JFK Funeral Limo 1964 Imperial

How here's a cool car!

MSN

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I had forgotten about that car until I saw it on the Mecum website recently. The correct amount of "stateliness" for a Presidential Limo!
 
My lottery winnings will go toward cornering the market on Limos and Mobile directors.
 
That particular Imperial limo seemed to be overshadowed by the Presidential Lincolns of the time. Which were 4-dr convertibles (one with a clear dome, IIRC). That particular car, on the Mecum website, was allegedly Mrs. Kennedy's limo, which was later used by LBJ. LBJ had his white Lincoln convertibles, too.

The '64 Imperial Ghia Limo sold for $181,500.00 at Mecum's Glendale auction on 03-09-2024.
 
The dates in several articles and on numerous websites are very confusing.When did Chrysler send the bodies over to Ghia? I don't think they are claiming that it was used in the funeral by Jackie....just in the cortege.But it was not, as stated above.I don't see the correct tail lights in the photo.

"As reported by The Detroit News, this historically significant limousine was part of the cortege during President John F. Kennedy’s funeral in November 1963. The widow of the late president, Jackie Kennedy, utilized this limousine for personal transport for almost a year, and it was even employed to take Lyndon B. Johnson to his second presidential inauguration in 1965. The car proudly served in the White House fleet up until 1969."
 
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I wonder if there's any armor, bulletproof glass or other special features? Or did all that start on cars after the JFK assasination?
 
The newspaper article quoted was also on the Mecum website description for the car. As were some of the pictures with foreign dignitaries at the White House.

The prior Imperials, in limo form, tended to exemplify the modernistic, jet-age styling which was illustrative, to me, of the youthful future of the USA, at that time. Elegant and snazzy at the same time. Better styling than any GM car had at that time.

The '64-'66 cars took on a more stately, but not boring, orientation that looked great in Limo form.

Remember how things were back then? Almost every rancher or ranch employee who drove a pickup truck had a two-shotgun holder inside of the cab's rear window. "Hunting rifles" for shooting critters. Many of the college kids at UT-Austin ran and got their rifles to help the Austin PD officers who were seriously out-gunned in the mid-'60s "tower shooting" at UT-Austin.

One sunny day, some ranch employees decided to take their Jeep (CJ-style, open vehicle) into downtown Fort Worth to look at the pretty ladies as they went to lunch. They turned a corner and were suddenly surrounded by police officers. They were totally surprised! Unbeknownst to them, the President was in town that day in a motorcade near where they were. Two rifles sitting in the floor-mouinted gun holder beside the shift levers. Took so 'splaining for them before they were released. This was in the late 1960s or early 1970s, IIRC. They were just a pair of ranch hands who went "to the big city" to look at the sights that day. Things are MUCH different now. Gun racks have disappeared from pickup trucks, too. Who wants to drill holes in the interior of a $90K USD pickup truck?

Take care,
CBODY67
 
Picture of the 1960 Imperial Ghia Limo my dad owned in the late 1980's to late 1990's. It was dark blue. It was a great car. We never knew the real history of the car, but it did have the same body configuration as the Kennedy 1960 Ghia limo.

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Seeing the JFK Funeral Limo brings back memories of my own solemn journey. Last year, we bid farewell to a beloved family member, and we entrusted Miami Limo Service with our transportation. Their professionalism and compassion made a difficult time a bit easier. Just like the dignified Imperial in 1964, our ride was impeccable.
 
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