LOS ANGELES, CA.- On May 4-5,
Bonhams will hold an auction of Entertainment Memorabilia in its Los Angeles salesroom featuring an eclectic assortment of prime items from film history. The auction date coincides with Audrey Hepburn’s 85th birthday, which Bonhams will commemorate by offering a jade green velvet Givenchy hat owned and worn by Hepburn ($10,000-15,000).
The actress was photographed in this hat by Cecil Beaton in a memorable spread in the November 1964 issue of "Vogue," published shortly before her iconic turn in "My Fair Lady." Hepburn’s status as a pinnacle of modern fashion is due in no small part to her nearly forty-year association with Givenchy, who designed her chic attire for such classics as "Sabrina" and "Breakfast at Tiffany’s," among many others. Hepburn once said of Givenchy, “His are the only clothes in which I feel myself.”
Along with Hepburn, other glamorous actresses and the artists who celebrated them will be spotlighted. Illustrator Alberto Vargas is synonymous with classic pin-up art and Bonhams is pleased to offer the artist’s lively portrait of actress Eleanor Powell ($20,000-30,000). Dating from the 1940s, the illustration captures Powell in her prime, high kicking while holding a top hat and cane. Also of interest is an internal 20th Century Fox memo relating to Marilyn Monroe's very first film contract ($500-700). Dated August 24, 1946, the brief but impactful document reads, "re: Norma Jean Dougherty ... we are exercising her option." Although the actress had a bumpy start at the studio, this early decision would later pay off in spades as Monroe became Fox's marquee attraction.
Also connected to 20th Century Fox, Bonhams will offer an assortment of memorabilia relating to Academy Award®-winning movie mogul Darryl F. Zanuck. These include a Best Picture Academy Award® nomination certificate for "Wilson" ($3,000-4,000), Zanuck's own production files for the all-star World War II epic "The Longest Day" ($3,000-4,000), and his personal script for Stanley and Livingstone ($600-900). Zanuck’s social life among the Hollywood elite of his day and his lifelong love of polo are represented by personal items such as an equestrian-themed mug and pitcher set given to him by Tyrone Power and Lana Turner ($400-600), a monogrammed Sheffield bowl given to him by Howard Hughes ($600-800), and a pastel portrait of Zanuck playing polo ($600-800).
Another studio mogul, the legendary Walt Disney, is also well-represented in the auction. A collection of documents from 1953, several signed by Disney himself, concerns the creation of WED Enterprises, Walt's personal company that he used to develop Disneyland ($17,000-22,000). The success of this project is seen in an accompanying lot, which includes a 1954 Walt Disney-signed contract offering to sell WED's share in the park to Walt Disney Productions, the main studio ($12,000-15,000). Another Disney-related lot on offer is a 1940s-1970s guestbook owned by Los Angeles socialite Gladys Quarre Knapp ($12,000-15,000), which features entries from the cream of show business as well as leading figures in society and the arts. The book includes the signatures of Mary Pickford and Buddy Rogers, Basil Rathbone, Cary Grant, Adrian and Janet Gaynor, Norma Shearer, Mervyn LeRoy, Arthur Rubenstein, Tamara de Lempicka, Cole Porter, Barbara Hutton, Ronald and Nancy Reagan, and many others. Walt Disney features in the book's pages many times, most notably in a 1941 entry when he added a drawing of Mickey Mouse, making the guestbook a rare and valuable collectible for Disney-philes.
