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Where did Ferrari's new CEO come from? Cigarettes and money

At the close of the 2006 Formula One season, cigarette advertising was banned from the cars on the grid. Arguably the most prominent and widely recognized brand/car package was the red, black and white Marlboro logo that encompassed the Ferrari cars. Marlboros were marketed by the company then known as Phillip Morris. Phillip Morris became part of a conglomerate named Altria. The man who was the CEO of Altria at the time of the tobacco advertising ban, a man who had long been an exec at what was still just Phillip Morris during the 1980s and 1990s, when much of the truly exciting F1 racing occurred, was Louis C. Camilleri. Camilleri has been given the powers of the CEO by the board of Ferrari and is likely to be given the official job within days due to the unfortunate health-related circumstances of Sergio Marchionne. According to a story that appeared in November 2001 on Motorsport.com about the ban on tobacco advertising in Formula One, the organizing body of the sport, the FIA, released a statement that said, in part, "Today tobacco sponsorship remains an important source of revenue for a number of Formula 1 and World Rally Championship teams. The precise value of such sponsorship is hard to estimate but probably exceeds 350 million per year." Serious money. And as Camilleri, presumably, had more than a little something to do with the splashing of the Marlboro signage on the cars of drivers including Schumacher and Massa, his association with Ferrari probably had more to do with nicotine than gasoline. In October 2015 Ferrari's IPO was priced at $52 per share. At the beginning of 2018 the price was at $105.15; as of July 20, $140. Like any good billionaire, he is said to have a collection of Ferraris, though he isn't a "car guy" in the traditional sense of coming up in the business. (One of the Altria companies had been Kraft Foods, so he may know more than most about things like Velveeta.) But Ferrari is as much about serious money as it is about V12s nowadays, maybe more. Related Video:

Ferrari 250 GT California nets $17 million at Amelia Island

The 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider is famed for its feature (in replica form) in "Ferris Beuller's Day Off" and as one of the more valuable Ferrari models. This year's Gooding & Company auction at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance have has cemented that with a high-dollar example. This 250 is indeed a real example, one of just 56 ever made, and only 37 with those desirable covered headlights. This was the first time this particular example was ever offered for sale to the public in its 55-year history, and it fetched $17.16 million at the Florida concours over the weekend. That's not quite enough to take the record for this highly sought-after model. According to Sports Car Market, that still belongs to the barn-find example that Artcurial sold last year for over $18 million. But it did beat its own pre-sale estimates, and was enough to top Gooding's list as well as that of Amelia Island. Related Video:   Gooding & Company Sets Amelia Island Record for Single Lot and Celebrates More Than $60 Million in Sales from its 2016 Amelia Island Auction - 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider Fetches $17,160,000, a Gooding & Company Record - Selections from The Jerry Seinfeld Collection Total More Than $22.2 Million AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. (March 13, 2016) – Gooding & Company, the auction house acclaimed for selling the world's most significant and valuable collector cars with the tradition of presenting some of the greatest collections to ever come to market, realized $60,162,150 in a single day at the company's 2016 Amelia Island Auction. The most talked about event of the week did not disappoint, as President David Gooding and Auctioneer Charlie Ross sold 69 of 79 lots for an impressive 87% sales rate, which resulted in an astounding average price of $871,915 per car sold. The standing-room-only crowd also witnessed the company achieve nine new world auction benchmarks. There were highlights throughout the auction, including the $22,244,500 garnered by Selections from The Jerry Seinfeld Collection and the star of the day, the 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider which commanded a price of $17,160,000. "We are delighted with our auction results and are proud of the new auction records we have set, which demonstrates that there is a strong demand for high quality cars," stated David Gooding, President of Gooding & Company. "The room was electric from the beginning and the crowd's intensity only grew when Mr.

Can the Dark Knight pull off Enzo Ferrari?

Christian Bale is taking another role where he gets to be in close contact with cool cars. The former Batman has reportedly been cast as Enzo Ferrari in a biopic about the legendary automotive figure that's being directed by Michael Mann, according to Deadline Hollywood. Production is set to begin next summer. The film allegedly takes place in 1957 and is possibly related to the fatalities of 11 people that year in a Ferrari crash at the Mille Miglia. According to Road & Track, the story also might be based on the book Enzo Ferrari: The Man, The Cars, The Races, The Machine. Mann has been trying to get the tale of the sports car magnate made for years, and had previously been negotiating to direct a movie adapting the book Go Like Hell about Ford and Ferrari's epic rivalry at Le Mans in the '60s. Bale's casting seems like a challenge, though. The British actor certainly doesn't look much like Ferrari. Also, he's currently 41, whereas il Commendatore was 59 in 1957. Mann's film already has challenger, too. Robert de Niro is also developing a Ferrari biopic in Italy, and he's taking the starring role. That movie would reportedly tell the story of the sports car company from its founding through Enzo's death in 1988. Here's hoping both of them make it to theaters; the auto industry titan's life is plenty fascinating enough to support more than one big-screen tale. Related Video: