Monroe's personal belongings go under hammer

New York (ANI): Marilyn Monroe's personal belongings will be going under the hammer for the first time in almost 46 years in two separate auctions. The screen legend's clothing, furniture and previously unseen documents are all going under the hammer at Bonhams and Butterfields' auction in L.A., while over 100 lots of vintage photographs, personal effects and never-before-seen film footage will be offered through Julien's Auctions in Las Vegas this weekend.

According to experts, the double bill are the most significant bonanza of Monroe memorabilia since Christie's New York sold off items from the blonde's estate in 1999, raising a whopping 13.5 million dollars. Information about the actress' troubled final months has surfaced in one of Bonhams' most fascinating items, a collection of previously undiscovered chauffeur receipts from the Carey Cadillac Renting Co.

The documents throw new light on Monroe's movements on and around her final birthday, just two months before her untimely death on Aug. 5, 1962. "Those receipts verify that she was driven home around 3 a.m., which is a little bit different than people in the past implying that she had spent that night home alone," the New York Daily News quoted leading Monroe collector Scott Fortner, whose extensive collection of Monroe memorabilia is on display at the Hollywood Museum, as saying.

Darren Julien, head of Julien's Auctions and an expert at ranking the salability of celebrities, said that no one beats Monroe. "She's the top. Elvis is comparable, but there are some things of Marilyn's that just go over the top. About a year ago, we had a Monroe umbrella that we estimated at 10,000 dollars to 20,000 dollars, and people said, 'You're never going to sell it; it's just an umbrella.' It went for 49,000 dollars," he said.

Julien's Auction expects that the 47 minutes of previously unveiled, behind-the-scenes footage of Monroe and Clark Gable filming The Misfits, would be the biggest attention-getter. "We've had huge interest already. It's up-close and personal footage of them talking to the director and Marilyn reading her script and rehearsing scenes," he said.

Fortner said: "There are some exciting items at these auctions that are drawing a real buzz amongst collectors. The pieces from Marilyn's Brentwood home, like the footstool and pencil cup, are pretty rare. A lot of people focus on Marilyn's celebrity and forget that she was a real person, so the personal documents give a unique insight into her life that isn't common to the casual Marilyn fan."