John Staluppi can be seen as the embodiment of the American Dream, going from fixing cars at a Brooklyn, New York, gas station to owning a billion-dollar empire of auto dealerships, plus indulging in the enviable business of designing and building super-yachts.
If that’s not enough, Staluppi also has assembled one of the greatest collections of American dream cars on the East Coast, mostly from the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s and primarily convertibles, housed in his North Palm Beach, Florida, Cars of Dreams Museum.
It’s just a short hop from there to Barrett-Jackson’s collector car auction in Palm Beach, where Staluppi has consigned more than 140 of his cars to be sold at no reserve during the April 12-15 sale at the South Florida Fairgrounds.
The diverse collection also includes resto-mods and customs, and such specialty vehicles as a 1963 Volkswagen Beetle that co-starred as Herbie in some of the famous Walt Disney films.
Staluppi and his wife, Jeanette, are familiar faces at Barrett-Jackson auctions, most recently showing their philanthropic bent with the winning bid of $1.4 million on the first 2018 Corvette Carbon 65 Edition to benefit the Military Service Initiative. Former President George W. Bush was on stage at the Scottsdale auction to introduce the sale, with 100 percent of the money going to the charity that Bush founded.
The Corvette bidding was the latest in a long line of charity vehicles purchased by the Staluppis over the years.
“John Staluppi and his wife, Jeanette, are an important part of the Barrett-Jackson family, and we are honored he chose us to offer his Cars of Dreams Collection,” Craig Jackson, chief executive of Barrett-Jackson, said in a news release. “Over the years, John has amassed some of the best examples of cars from the golden era of automobiles, and this offering will provide a special opportunity to own unique and meticulously cared for pieces of automotive history.”
Among the stars of the Staluppi collection to be sold in Palm Beach are a ’58 Dual Ghia convertible, a ’69 Chevrolet Camaro RS/SS Indy Pace Car and a ’65 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray convertible.
“Jeanette and I are extremely excited to be working alongside Craig Jackson, Steve Davis and the entire team of Barrett-Jackson,” Staluppi said in the release. “We have been part of the auctions for many years and we believe Barrett-Jackson to be the premier collector car auction company in the industry.”
For information about the Barrett-Jackson sale in Palm Beach and the Staluppi collection, visit the auction website.
Why is Mr staluppi sellING off his cars an is it all of the cars he owns