Woman buried in Ferrari

I forgot to address that issue and unfortunately I am not comfortable discussing it. It goes without saying that death at age 37 is rarely of natural causes. Sandy led a helluva life.

 

Well, that sure proves it as far as I am concerned.

I guess ---- sorta....

 

Thanks for sharing your story, she was hot must have created quite a stir in that Daytona Spyder

 

I see little reason for this new poster to lie about it, James.

Welcome to the site, and thank you very much for the elaboration of the information on your Aunt.

You have my condolences, and I didn't mean to offend with my comments in the thread above.

Belated welcome to the website with us.......do you continue the interest in Ferraris, yourself?

I own several, and it's a hard bug to shake once you catch it! Thanks for the story about cruising the Daytona Spyder, that's the type of tales that fill our Vintage Section.....

Alan Leach
Houston Texas

...as seen in Cavallino #133.......

I'm not planning to be interred in one of mine though, my plans are "one for each child" and instructions to "Keep on driving them" as administered by my widow...

 

If I may ask, how did you find this thread???

 

I understand that Mrs West also owned a Daytona Spider. Which S/N was that and where is it today?
Marcel Massini

 

Good Morning, Mr. Massini!

Or Good Day, as it's later there..

This newest member joining our thread seems a bit shy...or maybe too young to note the VIN from the co-piloti seat!

 

I understand. Thanks for sharing your stories.

 

He (she?????) mentions "Sol" in the post.........as the one who made the switch.

No idea if that is a family member, or an attorney serving as executor of her Will.

Darn attroneys seem to end up with a lot of real property, as these Wills go thru Probate!

 

He was the brother in law to inherit $2,000,000, so her husbands (Ike West jr) brother, he died at a young age as well 1934-1968

 

Life is hard, on the incredibly rich....I'm so lucky.....

*from a ditch, leaning on a shovel*

 

Maybe sjg's Dad, then?

Or were other siblings involved, that would make her 'his' Aunt?

 

He had bad karma, from switching the cars, it got him within ten years, from your dates......

 

For those that criticise her decision to be buried in the Ferrari. Surely it shows her passion for the car and the enjoyment she was lucky enough to gain from it. Good on her i say.

Thanks to her relative for coming on here and theres no need to elaborate on the cause of death etc. I think you have provided enough information to what is an incredible story.

I bet she's still smiling in that beauty next to her husband, thats the main thing here, nothing else matters.

RIP

 

sjg,

The 330 America looks like the 250 GTE. I posted pictures earlier in the thread.

Regards,

Art S.

 

I have just read this story about Mrs Sandy Ilene West and I must to say that I remained surprise by her decision to be made bury in Ferrari.
Which story, a mixture of mystery of drama and passion. Incredible Mrs West and beautiful in the same time, a tragic death and an incredible burial.

Ferrari is a great legend, a myth also, but sur, in many case you got Owners (in this case Mrs West) who contribuate to make the Legend possible.

Peace with Angels.

 

Just bored one day and ran her name through Google. This thread showed up and I decided to share.

Sandra was my mother's sister. Her husband Ike died under similar circumstances before Sandy (hence my possession of his Rolex) and Sol West (Ike's brother) was the SOB that buried her in the wrong car. I have no idea what became of Sandra's favorite Spyder.

OK, one more tidbit. Sandy left 3 wills.....one leaving everything to my mother and her two other siblings, one leaving everything to her attorney (Surprise, surprise!) and the infamous Ferrari will returning the estate to the West family. They fought for years over jurisdiction (Texas vs Calif), validity of the wills and just about everything else imaginable. Guess who wins in that situation? Yup, the West family with unlimited resources promised to litigate it forever and the other parties accepted small settlements. Ferrari and heiress wind up buried together and the West family retains the fortune.

I do have a passion for cars but I do not own a Ferrari. I drive an '06 SL 500 so I am not sure that I would be welcomed on this site with open arms! (Just Kidding!) I've always wanted a '72 Spyder. Cruising around Sunset Blvd/West LA in that car is my fondest memory of my aunt. Damn, did she turn some heads......

