Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door
SportSuburban
Posted 2009-04-04 4:07 AM (#169271)
Subject: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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Does anyone have any shots of Eunice Murray's 1958 Dodge around LA or Marilyn Monroe's house in 1962?
Has anyone found this car
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Doctor DeSoto
Posted 2009-04-04 12:42 PM (#169285 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: RE: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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With a name like "Eunice", it has to be good !
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d500neil
Posted 2009-04-04 5:13 PM (#169303 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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...has anyone LOOKED for the car--lol...it was a D500, IIRC.

I thought that M.M.'s secretary was named Exner.




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tailfins
Posted 2009-04-05 4:03 PM (#169408 - in reply to #169303)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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what color(s) was it?
i heard green/white?
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Doctor DeSoto
Posted 2009-04-05 4:10 PM (#169410 - in reply to #169408)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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OK, .... color me "stupid",

Who the #@! was Eunice Murray ?
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FinFury57
Posted 2009-04-05 4:25 PM (#169411 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: RE: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Try this *** link ***. It's copyrighted so I won't 'borrow' the image.

Not much of a photo of the car itself thou - IF that is the car you're after.... I can't even tell what make it is except an '58-61 MoPar. Picture seems to be flipped over as the steering wheel is on the wrong side. Does '58 Dodge have that style front seat upholstery?
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ThomasD500
Posted 2009-04-05 5:50 PM (#169419 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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Looks like a '57 to me, based on the windshield/ chrome.
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d500neil
Posted 2009-04-05 7:43 PM (#169426 - in reply to #169419)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



Exner Expert 19,174 posts. Neil passed away 18 Sep 2015. You will be missed, Neil!

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Well, in the Link-photo, above the car is a (mostly-) white 1958 Custom Royal hardtop.

In the directly rear-end photograph view, that I recall seeing, with the car parked in M.M.'s driveway, the car looks to
have been all white, and with a D500 emblem on the trunk.






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ThomasD500
Posted 2009-04-05 7:50 PM (#169428 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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I don't know my FL cars as well as many people here, but the reason I said it looks like a '57 is because the windshield doesn't appear to have the compound curve at the top, and the stainless trim piece at the top of the windhield has that 'visor' shape to it, rather than the more 'flush' look of the later trim pieces. I thought only '57s had those features (the more flat windshield with the visor-like trim)?

Edited by ThomasD500 2009-04-05 7:51 PM
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ThomasD500
Posted 2009-04-05 7:53 PM (#169431 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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Now that I look at it closer, i see that the rear-view mirror is mounted in a different location (more forward on the dash.) Is that the defining feature?
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d500neil
Posted 2009-04-05 7:57 PM (#169433 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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...That, and the fact that it does have the Compound-Curved windshield , with the unique eyebrow-less roof header, and
the fact that it's wearing 1958 Custom Royal upholstery.

58's actually had quite a few distinguishing features that were different from the 57's.
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ThomasD500
Posted 2009-04-05 8:07 PM (#169435 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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ok, but for the life of me, I swear I see a very distinct and obvious "eyebrow", "visor" or whatever it's called.
The windshield is hard to tell as to it's compound nature, except that I just don't see it at this angle...might be there nonetheless.

I don't doubt its a '58, but I hope I haven't gone delusional and seeing things (the eyebrow) that aren't there!
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SportSuburban
Posted 2009-04-06 3:31 AM (#169475 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: RE: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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To my knowledge the car was light green. Does anyone have a shot of the Licence plate?
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h-bomb
Posted 2009-04-06 11:37 AM (#169505 - in reply to #169431)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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ThomasD500 - 2009-04-05 7:53 PM

Now that I look at it closer, i see that the rear-view mirror is mounted in a different location (more forward on the dash.) Is that the defining feature?


Yep...the '57 had it more at the base of the windshield in the center.
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imopar380
Posted 2009-04-06 12:02 PM (#169507 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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OK I also agree its a 58 and can clearly see the compound curve windshield and the upholstery is definitely 58 Custom Royal.   Dr. DeSoto, under the photo it explains that Eunice Murray was MM's housekeeper / companion.   She must have been paid well by MM!  

the caption reads 

Eunice Murray with Norman Jeffries After Death of Marilyn Monroe
Original caption: 8/5/62 - HOLLYWOOD: Mrs. Eunice Murray housekeeper and companion for Marilyn Monroe and handyman Norman Jeffries leave after the body of the actress had been taken to the mortuary. Miss Murray called a doctor when she was unable to rouse Miss Monroe who had died from an apparent overdose of sleeping pills.



Edited by imopar380 2009-04-06 12:07 PM




(murray.jpg)



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Lancer Mike
Posted 2009-04-06 1:47 PM (#169514 - in reply to #169507)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Ah, that looks better...



(murray.jpg)



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h-bomb
Posted 2009-04-06 2:58 PM (#169519 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: RE: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Here's another -- can't see much, but is that an antenna in the back (one of duals, I'd assume?)



