Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn Fashions up for Auction
Photo courtesy of Julien's Auctions
Bids will soar for this plunging number: A Marylin Monroe LBD will be part of the auction.
Ever wonder what it feels like to be a Hollywood legend? Now’s your chance to find out, because iconic pieces from the biggest stars including Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, and Lucille Ball are about to hit the auction block.
On May 7 and 8, Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills will host the Hollywood Legends auction, featuring attire and personal items belonging to leading men and glamour girls of the past and present.
Among the most covetable items: The wide-brimmed straw hat with orange and yellow sheer fabric that Hepburn wore in 1957’s Funny Face—expected to fetch $2,000-$3,000—and a black crepe cocktail dress with a deep V neckline, low-cut back, and pouf hemline donned by Monroe to a 1958 party at the Beverly Hills Hotel, which could go for $20,000-$30,000.
“Both Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn are fashion icons and due to their global appeal, anything from their lives or careers are highly collectible," Darren Julien, president/CEO of Julien’s Auctions tells FashionEtc.
“We anticipate that the dress worn by Marilyn Monroe will sell for a significant amount since there are photographs of her wearing it and there are not many dresses relating to her career available to the public. The Audrey Hepburn hat is significant also as it is a memorable piece she wore in Funny Face, and, like Marilyn, there are very few items available associated with her life or career.”
Other Monroe memorabilia include a navy blue 1950s swimsuit with a sweet baby-blue bow on the chest; a two-piece, sea-foam green Pucci ensemble consisting of a boatneck top and knee-length skirt; and the bombshell’s brassiere liners.
Love Lucy? You’re in luck. The sitcom star’s 1950s vanity case is up for grabs—complete with mirror, hairbrush, perfume aerators, and cold cream jars—as is her primping attire: a 1960s china silk dressing robe with a metallic gold paisley and floral pattern.
Photo courtesy of Julien's Auctions
The wide-brimmed straw hat worn by Audrey Hepburn in Funny Face will go to the top bidder.
Modern-day goddess Angelina Jolie—whose jewelry collaboration with Robert Procop is part of a separate auction at Julien’s—is also included among the Legends and has offered up her white V-neck shirt and tan suede pants from Girl, Interrupted; a retro three-quarter-sleeve brocade coat from The Good Shepherd; and a diamond and 18kt gold necklace she wore to the Seoul, South Korea, premiere of Salt.
While Princess Diana may not have been Hollywood royalty, she was no doubt a legend, and two of her dresses—both designed by Catherine Walker—are biddable: a black crepe evening gown with a diamanté-paste-embroidered top worn on a 1992 state visit, and a light blue strapless silk chiffon dress she wore for both a portrait sitting and the Cannes Film Festival in 1987, and a 1989 performance of Miss Saigon at Theatre Royal.
Perhaps the most extensive wardrobe collection belongs to Sunset Boulevard star Gloria Swanson, who was quite the fashionista long before the word even existed. Included in her luxe lot: a velvet Givenchy topknot hat; a flirty black Scaasi cocktail dress; Kenneth Jay Lane clip-on earrings; a red three-tiered Pierre Cardin evening dress; a fox-fur boa; and a variety of handbags, including a white satin bag embellished with silver sequins, clear and silver seed beads, and pearl beads.
Swanson’s vintage Louis Vuitton steamer trunk is also going on auction, which is a very good thing. Because really, how else will you haul all of your purchases home?
Items from the Hollywood Legends auction can currently be viewed online or by visiting Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills beginning April 25.
