MJ Memorabilia Brings Big Bucks At Auction

There’s nothing wrong with the economy when it comes to Michael Jackson items. Not when fans bid more than $150,000 for his famed glove or more than $100,000 for one of his jackets.

The auction, which took place in Las Vegas at Planet Hollywood June 25, took in almost $1 million. Winning bids included $56, 250 for a white Fedora worn by the moonwalker, while a pair of loafers the Prince of Pop wore on stage sold for $90,000.

Darren Julien of Julien’s Auctions described the action as “unlike anything we’ve ever seen.”

“It just shows you Michael Jackson is the most sought after and most collectible celebrity of all time. It was just phenomenal,” Julien told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

“People flew in from Asia, Russia, all over. Now that he’s gone, we now realize the true legend we lost.”

To say the bidding surpassed even the auctioneer’s expectations would probably be an understatement. The custom jacket Jackson wore while being interviewed by Barbara Walters was expected to receive $6,000 to $8,000 in bids, but ended up going for $120,000.

And that sequined glove worn during the 1984 Victory Tour? The bidding was expected to reach $30,000 tops, not the $160,000 final paid by a fan – Wanda Kelley of Los Angeles – determined to own a little MJ history.

“Let’s just say I wasn’t walking out of here without that glove,” Kelley told the Las Vegas Sun.

Photo: AP Photo

Back in July 1984 when it was still attached to its owner.

But the auction wasn’t limited to only Jackson items. A Jimi Hendrix Fender guitar sold for $180,000, Prince’s handwritten lyrics for “Purple Rain’ went for $66,000 and a shirt Elvis Presley wore during an appearance on “The Milton Berle Show” sold for $61,000.

Click here to read the complete Las Vegas Review-Journal article and here for the entire Las Vegas Sun piece.