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Press Release - November 25, 2016
Guitars owned by Janis Joplin, Prince top Heritage Auctions' $1 million Entertainment & Music Memorabilia sale
The Beatles 'Butcher Cover' LP sold for $42,500 in Dallas
DALLAS — Guitars owned and played by Janis Joplin and Prince — two of the most legendary American musicians of the last century — took top honors in Heritage Auctions' $1 million Entertainment and Music Memorabilia Auction Nov. 12 in Dallas.
The guitar used by premier blues vocalist Janis Joplin sold for $50,000. It was used by her when she perfected the song Me and Bobby McGee. A "Cloud" style, cobalt blue electric guitar played by Prince sold for $42,500.
"Janis Joplin and Prince were two of the greatest musicians of their generation," Heritage entertainment director Garry Shrum said, "so it's not surprising at all that their guitars were in such high demand. These guitars drew the attention of music fans and serious collectors, and deservedly so."
A collection of Beatles memorabilia also inspired spirited bidding. Headlining the group was a Yesterday and Today Sealed Livingston First State Mono "Butcher Cover" LP that sold for $42,500, and an Autographed First Pressing of P.S. I Love You/Love Me Do 45, which brought $30,000.
Collectors also had the opportunity to acquire pieces from assorted Hollywood legends, and jumped at the chance: The hat Ernest Borgnine wore in McHale's Navy pulled in $18,750, and was one of several of his items consigned directly by Borgnine's family. The wig Marilyn Monroe wore for her last big-screen performance in The Misfits drew $17,500, and John Wayne's vest from The Cowboys sold for $15,000.
Heritage entertainment director Margaret Barrett said that part of her gratification from the auction stems from the fact that Borgnine's family entrusted Heritage Auctions with the items representing his legacy. "Ernest Borgnine was a legendary actor whose career lasted more than six decades," Barrett said. "His body of work represents a significant part of Hollywood's history over the last century, and we are extremely grateful that his family chose Heritage Auctions to handle his memorabilia."
A group of music posters caught the attention of savvy collectors as a 1954 Muddy Waters Memorial Auditorium concert poster drew $9,375, while a BB King/Ruth Brown Chattanooga Auditorium poster and a Sam Cooke/Jackie Wilson Memorial Auditorium concert poster sold for $8,125 each.
Some of the other top items included, but were not limited to:
· A "Madame" puppet, circa late 1970s-early 1980s: Realized: $25,000
· A Rolling Stones Gretsch Kick Drum Head, circa 1969: Realized: 13,750
· A signed Led Zeppelin Presence LP, circa 1976: Realized: $10,625
"This was an exceptional auction from two perspectives," Shrum said. "When you have memorabilia from entertainment icons, like Janis Joplin and Prince and Marilyn Monroe and John Wayne, you're going to get attention and bids from fans. But the iconic status of these entertainers also brought out shrewd collectors who badly wanted to add these items to their own collections."
Heritage Auctions is the largest auction house founded in the United States and the world's third largest, with annual sales of more than $800 million, and over one million online bidder members. For more information about Heritage Auctions, and to join and receive access to a complete record of prices realized, with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit HA.com.
Hi-Res images available:
Eric Bradley, Public Relations Director
214-409-1871; EricB@HA.com
Greg S.,