Lucille Ball Dress Auction: 'I Love Lucy' Relic Sold for $168,000
Lucille Ball's iconic polka dotted dress sold for $168,000 during a recent Hollywood memorabilia auction.
The dress was among the "finest collection" of actress' belongings auctioned off at the Profiles of History in Los Angeles on July 30.
Among the most coveted items available, the "I Love Lucy" star's dress was estimated to sell at around $40,000 to $60,000, but actually sold at over twice that, according to the Associated Press.
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Also, a signed contract between Ball and producer Sam Goldwyn was auctioned off, as well as the actress' striped dress suit from the 1950 Bob Hope comedy "Fancy Pants." A fox stole Ball wore during season three of "I Love Lucy" was sold as well, among other items.
Other Hollywood memorabilia sold at the auction included Charlie Chaplin's cane, iconic costumes from the film "The Sound of Music," and a jacket worn by Steve McQueen in the film "Bullitt." The items collectively garnered several million dollars.
"The Sounds of Music" costumes included the "heavy brown homespun Austrian-style dress with wheat-colored homespun blouse" worn by Julie Andrews in character as Maria. It sold for $1.3 million, according to ContactMusic.
Furthermore, a dress worn by Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz" sold for $360,000, while a costume worn by Jeff Bridges in "The Big Lebowski" was auctioned off at $54,000, according to the Associated Press.
Meanwhile, "I Love Lucy" ran from 1951 to 1957 and is still aired as reruns on television today. The series earned Ball, who co-starred alongside her real-life husband Desi Arnaz, an Emmy Award for Best Actress- Continuing Performance in 1954.
During a different auction at the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival in Jamestown, New York, many other items related to Ball's work were sold.
These items included the actress' red velvet dress worn in the 1974 musical "Mama" as well as her Charlie Chaplin costume from "The Lucy Show" episode on "The Milton Berle Show," according to the Westfield Republican.
