Jay Leno Sued Over Rare Car Purchase

NEW YORK — The estate of a department store heir says in a lawsuit that Jay Leno was illegally sold a valuable automobile at a sham auction.

The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Manhattan by the estate of Macy's heir John W. Straus. It says a 1931 Duesenberg was sold to the "Tonight Show" host at an auction designed to take that car and a 1930 Rolls Royce while Straus was ill.

Court papers say Leno, an avid car collector, bought the Duesenberg and someone else bought the Rolls. The suit says the cars were worth $1.7 million and were in a Manhattan garage for more than 50 years.

Straus died in May at age 88, and the suit says he paid all that was owed to store the cars.

Leno spokesman Dick Guttman had no comment.

Comments

[Yermammy]

Golly gee. Looks like Jay might have to give up his Doozy. Oh well, he still has seven more. lol.

[mlaiuppa]

Seems like they're suing the wrong person. If they want to sue, they should sue the person that SOLD the cars illegally, not the person who bought them.

[ReelBusy]

That would be the law but it would not get headlines and a settlement offer.

[bpress]

Jay is known for picking up cars at auctions when he can. A Mercedes was listed for an auction in Las Vegas about ten years ago and it was gone before the auction. It was said that the car had been bought by Jay Leno.

[Jackalheadedgod]

Let's try to get real here. Somebody needs to own these cars because your city or state will not, and there are no publicly owned automotive museums that I know of. It remains the duty of the wealthy among us to amass these collections that inevitably end up in private museums open to the public. This may be the only way to preserve our automotive heritage.

I like Letterman better, and I think he is a car guy too.

Some of us who are left of center need to calm down and see our world for what it is. I will be very surprised if we see guillotines come January.

Cheers,
Jack

[rcpmac]

Jay levels his sophomoric humor at both candidates and parties

[WillCooney]

There's no way that Jay's wife would allow him to be a Republican!

[GeorgeP922]

Dussenberg, man jay you republican SOB, I am sooooooo jealous.

Really just one of the rarest german cars ever! And I am not into old cars at all.

[Hopalongpoppyseed]

In 1913, German brothers Fred and August Duesenberg founded Duesenberg Automobile & Motors Company, Inc. on State Street in Garner, Iowa to build sports cars. (Wikipedia)

[tonycoyle]

and the source of the old phrase "it's a doozy!" meaning great fabulous wonderful astonishing!

[Mannock]

Yup. Auburn, Indiana. Home of the Auburn and the most beautiful car ever created, the Cord.

[AZdesertdog]

George,

you're obviously not a car guy at all. Duesenberg is not a German car. it was made right here in the USA.

[rich misty]

Dusenberg Bros cut their teeth running Indy

[Bettysdad]

And in what;s left of the factory is the Auburn, Cord Duesenberg Museum.

Great place if you're a gearhead with taste. Which leaves out Leno.

[Bettysdad]

Duesenbergs are so unique, they are the only German cars made in Indiana.

[maxfax]

Pretty self-indulgent, no wonder he supports John McCain.

[darthdarcy]

Jay you had to have a Duesenberg...come on let's be reasonable..!