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Star Trek is a 40-year-plus franchise, the sum of more than 700 episodes and ten films. During the years of production, thousands and thousands of set pieces, props, wardrobe items, and other production materials have been acquired, as well as thousands of dedicated fans who will pay a hefty price to add parts of this historic series to their personal collections. In the past, Paramount chose to keep the production inventory, to be used again in future episodes, but after the cancellation of Enterprise, when there were no more Trek productions planned for the foreseeable future, Paramount decided to liquidate these assets in 2006, though previous auctions, liquidating some of the assets, were held. This precipitated several high-profile auctions of memorabilia, and a frenzy of starving collectors who fought over each item, with their pocketbooks as weapons.

Contents

Butterfield & Butterfield Auction GalleriesEdit

Butterfield & Butterfield has been a San Fransisco based auction house, founded in 1865. The auction house ended its independent existence in 1999 when it was bought by Internet auctioneer eBay. In 1993 the auction house was commissioned to sell off the estate of William Ware Theiss.

Catalog cover for "The William Ware Theiss Estate Auction"

The William Ware Theiss Estate AuctionEdit

Held on 12 December 1993, this auction [1] was the largest ever held in regard to garments Theiss had designed for Star Trek: The Original Series, most of which he apparently retained possession of after the series wrapped. Proceeds of the auction were to go, according to his will, to "Project Angel Food", a LA-based non-profit agency that served hundreds of meals on a daily basis to those challenged by HIV-AIDS, cancer and other diseases. Though most of the 144 lots, of which #805 - #918 were Star Trek related, have since then attained legendary status, some of the more remarkable were:

It is remarkable that some of the more titillating designs of Theiss, for which he has become renowned since, did not do well in this auction. For example lot #866, Diana Ewing's garments featured in TOS: "The Cloud Minders", sold for a mere $173,00 (originally estimated at $300 - $500), whereas the garments worn by the Dohlman by France Nuyen in TOS: "Elaan of Troyius" as lot #843, merely sold for $1,150, having been originally valued at $800- $1,200

Christie's Edit

Christie's is a world-famous auction house, with an outstanding reputation. It is currently the world's leading auction house by revenues.

Christie's East Entertainment Memorabilia AuctionEdit

Held on 20 June 1996 and 25 June 1996 in New York City, it featured a small amount of Star Trek related lots (lots 726-730) sold in the second part of the auction. [2] Lots 727-730 were notable as it constituted a complete away mission prop set from The Original Series, with lot 726 as an additional item.[3]

  • Lot 726: Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, autographed cast picture (1699 out of 2500)
    Estimate: $600 - $800; Highest bid: $1,265
  • Lot 727: Hand phaser
    Estimate: $2,000 - $2,500; Highest bid: $3,680
  • Lot 728: Pistol phaser
    Estimate: $3,500 - $4,500; Highest bid: $5,750
  • Lot 729: Communicator
    Estimate: $4,000 - $6,000; Highest bid: $7,475
  • Lot 730: Tricorder
    Estimate: $5,000 - $7,000; Highest bid: $8,050

Fred Phillips collection Edit

During the "Film, Pop and Posters" auction of 15 November 2000, Christie's auctioned a selection of items consigned to its Los Angeles auction house by the estate of Fred Phillips. Items that were sold included the original mold for Spock's Vulcan ears (estimate: $20,000) (Star Trek Monthly issue 74), as well as a number of other molds and makeup pieces, along with scripts, autographs and other memorabilia. [4]

40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection Edit

Main article: 40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection

From October 3 through 5, 2006, Christie's held a very high-profile auction titled 40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection. The auction of 1,000 lots, all of which were Trek studio models, props, wardrobe, or other memorabilia, took in more than seven million dollars. As it does for most of its auctions, Christie's offered a very collectible print catalog, with photographs and descriptions for every item in the sale.

2007 Film and Entertainment Memorabilia auction Edit

On May 30, 2007, Christie's held another auction, this one titled Film and Entertainment Memorabilia, Sale 1854, in New York. The sale of 288 lots included a wide variety of items from film and entertainment history, including 26 lots containing items from Star Trek, a few of which were re-listed from October 2006's auction.

