.
Don Lee had been a Cadillac Dealer since 1906. He purchased the Earl coach-
builders business in 1919. Young and instantly successful, Harley Earl
got thrown into the deal. At one point they were building 250 cars a year.
1922-1924 Model 33 Pierces had 33 x 5 tires (not sure about 1925, but
balloon tires were coming into vogue). I think the chassis belongs to the
’22 to ’24 period. It works fine for this period. It would be old-fashioned
for 1929. So who in their right mind (wallet) would put drum headlights
on an expensive custom car ordered in 1929?
The car in the photo is right hand drive so it would have to be a pre 1921 chassis.One can see the quadrant below the steering wheel when the photo is enlarged.DuPont,Cunningham,the Springfield Rolls-Royce and some Locomobiles still had drum headlamps in 1929.
Based on wheel size, is the hood more apt to have an 8 or a 6 under it?
That is one long hood and cowl.
Curtiss,
Great job of finding the answer and proving the worth of Arrow Back Issues!
Dave
The body type is very indicative of the “Sportif”” body style that was a high note for Locomobile design of the same era.
Al”
The man behind the wheel is Richard Dix silent film star 1893-1949
This car has many of the design features of the “Fatty Arbuckle”” Model 66 that Don Lee did.”