We'd race to Nassau and back on the weekends. They just dont make em like Don Aronow anymore. From being a huge success in the construction industry, he went on the being a legend as a powerboat designer and racer. His father said it had to do with something called the Depression. If you needed him, you just hit him on the intercom!, Michael Peters The upstairs apartment above his office was kind of famous. Separately, there were rumours that Aronow may have been assisting law enforcement, even becoming an informant or at least that, in early 1987, he was about to be subpoenaed to give evidence about the USA Racing Team transactions. Brown: Our friend Stu Jackson worked for Thunderbird and he received a gold Rolex when he retired. (ABOVE) RICH AND FAMOUS: Aronow famously kept company with people from all walks of life. I never thought anybody would actually do that, but by God, they did., Michael Peters [George] Bushs reaction was that he wanted [Miami] Dade Homicide on it like it was the most important case on their books. I went over there and he had holes all over him. (Captains note: we think he means money.) At that time, NE 188th Street was a weed-strewn, low-rise strip. It was mostly a lot of hell-raising and good times.". They were fast (more than 112km/h), good for interdiction activities (stable when boarding intercepted boats) and comparatively easy to drive. Whereas Don Aronow was more brash, assertive more resolutely a mans man. And I could tell you the day he was murdered there were phone calls to the King of Jordan, the King of Spain, George Bush. Allegations ran wild in the aftermath of Aronows death. The couples newfound happiness doesnt last long, though, because Ben is killed soon after at age 59 in what seems to be a job. He eventually became aggravated with the business. Guys wanted to be him. Similar to IMDb, it lists a middling 4.2 stars out of 10. New hotels and office towers are rising in Miami, and once-sleepy towns nearby are growing skylines of their own, chronicled Time. Queen Elizabeth II: Death And Obituary What Happened To Her? A world-champion boat racer who enjoyed wild success in business, he was also an unapologetic playboy and fabled bon vivant. Lipschutz: Once racings in your blood you can never get it out. You make real money when you sell the company.. [1] In 1945, he joined the merchant marine and worked overseas until the end of World War II. Then he bought a parcel of land immediately west of them, and thats where he built the Magnum building. Witnesses assert that as Aronow rolled down his window, the other driver allegedly started shooting. Cigarette, Donzi and other Aronow-conceived brands live on, as do the Miami to Key West race and offshore poker runs. In 1966, he founded Magnum Marine and in 1967 proceeded to win his first World Championship driving two 27' Magnums, a single engine inboard and a triple engine Mercury-powered outboard. Are lithium-ion batteries to blame for recent boat blazes? For his part, he says the Colombians did it.]. He started hosting Sunday afternoon brunches at the new home, sometimes for 50 or 60 people, with only Skip and Joanne Allen, of Southern Boating, and my wife and I as the token Christians. You can talk to anybody [about that]. Aronow's Cigarette has also become the low slung get-away boat of choice for South Florida's high-rolling drug smugglers.? In 1948, he married Shirley Goldin, [1] [6] whom he had met while working as a lifeguard on Coney Island. From being a huge success in the construction industry, he went on the being a legend as a powerboat designer and racer. She has a son with him. People said whatever Don touched turned to gold. He was going to run for president, and his friend had 140 people who wanted to kill him! Revealingly, the Time feature predicted that Miami would remain, as the late President Jaime Rolds of Ecuador put it, the capital of Latin America. He built this entire street. Airlifted to a nearby hospital, Don Aronow was dead within the hour. The best I ever saw. Aronow left his office in his white Mercedes, shortly after visiting a rival boat dealership owned by Kramer. In the film, Ben Aronoff is wed to Katherine Aronoff, his wife. What Happened To Don Aronow? Back in those days [criminal activity involving speedboats] was very prevalent because there was a lot of smuggling going on. His face flushed with excitement, Don Aronow launches into another one of his stories. Shortly after the visit, Aronow left his office and drove down the street to Apache Performance Boats to visit with his former protg, Bob Saccenti. Brown: Every boat he sold was built for himself. Theres about 70 people out there who think they have a boat Don built for himself. Lipschutz: The saying he had about [Cigarettes famed Mistress model] was every man should have a Mistress. And that certainly described him, too. Celebrated yacht designer Michael Peters, who went to work for Aronow the day before he died, said, He was an asshole, but he was my asshole a benefactor for whom Ill always be grateful., On 3 February 1987, Peters was aged 34 and among the last people to speak with Aronow at the office of USA Racing Team, the latest of Aronows boat firms. The investigating detectives believed that Kramer was seeking to silence Young in jail, paying his legal bills, even possibly seeking to have Young killed. He was about outdoing the other guy no matter what you were doing. David A. Arnold: Death And Obituary How Did Famous Comedian, Actor-Writer &Producer Die? Bobby Young, a