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    • Posts Tagged ‘Marilyn Monroe’

    THE MAGIC OF MONROE SHINES AT JULIEN’S AUCTIONS

    Monday, July 18th, 2022
    MARILYN MONROE: “THERE’S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS” FILM-WORN ENSEMBLE (WITH BOOK AND PHOTOS)

    A figure-hugging embellished gown worn by Marilyn Monroe in her 1954 classic film There’s No Business Like Show Business enchanted collectors and fans of the screen goddess as the dress designed by William Travilla was the top-seller at Julien’s Auctions Hollywood Legends sale this weekend. It made $218,750 over an estimate of $80,000-$100,000.  A pair of sequin embellished leotard costumes screen-worn by Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in their 1953 film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes made $102,400. Among other top lots were Chris Evans’ Captain America original hero prop “Vibranium” shield used in The Avengers which made $200,000; an original Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope stormtrooper helmet made $192,000 and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets  “Nimbus 2001” broomstick made $76,800.

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    MYSTIQUE OF MARILYN MONROE SHINES BRIGHT AT JULIEN’S

    Sunday, November 18th, 2018

    The Monroe Thunderbird

    Marilyn Monroe’s Golden Globe award for World Film Favorite Female 1961 from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association became the top selling Golden Globe award sold at auction when it made $250,000 at Julien’s icons and idols Hollywood sale.  Monroe’s 1956 Raven Black Ford Thunderbird convertible driving to auction for the first time in history made $490,000. Other iconic items connected to Monroe’s mystique included the black satin blouse with matching necktie Monroe wore to a press conference at Los Angeles Airport on February 26, 1956 which made $43,750, over four times the original estimate and her copy of Playboy’s first issue with Monroe on the cover signed by publisher Hugh Hefner.  This made $32,000.

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    MARILYN’S FORD THUNDERBIRD AT JULIEN’S, HOLLYWOOD

    Wednesday, September 26th, 2018

    The Ford Thunderbird owned by Marilyn Monroe from 1955 to 1962 comes up at  Julien’s Auctions annual blockbuster event Icons and Idols, Hollywood on November 17 in Los Angeles. It is estimated at $300,000-$500,000. One of the most desired women in the world, Monroe’s life was deeply troubled, but she was enjoying some of the happiest days of her life during the time she owned this car.

    Monroe married celebrated playwright Arthur Miller soon after buying the Thunderbird. A published report at the time suggests that Monroe and Miller drove this vehicle to their civil wedding ceremony on June 28, 1956 and likely their private wedding on June 30, 1956.

    The Marilyn Monroe Thunderbird was purchased on December 20, 1955, from Westport Motors, Westport, Connecticut in the name of her corporation, Marilyn Monroe Productions. Most accounts suggest it was a Christmas gift from her business partner and photographer, Milton Greene.

    UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR $490,000

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    GARLAND, MONROE, JFK AND TRUMP TO FEATURE AT JULIEN’S AUCTIONS

    Friday, September 22nd, 2017

    The largest collection of Judy Garland costumes, Sir Cyril Norman Hinshelwood’s 1956 Nobel Peace Prize medal, JFK’s rocking chair and Donald Trump’s souvenir wedding cake will feature at Julien’s Icon and Idols auction in a live and online auction in Los Angeles on November 17.  The sale will include property of Marilyn Monroe, former King Edward VIII, Neil Armstrong, Charlie Chaplin, Steve McQueen, Barbra Streisand, Bruce Lee, Greta Garbo, Brad Pitt, Grace Kelly and Humphrey Bogart.

