Skip to main content
  • International Sites
    • International
    • Australia
    • Brazil
    • Canada
    • China
    • CHINA (ENGLISH)
    • France
    • Germany
    • Hong Kong
    • India
    • Japan
    • JAPAN (ENGLISH)
    • Korea
    • Korea (ENGLISH)
    • Mexico
    • Russia
    • Southeast Asia
    • United Kingdom
  • Magazines
    • Art+Auction

      Modern Painters

  • Blogs
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Art Prices
  • Gallery Guide
  • Art Sites
  • Boutique
  • Blouin News
  • Log in

    Log in

    |Forgot your password?
    OR
    Sign up

    Not a member?

    Create an Account
Home
  • Visual Arts
    • Visual Arts Home
    • Contemporary Art
    • Old Masters/Renaissance
    • Impressionism & Modern Art
    • Ancient Arts & Antiques
    • Traditional Arts
    • Museums
    • Reviews
    • Columnists
    • Fairs
    • Features
  • Performing Arts
    • Performing Arts Home
    • Film
    • Music
    • Theater & Dance
    • Television
    • Events
    • Blogs
    • Photos
    • Videos
  • Architecture & Design
    • Architecture & Design Home
    • Design
    • Architecture
  • Art Prices
  • Market News
    • Market News Home
    • Fairs
    • Auctions
    • Collecting
    • Galleries
    • Art & Crime
    • ART PRICES
  • Lifestyle
    • Lifestyle Home
    • ART Parties/Scene
    • Fashion
    • Food & Wine
    • Jewelry & Watches
    • Autos & Boats
  • Fashion
  • Events
  • Travel
  • Homepage RSS
  • facebook
  • twitter
 
English, United Kingdom
May 20, 2013 Last Updated: 11:05:PM EDT

New Low? Auction House Announces Sale of Whitney Houston Memorabilia as Singer Is Buried

English

New Low? Auction House Announces Sale of Whitney Houston Memorabilia as Singer Is Buried

  • Email
  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Pin It
Whitney Houston Bodyguard
© 1992 - Warner Bros. All rights reserved.
Whitney Houston in „Bodyguard”
by Ann Binlot
Published: February 21, 2012
Houstons Kleid und Ohrringe aus"Bodyguard" sollen versteigert werden/AP

Opportunists looking to profit off of Whitney Houston’s sudden death February 11 may have reached a new low. The pop superstar was only laid to rest last Sunday, but in truly tacky form, celebrity auctioneer Darren Julien felt it was the right day to announce that items worn by Houston would go to auction March 31 and April 1.

Julien said that a black velvet dress (valued at $1,000) owned by Houston, along with a pair of faux pearl drop earrings (listed at $600) and a satin vest ($400) the singer wore in “The Bodyguard,” and other items recently became available after she unexpectedly died. The pieces are expected to sell for much more than their listed prices. The long-planned “Hollywood Legends” sale of celebrity memorabilia will also include Charlie Chaplin’s cane, Clark Gable’s jacket from “Gone With the Wind,” and the staff Charlton Heston used in “The Ten Commandments.”

 

"It's a celebration of her life," Julien told the Associated Press. "If you hide these things in fear that you're going to offend someone – her life is to be celebrated. These items are historic now that she passed. They become a part of history. They should be in museums. She's lived a life and had a career that nobody else has ever had."

It’s not that the items owned by Houston should be hidden in fear of offending somebody. It’s more about waiting out of respect for the deceased and her family before trying to capitalize off the star. Coincidentally, Julien’s Auctions stumbled on the same luck in 2009, when Michael Jackson ephemera was scheduled to go to auction less than 24 hours after he died on June 25. But unlike the Houston objects, the sale of the Jackson items had been arranged prior to his death. Elizabeth Taylor’s estate didn’t go to auction at Christie’s until nine months after her death.

Julien’s Auctions isn’t the only company that's raised a few eyebrows in the past week-and-a-half. Sony Music U.K. increased the price of Houston albums on U.K. iTunes for several  hours after her death, but has since apologized, blaming it on an employee error. Journalist Dan McDermott accused Netflix of trying to make money by removing “The Bodyguard” from its streaming selections when a representative allegedly told him that the studio had the film pulled from the service in the wake of Houston's passing. McDermott retracted his accusation after Netflix said that the film hasn’t been available for streaming since its license was lost last year, and that it has nothing to do with the singer’s death.

Share This Story

  • Tweet This

  • Post to Stumble Upon
  • Email to a Friend

 

Go to top ↑
by Ann Binlot,Auctions, Performing Arts, Music, Lifestyle, Fashion, JEWELRY & WATCHES,
Share:
  • Tweet
  • Email to a Friend

Comments

0 Comments
+ Add Yours
Log in or register to post comments
Oldest first Newest first

Most Popular

  • This Week
  • This Month
  • This Year
  • East End Grandee Victoria Miro Returns to Mayfair
  • Tracey Emin Premieres Harper Simon Music Video for MOCAtv
  • Ashmolean Acquires Rare Millais from Private Collection
  • Review: Anish Kapoor’s Berlin Survey Succeeds
  • Maja Hoffman and Michael Ringier Back Curatorial Fellowship
  • Giant Robot Set to Dominate Christie’s London Sale
  • Top 3 UK Exhibitions This Week: Curiosity, Durant, Landy
  • Art Deco Treasures Up for Auction at Christie’s London
  • 2013 Turner Prize Shortlist Announced
  • El Anatsui to Adorn Royal Academy’s Facade
  • Tate Britain Unveils Most Ambitious Re-Hang in a Decade
  • Never-Seen Dalí Watercolours Surface at Bonhams
  • Hannah Barry Leads Bid to Turn a Car Park Into an Art Centre
  • NPG Unveils Unknown Portrait of Elizabeth
  • Pinta London’s Strong Line-Up Confirms South American Trend
  • Artists Colony Settles on Stromboli for the Summer
  • Top 10 Career Tips by Art Recruitment Guru Sophie Macpherson
  • First Online Biennale Announces Artist List
  • Artwork from The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper Album To Be Sold
  • Anish Kapoor’s Gangnam Style Video: The Making-of
  • Edie Campbell Named One of London’s Most Influential People
  • Paul Hamlyn Foundation Awards for Artists 2012
  • 5 Must-See Fall Architecture Shows in New York, From Pre-Urb
  • REVIEW: Claire Dorsett at London's George and Jørgen

Popular on Facebook

Editorial

  • Visual Arts
  • Performing Arts
  • Architecture & Design
  • Art Prices
  • Market News
  • Lifestyle
  • Fashion
  • Events
  • Travel

Products

  • Magazines
  • Gallery Guide
  • Blouin Art Sales Index
  • Somogy
  • Art Sites
  • Art Jobs

Louise Blouin Media

  • About Us
  • Subscriptions
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Louise Blouin Foundation
Copyright © 2013 All rights reserved. Use of the site constitutes agreement with our Privacy Policy and User Agreement.