Dorothy’s (sweaty) Wizard of Oz dress just sold for €1.5m in NYC
We apologise in advance for breaking the hearts of any die-hard film fans out there but unfortunately they will have to strike at least one piece of Hollywood memorabilia from their list.
The dress worn by Judy Garland in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz sold for just under €1.5m at an auction in New York on Monday.
The blue and white gingham dress, one of ten thought to have been made for the actress in her role as Dorothy, was among the top items in the Bonham’s and Turner Classic Movies Hollywood memorabilia auction.
On their website the auction house described the costume as:
"A short cream-colored cotton blouse with a high neck, pale blue rickrack trim at the cuffs and neck, hook-and-eye and snap closure at the back, reinforced shoulders, and a bias label inscribed, 'Judy Garland / 4461'."
The dress even has sweat stains around the neck but is otherwise in "good condition".
It had been expected that bidding for the dress would reach up to €1.2m, but clearly sweat was not an issue for one lucky millionaire.
A year ago, the Cowardly Lion costume worn by actor Bert Lahr in the same film sold for almost €3m at a Bonham’s auction.
We are assuming that the substantial price difference possibly had something to do with no mention of body odour in the lion costume description.
The most expensive item of movie memorabilia clothing was Marilyn Monroe’s ivory pleated “Subway” dress from the 1955 movie The Seven Year Itch.
The dress sold at auction in California in 2011 for €5.2m
