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Doug Magnon, businessman and founder of Riverside International Automotive Museum, died February 4, 2015 after a short battle with cancer. He was 55. Doug developed a love for cars that was inherited from his father Ray. Magnon had many other passions and he shared them with the community, said Maureen Kane, chief of staff for Riverside Mayor Rusty Bailey. Among his joys were Italian food and family. In 2012, he and his sister opened Magnone Trattoria & Market, the latest in a string of Magnon family restaurants. It is in a building once occupied by Ciao Bella, a popular restaurant founded by his father in 1988. Magnon had chef training and was executive chef of the current restaurant. He created its menu and could frequently be found in the kitchen preparing meals, according to Tom Stahler, spokesman for the museum and a friend. Magnon was president of the Magnon Cos., a real estate developing firm founded by his father. In 2006 father and son opened the automotive museum on the ground floor of their offices. The museum preserves the legacy of Riverside International Raceway, which operated from 1957 to 1989 before being demolished. It brought many luminaries of the racing world back to Riverside, including Gurney, Carroll Shelby and Bobby Unser. In addition to Gurney’s American Eagles and race cars driven and his contemporaries, the museum displays cars from Mr. Magnon’s collection. “He had the largest vertical collection of Maseratis in the world,” said Stahler. “When I say vertical, I mean he had a more complete collection than anyone else, starting with post-war Maseratis to the modern day. He was also viewed as one of the world’s foremost experts on Maserati.” The museum’s cars are not just for display. They are kept in running order and “breathe fire,” according to Stahler. All though not a racer, Magnon could hold his own behind the wheel.
Here is another article written about Doug: