QUICK TAKES - Oct. 8, 2009

A fantasy version of Amelia Earhart “escaped” from her exhibit at the National Air and Space Museum in last summer’s movie “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian” and now, it turns out, one of her most famous possessions is also eluding the Washington archive.

The goggles that Earhart wore during her historic 1932 solo transatlantic flight were on display at the Smithsonian for much of the 1990s, and museum officials had sought to get them back there. Instead, they will go on the auction block today in Agoura Hills.

The goggles, which are tinted with aluminum frames and wool padding, are considered one of the most important aviation artifacts that do not reside in a permanent museum collection. Joe Maddalena, the president of the Profiles in History auction house, said he anticipates bids in the $150,000 range, but that they could go higher with the surge in Earhart’s pop-culture presence this year, which peaks with the Oct. 23 film “Amelia,” starring Oscar-winner Hilary Swank and Richard Gere.

Earhart wore the goggles when she set a new record for the fastest transatlantic flight, beating Charles Lindbergh’s 1927 mark by 18 hours. She disappeared in 1937 while attempting an around-the-world flight.

The same auction will include a special glove fitted with light bulbs that was worn by Michael Jackson during the Jacksons’ 1984 Victory Tour and dozens of items from the workshop of the late Stan Winston, the four-time Oscar winner and Hollywood effects pioneer.

Details about the auction can be found at www.profiles inhistory.com.

-- Geoff Boucher