  • On the date of the sale, exchange rates were approximately as follows: US$1 = £0.51, SFr 1.23, ¥121.52, €0.75.
  • The buyer's premium was changed between the 40 Years auction in October 2006 and May 2007. It was changed to 20% up to 500 thousand dollars, but none of the items in this sale went above that amount.
  • The highest-priced item in this sale was not Trek-related, it was "A hot pink cocktail dress worn by Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast At Tiffany's, 1961". It sold for US$192,000 including the buyer's premium.

Selected items Edit

Lot #272: Spock's headband, a strip of loose-weave linen cloth
  • Lot 283: Replica of Captain Kirk's chair
    Estimate: $8,000 - $12,000; Highest bid: $18,000; Price: $21,600
  • Lot 279: Six TOS-style men's Starfleet uniforms
    Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500; Highest bid: $7,000; Price: $8,400
  • Lot 282: Klingon space station model
    Estimate: $2,000 - $3,000; Highest bid: $5,500; Price: $6,600
  • Lot 272: Spock's headband from Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
    Estimate: $500 - $700; Highest bid: $4,500; Price: $5,400
  • Lot 273: Data's boots
    Estimate: $200 - $300; Highest bid: $750; Price: $900


Profiles in History Edit

Profiles in History is a Hollywood memorabilia seller that often includes several rare or unique Star Trek items in its auctions. Profiles is known for its very thorough research and, like Christie's, offers very professional catalogs of all its auctions. Printed copies can be purchased on-line, or PDF versions can be downloaded for free.

On 27 Oktober 2010, Syfy channel began airing a tie-in television series, Hollywood Treasure which showed "Profiles" employees tracking down, appraising and helping auction off film, television and pop culture memorabilia.

In recent years "Profiles" has come under increasing scrutiny by noted collector Alec Peters, whose blog, "The Star Trek Prop, Costume & Auction Blog" has since its inception rapidly become a focal point for collectors of Sci-Fi, and in particular Star Trek memorabilia. Main issues Peters had with "Profiles" concerned accuracy of description and provenance or rather lack thereof, though "Profiles" in their Conditions of Sale (article 10) explicitly distances themselves from responsibility for accuracy of descriptions, which somewhat belies their reputation. A recent example was the offering of a Jem'Hadar battle cruiser studio model, supposedly used as production asset, in "Profiles"s Hollywood Auction #40 of 12 June 2010. The item was pulled from the auction just prior to the start of the auction without stating a formal explanation.[5][6]

Peters went on to found his own action house, "Propworx, Inc." and has facilitated a major Star Trek auction himself in 2010.

Catalog cover for the "Hollywood: A Collector's Ransom II" auction

Hollywood: A Collector's Ransom II Edit

Held on 1 and 2 June 1996, at the Pacific Design Center in Los Angeles, CA, this larger auction consisted of 951 lots of movie and television memorabilia. Of these lots 748-778, auctioned off in the second part of the auction, were Star Trek related. Noteworthy was that a relative large proportion originated from Star Trek: The Original Series. [7] Some of the more remarkable lots were:

  • Lot 748: Star Trek hand laser from the original pilot episode "The Cage"
    Estimate: $6,500-$7,500; Highest bid: $3,998.40
  • Lot 751: Star Trek tricorder
    Estimate: $6,500-$7,500; Highest bid: $7,280
  • Lot 758: Romulan uniform
    Estimate: $4,000-$5,000; Reserve not met
  • Lot 760: Star Trek tunic worn by William Shatner in the "Mirror, Mirror" episode
    Estimate: $10,000-$15,000: Highest bid: $15,680
Catalog cover for "The Star Trek Auction"

The Star Trek Auction Edit

On 12 December 2001, Profiles held an auction at the Hollywood Entertainment Museum, featuring many items from the personal collection of Matt Jefferies. Jefferies' proceeds from the sale went to the Motion Picture and Television Fund.

Catalog cover for "The Bob Justman Star Trek Auction"

The Bob Justman Star Trek Auction Edit

On June 27, 2002, Profiles held an auction featuring many items from the collection of Bob Justman [8].

