The shimmery shoes, among the most famous pairs of footwear ever, soared past the pre-auction estimate of US$3 million within moments, and by the time the bidding war was complete, they had become the most valuable movie memorabilia ever sold at auction.
The final bid was US$28 million, with taxes and fees pushing the cost to US$32.5 million, said Heritage Auctions, which oversaw the dramatic sale in Dallas, Texas.
The entire haul for the Hollywood/Entertainment Signature Auction, which also featured the sale of the Wicked Witch’s black hat for US$2.9 million, set a new record of US$38.6 million for an entertainment auction.
But it was the sequin-covered pumps – one of four surviving ruby pairs worn in the 1939 cult classic – that stole the show, as expected.
“There is simply no comparison between Judy Garland’s ruby slippers and any other piece of Hollywood memorabilia,” Heritage Auctions’ Joe Maddalena said in a statement.
“The breathtaking result reflects just how important movies and movie memorabilia are to our culture and to collectors.”
Stolen slippers
The shoes that were sold on Saturday have a storied history: they were not just the ones on Dorothy when she began her adventure in Oz, or when she clicked her heels to go home to Kansas. They were stolen nearly 20 years ago.
The shoes, created by then MGM Studios chief costume designer Gilbert Adrian, had belonged to a collector since 1970. They were kept in the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, until they mysteriously disappeared in 2005.
Despite a six-figure reward and the involvement of the FBI, it was not until 2018 that they were finally tracked down.
The perpetrator of the theft, 77-year-old Terry Martin, admitted taking them and said he had done so because he believed they were encrusted with real rubies.
Heritage Auctions said Martin, who confessed in court documents last year to stealing the ruby slippers, had wanted to pull off “one last score”. He was given a suspended prison sentence in January.
One pair of ruby slippers was sold in 2012 to Hollywood legends Steven Spielberg and Leonardo DiCaprio, who donated them to the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles.
Another resides at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, in Washington, while the fourth pair sold in 2000 for US$666,000.
Other memorabilia from “The Wizard of Oz” also went on sale on Saturday, including Garland’s wigs, film posters and photographs, as well as items such as a wooden game board from “Jumanji” starring Robin Williams.