 

Someone knows where is the 250 Gt? as you said it was accidented one week before Sandy West died, and afther it was
restaured? sold to someone? or just forgotten somewhere?

do you have more pics of Sandy, driving her cars?

regards

 

I once aspired to be placed into deep earth orbit in my favorite Ferrari. However, I am much more grounded now. I am certain, that my inspiration for eccentric Ferrari thoughts had to be from Mrs. West.

 

sjg, you are welcome on this site 'with open arms' right NOW! LOL!

As you can see there's several factors at work here, the folks following up on 'barn finds' a constant pursuit of many, as well as the overarching fascination of people who are true enthusiasts and have the means to pursue it.

LOTS of Ferraris in Texas due to the oil industry as you know, during that period as well as today. A shame the way this situation played out, from your Mom and Aunt's perspective obviously.

If you ever want to take one of my Ferraris out for a spin, just ask!

Thanks again for the info from the auction...man, that diamond ring, what a sparkler!

 

That reminds me to review my Will, LOL!

*phoning attorney*

Good idea to only have one, and insure the rest are destroyed, with witnesses!

 

Thank you for sharing this fascinating story with us.

 

Just Kidding, Tex!! The offer to take out one of your "babies" out for a spin is almost too good to pass up!

I spent one August week in Houston and it gave me a new appreciation for the folks in The Lone Star State. So Cal has it's problems but I doubt I'd venture back to Houston this time of year.

I totally understand everyone's fascination with the whereabouts of Sandy's two remaining Ferrari's but I do not have any more info. I will tell you that the tidbits I shared were only the tip of the iceberg that was Sandy's soap opera life. The rest of the story needs to remain private except....I was visting her one day and answered her phone. Some idiot was on the other end and was belting out a love ballad to my aunt. I quickly handed her the receiver. "Hi, Englebert" was all I heard. Yup, Englebert Humperdink was one of her suitors after her husband died.

Sandy ran in a fast crowd and it ultimately helped contribute to her demise.

 

SJG thanks for contributing. Interesting story.

 

SJG,

I spent quite some time researching your aunt for a story I wrote for the 250GTE Newsletter a while back. I'd be curious if you'd have any corrections to what I have written as I could not find any family member willing to participate in the story. I actually called Englebert Humperdink's managment but he wouldn't talk to me either!

Famous GTE/America Owners
Sandra West

This column has featured several notable GTE/America owners but none with a story quite like that of one Sandra Ilene West. The owners chronicled thus far have shared one common feature, they were famous in life. Ms. West gained her renown in death.

Ms. West was born Sandra Ilene Tara on January 2, 1940 in New Jersey. Though raised and educated on the East Coast, her future lay elsewhere. She married Ike West Jr., the scion of one of the first families of Texas. The West’s came by their fortune in the “traditional” Texas manner. The Brothers West (George, Ike Sr. and Sol) were Cattlemen and carved out their fortunes in the great cattle drives of the 19th century and enhanced their wealth by investing in oil in the 1920s and 1930s.

Like many Texas millionaires, Ike and Sandra followed the “family business” and dabbled in oil but eager for a change they moved to Southern California in 1963. Ike began a securities trading syndicate and Sandra (by this time a mother of two) entered the Beverly Hills social scene. With the new life came the trappings of 1960s excess, a Beverly Hills Mansion, flashy clothes and fast cars. Shortly after her arrival, Sandra came to own the car that would make her famous, a 1964 Ferrari 330 America s/n 5055. Her blue America was imported by Chinetti Motors and appears to have been with the West’s throughout their stay in California.

The West’s lived the 60s fast life but it didn’t last for Ike Jr. He had a history of drug use and health problems caused by rapid weight fluctuation. He died under mysterious circumstances at the Las Vegas Flamingo Hotel in 1968. With his demise, his widow now became known to the press as “Sandra West, Beverly Hills Socialite and Heiress”.