(3170986.jpg)



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Lancer Mike
Posted 2009-04-06 4:50 PM (#169530 - in reply to #169519)
Subject: RE: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Well, that confirms that it is a 1958 Dodge Custom Royal Lancer coupe...

Edited by Lancer Mike 2009-04-06 5:05 PM
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d500neil
Posted 2009-04-06 5:58 PM (#169533 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



Exner Expert 19,174 posts. Neil passed away 18 Sep 2015. You will be missed, Neil!

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..Yeah, and there's at least one still-photo (somebody go check out Life Magazine) showing the rear end of the car, parked @ M.M's
house, right after M.M.'s demise.







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Buffalo Bill
Posted 2021-02-27 12:16 AM (#609320 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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Thank you all for your detective work on this car. I compared the placement of the rear view mirror on the dashboard between the 1957 and 1958 models.
Yes indeed, the 1958 model has the mirror closer to the speedometer housing where the 1957 model has it centered on the dashboard. Dodge probably changed for
an easier reach when adjusting mirror. I looked at some pictures of '58 D500s and they have the same sporty upholstery.
So we can confirm Eunice Murray, Marilyn Monroe's personal assistant and housekeeper in 1962 when MM passed away,
drove a "mint green" 1958 Dodge Custom Royal Lancer D500 two door coupe. She would drive MM to various appointments in this car.
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56D500boy
Posted 2021-02-27 1:58 AM (#609321 - in reply to #609320)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JrY6XlaZfM

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Ev's62Chrysler
Posted 2021-02-27 7:57 AM (#609322 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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... and the cop car in the background in the video is a?
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56D500boy
Posted 2021-02-27 11:26 AM (#609330 - in reply to #609322)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Ev's62Chrysler - 2021-02-27 4:57 AM
... and the cop car in the background in the video is a?


Hard to tell. It looks like a Mopar sedan but that is just a guess, not enough detail.





(EuniceMurrayDodgeWithCopCarInBackground.jpg)



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1960fury
Posted 2021-02-27 5:32 PM (#609337 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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I'd say it is a 61 Dodge 4 d sedan.
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Buffalo Bill
Posted 2021-10-11 4:01 AM (#615751 - in reply to #609320)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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Buffalo Bill - 2021-02-27 12:16 AM

Thank you all for your detective work on this car. I compared the placement of the rear view mirror on the dashboard between the 1957 and 1958 models.
Yes indeed, the 1958 model has the mirror closer to the speedometer housing where the 1957 model has it centered on the dashboard. Dodge probably changed for
an easier reach when adjusting mirror. I looked at some pictures of '58 D500s and they have the same sporty upholstery.
So we can confirm Eunice Murray, Marilyn Monroe's personal assistant and housekeeper in 1962 when MM passed away,
drove a "mint green" 1958 Dodge Custom Royal Lancer D500 two door coupe. She would drive MM to various appointments in this car.



Update. I did some additional research and Eunice's car may have been a 1958 Dodge Coronet D-500.  I was looking at some news pictures from 1962  and I did not see the Custom Royal script on the front fender.  The Coronet script would have been on the rear fender which wasn't captred in any of the photos or newsreel  footage I have seen.  I don't have a copy of Eunice's 1975 book Marilyn: The Last Months, but she may have mentioned it as being a 1957 Coronet and this is mentioned  in another  Marilyn book,  Icon: The Life,  Times, and Films of  Marilyn Monroe  Volume 2  by Gary Vitacco-Robles.  He writes about Eunice driving  "Marilyn in a green 1957 Dodge Coronet along a tree-lined residential street" searching for the right house to buy. Eunice was off by a year if she stated it was a 1957 because we  know from the rear view mirror placement on the dash that it was a 1958. The Coronet was the base model but because of the sporty interior it had the D-500 package.  

 Marilyn Monroe Forever In Our Hearts - Pat Newcomb leaves Marilyn's house  on August 5th 1962 driven by Eunice Murray. | Facebook

 

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Buffalo Bill
Posted 2021-10-11 4:13 AM (#615752 - in reply to #609337)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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1960fury - 2021-02-27 5:32 PM

I'd say it is a 61 Dodge 4 d sedan.


I viewed the newsreel footage and it is indeed a 1961 Dodge police car outside Marilyn's gate.
This San Francisco car is a  Seneca model.  L.A.P.D.  probably used the same.

 

copcar dot com - The home of the American Police Car - Photo Archives

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Powerflite
Posted 2021-10-11 1:27 PM (#615759 - in reply to #615751)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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... I did some additional research and Eunice's car may have been a 1958 Dodge Coronet D-500.  I was looking at some news pictures from 1962  and I did not see the Custom Royal script on the front fender.  The Coronet script would have been on the rear fender which wasn't captured in any of the photos or newsreel  footage I have seen.  I don't have a copy of Eunice's 1975 book Marilyn: The Last Months, but she may have mentioned it as being a 1957 Coronet and this is mentioned  in another  Marilyn book,  Icon: The Life,  Times, and Films of  Marilyn Monroe  Volume 2  by Gary Vitacco-Robles.  He writes about Eunice driving  "Marilyn in a green 1957 Dodge Coronet along a tree-lined residential street" searching for the right house to buy. Eunice was off by a year if she stated it was a 1957 because we  know from the rear view mirror placement on the dash that it was a 1958. The Coronet was the base model but because of the sporty interior it had the D-500 package. 


