Donald Aronow
Encyclopedia
Donald Joel Aronow was an American
designer, builder and racer of the famous Magnum Marine
, Cigarette
, Donzi, and Formula
speed boats. He built speedboats for the His Imperial Majesty Shah of Iran
, Charles Keating
, Robert Vesco
, Malcolm Forbes
, and George H. W. Bush
. President Lyndon Johnson - in retirement - owned several 16 ft. Donzi speedboats on his Texas ranch with which he would race his Secret Service agents.
Having made his money in the construction business in New Jersey
in the late 1950s, Aronow moved to Miami in 1961 where he began racing boats for a hobby
. By the end of 1962, he had formed the Formula Marine boat company which he then sold and in 1964 he started Donzi Marine. In 1966, he founded Magnum Marine
with Elton Cary and, in 1970, after campaigning his boat "The Cigarette" around the world and winning the World Championship, he started Cigarette Racing Team using his own designs. Having sold Cigarette for the last time (after having sold it and purchasing it back in the late 1970s), he formed USA Racing Team and built the Blue Thunders, 39-foot catamarans used by the United States Customs Service
to patrol U.S. waters and run down illegal offshore activities, especially drug smuggling. Aronow's close friend at the time, Vice President George Bush, was a former Cigarette owner and was involved in testing out the 39-foot cats prior to government approval.
The great speed of Cigarette boats also made them a popular choice among cocaine
runners. On February 3, 1987, Aronow was murdered in his car at the end of 188th Street in Miami (the famous Thunderboat Row) where his boat companies operated. Aronow had just left from a meeting with Bob Saccenti who was part owner of Apache Power Boats together with partner Ben Kramer. Witnesses said that a powder blue Lincoln pulled next to Mr. Aronow's car from the opposite direction and when Aronow rolled down his window the driver opened fire. Another witness tried to follow the Lincoln as it fled but could not catch the killer(s). The Lincoln drove over the grass to get away.
Two men — Ben Kramer, a suspected drug runner who bought Aronow's USA Racing Team and was forced to sell it back to Aronow after the Customs Service refused to do business with him, and Bobby Young — eventually pleaded no contest
to manslaughter
related to Aronow's murder. Kramer was already in prison at the time of his plea in 1996 and is now serving a life sentence with no possibility of parole.
Aronow's boats won over 350 offshore races and he was a two-time world champion and three-time U.S. champion. He has been elected to every powerboating Hall of Fame in existence and he and Gar Wood were the only two Americans to have ever received the UIM Gold Medal of Honor.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
designer, builder and racer of the famous Magnum Marine
Magnum Marine
The Magnum Marine Corporation is an American builder of performance and luxury yachts.-Design history:The beginning of the American high-performance, deep-vee boat building industry is said to have started in 1958, with the first deep-vee hull, designed by Ray Hunt.The Hunt design had a 24 degree...
, Cigarette
Go-fast boat
A go-fast boat, or cigarette boat, is a small, fast boat designed with a long narrow platform and a planing hull to enable it to reach high speeds....
, Donzi, and Formula
Formula Boats
Formula is a boat brand owned by Thunderbird Products. Formula was originally a company founded by Don Aronow in 1962 in Miami, Florida. The first successful model was the original 233 Deep-V hull....
speed boats. He built speedboats for the His Imperial Majesty Shah of Iran
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Mohammad Rezā Shāh Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, Shah of Persia , ruled Iran from 16 September 1941 until his overthrow by the Iranian Revolution on 11 February 1979...
, Charles Keating
Charles Keating
Charles Humphrey Keating Jr. is an American athlete, lawyer, real estate developer, banker, and financier, most known for his role in the savings and loan scandal of the late 1980s....
, Robert Vesco
Robert Vesco
Robert Lee Vesco was a fugitive United States financier. After several years of high stakes investments and seedy credit dealings, Vesco was alleged guilty of securities fraud. He immediately fled the ensuing U.S...
, Malcolm Forbes
Malcolm Forbes
Malcolm Stevenson Forbes was publisher of Forbes magazine, founded by his father B. C. Forbes and today run by his son Steve Forbes.-Life and career:...
, and George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
. President Lyndon Johnson - in retirement - owned several 16 ft. Donzi speedboats on his Texas ranch with which he would race his Secret Service agents.
Having made his money in the construction business in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
in the late 1950s, Aronow moved to Miami in 1961 where he began racing boats for a hobby
Hobby
A hobby is a regular activity or interest that is undertaken for pleasure, typically done during one's leisure time.- Etymology :A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden just like a real horse...
. By the end of 1962, he had formed the Formula Marine boat company which he then sold and in 1964 he started Donzi Marine. In 1966, he founded Magnum Marine
Magnum Marine
The Magnum Marine Corporation is an American builder of performance and luxury yachts.-Design history:The beginning of the American high-performance, deep-vee boat building industry is said to have started in 1958, with the first deep-vee hull, designed by Ray Hunt.The Hunt design had a 24 degree...
with Elton Cary and, in 1970, after campaigning his boat "The Cigarette" around the world and winning the World Championship, he started Cigarette Racing Team using his own designs. Having sold Cigarette for the last time (after having sold it and purchasing it back in the late 1970s), he formed USA Racing Team and built the Blue Thunders, 39-foot catamarans used by the United States Customs Service
United States Customs Service
Until March 2003, the United States Customs Service was an agency of the U.S. federal government that collected import tariffs and performed other selected border security duties.Before it was rolled into form part of the U.S...
to patrol U.S. waters and run down illegal offshore activities, especially drug smuggling. Aronow's close friend at the time, Vice President George Bush, was a former Cigarette owner and was involved in testing out the 39-foot cats prior to government approval.
The great speed of Cigarette boats also made them a popular choice among cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
runners. On February 3, 1987, Aronow was murdered in his car at the end of 188th Street in Miami (the famous Thunderboat Row) where his boat companies operated. Aronow had just left from a meeting with Bob Saccenti who was part owner of Apache Power Boats together with partner Ben Kramer. Witnesses said that a powder blue Lincoln pulled next to Mr. Aronow's car from the opposite direction and when Aronow rolled down his window the driver opened fire. Another witness tried to follow the Lincoln as it fled but could not catch the killer(s). The Lincoln drove over the grass to get away.
Two men — Ben Kramer, a suspected drug runner who bought Aronow's USA Racing Team and was forced to sell it back to Aronow after the Customs Service refused to do business with him, and Bobby Young — eventually pleaded no contest
Nolo contendere
is a legal term that comes from the Latin for "I do not wish to contend." It is also referred to as a plea of no contest.In criminal trials, and in some common law jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neither admits nor disputes a charge, serving as an alternative to a pleading of...
to manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
related to Aronow's murder. Kramer was already in prison at the time of his plea in 1996 and is now serving a life sentence with no possibility of parole.
Aronow's boats won over 350 offshore races and he was a two-time world champion and three-time U.S. champion. He has been elected to every powerboating Hall of Fame in existence and he and Gar Wood were the only two Americans to have ever received the UIM Gold Medal of Honor.
Further reading
- Don Aronow: The King of Thunderboat Row, 1994, by Michael Aronow
- Historic Offshore Race Boat Association - Donald Aronow
- Blue Thunder: How the Mafia Owned and Finally Murdered Cigarette Boat King Donald Aronow, 1990, Thomas Burdick and Charlene Mitchell
- Liquid Smoke, David Samuels, Men's Vogue, January 2007
- The Murder of Speedboat Builder Don Aronow, Matt Meltzer, Miami Beach 411, September 18, 2007
- Rock around the States: Don Aronow by Antonio Soccol