Today that description prompts images of Paris Hilton and Sandra began to exhibit the bizarre behavior that we now expect from her modern day equivalent. She dated a slew of entertainers (including singer Engelbert Humperdinck) and generally lived the high life. During the 1960s she was known as fun loving with a fondness for attention grabbing behavior. Never one for subtlety, she was seen about town dressed in large amounts of jewelry and a mink coat or in a “Texas Rodeo Queen” ensemble complete with rhinestones and a stylish hat. She motored to society events and dinners in one of a fleet of cars that included a Stutz Blackhawk and at least three Ferraris, the 330 America, a 1969 365GT 2+2 and a 1973 Dino. On one occasion she drove in all her finery to Chasen’s, the landmark Beverly Hills eatery frequented by Johnny Carson and the Reagan’s, where she made a grand entrance, and then ordered a hamburger to go and sped away.

Though Ms. West’s behavior would seem to be that of an extrovert, her associates (sadly, mostly doctors, nurses and lawyers) described her as lonely person with few true friends. She was known to give extravagant gifts to those who provided some small service to her. Shortly before her death she presented a $250,000 platinum and diamond cross to a part time nurse. Most gifts were unconditional, but she saved her most sizable gift, a gift worth millions, for one who would render a service to her and her favorite Ferrari.

Perhaps it was the early demise of her husband or her fondness for the study of Egyptology that influenced her decision in 1972 to create a rather unique will. In a handwritten document she wrote that her desire was to be buried “in Texas, where the money came from”. That in itself was not unique, but what followed was. She listed Sol West III (her brother in-law) as her sole heir but only if he successfully completed her final request. That request was that she “be buried next to my husband in a lace nightgown seated in my Ferrari with the seat comfortably slanted”.

It was a request worthy of the Egyptian Pharaohs she so enjoyed studying. King Tutankhamen was buried 3300 years earlier with the best conveyance of his age, two golden chariots. Ms. West intended to journey to the hereafter in equally supreme style.

Unfortunately that journey was not too far in her future. Her loneliness deepened and her desire to be seen diminished. Far from being the socialite about town, she retreated to her home. She devoted much of her time to the continuing study of Ancient Egypt and to her extensive stamp collection. Her physician stated later that he believed that the change in Ms. West’s behavior was a result of psychosis and drug abuse.

Far from being of “sound mind and body” Ms. West drafted a second will in 1976. Interestingly, the will named the West’s family attorney Fred Semaan as the primary heir and made no mention of the Ferraris. Soon after that will was completed in November 1976, Ms. West suffered serious injuries in a traffic accident while driving the America. Such was the fear that she would abuse medication that even the most basic drugs were required to be administered by a nurse.

Ms. West seemed to be recovering, but on March 10, 1977 she complained to her nurse of stomach pain. She retired to bed and died during the night. It was originally believed that she had died from complications of the traffic accident, but the coroner’s report indicated that she had overdosed on a combination of barbiturates and codeine, though how she obtained these drugs in light of her doctor’s instructions and in the presence of a nurse was never determined.

The two wills were subsequently found amongst her papers. The 1976 will was drawn through in red lines and void was written across each page. With millions at stake, a legal battle between Sol West and Fred Semaan predictably ensued. Until a California probate court ruled, Ms West’s body was returned to San Antonio and her Ferraris secured to await her final disposition.

The decision was delivered in a Los Angeles court on April 11, 1977 that the wishes of Ms. West’s 1972 will were to be followed to the letter. The court instructed that the damaged America not be repaired prior to the funeral and that it be placed inside a large wooden box to “preserve Ms. West’s dignity”. A detailed budget for the elaborate funeral was included in the court order with an estimated cost of $15,000.

On May 19, 1977 Sandra Ilene West finally received the funeral she desired in the glare of television lights and in front of over 150 spectators. The box containing Ms. West (dressed per her instructions and seat adjusted accordingly) and her beloved Ferrari 330 America was lowered into the 20 foot long grave and then covered with cement. The funeral director indicated that the cement was added as the cemetery was in a high crime area and he feared the car would be back on the street in a day!

Sandra West’s estate consisting of over $3 million in cash, the Beverly Hills estate, mineral rights, stamp collection and jewelry were passed to her brother in-law Sol West III as stipulated in her 1972 will. The two other Ferraris were sold at public auction in Los Angeles. The blue Ferrari, the 1964 330 America s/n 5055 and its owner rest together under a simple stone at the San Antonio Masonic Cemetery, likely the most bizarre if not the most famous Ferrari owner/car combination of all.

© John Wayne Carlson 2006


T308