The New York Times reported today that "The Oscar statue awarded to Orson Welles for the best original screenplay of 1941 for "Citizen Kane" did not attract a bidder and failed to sell on Tuesday at auction at Sotheby's in New York...The Academy Award statue, its finish worn from years of handling, had been expected to fetch $800,000 to $1.2 million for its seller, the Dax Foundation, a Los Angeles charity that had planned to use the proceeds for philanthropy."
The Times article goes on to report that a 1940 copy of Welles's script for "Citizen Kane" sold for $97,000 to a private collector.
Welles's Oscar did not sell at auction
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Christopher
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ToddBaesen
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No, it was the real version that Beatrice won in her lawsuit with the Academy.
What I find interesting, is as Glenn discovered and reported about in another thread, the so called "charitable DAX foundation" appears to be nothing more than a front organization created by Beatrice to sell the Oscar, presumably to avoid paying taxes and bad publicity. In that regard, like her father, it seems she might have run afoul of the IRS if it actually sold and their were any investigation by IRS agents for fraud.
The UK Guardian ran a report on the failure of the KANE Oscar to sell today as well, which included this info:
"At some point, Welles lost the statuette, probably during his later life when he spent years living as a house guest of various Hollywood acquaintances. After his death in 1985, his daughter, Beatrice, obtained a replacement from the Academy. But in 1994 the original surfaced at an auction at Sotheby's, which handled this week's sale. The statuette had been in the possession of Welles's cinematographer, Gary Graver, who said the director had given it to him as a gift. Welles's daughter sued to stop the sale, pledging to place it in a permanent memorial to her father. Instead she sold the Oscar three years later, fending off a lawsuit from the Academy. The statuette was bought in 2003 by the Dax Foundation."
While basically accurate, there are still a few omissions in the Guardian report, namely that Welles Oscar, like the negative of OTHELLO, was never really lost. In fact, the Oscar was apparently given by Welles to The Museum of Modern Art for safekeeping for several years while he was in Europe, and then reclaimed by Welles when he needed it as a prop for THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND. Then, during the shooting of WIND, Welles gave the Oscar to Gary Graver to keep.
Since Beatrice clearly has no real inkling about her father's work or his associates, she had no idea that Gary Graver still had possesion of the Oscar when Welles died. So when she inheirited the Welles estate from her mother, Palo Mori, she asked for a replacement Oscar from the Academy, assuming it had been lost.
When it resurfaced at auction, Beatrice sued to get it back from Graver. Then, Beatrice promised the judge upon winning it back, she would not sell the Oscar, but was going to place it in a permanent memorial to her father.
Well, that idea didn't last very long! In fact, it appears Beatrice and her friends at Dax set a minimum starting bid of around $500,000. for the Oscar, which is quite obviously why it didn't sell. But ironically, if Beatrice really wanted to place the Oscar in a permanent memorial to her father, what better place for it to go than back to The Museum of Modern Art, were it could go on display in the lobby of their basement movie theater!
Of course in that event, she wouldn't get any proftits from it's sale, which is clearly her primary concern.
What I find interesting, is as Glenn discovered and reported about in another thread, the so called "charitable DAX foundation" appears to be nothing more than a front organization created by Beatrice to sell the Oscar, presumably to avoid paying taxes and bad publicity. In that regard, like her father, it seems she might have run afoul of the IRS if it actually sold and their were any investigation by IRS agents for fraud.
The UK Guardian ran a report on the failure of the KANE Oscar to sell today as well, which included this info:
"At some point, Welles lost the statuette, probably during his later life when he spent years living as a house guest of various Hollywood acquaintances. After his death in 1985, his daughter, Beatrice, obtained a replacement from the Academy. But in 1994 the original surfaced at an auction at Sotheby's, which handled this week's sale. The statuette had been in the possession of Welles's cinematographer, Gary Graver, who said the director had given it to him as a gift. Welles's daughter sued to stop the sale, pledging to place it in a permanent memorial to her father. Instead she sold the Oscar three years later, fending off a lawsuit from the Academy. The statuette was bought in 2003 by the Dax Foundation."
While basically accurate, there are still a few omissions in the Guardian report, namely that Welles Oscar, like the negative of OTHELLO, was never really lost. In fact, the Oscar was apparently given by Welles to The Museum of Modern Art for safekeeping for several years while he was in Europe, and then reclaimed by Welles when he needed it as a prop for THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND. Then, during the shooting of WIND, Welles gave the Oscar to Gary Graver to keep.
