Back to News

Posted in March 2019

Our Review of the Pop Culture & Entertainment Market in 2018

2018 was a busy year for Wallace & Hodgson away from the auction platform, as we undertook numerous private insurance valuations and participated in some exciting openings and events, some of which are shown in our News section.

We constantly monitor what’s happening in the auction arena, and with over fifty live and online sales offered by the bigger auction houses globally in 2018, there’s been a lot to keep track of.

In the world of Rock & Pop Memorabilia, here are some of the items which grabbed our attention:

• The contract which finally dissolved The Beatles, the ‘Apple Corps Limited Dissolution Of Contract’, December, 1974, signed by all four Beatles, sold for $118,750/ £93,500 at Sotheby’s New York in December 2018. The highest price for a contract is for the managerial contract signed by The Beatles and Brian Epstein in 1962, which sold for £365,000 at Sotheby’s London in 2015, suggesting that the document which marked the beginning of that phenomenal band’s career had significantly more appeal to collectors than that which marked the end. Eleven years earlier, we brought the initial contract to the market for the first time when it sold for £122,850 at Christie’s South Kensington.

The contract which finally dissolved The Beatles, the ‘Apple Corps Limited Dissolution Of Contract’, December, 1974

• Bob Dylan and Robbie Robertson’s 1965 Fender Telecaster, used by Bob Dylan on his first ‘electric tour’, and by both musicians for numerous performances and recordings, most notably by Dylan on the 1966 album Blonde On Blonde.  Selling for $490,000/ £260,638 at Julien’s in May 2018, this guitar is now in the top twenty highest priced guitars to have sold at auction.  The highest price paid for a Dylan guitar at auction is for the 1964 Fender Stratocaster on which he ‘went electric’, which sold for $965,000/ £584,848 at Christie’s New York in December, 2013.

Bob Dylan and Robbie Robertson’s 1965 Fender Telecaster, used by Bob Dylan on his first ‘electric tour’, and by both musicians for numerous performances and recordings

Bob Dylan and Robbie Robertson’s 1965 Fender Telecaster, used by Bob Dylan on his first ‘electric tour’, and by both musicians for numerous performances and recordings

• Bruce Springsteen’s working autograph manuscript lyrics for Born To Run, written in Long Beach, New Jersey, 1974, sold for $250,000/ £221,238 at Sotheby’s New York in July 2018 – they had previously been sold at the same venue for $197,000/ £130,463 five years earlier.

Bruce Springsteen’s working autograph manuscript lyrics for Born To Run, 1974

• The HeliosCentric Helios Console,constructed in 1996 as an amalgamation of part of the Island Records Basing Street Studio 2 Helios Console (1970-1974), which was used by Lez Zeppelin to record part of Stairway To Heaven, and Alvin Lee’s Helios Console from Space Studios (1973-1979) – this significant piece of recording equipment sold for £112,500 at Bonhams London in 2018.  The sale of this console was probably prompted by the remarkable price achieved a year earlier by the legendary recording console from Abbey Road and EMI Studios, most notably used by Pink Floyd to record Dark Side Of The Moon, which sold for a staggering $1,807,500/ £1,446,000 at Bonhams New York in March 2017.

The HeliosCentric Helios Console

• Joe Strummer’s eye-catching hand-painted shirt with stencilled logos worn on the first UK tv broadcast about Punk Rock during an interview with Janet Street Porter, 28^thNovember, 1976 – sold for £22,500 at Bonhmas London in July 2018.

Joe Strummer’s eye-catching hand-painted shirt

• Paul McCartney’s Mini Cooper S Deville, 1965 – one of four ordered for The Beatles by Brian Epstein – sold for $236,500/ £181,923 at Worldwide Auctioneers, Auburn, U.S. in September 2018.  Previously, Ringo Starr’s Mini was purchased by Geri Halliwell for £102,300 at Bonhams London in December 2017.  George Harrison’s Mini is believed to still be in Olivia Harrison’s possession, and the whereabouts of John Lennon’s Mini remains a mystery.

Paul McCartney’s Mini Cooper S Deville, 1965 – one of four ordered for The Beatles by Brian Epstein

From the world of Film Memorabilia, these are the items which caught our eye:

• The Academy Award for the film Gentleman’s Agreement (1947), for Best Picture awarded to Twentieth Century Fox, sold for $492,000/£393,600 at Profiles In History, Los Angeles in December 2018 – the highest price at auction for an Academy Award is still held by Gone With The Wind (1939), presented to David O. Selznick for Best Picture, purchased by Michael Jackson for $1.5 million/ £931,677 at Sotheby’s New York in 1999.

The Academy Award for the film Gentleman’s Agreement (1947)

• Original concept poster artwork for Diamonds Are Forever (1971) by Robert McGinnis, sold for £27,500 at Bonhams London in July 2018.

Original concept poster artwork for Diamonds Are Forever (1971)

• The Production Archive of M.G.M.’s The Wizard Of Oz(1939) – this fascinating archive represents the genesis, development and culmination of the film, including the original hand written drafts – sold for $1.2 million/ £960,000 at Profiles in History, Los Angeles in December 2018.

The Production Archive of M.G.M.’s The Wizard Of Oz (1939)

• Mr Bean’s Mini 1000 from the film Bean (1997)found its way to the States to be sold for $84,000/£63,636 at Profiles in History, Los Angeles in June 2018 – it had originally been sold at a Lord Mayor of London’s Charity Auction, London in 1998.

Mr Bean’s Mini 1000 from the film Bean (1997)

• The coronation robe worn by Greta Garbo in Queen Christina (1933), the magnificent purple velvet and ermine trimmed robe was designed by legendary Hollywood costume designer, Adrian, and sold for $78,000/ £62,400 at Profiles in History, Los Angeles in December 2018 – a rare surviving piece of key costume from the Golden Age of Hollywood.

The coronation robe worn by Greta Garbo in Queen Christina (1933)

• John Mollo’spersonal sketch book from Star Wars (1977) containing important detailed working sketches and costume designs for many of the film’s main characters.  The sketch book, compiled between April 1975 – July 1976, was also used by Mollo as his production diary – this exceptionally rare document, fiercely fought over by Star Wars’ collectors, sold for £125,000 at Bonhams, London in December 2018.

John Mollo’s personal sketch book from Star Wars (1977)

• A unique wooden clapperboard used during the filming of Steven Spielberg’s 1976 film Jaws, with quirky design featuring a serrated clap stick simulating shark’s teeth – sold for $120,000/ £96,000 at Profiles in History, Los Angeles in December 2018. The clapperboard photographed in Spielberg’s hand on the Jaws’ set, had previously sold just two years earlier at the Prop Store’s live auction in London in September 2016 for £84,000.

A unique wooden clapperboard used during the filming of Steven Spielberg’s 1976 film Jaws

• Amongst the many Star Wars props to hit the block in 2018, the highest price was achieved by Anakin Skywalker’s lightsabre from Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith (2005), which sold for £135,300 at the Prop Store’s live auction in London in September 2018.

Anakin Skywalker’s lightsabre from Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith (2005)

• A rare James Bond piece of history, James Bond Of The Secret Service (1959), is a detailed 27 page second draft treatment carbon copy for the proposed first James Bond film,which was sent from Ian Fleming’s office to screenwriter Jack Whittingham in October, 1959.Whittingham had been enlisted by producer Kevin McClory to rework and write the screenplay from Fleming’s initial draft – this treatment later became the basis for Thunderball (1965) – sold for £35,000 at Bonhams London in December 2018.

James Bond Of The Secret Service (1959), is a detailed 27 page second draft treatment carbon copy for the proposed first James Bond film