Up for Sale: Some of the Best of Burns --and Allen
There are those glasses--the unmistakable round, owlish specs that were as much a part of his face as those cigars. The stogies are there, too. Some El Productos, Domesticados and Montecruz Las Palmas.
The estate of George Burns goes on sale Thursday at Sotheby’s Beverly Hills, 266 lots that represent the illustrious life and career of the entertainer, who died in March at 100. The auction house hopes to raise between $250,000 and $300,000.
Furniture and decorative items from the Beverly Hills home he lived in for 61 years are up for bid, as are memorabilia, jewelry, awards, photos and artwork.
Among the highlights:
* the glasses, with a monogrammed Gucci case (estimated at $1,000 to $1,500);
* two pairs of wife Gracie Allen’s cats-eye glasses with cases ($400 to $600);
* a large wooden humidor given to Burns in 1952 by the Cigar Institute of America ($7,000 to $9,000);
* a director’s chair with “George Burns” printed on the back ($3,000 to $5,000);
* a sterling silver tea and coffee service circa 1861 ($5,000 to $7,000);
* a Regence Ormolu-mounted Kingwood parquetry commode from the 18th century ($10,000 to $15,000).
Proceeds will benefit Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles-United Jewish Fund and the Motion Picture and Television Fund.
“There are a lot of things that characterize George Burns,” says Rob Levine, Sotheby’s entertainment specialist, “like the humidors, the eyeglasses, those kinds of things that are easily recognizable.”
Following Burns’ death, some of his possessions were parceled out to family and friends. Levine cataloged much of what was left, including furniture, serving pieces, porcelain vases and Chinese glazed pottery figures.
“The [decor] is very traditional and echoes his East Coast upbringing,” he explains. “It’s also touching that there are elements of Gracie throughout, be it her glasses or the photo of her he had in his office until the day he died.”
Her personal book of dinner menus and party lists ($1,500 to $2,000) is “a dream,” Levine says, detailing the couple’s important social events. “It’s so well-organized and tells you who threw the party, what was served, where it was held, who is was for--it’s basically a who’s who of the golden age of Hollywood, all the fabulous parties that you could only dream about going to.”
Allen died in 1964.
Not all items may require deep pockets. There are Burns’ personal notebook with personalized note paper ($75 to $100), two standing ash trays ($10 to $20) and a Georgian-style low table ($50 to $100).
Of course, it’s impossible to talk about celebrity auctions and not compare them to the mother of them all--Jackie Onassis’ cash register-busting $34.5 million estate sale in April at Sotheby’s in New York.
Levine isn’t sure this will become another rabid bidfest. But the response so far “has been great,” with inquiries coming in from across the country and abroad, he says.
But Irving Fein, Burns’ longtime friend and manager, says with assurance, “We think this is going to be another little Jackie Kennedy. I’ve had calls and faxes from all over, including a TV producer in England who worked with George years ago; he wanted me to send him a catalog. It’s amazing the interest in this thing. Milton Berle gave Kennedy one humidor that sold for $500,000, and George has three. Who knows, somebody might offer $100,000! I don’t know, it might be very interesting.”