DALLAS — A pair of ruby slippers, famously worn by Judy Garland in the classic film “The Wizard of Oz,” are being auctioned off nearly 20 years after they were stolen by a thief who believed they were embedded with real gems.
The online bidding commenced and will run until December 7, as announced by Heritage Auctions in Dallas on Monday.
The vendor, Michael Shaw, a collector of memorabilia, had originally acquired these dazzling slippers, covered in sequins and beads. He had lent the shoes to the Judy Garland Museum located in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, back in 2005.
That summer, however, a thief broke into the museum, smashed a display case, and absconded with the shoes. For years, their location was unknown until they were recovered by the FBI in 2018.
The museum is currently one of the bidders interested in reacquiring these iconic slippers, which are one of a limited number that Garland wore throughout the movie. Only four pairs of the slippers still exist today.
To help fund the acquisition, Grand Rapids has organized efforts during its annual Judy Garland festival. The proceeds from this event will contribute to the $100,000 earmarked by Minnesota lawmakers to help secure the slippers.
Terry Jon Martin, the man convicted of stealing the slippers, was sentenced to time served in January due to his deteriorating health at the age of 76. During his trial, it was revealed that he had broken the glass of both the museum’s door and display case with a hammer, spurred on by an old associate’s claim that the shoes must have been encrusted with jewels to command their insured value of $1 million.
The auction will also feature a variety of other prop items from “The Wizard of Oz,” including a hat worn by Margaret Hamilton as the Wicked Witch of the West, as well as the screen door from Dorothy’s home in Kansas.