No, the D500 option has nothing to do with the interior. There is a custom interior available for the Coronet, but what is shown in the pictures isn't it. The interior shown is definitely from a Custom Royal. Also, Coronets didn't get the extra roof trim like this has. Only on the Custom Royal. The bumper teeth is yet another indication of a Custom Royal. The Custom Royal emblem wouldn't have been located on the front fender on a '58 either. You can see it briefly on the rear quarter panel in the video as he helps Eunice into the car. It's definitely a '58 Custom Royal 2dr hardtop.

Also, that '61 Dodge cop car likely has the wrong dog dishes on it. Most likely, it would have used '56 Dodge dog dishes on 15" wheels.

Edited by Powerflite 2021-10-11 1:29 PM




(Eunice Murray 1.jpg)



(Eunice Murray 2.jpg)



(Eunice Murray 3.jpg)



(MV5BMTczNzgxNzUyNV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNDY5MzU2._V1_.jpg)



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Buffalo Bill
Posted 2021-10-11 5:01 PM (#615766 - in reply to #615759)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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Thank you very much Poweflite for the additional details. I was thinking it wasn't a Custom Royal based on this
picture of a 1958 Custom Royal with script on the front fenders and wide side spear. Did they put the script on front or rear fenders depending on the month of production run from September 1957 - Summer 1958 ?  I also found pictures of a Coronet Super D-500. A  d500neil  post on 5-11-12 indicated "In 1958, the toothed lower bumpers were optionally available on EVERY car model".  Is there something in sales literature to confirm that?  I wish I could find a clear picture of the rear of the car when Eunice and Marilyn's press agent Pat Newcomb were pulling out of the driveway. It might show the script and a D-500 emblem on the trunk.  It would be interesting to know if the car still exists since it was the last car Marilyn rode in for errands on the day of her death.  Thanks for your help.

 

 

 

 

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Powerflite
Posted 2021-10-11 5:57 PM (#615769 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Your first picture is the optional, and relatively rare, spring special trim on the late '58 cars. It seems everyone transplants that trim onto their cars today, so you wouldn't know that it wasn't the standard trim if you look for pictures on the internet. This white car shows a standard Custom Royal trim car. Yes, the bumper teeth are optional on a Coronet, but it is very rare for a cheap customer to purchase a lowly Coronet and opt for the bumper teeth. They almost always come on the higher end Custom Royal. But that seat design could only be had in the Custom Royal, so that's a clear giveaway. No way to purchase that in a Coronet. The seats you show in the Coronet convertible would not have come like that from the factory, and those seat buttons are not the originals, with a non-original shape. And that wide roof trim would not have come on a Coronet either. They didn't even get the chrome drip rail coverings on them! How certain am I that it is a Custom Royal? Pretty much 100%, as was Neil when he looked at it.

Edited by Powerflite 2021-10-11 6:00 PM




(ebay183674.jpg)



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christine-lover
Posted 2021-10-11 7:16 PM (#615771 - in reply to #615769)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Correct that the bumper ornaments were optional on all models in 1958. You can also see that the Custom Royal that Eunice had had bright stainless cowl screen instead of body color painted that was used on Coronets. Powerflite is spot on that the upholstery is Custom Royal, dead giveaway there. The red/white Coronet convertible above is a restored car done incorrectly, as you can see the upholstery was done in Custom Royal style. This is a factory Super D500 car that was originally all white. Seat buttons are almost always done incorrectly on restored cars, sure there are some done right, but most done wrong. If you do a search on here, that car sold for crazy money back before the 2007/2008 crash for something like $260k.
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Buffalo Bill
Posted 2021-10-12 3:33 AM (#615780 - in reply to #615771)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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Thank you very much Powerflite and christine-lover for your expertise on the 1958 Dodge. I notice in the upholstery picture of Eunice's car, the fabric insert on the driver's seat angles out from the top of the backrest. They didn't do that on the very expensive red convertible restoration. Are the two round vents on Eunice's dashboard the defrosters or are those air conditioning ducts? I was thinking A/C ducts had rounded hoods on Chrysler products from that era.





Edited by Buffalo Bill 2021-10-12 3:34 AM
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christine-lover
Posted 2021-10-12 5:21 AM (#615785 - in reply to #615780)
Subject: Re: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door



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Those style vents are for defroster/heater only cars. The factory air conditioned cars got a vent of a different style where one side of it flips up. You can do a forum search for that to see that style.
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Buffalo Bill
Posted 2021-10-14 8:22 PM (#615894 - in reply to #169271)
Subject: RE: Eunice Murray's 58 Dodge Custom Royal 2 door


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I'll bet the green interior on Eunice's Dodge was equally as pretty as this blue.

 

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