Julien's Auctions: On 10th November, Julien’s presided over the sale of 800+ lots for their ‘Hollywood Icons and Idols’ auction, featuring movie costumes, props and assorted memorabilia.
The auction’s big draw was a (not ‘the’; there were several) blue and white cotton gingham pinafore dress and original blouse worn by Judy Garland as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. It exceeded lowest expectations selling for $480,000, perhaps not as much as hoped for bearing in mind it is such a well loved costume – top estimate was $600,000.
13 comments:
I think the idea of auctioning costumes is marvelously fantastic! Some prices are obviously ridiculous, I guess for which they should be, considering how the money involved in making the movie itself! I for one would love to be able to almost claim the prize of winning the Julie Andrew's butterfly sleeve dress, remarkable! And again, some articles of clothing were not even that expensive, in honest comparison. Having a garment from such a specific point in history, not just in time period, but as an icon in culture, is so significant. I would love to just attend one of these auctions, I'm sure the people who win the deals have lots of money- I would just love to see the bliss in taking a piece of movie history back home with a lucky winner! It would also be great if some of the money could go to a specific fund.
This is so great. The only problem I have with it, is that most of the people who bought these outfits are most likely not going to ever wear them. Yes, getting put on display at some estate is probably better than just sitting in a warehouse, but still. I think that it would be great if one of the big award shows gets a 'theme' like blast from past the Golden age of cinema, or something. Have all of the outfits get auctioned off and half of the proceeds go to a charity, and then at that event everyone wears them down the red carpet. It seems like fun, especially wearing a former Charlie's Angel dress or Joan Collin's dress from Dynasty. Also, the online catalog is amazingly cool. There were many other things that if I had buckets of money I would spend it on.
Those are some crazy amounts of money. Its certainly a cool way to raise some money, sad as the article points out that a lot of this stuff will disappear never to be seen again, but I think now as the information age progresses it will only get easier. If I had that kind of money I would certainly be interested in one of those Judy Garland costumes, the Wizard of Oz was one of my favorite movies when I was little and the Dark Side of Oz was in high-school. But almost half a million dollars! That could cover college tuition and then some, maybe even feed a small village for a few years. I wish I could see some of these dresses in person though they look really cool.
This is epic! I have always been a huge history buff, mainly that of film and Hollywood history. This would have been my dream to have attanded that auction. Now I probably wouldn't have been able to afford even a small string from the hem of the cheapest thing there, but to see the history of film costumes in front of my eyes would have been amazing. I saw that Julie Andrews' green gress from Sound of Music only went for 38 thoundsand dollars. I would have thought it would have been more. However, I think that being able to see these things in person would be fascinating. I hope that those who bought these historic items won't hide them in their personal collection, but rather allow museums to use them to display the wide range of cimeatic history we have.
I think this idea of auctioning old, famous movie costumes, props and assorted memorabilia is very fresh. It will be a great opportunity for the movie fans to be reminded of that moment. Especially, looking at the list of movies that the costumes are from, it is no wonder how some of the big draw were the original costumes from famoust movie or actors such as The Wizard of Oz, Audrey Hepburn, and The Sound of Music. Looking at the pictures of some costumes, it is no wonder how some of costumes were sold by cost that are way above the expectation. Especially, the green dress worn by Marilyn Monroe is so beautiful and enchanting. However, it is sad to see how those costumes that were sold at high prices are no longer be presented anywhere. The last sentence of this article, "and unfortunately nobody knows where it presently resides," is just making me sad because those costumes deserve more attentions than that. I hope this event is more publicized, so that people pay more attention to the great art work that some costume designers made.