  • Lot 175: Command Chair and platform from the USS Enterprise
    Estimate: $100,000-$150,000; Highest bid: $265,000 [9]


Catalog cover for "The Ultimate Sci-Fi Auction"

The Ultimate Sci-Fi Auction Edit

An auction featuring in total 341 items from several genre productions such as Aliens, Battlestar Galactica, the original Batman television series, of which 225 items were from the Star Trek franchise (many from the personal collections of Rick Sternbach and John Eaves), was held by Profiles on April 26, 2003 as The Ultimate Sci-Fi Auction. [10] Some of the more notable items were:

Catalog cover for Auction #24 , featuring the Gorn head.

Hollywood Auction #24 Edit

This auction contained many items from the collection of the late Frederick Clarke, publisher of the science fiction magazine Cinefantastique. The auction was held March 31, 2006. There were many notable items in this collection including:

  • Lot 307: James T. Kirk's hero tunic and sash from TOS: "Mirror, Mirror"
    Estimate: $30,000 - $40,000; Highest bid: $37,500
  • Lot 319: A complete Gorn head mask
    Estimate: $20,000 - $30,000; Highest bid: $27,500
  • Lot 306: Original laser pistol from TOS: "The Cage"
    Estimate: $2,000 - $3,000; Highest bid: $3,250


Hollywood Auction #28 Edit

Held August 2-3, 2007, this auction included two very notable lots.

  • Lot 816: An original TOS Klingon disruptor prop. The prop had been in the personal collection of Matt Jefferies, who designed it as well as many other original series icons. It had been on loan to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum from June 1993 to March 1994
    Estimate: $20,000 - $25,000; Highest bid: $35,500; Price: $40,250
  • Lot 834: A collection of 139 final scripts and guides from the personal collection of Marina Sirtis. Each item is signed by Sirtis.
    Estimate: $6,000 - $8,000; Highest bid: $8,000

Hollywood Auction #30 Edit

This was a very large sale of lots from many varied science fiction series, plus some non-SF items. It was held December 13 and 14, 2007, and included 34 Trek-related items, the notable ones including:

Hollywood Auction #40 Edit

This auction was held June 10 - 12, 2010 and boasted an impressive 1533 lots from various movie and television productions covering several genres. Lots 1241 - 1533, the majority of them smaller hand held props, were Star Trek related and were auctioned off on the last day under a separate heading, "Star Trek: The Auction". Notable items were:

  • Lot 1241: Original "Balok" Puppet Head from Star Trek: The Original Series
    Estimate $20,000 – $30,000; Highest bid $70,000
  • Lot 1247: Original "Botany Bay" crewman sleep suit from Star Trek: The Original Series episode ""Space Seed"".
    Estimate $600 – $800; Highest bid $2,000
  • Lot 1251: Walter Koenig "Pavel Chekov" Starfleet tunic and pants from Star Trek: The Original Series.
    Estimate $8,000 – $10,000; Highest bid $8,000
  • Lot 1409: Screen-used Hero Illuminating Starfleet XSL Medical tricorder from Star Trek: Voyager
    Estimate $3,000 – $5,000: Highest bid $10,000
  • Lot 1487: Jem'Hadar Warship Model from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
    Noteworthy for its removal from auction due to internet scrutiny by Alec Peters on his blog (see above).

Hollywood Auction #43 Edit

Held on 17 and 18 December 2010, this auction was the second large memorabilia auction held that year, boasting 1345 lots from again various genres produced for television and movies. Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror genres were particularly well represented in this auction as a large number of items from several franchises like the Alien, Stargate, Terminator and other franchises, were auctioned off. Star Trek was this time less well represented as only lots 992 – 1037 were related to the franchise. Some items of note were:

Other items included, were hand-held props and, set dressing pieces as well as several lots of production art work for Star Trek: The Motion Picture.[12] [13]

Hollywood Auction #44 Edit

Held on 14 and 15 May 2011, this was yet another large memorabilia auction with 1637 lots covering several movie and television genres of which lots 1448-1550 were Star Trek related. The majority of them were costumes and hand held props. Notable items were:

Noteworthy was that several lots were previously sold in earlier auctions and that a relatively large number of lots went unsold.[14]

It's A Wrap! Edit

Main article: It's A Wrap! sale and auction

It's A Wrap! is another Hollywood memorabilia seller. In November 2006 Paramount announced that It's A Wrap! would conduct a major sale of thousands of Trek items, most of them in eBay auctions. This effectively clears Paramount's inventory of all past Trek-related items.

