JANIS JOPLIN'S PORSCHE 356 C SC COMES TO THE AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS

January 29, 2016 by Amelia Island Concours

High tide of the Age of Aquarius broke on Janis Joplin's 1964 Porsche 356 SC Cabriolet on October 4, 1970. The spirit of that age will echo at the Amelia Island Concours on March 13, 2016 when Janis Joplin's Porsche 356C 1600 SC anchors the Porsche 356 class.

Joplin bought it used in 1964 for $3,500. It's the final version of the venerable 'C' model, sold from 1964 through 1965, the time of the arrival of the 911; the last gasp of the 356 species, the perfect finale in the Porsche 356's long life.

She loved it and used all 90 horsepower to good effect blasting around Los Angeles and up and down the west coast wearing the unmistakable paint applied by one of her band's 'roadies'. Dave Richards took nearly a month to complete what he entitled 'The History of the Universe' on Joplin's 356 C SC Cabriolet.

Besides, 'my friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends' she howled in a recording session on the first day of October, 1970, beseeching the lord to buy her a Mercedes-Benz. Three days later she was found dead in her room at the Sunset Motor Hotel in Hollywood. The coroner's report surprised no one. Her 356 was still in the hotel parking lot.

Joplin's family inherited the Porsche and used it as a faithful daily driver. It was repainted; Richard's work covered until two Denver-area women recreated, as faithfully as possible from period photos, the car's late-1960s psychedelic-mural, just as Joplin drove it. And it still wears an ESTES-ZIPPER license plate frame from the famous dealership where Joplin purchased it. In 1995, her family loaned the Porsche to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. It remained there for nearly 20 years.

'Ironically, Joplin's motives for buying her Porsche were very similar to Ferry Porsche's when he created the 356. He claimed that he simply built his dream car; she created the car of her dreams,' said Mark Becker, Vice-Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. She said it was 'very fancy, high class and a great car, too!'

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