a pair of iconic ruby slippers The one worn by Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz” — and stolen from a museum nearly two decades ago — sold for $28 million at an auction on Saturday.
Robert Wilonsky, vice president of the Dallas-based auction house, told CBS News in an email that, with buyer's premium — a commission the buyer pays — the slippers sold for a total of $32.5 million.
Heritage Auctions had estimated the slippers to be worth $3 million or more. Online bidding began last month and as of Friday had reached $1.55 million, or $1.91 million including buyer's premium, Wilonsky said. More than 800 people were keeping an eye on slippers and company web page for auction As of Thursday, there had been about 43,000 page views, he said.
Reed Saxon/AP
As Rhys Thomas, author of the book “The Ruby Slipper of Oz,” says, the sequined shoes from the beloved 1939 musical have seen “more twists and turns than the Yellow Brick Road.”
They were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota in 2005. terry john martin Used a hammer to break the glass of the museum door and display case.
Steve Karnowski/AP
His whereabouts remained a mystery until the FBI recovered him in 2018. Martin, now 77, who lives near Grand Rapids in northern Minnesota, was not publicly exposed as a thief until his conviction in May 2023. pleaded guilty in October 2023. Martin admitted that he had used a small sledgehammer. To enter the museum. He then used the tool to break the case that contained the slippers and took them. He said he did not hear any alarm. He took them in his car and put them in a trailer near his house.
He was in a wheelchair and on supplemental oxygen when he was sentenced last January due to poor health.
His attorney, Dan Dacre, explained before sentencing that Martin, who had a long history of burglary and receiving stolen property, was attempting to settle “one last score” after an old associate with mob ties had Told him that shoes had to be worn. They are adorned with genuine jewels to justify their $1 million insurance value. But a fence — a person who buys stolen goods — later told him the rubies were just glass, DeCere said. So Martin got rid of the slippers. The lawyer did not say how.
The alleged perpetrator, Jerry Hal Saliterman, 77, of the Minneapolis suburb of Crystal, was convicted in March. When he first appeared in court he was in a wheelchair and on oxygen. He is due to stand trial in January and has not entered a plea, although his lawyer has said he is not guilty.
The shoes were returned in February to memorabilia collector Michael Shaw, who had loaned them to the museum. They were one of several pairs that Garland wore during filming, but only four pairs are known to have survived. In the film, to return from Oz to Kansas, Dorothy has to click her heels three times and repeat, “There's no place like home.”
The Judy Garland Museum was also among the bidders. The city of Grand Rapids raised funds for the slippers at its annual Judy Garland Celebration to supplement $100,000 set aside by Minnesota lawmakers this year to help the museum purchase the slippers.
“The Wizard of Oz” story has attracted new attention in recent weeks with the release of the film.Wicked,” an adaptation of the megahit Broadway musical, a prequel of sorts that reimagines the character of the Wicked Witch of the West.
The auction also included other “The Wizard of Oz” memorabilia, including a hat worn by Margaret Hamilton, who played the original Wicked Witch of the West.