Magnum Marine was founded by Don Aronow in 1966 when he built his first boat, a 27ft race boat, which he called MALTESE MAGNUM. The boat became a world champion in racing, and thus, Magnum Marine was established. Aronow built his manufacturing facility in North Miami Florida, right near the Donzi factory that he had just built and sold. Two years later, he built Cigarette – the third factory on the same street, called Thunderboat Row.
In 1968, Don Aronow sold Magnum Marine to Apeco, owned by Clayton Rautboard from Chicago. Sales continued to be strong for them with the Magnum 27 and the Magnum 35. An Italian man called Filippo Theodoli came to the States and was so impressed with the Magnum 35 at the New York Boat Show, that he not only purchased one for himself, he became the exclusive European Magnum dealer.
In 1976, Apeco sold Magnum Marine to Theodoli and his wife, and this brought about much change to the company. They transformed the race boat into a high-performance luxury yacht, which combined the seaworthiness of the race boat with the lux accommodations of a yacht that an owner could drive himself.
He became the inventor of the open sport yacht that became extremely successful in the Med, and eventually the United States. After having met Howard Arneson, the inventor of the Arneson surface drive, he was immediately enthralled and convinced of its technical advantages and eventually, each Magnum thereafter was equipped with this new system.
Theodoli also consulted with Phil Rolla to create propellers of the utmost efficiency for the new surface drives, and the collaboration resulted in the fastest and most technologically advanced yacht at the time. Eventually, Theodoli began working with Italian designer Pininfarina of Ferrari for the launch of the Magnum 63. The boat was not only the fastest, it was one of the most stylish.
After Filipo Theodoli’s death, his wife continued to run the company and three years later, she paired with Pininfarina to launch a new Magnum 50 – it was unusual for a woman to run a boat company, but she was determined to keep her husband’s legacy moving forward. Magnums were then bought by various celebrities including Lenny Kravitz and Jonny Halliday. The company also launched an even larger Magnum 80 in 2008, followed soon by the Magnum 70.
Shipyard Stats
- Founder: Don Aronow
- Size: 20 to 100 feet
- Type: Performance yachts, luxury yachts
- Model: 27ft MAGNUM, 44ft BANZAI, 51ft BASTIA, 60ft FURIA, 70ft, 80ft & 100ft Yacht Models
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