Propworx, Inc. Edit

Propworx, Inc. is an auction house, specializing in the sale of Hollywood science fiction memorabilia, run by Alec Peters, a noted American memorabilia collector of the genre. Peters founded his company in 2008 when he was given the exclusive rights to facilitate the sale of the production assets of the Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series) franchise. The two auctions, held in 2009 were well received and Propworx was commissioned to facilitate the sales of other genre franchises such as Caprica (TV series), Iron Man (film) and Stargate. Apart from these, Propworx, also handled the sale of the larger set pieces of the defunct Las Vegas Star Trek: The Experience exhibition in the "STAR TREK: THE EXPERIENCE Warehouse Sale" on 10 April 2010.[15] This was a prelude to Propworx' first specialized Star Trek auction.

Catalog cover for "The official STAR TREK prop and costume auction"

The official STAR TREK prop and costume auctionEdit

Held in Las Vegas on 8 August 2010, this auction featured 450 lots, given in consignment to Propworx from the personal collections of amongst others Doug Drexler, Rick Sternbach, Mike and Denise Okuda as well as some leftover items from the "Experience" sale. The auction was accompanied by a deluxe hardcover auction catalog embellished with interviews with the consignors and artwork by Drexler. Some items of note were:

  • Lot 02: Spock's Prosthetic Vulcan Ear Appliances
    Estimate: $4,000 - $6,000; Highest bid: $3,600 (with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 11: Kirk Space Suit Model
    Estimate: $8,000 - $10,000; Highest bid: $8,000 (with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 12: Starship Enterprise Study Model
    Estimate: $1,000 - $2,000; Highest bid: $3,500 (with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 22: Observation lounge Model of TOS Enterprise
    Estimate: $400 - $800; Highest bid: $8,400 (with buyer's premium, the most undervalued item of the auction)
  • Lot 37: Klingon Warrior Costume
    Estimate: $3,000 - $4,000; Highest bid: $7,200 (with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 73: Shuttlecraft Nenebek Model
    Estimate: $1,000 - $2,000; Highest bid: $4,800 (with buyer's premium)
Catalog cover for "STAR TREK auction"

STAR TREK auctionEdit

The second specialised Star Trek auction facilitated by Propworx, held on 4 June 2011. The auction followed the same pattern as the previous one, featuring lots given in consignment by many of the same people as before. The format however differed in that instead of holding a live auction, Internet auctioneer "Live Auctioneers" was subcontracted to auction off the lots on-line, providing potential buyers the possibility to submit bids from 12 May 2011 until closure on 4 June 2011. The volume offered in this auction was about half of the previous one, 257 lots, not surprisingly perhaps as the consignors were mostly the same. The majority of them were costumes, hand held props and smaller production material items. As with the earlier that year held Profile's "Hollywood Auction #44", it was remarkable that a larger portion than usual went unsold and that virtually all items sold within their estimates, indicating that for the time being the largest Star Trek collecting frenzy had passed. Lots of some note were:

  • Lot 1: Star Trek TOS matte painting
    Estimate: $8,000-$12,000; Highest bid: $12,000 ($14,760 with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 45: Star Trek Starship USS Excelsior Study Model
    Estimate: $1,000-$2,000; Highest bid: $1,400 ($1,722 with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 52: Star Trek: First Contact Phaser Rifle
    Estimate: $3,000-$4,000; Highest bid $4,000 (#4,920 with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 99: Star Trek: The Next Generation Egg Probe
    Estimate: $800-$1,200; Highest bid: $1,600 ($1,968 with buyer's premium)
  • Lot 104:Star Trek: The Next Generation Orbital Graphic Translight
    Estimate: $300-$400; Highest bid: $1,400 ($1,722 with buyer's premium, the most undervalued lot)

External links Edit

Retrieved from "http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Star_Trek_auctions#Profiles_in_History"
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