From Profiles in History * 

MARILYN MONROE’S “DIAMONDS ARE A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND” PINK SATIN GOWN—THE MOST IMPORTANT FILM DRESS TO EVER COME TO AUCTION—WILL HIGHLIGHT PROFILES IN HISTORY’S JUNE 10-12 SUMMER AUCTION EVENT

The Iconic Dress from Gentleman Prefer Blondes, Marilyn Monroe’s test footprints and signature set in cement from Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, The Wicked Witch of the West’s Hat, Johnny Depp’s Scissorhands from Edward Scissorhands and “Jack Sparrow” jacket from Pirates of the Caribbean, Darth Vader’s light saber from Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi, a screen-used “Jeannie” bottle from I Dream of Jeannie and Bruce Lee’s signature “Kato” hat from The Green Hornet Among The Highlights of Profiles in History’s Three Million Dollar Auction Featuring Over 1,500 Lots

Calabasas, CA— Marilyn Monroe’s iconic pink satin gown from the “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” sequence in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and an incredible collection from The Wizard of Oz will highlight Profiles in History’s $3 Million Dollar Hollywood Auction 40, June 10-12, 2010. The gown was worn by Marilyn as the gold-digging “Lorelei Lee” in one of cinema’s most memorable song and dance sequences as she performed “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” and is estimated to sell for between $150,000-$250,000. (Complete description below).

 Among The Wizard of Oz items is Margaret Hamilton’s “Wicked Witch of the West” hat which is estimated to sell between $100,000-150,000.  Also included is an extensive collection of Elvis Presley clothing, jewelry and personal effects, including his stage used guitar he gave to Norman Taurog (who directed Elvis in numerous films) $60,000-80,000.  Also being offered is an unprecedented collection of stop-motion puppets and props from Tim Burton’s A Nightmare Before Christmas.  In addition, from the collection of Academy Award-nominated Star Wars producer Gary Kurtz are Darth Vader’s light saber $60,000-80,000, Princess Leia’s blaster $20,000-30,000 and Yoda’s hero cane $12,000-15,000—all three from Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi.  

Worldwide bidding begins at 12:00pm (noon) PST each day. Bids can be placed in person, via mail, phone, fax or live on the Internet by visiting Profiles in History  or LiveAuctioneers .

Additional highlights from this massive summer auction include Johnny Depp’s signature scissorhand gloves from Edward Scissorhands $15,000-20,000 and a “Jack Sparrow” jacket from Pirates of the Caribbean $8,000-12,000;  Fess Parker’s iconic coon skin cap from Daniel Boone $10,000-12,000; Clayton Moore’s trademark “Lone Ranger” mask with gloves from The Lone Ranger; Marilyn Monroe test footprints and signature set in cement from Grauman’s Chinese Theatre $30,000-50,000; an original screen-used “Jeannie” bottle from I Dream of Jeannie $15,000-20,000; Steve McQueen rifle from The Magnificent Seven $12,000-15,000; Bruce Lee’s signature “Kato” hat from The Green Hornet $12,000-15,000; an H.R. Giger hero screen-used Alien creature head from Alien $40,000-50,000; a screen-used animatronic Predator mask and costume from Predator 2 $55,000-75,000; Wayland Flowers’ original Madame puppet with fainting couch $25,000-30,000; a hero Colonial Warrior helmet from Battlestar Galactica $8,000-12,000; a Michael Keaton’s Batsuit from Batman Returns $30,000-50,000; a hero illuminating laser rifle from the original Lost in Space TV series $25,000-30,000; a production made X-Wing Fighter filming miniature from Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope $60,000-80,000; a production made Y-Wing Fighter filming miniature from Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope $40,000-60,000 and Harrison Ford’s personal script for Raiders of the Lost Ark with over 1,300 words penned by Ford $50,000-70,000.

Please visit  http://www.profilesinhistory.com  as additional items will be announced soon.

In addition to this auction, Profiles in History’s upcoming events include a special Star Trek auction, followed by the highly anticipated auction of the props, costumes and set pieces from ABC’s LOST television series after the series finale.

* Prices are auction estimates

Complete description of Marilyn Monroe dress:

Marilyn Monroe iconic pink satin gown from the “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” sequence in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.  (TCF, 1953)  This pink satin gown was worn by Marilyn Monroe as the gold-digging “Lorelei Lee” in one of cinema’s most memorable song and dance sequences as she performed “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend”.  This Travilla-designed pink silk taffeta strapless gown features black satin lining with oversized bow attached at back.  Features integral brassier with rear zipper closure (concealed with bow overlay) and interior Fox cleaning tag.  Also comes with the original pair of screen-worn opera-length tubes worn over Marilyn’s arms (gloves are shown for display only) and pink taffeta belt with “M. Monroe A-698 1-27-3-7953” written on the inner leather lining.  Originally designed to be a two-piece garment, this lot features an additional bonus having the original top made for this dress (featuring interior bias label handwritten “1-27-3-7971 M. Monroe A 698-74”) that was not used in the production.  This design was discarded due to the top and skirt separating when Marilyn raised her arms during the number.  The gown exhibits slight toning in areas, common in silk garments from this era; otherwise in fine condition.  The leather backing on the belt is cracked and missing in areas and silk exhibits fraying on edges.  Marilyn’s public appearance dress worn at President John F. Kennedy’s birthday tribute sold at auction in 1999 for an astounding $1,267,500.00.  This remains as the single most important screen-worn gown in film history to ever reach the auction block.    Indeed, Marilyn Monroe’s “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” performance has reached such an iconic status that several notorious entertainers have copied it—right down to the pink strapless gown! 

Auction estimate: $150,000-250,000

*Photo courtesy of Profiles in History.