career criminal, acknowledged the occurrence in 1995 and gave a complete confession in 2009, just before he passed away. Don did not enjoy boating. He had bought a boat in California and he asked Aronow and me to drive it and see if it was any good. Some people say he was hiding from the mob. The story was also the basis for the 2009 documentary film Thunder Man: The Don Aronow Story and the 2018 movie Speed Kills with John Travolta. He pulled alongside a Lincoln car with tinted windows. He was going to run for president and his friend had 140 people who wanted to kill him!. Dick Bertram was the man to beat both in terms of boat design and the racing itself. Leaving his office that afternoon, Aronow was making for his North Bay Road residence, a 1929 Spanish-style waterfront mansion undergoing renovations, 30 minutes drive away. Members of the Bee Gees were neighbours on both sides. With his father, he also founded Fort Apache Marina on the Row, comprising a boat storage facility, waterfront restaurant and patio bar. Brown: Everybody has their own idea about why he was in Miami. And the guy would say, I want a 28. And Aronow would say Oh no, were all sold out. And the guy would keep pushing, Oh, I wanted one all my life. Some of the most popular types of speedboats were the Cigarette, Donzi, Formula, and Cary. Katheryn Winnick and John Travolta in Speed Kills ( Source : imdb ) Ben and his wife Emily also had a son named Andrew. Wally Tatomir: Death And Obituary What Is The Cause Of The Equipment Manager&Death? I dont think it ever ran again., Michael Peters He didnt like guys that came in and tried to go toe-to-toe with him. Sure enough, I moved there on a Monday and he was murdered that Tuesday.. I cant imagine that, though, he was pretty easy to find. A kid was going to start a boat company in Florida. With his first wife, Shirley Goldin, he has two sons and a daughter. Rumours concerning Fort Apache continue to circulate, including one about the dock area, positing that camouflaged metal doors opened into large storage compartments, accessible at low tide at night, say. He thought he was going to semi-retire to Florida and skindive and fish but he got bored., Michael Peters Aronow looked the part. I just did you a favor.. The American-Puerto Rican crime drama film Speed Kills is based on the real-life boat designer and racer Donald Joel Aronow, who started Magnum Marine in Florida in 1966. With lots of money and charisma, not to mention NFL starting quarterback good looks, Aronow soon became a ladies man of legendary status in Miami circles. Michael plays the role of Andrew in the movie Speed Kills. Innovations such as fibreglass construction techniques and the drag-reducing deep V hull were taking chunks from the record times, and also from crews in rough seas. Aronow sold the company (and Brownie) shortly after its inception (and a couple of big offshore wins). It was into this volatile, heady mix that vice president George HW Bush President Reagans lieutenant in the White Houses war on drugs unwittingly stepped. These races were filled with tales of derring-do: engine burnouts and explosions, crew members being knocked unconscious or needing airlifting to hospital some even left marooned and bleeding amid circling sharks, not to forget the high-speed collisions, including one in rough seas under a hovering press helicopter. "I'd never be married to a beautiful woman like Lillian if I hauled garbage for a living," Aronow adds. Bob Saccenti Don used to come and see me when I was hurt one of those You need anything, let me know, things. I think hed really be proud of the boats., What Are The Best Boats For OffShore Fishing? Brown: He was murdered right out in front of my office halfway between Saccentis building and my building. Also read:Wally Tatomir: Death And Obituary What Is The Cause Of The Equipment Manager&Death? But in the end the investigation led to a hired gun. Our Privacy Policy Creator includes several compliance verification tools to help you effectively protect your customers privacy. That was the cast of characters he was involved with. He admired Aronow and acquired a corner of the Row, obtaining an interest in Apache, which in turn supplied the vessels he raced offshore (his fabled Warpath, based on a deep V Cigarette mould, won him a world championship). Little could prepare him for the scene two hundred metres up the street. WebAronow married twice. Bush back-pedalled out of there as fast as he could. The CrewMichael Aronow: sonBob Saccenti: builder of Chief Powerboats and founder of Apache Performance BoatsPhil Lipschutz: former Aronow contractor and current Miami-area Cigarette dealerAllan Brownie Brown: former acquaintanceMichael Peters: contracted designer 1981-1986, hired full-time 1987. But if he didnt like you, watch out., Allan Brown Our friend Stu Jackson worked for Thunderbird and he received a gold Rolex when he retired. It was the time of the sexual revolution, and his popularity with women was almost as legendary as his boating exploits, although some women were more circumspect. A certain Ben Kramer, who came from a seemingly good home on the Intracoastal Waterway between Miami and Fort Lauderdale, started smoking pot at school and began selling it. The hobby evolved into a business and by the end of 1962, he had formed the Formula Marine boat company, which he then sold to Merrick Lewis' Alliance Machine Corp out of Dayton, Ohio. We collected some of the best. 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