Since Beatrice clearly has no real inkling about her father's work or his associates, she had no idea that Gary Graver still had possesion of the Oscar when Welles died. So when she inheirited the Welles estate from her mother, Palo Mori, she asked for a replacement Oscar from the Academy, assuming it had been lost.
When it resurfaced at auction, Beatrice sued to get it back from Graver. Then, Beatrice promised the judge upon winning it back, she would not sell the Oscar, but was going to place it in a permanent memorial to her father.
Well, that idea didn't last very long! In fact, it appears Beatrice and her friends at Dax set a minimum starting bid of around $500,000. for the Oscar, which is quite obviously why it didn't sell. But ironically, if Beatrice really wanted to place the Oscar in a permanent memorial to her father, what better place for it to go than back to The Museum of Modern Art, were it could go on display in the lobby of their basement movie theater!
Of course in that event, she wouldn't get any proftits from it's sale, which is clearly her primary concern.
Todd
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Christopher
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onetimechimes
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Citizen Kane Oscar
You were wrong about Beatrice. She sold the award in 2004 to Dax for $850,000. He's kept it since and offered to sell it last year to raise awareness for his charitable programs around the world.
I know that when he announced its sale the Academy flipped and went on a campaign to blackball the auction. They put a gun to the head of a lot of buyers and spooked many others. The bid never reached the reserve that was very high.
Yesterday I heard that we'll be hearing from Dax on this very soon...
I know that when he announced its sale the Academy flipped and went on a campaign to blackball the auction. They put a gun to the head of a lot of buyers and spooked many others. The bid never reached the reserve that was very high.
Yesterday I heard that we'll be hearing from Dax on this very soon...
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ToddBaesen
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If Beatrice got $850,000 from Dax, I wonder why she has to keep suing studios to stop Orson Welles projects from appearing?
Instead of working against her father's own interests, now that she has nearly a million dollars, shouldn't she be trying to promote finishing her dad's last film, THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND?
Instead of working against her father's own interests, now that she has nearly a million dollars, shouldn't she be trying to promote finishing her dad's last film, THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND?
Todd
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onetimechimes
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Re: Welles's Oscar did not sell at auction
Read the full article at http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/12/us-orsonwelles-oscar-idUSTRE7BB1NK20111212
(Reuters) - Orson Welles' Oscar for writing "Citizen Kane" -- regarded as one of the best films ever made -- is going up for auction again later this month in a hot market for Hollywood memorabilia.
Los Angeles auction house Nate D. Sanders said on Monday it was selling the best screenplay Academy Award statuette won by Welles in 1942.
Although tarnished by age, the Oscar will carry a reserve price of between $600,000 and $1 million when it goes under the hammer on December 20, auction house spokesman Sam Heller said.
The statuette -- the only Oscar given to "Citizen Kane" -- has a storied history and failed to meet its undisclosed reserve price when it was last up for auction at Sotheby's New York in 2007. At that time it was expected to sell for around $1 million.
But the current seller, who wishes to remain anonymous, and the auctioneer believe times have changed for the better when it comes to selling Hollywood memorabilia.
Marilyn Monroe's iconic ivory dress from "The Seven Year Itch" sold for $4.6 million at a Beverly Hills auction in June, while the red and black leather jacket won by pop star Michael Jackson in his "Thriller" music video went for $1.8 million earlier this year.
"There has been so much movie memorabilia that has been selling for high prices. People are just willing to spend a lot of money to buy these things, whether as an investment or as a collector," Heller said.
Heller said bidders for good Hollywood memorabilia come from as far afield as China, Japan and the Middle East.
Welles' screenplay Oscar has a story worthy of a Hollywood movie in its own right. The filmmaker had lost it, but it resurfaced after his death in 1985 when it was put up for auction in 1994 by a cinematographer who claimed Welles had given it to him as a form of payment.
Welles' daughter Beatrice sued and won back ownership of the golden statue. But she was then sued herself by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which gives out the awards, when she tried to auction the Oscar in 2003.
After a legal battle, Beatrice Welles was given the right to dispense of the Oscar, and she sold it to a California nonprofit called the Dax Foundation, who in turn tried unsuccessfully to auction it in 2007.
(Reuters) - Orson Welles' Oscar for writing "Citizen Kane" -- regarded as one of the best films ever made -- is going up for auction again later this month in a hot market for Hollywood memorabilia.
Los Angeles auction house Nate D. Sanders said on Monday it was selling the best screenplay Academy Award statuette won by Welles in 1942.
Although tarnished by age, the Oscar will carry a reserve price of between $600,000 and $1 million when it goes under the hammer on December 20, auction house spokesman Sam Heller said.
