Props, costumes, photographs and autograph material from more than 100 years of film and theatre ranging from Lillie Langtry to Leonardo DiCaprio, with estimates from £100 (€132) to £15,000 sterling, go for auction later this month. Harrison Ford's whip from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) (estimate: £4,000-£6,000) and a gruesome chalice from the same film (£2,500-£3,500) are among the items in the Christie's auction in London on December 12th. The fibreglass head-dress of Mola Ram, the character who tries to convert Indiana Jones to evil in the same film, is also estimated at £2,500-£3,500.
The grail diary from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) is expected to fetch £7,000-£9,000. Ms Sarah Hodgson, head of the popular entertainment department at Chris tie's, says that the grail diary is a leather-bound prop that belonged to the character played by Sean Connery, Dr Jones, the father of Indiana Jones. "Dr Jones has made it his life's quest to find the Holy Grail. He disappears, so Indiana Jones has to try to find him and all he has to go on is the diary, which has been left behind. So it's a key prop in the film."
It is a printed facsimile, an original prop made for the film. "Who knows if it was used or not, but it was definitely made for the film," she says. A remastered version of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) will be released next year. Some rare original watercolour production sketches by Roy Carnon for the film could excite special interest, with estimates from £600 to £2,500. "That'll be very hot because next year is 2001 so there's going to be a major revival, inevitably," says Mr Dwyer.
A US one-sheet cinema poster for Star Wars (1977), signed by various cast members including Carrie Fisher, could go for £700, while publicity stills and photographs from the Star Wars trilogy are estimated at £500-£700. A four-piece superhero outfit from Supergirl (1984) could sell for £4,000-£6,000. Memorabilia from the Pink Panther films include the rock crystal from The Return of the Pink Panther (1974) with a guide price of £3,000-£5,000, while a Balls Emporium book of disguises, which features photographs of Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau, is expected to fetch £800-£1,200. DiCaprio's binoculars from The Beach are estimated at £300-£500, while the caterpillar "eaten" by him in the film is estimated at £250-£350. A pair of red satin ballet shoes worn by Moira Shearer in the Academy Award-winning film The Red Shoes (1948) are expected to fetch £6,000-£8,000. The shoes have never appeared at auction before. Other highlights include a cigarette case and lighter given by Humphrey Bogart to Lauren Bacall, estimated at up to £6,000.
The auction includes a collection of pieces from former residences of actor, playwright and composer, Sir Noel Coward. The collection, which includes a baby grand piano purchased by Coward in 1927 and on which he is believed to have composed some of his most famous work, is expected to raise more than £30,000.
Cinemania, beside the Irish Film Centre in Temple Bar in Dublin, sells movie and television memorabilia, such as posters, film stills, autographs and toys. Telephone: 01-6703665.
Website: www.clubi.ie/ cinemania, www.christies.com
jmarms@irish-times.ie
