While the Fiat 500 was designed for the hustle and bustle of European city centers, the Jolly was the passion project of legendary Italian tycoon Gianni Agnelli.

Agnelli was the head of the dynasty that owned Fiat, and he wanted the ultimate runabout to load onto his yacht.

He commissioned the various design gurus to develop his concept.

The Jolly quickly became an icon of La Dolce Vita during Italy’s golden era.

Agnelli gave a few of these super-chic beach cars away to close friends.

Aristotle Onassis had one on his yacht, Lord Rothschild had one at his estate in Corfu, and Lyndon Johnson had one on his Texas ranch.

With their removable surrey tops, wicker seats, cut-down windshields, and open sides, the Jolly was conceived with summer pleasures in mind.

These chic runabouts were very popular with resorts: Catalina Island off the coast of Los Angeles commissioned 32 of them as taxis.

A variety of Italian carrozzerie worked on Agnelli’s concept, with Ghia by far the most succes...