Julien’s Auctions is holding a two-day auction at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino next month, following an exhibition of the same. Their “Property from the Estate of Jerry Lewis” will be held on June 22nd and their “Hollywood Legends” auction will be held on June 23rd. Highlights include the James Shoppe collection, which features props and production material from the Art Director on Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. [Read more…]
KTNV13 Call For Action broadcast this report on autographed and collectible memorabilia on their local ABC affiliate station in Las Vegas, and has also made the video available on their official website. The story discusses autographs and collector Steve Comolli’s purchases of memorabilia from Antiquities International in the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace. The report claims he purchased $20,000 worth of autographed memorabilia – “most” of it from Antiquities – and then tried to sell through Julien’s Auctions and Heritage Auction Galleries and that they “could not authenticate” what he wanted to sell through them. [Read more…]
As mentioned a few days ago, the latest episode of Pawn Stars features a rocketship model claimed to have been used in the Flash Gordon serials from the 1930s. What appears to be the same model is now listed for public sale on eBay for a $100,000 “Buy It Now” price, stating that it is “an original movie studio prop – NOT a copy or reproduction” and that “[t]he model for sale here is an 18” prototype model — possibly the only one remaining — and may have been used for still shots on the ground and used with charges“. [Read more…]
I am featured in the History Channel’s popular cable reality series, Pawn Stars, in the latest episode debuting this week, “Rick’s Roulette” (Season 2015, Episode 27). I served as the Hollywood memorabilia expert and authenticator for one of the segments of this episode, taking a look at a prop model attributed to the Flash Gordon serials of the 1930s. This was filmed in December 2014 at Julien’s Auctions, when I was in town helping Colin Cantwell bring his Star Wars original artwork from 1974/1975 and other movie and television memorabilia to auction. I wanted to share some thoughts about the Flash Gordon prop rocketship model and appearing on the show in general. [Read more…]
Julien’s Auctions will be holding several events next month, including their Icons & Idols event on December 5th & 6th in Beverly Hills (with collections including Property From The Life and Career of Marilyn Monroe and Property From The Gold and Silver Pawnshop (featured on the popular television series Pawn Stars), as well as an online-only Sports sale concluding December 1st. The Icons & Idols sale will also include a collection of wardrobe from Diana, Princess of Wales, property from the estate of Gypsy Rose Lee, and the Colin Cantwell Collection (already featured on the Original Prop Blog). Their Property From The Life and Career of Burt Reynolds December will be held on December 11th & 12th at The Palms in Las Vegas. [Read more…]
I had a chance yesterday to view the movie props and costumes on display at the Planet Hollywood restaurant and gift shop found at The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. While all are attributed to use in various productions, no provenance, history, or explanations are provided. Definitely an interesting subject for further discussion. [Read more…]
As noted in recent articles (see Profiles in History Pledges More Transparency; Open Q&A On Website Regarding Provenance, Authenticity, Other Questions and Profiles in History Pledges More Transparency: Update & Response to “What We Are Currently Working On”), Profiles in History’s General Manager, Fong Sam, has written about embracing what they call “the concept of auctions as peer review” with regards to “verifying provenance” of material listed for public sale in their auction catalogs on his haxbee.com site. With their upcoming sale, The Dreier Collection, Part 1, a few principals in our art market have raised questions with me privately with regards to one of the items listed for auction, Lot 106 GEORGE REEVES “SUPERMAN” CAPE FROM THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN. Since the suggested resource on the Profiles in History website has yet to be created, I thought I would publish those questions raised with me in this article as part of the public “peer review” process with Profiles in History. [Read more…]
Note: This article was originally published on the Rock Subculture Journal. I met up with some friends of mine who live in Las Vegas, who, like me, collect original artifacts from film, television, and music. I became acquainted with them years ago through the Original Prop Blog, and they have been huge supporters of my efforts. The History Channel series, Pawn Stars, has been a topic of discussion on the Original Prop Blog for years (see original article), so who could pass up the opportunity to check out the store where it all happens? So we visited Gold and Silver Pawn.