Ruby slippers worn by actor Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz” went under the hammer Saturday, and the winning price was over the rainbow — a record $32.5 million, the auction house said. The shimmery shoes, among the most famous pairs of footwear ever, soared past the pre-auction estimate of $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, according to Heritage Auctions which oversaw the dramatic sale in Dallas, Texas.

The final bid was $28 million, with taxes and fees pushing the cost to $32.5 million, Heritage Auctions said. The entire haul for the Hollywood/Entertainment Signature Auction, which also featured the sale of the Wicked Witch’s black hat for $2.9 million, set a new record of $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 in Texas, as expected.

“There is simply no comparison between Judy Garland’s Ruby Slippers and any other piece of Hollywood memorabilia,” Heritage Auctions Executive Vice President 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 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 MGM Studios chief costume designer at the time, 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, Terry Martin, admitted taking them and said he did so because he believed they were encrusted with real rubies. Heritage Auctions said the 77-year-old 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 $666,000. Other memorabilia from “The Wizard of Oz” was also on sale, including Garland’s wigs, film posters and photographs, as well as other items such as a wooden game board from “Jumanji” starring Robin Williams. — AFP