Cartoon Artwork Sets Auction Price Record

Artwork from Warner Brothers and Fleischer cartoons set records at an auction at Christie’s East in New York City Tuesday.

A color cel and background set-up of Bugs Bunny and a caricature of Lauren Bacall from “Slick Hare” (1947) sold for $13,000, more than six times the pre-sale estimate of $1,000-$2,000--despite the fact that it was in need of restoration. A layout drawing by director Chuck Jones of Wile E. Coyote and the Roadrunner brought $3,800, more than triple the estimate of $800-$1,200; another Jones drawing of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck sold for $2,200. A group of 20 cels from the Fleischer Studio’s “Superman” series sold for $38,000, twice the pre-sale estimate of $15,000-$20,000.