Imperial
Crown "Black Beauty" (The Green Hornet TV series cars, Dean Jeffries)

Why it matters

Black Beauty was the studio's answer to the Batmobile: a more realistic armed sedan for The Green Hornet, the series that introduced Bruce Lee to American audiences. Only two genuine cars were built, by Dean Jeffries, and one of them is in the Petersen Automotive Museum.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

The studio asked Dean Jeffries for a car that could rival the Batmobile but be more believable. He chose a 1966 Imperial and had about four weeks: the call came in mid-April and the first car was delivered to ABC on 11 May 1966. His commission was reported as US$50,000.

The cars carried rocket banks, gas and smoke cannons, rotating headlights and licence plates, a closed-circuit TV system and brooms to sweep away tyre tracks, and most features worked or appeared to. Car #1 was restored under Jeffries' supervision in 1993; the Petersen Automotive Museum bought a Black Beauty in December 2003 for a little over US$192,000. The second car was restored in private hands.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

Only the two Jeffries-built cars are originals. George Barris built three touring copies without Jeffries' or the studio's approval, and the Barris shop (Dick Dean) built further exhibition cars, one of which RM Sotheby's offered in 2013 as an exhibition car titled as a 1966 (ID Y253313589). Genuine provenance therefore rests on the Jeffries build history; features such as the extended sail panel, rear-deck fuel filler and pop-out weapons were reproduced on the copies.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   Imperial Club – Green Hornet TV series featuring a 1966 Imperial: Black Beauty Level B

   • 2 original Black Beauty cars built by Dean Jeffries for the series

   Accessed 2026-11-12
2. 2
   1965 Imperial 'Black Beauty' (exhibition car), Fort Lauderdale 2013, lot 596 Level C RM Sotheby's

   • one ... in the Petersen's Hollywood gallery, the other privately owned and restored

   Accessed 2026-11-12