DALLAS, TX.- Sixty years after he first attempted to steal Christmas, the Grinch delivered one of the biggest victories in Animation Art collecting history.

A record-setting production cel from the 1966 special Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas sold for $115,900 to lead Heritage Auctions’ June 19-21 The Art of Everything Cool — Vol. VIII Signature® Auction, helping propel the event to a total of more than $1.73 million. The three-day auction attracted 3,139 bidders competing for 1,289 lots and achieved a remarkable 100% sell-through rate.

The sale also established a new auction benchmark as the highest-grossing non-Disney, non-Anime Animation Art auction ever held.

“This auction proved once again just how passionate collectors remain about the characters and stories they grew up loving,” says Jim Lentz, Heritage’s Vice President of Animation & Anime Art. “It is so rewarding to see virtually every category in our Everything Cool Animation Art auction do so well. The Grinch’s 60th birthday led the auction, but we saw very strong results in Simpsons, Nickelodeon, Hanna-Barbera, Chuck Jones and Looney Tunes and many other categories. People love cartoons!”

The result comes just one month after Heritage’s May 15-17 The Art of Anime, Vol. VIII Signature® Auction realized $2.5 million. This year marked the first time Heritage separated its Everything Cool and Anime categories into standalone events. Combined, the two auctions realized more than $4.2 million, underscoring the extraordinary strength of the Animation Art market.

Heritage now holds the records for the highest Disney Animation Art auction, the highest non-Disney Animation Art auction, the highest Anime Animation Art auction and, with this event, the highest non-Disney, non-Anime Animation Art auction ever conducted.

The undisputed star of the auction was the Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas Climactic Feast Production Cel and Animation Drawing Group, which soared to $115,900, establishing an all-time auction record for a hand-painted Grinch production cel. The iconic image depicts the Grinch’s transformation from holiday villain to beloved hero as he carves the Roast Beast during the special’s joyful finale. Featuring nearly the entire cast of Whoville gathered around the feast, the production cel represented one of the most memorable moments from Chuck Jones’ television classic.





The result follows another milestone anniversary success for Heritage. Last year, the 60th anniversary of A Charlie Brown Christmas produced record-breaking results for Peanuts Animation Art. This year, the Grinch proved equally irresistible to collectors celebrating the television special’s diamond anniversary.

Strong prices extended throughout the auction, including a pair of record-setting results for Hanna-Barbera’s futuristic first family. A rare pair of production celsfeaturing George, Jane, Judy and Elroy from the opening sequence of The Jetsons achieved $14,640, establishing a new auction record for the franchise. Another opening-sequence Jetsons production-cel pair featuring George, Jane and Judy realized $6,100.

Collectors also competed aggressively for Peanuts material, one of the auction’s strongest-performing categories. A Charles Schulz Peanuts daily strip dated June 27, 1959, featuring Snoopy brought $34,160, while a production cel from A Charlie Brown Christmas featuring Charlie Brown and Linus realized $24,000. Another fan favorite, a production cel of Snoopy as the World War I Flying Ace from It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, sold for $14,640.

The Simpsons continued its strong performance in Heritage Animation sales as a signed Key Master couch-gag setup featuring creator Matt Groening sold for $15,250. A rare Treehouse of Horror IV couch-gag setup realized $11,590, while an original Homer Simpson production cel from the classic episode Homer the Vigilante brought $9,455.

Nickelodeon fans also turned out in force. A production cel from SpongeBob SquarePants’ pilot episode Help Wanted, paired with its Master background, realized $8,845, while a production cel from Sleepy Time featuring SpongeBob, Mr. Krabs and Moby Dollar sold for $7,930.

Superhero and fantasy animation performed equally well. A never-sold-to-the-public 6-foot-6-inch Batman fiberglass store display from Warner Bros.’ Studio Hollywood stores realized $7,625. A Princess Daphne production cel from Don Bluth’s Dragon’s Lair brought $7,930, matching the result achieved by a much coveted (and memed) Prince Adam production cel from He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.

The auction’s deep selection of classic Warner Bros. material demonstrated continued collector demand for original Looney Tunes artwork. A rare production cel from the 1948 short Buccaneer Bunny sold for $10,370, while a production cel and Key Master background from Tex Avery’s 1941 Hollywood Steps Out realized $11,285. Another signed Bugs Bunny production cel from My Bunny Lies Over the Sea brought $7,320.

Additional highlights included an original storyboard from Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas that realized $6,100 and a Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? production/model cel group featuring Scooby-Doo and the entire Mystery Inc. gang that sold for $5,856.

“The breadth of results was one of the most exciting aspects of this auction,” Lentz says. “Whether it was the Grinch, Peanuts, The Simpsons, SpongeBob, Jetsons, Batman, Scooby-Doo or classic Warner Bros., collectors responded enthusiastically across the board. That tells us these characters continue to resonate with people decades after they first appeared onscreen.”