Janis Joplin's Porsche 356 C SC Comes to the Amelia Concours

Jacksonville, FL (January 29, 2016) - 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 1968 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 Jolpin's 356 C SC Cabriolet.

Besides, "my friends all drive Porsche's, 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!'"

The 2016 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance will be held March 11-13th on the 10th and 18th fairways of The Golf Club of Amelia Island at The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island. The show's Foundation has donated over $2.75 million to Community Hospice of Northeast Florida, Inc. and other charities on Florida's First Coast since its inception in 1996. In 2013 the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance won Octane Magazine's EFG International Historic Motoring Event of the Year award.

About the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance

Now in its third decade, the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is among the top automotive events in the world. Always held the second full weekend in March, "Amelia" draws over 250 rare vehicles from collections around the world to The Golf Club of Amelia Island, The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island for a celebration of the automobile like no other. The 21st annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is scheduled for March 11-13, 2016. For more information, visit www.ameliaconcours.org or call 904-636-0027.