Those hoping to secure a memento from the life of Betty White will soon have the chance, as personal items from the late actor hit the auction block later this year.
More than 1,500 items from White’s estate, including awards, paintings, jewelry and scripts, were put on display at Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills this week.
Items up for auction (L-R) include: A taupe lace and satin gown worn by White to the ’42nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards,’ White’s director chair from “The Golden Girls.” and a silky lavender dress with artistic white dots worn by White in 1986 publicity images for “The Golden Girls.”.
Courtesy / Julien’s Auctions
“This is an auction representing an incredible life and career. It’s a lifestyle auction,” Martin Nolan, the executive director of Julien’s Auctions, told Reuters.
“All these items came from her home in Brentwood or her residence in Carmel in northern California, where she lived with her husband Allen Ludden,” he added.
However, before they go to auction in late September, the items will be showcased in exhibits at Julien’s Auctions as well as in Santiago, Chile and Kildrea, Ireland, reports NBC.
The items will also be displayed on Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 as she departs on a seven-day Transatlantic cruise from New York to Southampton, U.K., in August.
Two of the most personal items that will hit the auction block are her wedding band from her marriage to Ludden and a 14-carat gold watch that was gifted to White by her mother in 1940.
White’s wedding band from her marriage to Allen Lunden will be auctioned off, as well as a signed script of “The Golden Girls” episode “One Flew Out of the Cuckoo’s Nest.”.
Courtesy / Julien’s Auctions
Other highlights include White’s original director chair from The Golden Girls set, the pilot first draft of The Golden Girls script, a goodbye plaque from the cast and crew of The Betty White Show, a baby grand piano from White’s home, and several gowns she wore to awards shows.
There is also an extensive collection of items, including paintings and photographs, from White’s longstanding work as an animal advocate.
Nolan estimates the value of the entire collection to be between US$1 million to $2 million.
White was a pioneer of early television and had a career spanning more than nine decades, working longer in that medium than anyone else in the television industry.
A 14-carat white gold necklace with a brilliant aquamarine sapphire gem pendant is up for grabs, as well as a framed photo of “The Golden Girls.”.
Courtesy / Julien’s Auctions
She’s been certified by Guinness World Records as having the longest-running career of any female television entertainer.
FILE – This Dec. 25, 1985 file photo shows the stars of the television series “The Golden Girls,” from left, Estelle Getty, Rue McClanahan, Bea Arthur and Betty White during a break in taping in Hollywood, Calif.
File / The Associated Press
White was best known as Sue Ann Nivens on the 1970s sitcom Mary Tyler Moore, for which she won best-supporting actress Emmys in 1975 and ’76, and for playing Rose Nylund on The Golden Girls in the 1980s, for which she won another Emmy in 1986.
The iconic comedian died on Dec. 31 of last year, just weeks away from her 100th birthday.
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