The Shah of Iran was so enamored with his orange Miura that he drove it every single day, even when it was snowing outside. He even had special snow tires with metal studs equipped to make sure he'd be able to get to where he was going, no matter the weather conditions.
via http://www.carscoops.com/2017/04/would-you-drive-your-lamborghini-miura.html
Thanks Steve!
He was the second and last monarch of the House of Pahlavi of the Iranian monarchy. Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi held several other titles, including that of Āryāmehr (Light of the Aryans) and Bozorg Arteshtārān (Head of the Warriors). His dream of the Great Civilization in Iran led to a rapid industrial and military expansion as well as economic and social reforms.
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi came to power during World War II after an Anglo-Soviet invasion forced the abdication of his father, Reza Shah (likely due to the oil field the British wanted that was under Iran, just like they set up the King of Saudi Arabia to get access to the oil under Saudi Arabia, just watch the movie about Lawrence of Arabia to see how the Brits worked the Persians to get the oil and decided who would run those countries)
During Mohammad Reza Shah's reign, the Iranian oil industry was briefly nationalized, under Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, until a US and UK-backed coup d'état deposed Mosaddegh and brought back foreign oil firms. (see what I mean?)
Under Mohammad Reza's reign, Iran marked the anniversary of 2,500 years of continuous monarchy since the founding of the Persian Empire by Cyrus the Great - concurrent with this celebration, Mohammad Reza changed the benchmark of the Iranian calendar from the hegira to the beginning of the Persian Empire, measured from Cyrus the Great's coronation.
Mohammad Reza also introduced the White Revolution, a series of economic, social and political reforms with the proclaimed intention of transforming Iran into a global power and modernizing the nation by nationalizing certain industries and granting women suffrage. (And that pissed off the muslim fanatics)
A secular Muslim, Mohammad Reza gradually lost support from the Shi'a clergy of Iran (like I said, he pissed off the fanatics) as well as the working class, particularly due to his strong policy of modernization, secularization, conflict with the traditional class of merchants known as bazaari, relations with Israel, and corruption issues surrounding himself, his family, and the ruling elite.
Several other factors contributed to strong opposition to the Shah among certain groups within Iran, the most significant of which were US and UK support for his regime, clashes with Islamists and increased communist activity. By 1979, political unrest had transformed into a revolution which, on 17 January, forced him to leave Iran. Soon thereafter, the Iranian monarchy was formally abolished, and Iran was declared an Islamic republic led by Ayatollah Khomeini. Facing likely execution should he return to Iran, he died in exile in Egypt, where President Sadat, had granted him asylum.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammad_Reza_Pahlavi
by the middle 1970s, the Shah had amassed one of the world's largest collection of luxury cars and planes. His personal collection of 140 classic and sports cars including a Mercedes-Benz 500K Autobahn cruiser, one of only six ever made.
The first Maserati 5000 GT was named the Shah of Persia, it was built for Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who had been impressed by the Maserati 3500 and requested Giulio Alfieri, Maserati's chief engineer, to use a modified 5-litre engine from the Maserati 450S on the 3500GT's chassis.
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