    Highlights include a petal pink turn-of-the-century slip worn by Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis ($3,000-$5,000) along with the red velvet ball gown she donned while singing “Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas” in the 1944 iconic holiday moment in the film ($4,000-$6,000);  the 1956 Nobel medal (Sir Cyril was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize with Nikolay Semenov of the USSR for their researches into the mechanism of chemical reactions, specifically in the reaction between hydrogen and oxygen) ($200,000-$400,000); a 1963  oak and leather upholstered rocking chair commissioned and gifted by President John F. Kennedy to Senator Stanley Arnold ($8,000-$10,000), an exact replica of Kennedy’s famed rocking chair  built by White House upholsterer Lawrence Arata on the recommendation of the President’s doctor and a souvenir wedding cake from the 2005 marriage of President Donald Trump to First Lady Melania Knauss ($1,000-$2,000). As the actual seven-tier wedding cake (reportedly costing $50,000) was not eaten by the wedding guests due to the amount of wire used to make it stand, the individual chocolate truffle cake favors were taken home to enjoy.  Here is a small selection:

    Judy Garland’s gown in Meet me in St. Louis

    Souvenir wedding cake from Donald Trump’s 2005 marriage to Melania Knauss

    JFK presidential rocking chair.

    Bruno Bernard‘s original black and white vintage photograph taken and signed by Bernard on the set of The Seven Year Itch (1955) ($10,000-$20,000);

     

     

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    HOLLYWOOD GOLDEN AGE MEMORABILIA ON VIEW IN KILDARE

    Sunday, March 26th, 2017

    From the necklace worn by Vivien Leigh and cigar case used by Clark Gable in “Gone With the Wind” (1939) to earrings worn by Marilyn Monroe in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” (1953) the sale by Julien’s Auctions of property from Joseff of Hollywood next November is rich in important Hollywood memorabilia from a Golden Age on screen.  And they are on display at the Newbridge Silverware museum of Style Icons from now until May 14.  Marilyn Monroe’s skin tight dress was previously exhibited at the County Kildare museum.

    Legendary stars like Elizabeth Taylor, Marilyn Monroe, Marlene Dietrich, Rita Hayworth, Vivien Leigh, Judy Garland, Olivia de Havilland and Greta Garbo are among the impressive list of Hollywood’s biggest stars who wore Joseff’s designs. Highlights of the sale include necklaces worn by Bette Davis in “The Virgin Queen” (1955); a brooch worn by Marlene Dietrich in “Shanghai Express” (1932); Loretta Young’s crown and comb from “Suez” (1938); earrings worn by Marilyn Monroe in “Some Like it Hot” (1959); a necklace, earrings and ornaments worn by Greta Garbo in “Camille” (1936); Order chains worn by Katherine Hepburn in “Mary of Scotland” (1936); a necklace worn by Judy Garland in the “Ziegfeld Follies” (1946); a brooch worn by Lana Turner and medallion worn by Vincent Price in “The Three Musketeers” (1948) and a necklace worn by Olivia de Havilland in “My Cousin Rachel” (1952).

    In the 1930’s and ’40’s Joseff supplied nearly 90% of all jewellery worn on screen. He developed an antiqued plating technique specifically designed to soften the glare of the harsh studio lighting and give every piece a veneer of authenticity. Joseff of Hollywood was established in the late 1920’s. After Eugene Joseff’s untimely death in 1948 his wife J.C. managed the business  until her death aged 97 in 2010.  The live and online auctions take place at Julien’s next November 16 and 17.

    (See post on antiquesandartireland.com for September 7, 2016)

    A pair of earrings worn by Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blonds.

    Rhett Butler’s one of a kind cigar case from Gone with the Wind.

    A necklace worn by Bette Davis in The Virgin Queen

    The Loretta Young crown from Suez.

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    MARILYN’S DRESS MAKES $4 MILLION AT HAMMER AT JULIEN’S

    Friday, November 18th, 2016

    That dress. The front view.

    That dress. The front view.

    The rear view.

    The rear view.

    The skin tight flesh coloured dress worn by Marilyn Monroe as she sang “Happy Birthday Mr. President” to JFK  has just sold for a hammer price of $4 million at Julien’s Auctions in Los Angeles. Lot number 83 was described as the historic dress worn by Marilyn when she sang to JFK at Madison Square Garden in 1962.  It was an early 45th birthday celebration.The custom made Jean Louis creation was so tight fitting that Marilyn had to be sewn into it at the last moment.