It's amazing to me that these clothing items sell for such high prices. I can see how people would love to own these items, especially if they are big fans of the actors who wore them. I can also see how the classic movie buff would enjoy collecting these items like anyone would collect for a certain hobby. What i don't understand is how someone can actually spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on these items when our economy is in such bad shape. I think of all the people that can't buy food but the so many have money to spend on these kinds of things. Yes, I enjoyed reading the article and how much everything went for, but in the back of my mind I was cringing that that kind of money was nothing to some people. Hey, I just want to pay my tuition and not be in debt when I graduate! Too bad I don't have one sleeve of one of these famous outfits...........I would be in good shape!
This is ridiculous for so many reasons. First, I know these things happen all the time, but sometimes I really wish they wouldn't. The point that stands out the most in this article for me, was saying that sometimes once these items are sold they are never seen again. They are locked in storage or sent away somewhere. What a waste of a wonderful piece of history and art. I always remember my father telling me how silly Art thefts are. The pieces could never be displayed anywhere again because they would be recognized by someone eventually. My second problem is of course with the prices some of these go for. Id like to think that these thousands and thousands of dollars would go to a charity or to support the arts but sometimes it doesnt and that's a great shame.
I agree with sam that it is ashamed that these auctions can be a waste of art. I also find it a little ridiculous that someone would pay that much for a costume. There are so many other things that money could go to. But then again the people buying them can probably afford to spend $500,000 on a dress... I am hoping that some of the money went to some kind of charity.
I think it would be great if the money spent on these costumes went to charity instead, but I'm not sure I can agree with Sam and Devrie to the same degree. If people have the money to spend on a piece of history that they'd like to own, they should be able to. Furthermore, if someone can spend $500,000 on a dress worn by Marilyn Monroe, then maybe they also give $1,000,000 to charity every year. There's no way of knowing who these people are and whether or not they are good people, but judging them on their choice to buy something that they'd like to own isn't really fair. I can judge me and everyone else for spending money on an iPhone rather than buying a $20 flip phone and donating the rest of the money to charity. But I won't, because that's my and your choice.
I think that auctioning these things is a cool idea, but it is a little sad that some of the items will never be seen or heard from again.
If all of this money went to charity I would be happy, but I didn't see in the article where the money was going. It is ludicrous that someone would pay so much for a dress, but memorabilia causes quite the stir. People love stuff, and not just stuff, but stuff that famous people have worn, or signed. My father gave me an autographed hat from Greg Norman once. Greg Norman was a golfer. I used to love to watch him play. I went crazy when I saw the hat (Even though I am pretty sure my dad forged it) I guess that is what is happening with these collectors - They just happen to have boat loads of money.
I agree with skpollac in that the money should go to a charity. As for the article itself, I think Julien is so shocked at the results because we see these other auctions in the world going for a lot more money. For example, we saw a huge sum of money come in from the auctioning of Michael Jackson's belongings, and every year in Arizona, we have a Barret Jackson show that brings in millions by selling old cars. Here we have costumes as old as these cars, and they barely bring in anything. I find it interesting how these costumes are idolized by so many people, and yet when they are actually sold, no one goes for them. I've seen so many Dorothy costumes for Halloween, and now the real deal is probably worth less than all of those halloween costumes combined. I would like to see if auctions of modern movies would bring in more money.
I had no idea Hollywood did this! This seems like a really great idea. I wonder where all the money from the auction goes because this seems like it could be such a great charity event and would even help the final selling prices go up if people knew good was coming of their money. It is really sad though that once many of these costumes are sold they disappear forever. It would be nice if perhaps before the auction they had some sort of exhibit where you could view all the items getting ready to be sold off. That would also be a good way to get even more profits. I would love to attend one of these auctions simply to see all of the costumes and feel the excitement of everyone around who wins the bid.
I think it is so interesting that these costumes are getting auctioned off. I also wonder if there is any correlation between the movie and the star etc. I think like Sonia said it is much better if people actually wore these pieces rather then having them merely on display but I doubt I would just go grocery shopping in a 500k+ piece of clothing I bought. I think that the money should be given to charity as well but the real question is how did the auction house obtain these pieces or who were the original owners the costume designers?
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