Iconic movie memorabilia including the ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz are set to be auctioned in the US later this month.
The vast collection amassed by actor Debbie Reynolds over a 50-year-period will be sold in California on June 18th.
It also includes Charlie Chaplin’s signature bowler hat from films such as The Tramp, and the famous billowing, pleated ivory dress worn by Marilyn Monroe in the 1955 film The Seven Year Itch.
Reynolds (79), who starred alongside Gene Kelly in Singin’ in the Rain, explains in the auction catalogue that her love for collecting began early in her career with movie giant MGM.
“I used to spend my spare time in the wardrobe department, watching the most talented people create costumes for the actors.
“I was fascinated by how they were able to translate a simple suggestion in a script, sometimes even a piece of dialogue, into a magnificent costume.”
Her passion for collecting began in earnest when the studios broke up their inventories, she explains.
In 1970, MGM announced it would auction everything it owned apart from its properties.
Reynolds knew the costume inventory well and preserving as many items in the collections as possible became her “obsession”, she says.
Other studios, including Fox, later followed suit in selling off their own costumes.
“Over the years, I continued to save as many pieces as I could as the studios threatened their very existence,” Reynolds writes. “I cherish every piece I’ve collected. I couldn’t bear to see them lost or forgotten.”
Reynolds bought 12 of Marilyn Monroe’s costumes. “All these items are as famous as the stars that wore them. There is magic in every thread, button and bow.”
Reynolds had dreamed of building a permanent museum to house the costumes but says “sadly, my dream didn’t come true”.
She expresses the wish that the items will find homes “where they will be revered and preserved along with their history”.
The Wizard of Oz ruby slippers – an elaborate Arabian curl-toed pair - are one of several made for the movie. They are expected to fetch up to $150,000 at the action.
Chaplin’s bowler hat is listed to reach up to $30,000, while Monroe’s pleated ‘Subway’ dress from the Seven Year Itch is estimated to bring in up to $2,000,000.
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