Leigh (L) and Leslie Keno with a few of their cars. Image courtesy Keno Brothers Auctions.
If you’ve watched Antiques Roadshow on PBS, chances are good you’ve seen the detail-obsessed Keno Brothers in action, pointing out the key differences between a $500 faux Chippendale table and a multimillion-dollar original. Raised in a car collector family, identical twins Leigh and Leslie Keno have also been car guys since their early childhood, and their resumes include stints as judges at Pebble Beach, expert lecturers on automotive preservation and contributors to the book The Stewardship of Historically Important Automobiles. This June, the brothers will also serve as Co-Grand Marshals of The Elegance at Hershey, taking place in Hershey, Pennsylvania on June 12-14.
The Keno brothers’ hands-on experience with collector cars began at age 16, when the pair purchased and restored a 1963 Jaguar XK-E roadster with the help of their father. The car is still in the family, but their car collection has grown over the years to include a 1955 Ferrari Europa 250GT; a 1959 Lotus Eleven Series II; a 1959 Lola Mk I; a 1980 Ferrari BB/LM; and a 1969 Lamborghini Miura S, which will also be shown at The Elegance. The duo’s passion for automobiles extends beyond purchasing, restoring and showing them, too: Both are vintage racers who regularly campaign the 1959 Lotus and 1959 Lola in VSCCA competition.
In addition to their work on Antiques Roadshow, this year has already seen them exhibit their 1955 Ferrari Europa at the Cavallino Classic in Palm Beach, Florida and judge at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. Prior to The Elegance, they’re slated to visit the Greenwich Concours d’Elegance, serve as Honorary Chairmen for the CCCA Museum’s annual Experience, and later in the summer they’ll be judging at Pebble Beach and presenting an award at the Lime Rock Historic Festival. As if that weren’t enough, the brothers and partner Ken Sterne have plans to start Keno Brothers Auctions, which will focus on sales of high-end collector cars. If all goes as planned, the company’s first auction will take place later this year.
For more information on The Elegance, visit TheEleganceAtHershey.com.
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