    Under a bright spotlight Marilyn Monroe walked on stage and peeled away her white ermine fur coat, revealing the sheer dress that sparkled with over 2,500 handstitched crystals. Her intimate tone and projection of the words Mr. President stunned the audience.  She died three months later, the President was assassinated the following year.  Prior to the sale the dress was displayed in Ireland at the Newbridge Silverware Museum of Style Icons.

    It was bought by Ripleys Believe it or Not! which owns a chain of museums.

    (See posts on antiquesandartireland.com for September 7 and June 2, 2016)

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    MARILYN’S SKIN TIGHT DRESS TO TOUR TO KILDARE

    Wednesday, September 7th, 2016

    That dress. The front view.

    That dress. The front view.

    The skin tight flesh coloured dress worn by Marilyn Monroe as she sang “Happy Birthday Mr. President” to JFK  is to be displayed at the Newbridge Silverware Museum of Style Icons in Ireland before being sold by Julien’s Auctions on November 17.  The custom made Jean Louis creation was so tight fitting that Marilyn had to be sewn into it at the last moment. It will be displayed on the mannequin designed to match her body measurement.

    On Saturday, May 19, 1962, at a Democratic fundraiser and early 45th birthday celebration, President John F. Kennedy took his seat in Madison Square Garden at what was to become one of the most iconic moments in entertainment and political history. In front of 15,000 guests, many of them celebrities, actor Peter Lawford made an introduction that would change the course of pop culture and Presidential folklore forever. Under a bright spotlight Marilyn Monroe walked on stage and peeled away her white ermine fur coat, revealing the sheer dress that sparkled with over 2,500 handstitched crystals. Her intimate tone and projection of the words Mr. President stunned the audience. Jacqueline Kennedy was not present. The song lasted just 30 seconds. Sadly this was one of Marilyn’s last public appearances and the last time they met. She died three months later, the president was assassinated the following year.

    The rear view.

    The rear view.

    Prior to the auction, the “Happy Birthday Mr. President” dress will go on tour. It is to be shown at MANA Contemporary in New Jersey as part of the Exhibition “Marilyn: Character Not Image” followed by the Newbridge Silverware Museum of Style Icons (MOSI) in Kildare, Ireland from October 29 to November 6 before making its way back to the Julien’s Auctions Gallery in Los Angeles.

    The catalogue cover for the sale show's Marilyn wearing the dress on stage. Courtesy Julien's Auctions

    The catalogue cover for the sale show’s Marilyn wearing the dress on stage. Courtesy Julien’s Auctions

    “We have had remarkable opportunities to offer unique objects related to Marilyn Monroe in the past,” said Martin Nolan, Executive Director of Julien’s Auctions. “To be part of the continued interest and excitement around this legend is always thrilling. This dress, this story, this momentous occasion represents a defining moment in history. This auction will remind the world why Marilyn Monroe remains an icon.”

    Three days of live and online auctions from the life and career of Marilyn Monroe and the collection of Lee Strasberg will kick off at Julien’s on November 17.

    (See post on antiquesandartireland.com for June 2, 2010)

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    A PHOTO OF THE REAL MARILYN MONROE

    Friday, May 20th, 2016

    Marilyn Monroe - Richard Avedon

    Marilyn Monroe – Richard Avedon

    A 1957 image of what photographer Richard Avedon considered to be the “real” Marilyn Monroe sold for £77,500 at Sotheby’s Icons of  Fashion Photography  sale in London on May 19.  Avedon, who aimed to reveal the true character of his subjects, recalled that whilst photographing Monroe at his studio she danced and sang and flirted and did this thing that made her Marilyn Monroe.

    “And when the night was over and the white wine was over and the dancing was over she sat in the corner like a child with everything gone”.  Monroe permitted him to take the photograph. He said he would not have taken it without her consent.  The top lot of the sale was Mouth (For L’Oreal) New York by Irving Penn. It sold for £221,000.

    The auction featured works by mid 20th century modern fashion photographers Irving Penn and Richard Avedon alongside images by Helmut Newton, Guy Bourdin and Peter Lindberg as well as contemporary photographers like Miles Aldridge and David LaChapelle.  Around 60% of lots found buyers in an auction that realized £1,422,375.

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