Mickey Cohen's Cadillac
Would you like to see another picture of Mickey Cohen with one of his Cadillacs? Of course you would! This one is a bit mysterious. This is the Cadillac that took a few shots in 1949 outside Sherry's on the Sunset Strip, but the picture is dated Oct. 30, 1950, which is after The Times took photos of his new bulletproof Cadillac.
Photograph by Bruce Cox / Los Angeles Times
Here's another mystery: What's the deal with Cohen campaigning for Fletcher Bowron? It would seem to me that if you're running in a recall election (as Mayor Bowron was), you wouldn't want to be endorsed by the city's most prominent mobster. There's no telling what role Cohen's support might have had, but Bowron defeated the recall.
And why is Cohen driving his old, ventilated car when there's a nice, shiny bulletproof Cadillac in the garage? It seems Mickey neglected to get a permit from the California Highway Patrol to drive an armored conveyance. Oops! He ended up selling his $17,000 ($137,564. 58 USD 2006) bulletproof car at a $5,000 loss to the Texas Stock Car Racing Assn., which put it on tour.
While I'm at it, here's an undated photo of Mickey Cohen, compulsive hand washer, at his favorite pastime.
