I swear I met those guys' dads in New Orleans, 1991. My buddy and I were staying in a youth hostel during Jazz Fest. Parked about four cars from my Honda was a '74 Catalina, matte black, with the roof sawed off. Friends, it rains every day in New Orleans in April. We tracked down the owners: Four Aussies on holiday in America. They got to LA, bought the car and immediately sawed off the top for "better ventilation" during their coast-to-coast adventure.
I don't remember if it had a license plate.