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Manson Family 1959 Ford Galaxie From Once Upon a Time Is Up for Grabs

Perhaps one of the most fascinating movies of recent years for car enthusiasts is one that could not even be described as a proper car movie: Quentin Tarantino’s 2019 comedy Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
The Manson family Ford Galaxie from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood 3 photos
Photo: Columbia / Tristar
The Manson family Ford Galaxie from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood1968 Pontiac Firebird from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Being an ode to Hollywood at the end of the ‘60s, the film includes some of the most beautiful cars of that time and, because Tarantino is such a nerd, many of them get more screentime than actual humans. On average, a movie uses about 300 or 500 vehicles, but for this production, over 2,000 original vehicles were sourced.

The good news is that some of them, perhaps the most important because they all belonged to the main characters, are coming up for auction. We already informed you the other day that Prop Store is selling massive lots of Hollywood memorabilia, including both Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio’s rides in the film.

In addition to the 1964 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia and the 1966 Cadillac Coupe DeVille, Prop Store has a couple more vehicles from the film. Specifically, we’re talking about the Manson Family 1959 Ford Galaxie, which is shown right before the attack / climax scene, and the yellow 1968 Pontiac Firebird Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie) hitches a ride in to El Coyote.

Both have very interesting stories to tell, in addition to their association with the Oscar-winning production. The two-tone Ford Galaxie, previously a black model, was repainted to make it into a good replica of the car used in the murders by the Manson “family.”

Before the movie went into production, the owner of the real Manson car reached out to Tarantino and Picture Car Coordinator Stephen Butcher with an offer to rent it. They turned it down on the grounds that it would be too “creepy” to have it on set, and created this replica instead.

This is a functional vehicle and comes with a California license plate, a V8 under the hood and 350 turbo automatic transmission for “the ease of the actors,” Store Prop tells us. It is expected to fetch between $30,000 and $50,000 at the auction.

The second car is the 1968 Pontiac Firebird owned by Abigail Folger (Samantha Robinson). It’s painted in Mayfair Maize yellow and has a black vinyl roof, and is one of the 90,000 Firebird coupes sold that model year. It was painted yellow by the production team, to match Folger’s real-life car.

This car has some “minor signs of use” like “scuffs and minor rusting,” but remains in good, operable condition. It is estimated to fetch between $25,000 and $35,000.

The auction will take place online between August 26 and 27, so if you’ve been in the market for Hollywood car memorabilia or just a nice pair of vintage wheels, this could be your chance.
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About the author: Elena Gorgan
Elena Gorgan profile photo

Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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