Skelton Paintings Are Target of Second Heist

In what could be the start of one of the area’s more unusual crime waves, burglars stole 10 Red Skelton paintings from a collector’s home in Riverside County six days after a lithograph of one of the late comedian’s self-portraits was stolen from a San Pedro art gallery.

The latest heist occurred about 7:30 p.m. Friday night at a house in La Quinta, a community near Palm Springs. The burglars apparently kicked in the front door, ignored several other artworks of greater value and stole the paintings, which were reportedly originals, Riverside County Sheriff’s Sgt. Sal Pina said.

“They picked and chose what they wanted and left more valuable paintings behind,” Pina said.

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Authorities estimated the value of the stolen paintings at $100,000, although some gallery owners were skeptical that all 10 were, in fact, originals.

Skelton, who died Sept. 17 at age 84, concentrated on oil paintings of clowns later in his life, producing more than 1,000 of them. Fifty-three of those paintings were turned into lithographs that came with certificates of authenticity and were signed upon sale. Thousands of copies sold for as much as $995 before his death.

Skelton sold his original paintings for up to $80,000, and one year earned $2.5 million from the art sales.

After his death, the values of his paintings have spiked, some art collectors say.

“It’s morbid but that’s pretty much how the art world works,” said Aaron Duran, director of Addi Galleries in Las Vegas, the largest seller of Skelton lithographs.

One of those lithographs vanished from Parkhurst Gallery in San Pedro on Oct. 17 as the sole sales clerk on duty was helping another customer. The lithograph, titled “Big Red,” portrayed Skelton in his trademark clown suit.

The thieves, described by clerk Austin Knight as a couple with a baby stroller, left five other Skelton lithographs.

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The two dozen or so galleries selling Skelton works have mainly heard about the thefts from media reports. Riverside Sheriff’s deputies Saturday said they did not know precisely which paintings were stolen from the La Quinta home but said that it could be related to the earlier theft.

Art experts say Skelton paintings probably will not be remembered by history for either quality or price. But aficionados say that the art works remain as inspiring as the comedian himself.

Duran, of the Las Vegas gallery, said that the pictures will be difficult to sell on the black market because his gallery is essentially the sole clearinghouse for Skelton works. But in the wake of the new theft, he said he will take additional precautions.

“We probably should, we probably will,” Duran said.

Associated Press contributed to this story.