Pebble Beach, California – A 1934 Packard V12 Convertible Victoria that appeared in the third Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Pebble Beach, California in 1955 will return to the show, 53 years later, for the August 17 event.

In 1955, San Francisco police officer Marvin Zukor drove the car about 160 km down the California coast to attend the show. He will return with it this year to a show that has grown from a local collector car show to an annual showcase for classic automobiles from around the world.

Both of the car’s first two owners have stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It was originally purchased in 1933 by actor Cesar Romero, and then sold to sportscaster and actor Bill Stern, who broadcast the first major league baseball game on television. After World War II, the car became a Stanford University “rally car”, driven around the stadium track during football games.

Zukor said he purchased the Packard in 1952 from a young man who had rescued it from Stanford, but was leaving to serve in the Korean War. “The car was used and abused when I bought it,” he said. “The V12 engine had holes and was shot, there was a busted water pump and the entire car was a mess. But I loved it. I originally gave it a 1950s-type restoration, including a $100 paint job, new engine and upholstery. I then showed it at the 1955 Pebble Beach Concours and got a prize for second place (in class), a little thing to put on my dashboard.”