The statuette -- the only Oscar given to "Citizen Kane" -- has a storied history and failed to meet its undisclosed reserve price when it was last up for auction at Sotheby's New York in 2007. At that time it was expected to sell for around $1 million.
But the current seller, who wishes to remain anonymous, and the auctioneer believe times have changed for the better when it comes to selling Hollywood memorabilia.
Marilyn Monroe's iconic ivory dress from "The Seven Year Itch" sold for $4.6 million at a Beverly Hills auction in June, while the red and black leather jacket won by pop star Michael Jackson in his "Thriller" music video went for $1.8 million earlier this year.
"There has been so much movie memorabilia that has been selling for high prices. People are just willing to spend a lot of money to buy these things, whether as an investment or as a collector," Heller said.
Heller said bidders for good Hollywood memorabilia come from as far afield as China, Japan and the Middle East.
Welles' screenplay Oscar has a story worthy of a Hollywood movie in its own right. The filmmaker had lost it, but it resurfaced after his death in 1985 when it was put up for auction in 1994 by a cinematographer who claimed Welles had given it to him as a form of payment.
Welles' daughter Beatrice sued and won back ownership of the golden statue. But she was then sued herself by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which gives out the awards, when she tried to auction the Oscar in 2003.
After a legal battle, Beatrice Welles was given the right to dispense of the Oscar, and she sold it to a California nonprofit called the Dax Foundation, who in turn tried unsuccessfully to auction it in 2007.
Re: Welles's Oscar did not sell at auction
Posted Dec. 20, 2011 on MassLive.com:
One of the most storied pieces of movie memorabilia, Orson Welles' Academy Award for Citizen Kane was sold by Nate D. Sanders today for $861,542, which includes the buyer's premium. The identity of the winner nor the seller were revealed.
Welles received this award for Best Original Screenplay, which was the only Oscar that Citizen Kane received. Welles produced, starred, directed and co-wrote the landmark 1941 film.
In an auction that included David Copperfield and bidders from around the world, Welles’ Oscar achieves the distinction of being one of only a handful of Academy Awards that have sold for nearly a million dollars.
Auction house owner Nate D. Sanders said, "This is a testament to the popularity of Orson Welles and his magnum opus Citizen Kane. I’m proud to have represented this fantastic Award to the cinema collecting community.”
The underbidder, David Copperfield, told the auction house that he was keen to acquire the Oscar, as "Orson Welles was not only a magician of the cinema, but also a performing magician himself." Orson Welles actually hosted Copperfield's first television special and Copperfield owns many of the props from the movie.
Read more at http://www.masslive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2011/12/orson_welles_oscar_for_citizen_1.html
One of the most storied pieces of movie memorabilia, Orson Welles' Academy Award for Citizen Kane was sold by Nate D. Sanders today for $861,542, which includes the buyer's premium. The identity of the winner nor the seller were revealed.
Welles received this award for Best Original Screenplay, which was the only Oscar that Citizen Kane received. Welles produced, starred, directed and co-wrote the landmark 1941 film.
In an auction that included David Copperfield and bidders from around the world, Welles’ Oscar achieves the distinction of being one of only a handful of Academy Awards that have sold for nearly a million dollars.
Auction house owner Nate D. Sanders said, "This is a testament to the popularity of Orson Welles and his magnum opus Citizen Kane. I’m proud to have represented this fantastic Award to the cinema collecting community.”
The underbidder, David Copperfield, told the auction house that he was keen to acquire the Oscar, as "Orson Welles was not only a magician of the cinema, but also a performing magician himself." Orson Welles actually hosted Copperfield's first television special and Copperfield owns many of the props from the movie.
Read more at http://www.masslive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2011/12/orson_welles_oscar_for_citizen_1.html
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Roger Ryan
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Re: Welles's Oscar did not sell at auction
I'm curious what props Copperfield has from KANE. Does he have one of the sleds? I assume he probably has a Xanadu statue or two; those were still hanging around in a warehouse as late as the 80s or 90s I believe.
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Le Chiffre
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Re: Welles's Oscar did not sell at auction
I'd be curious to know how much Copperfield bid, and whether he'd be willing to put that towards owning a piece of TOSOTW. Same with the people that sold the Oscar.
Re: Welles's Oscar did not sell at auction
Roger,
I never knew David Copperfield had Kane props until now. On his website, he mentions owning the buzzsaw illusion designed for Rita Hayworth and used by Welles with Marlene Dietrich.
I never knew David Copperfield had Kane props until now. On his website, he mentions owning the buzzsaw illusion designed for Rita Hayworth and used by Welles with Marlene Dietrich.
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