Todd - thanks for sharing this incredible story! Thanks, Michael Danese
> On Aug 10, 2022, at 2:57 AM, PHILIPP KAINBACHER > <00000015e579331a-dmarc-requ...@listserv.american.edu> wrote: > > > Fascinating story! Thanks for sharing Todd! > Greetings Philipp > > >>> On Aug 9, 2022, at 11:11 PM, Todd <toddfeier...@msn.com> wrote: >>> >> >> Yes. I first saw this figure as part of the Forrest J. Ackerman auction at >> Gurnsey's Auction House in New York in December of 1987 named, THE WORLD OF >> FORREST J. ACKERMAN AT AUCTION. This was also where I met the New York TV >> Horror Host Zacherle for the first time who was at the viewing who was out >> of costume, casually walking around looking at the material, when a friend >> pointed out, that's John Zacherle!! Zacherle was around 70 at the time and >> he didn't look a day over 50. I couldn't believe how much younger he looked >> than his 70 years. >> >> https://www.ebay.com/itm/192355310180 >> >> The figure was not owned by Forry but was consigned by someone else and from >> what I remember was kind of a last-minute addition to the sale, although I >> believe it still made it into the catalog. It was so intriguing; I swore it >> looked exactly like Karloff's complete costume from The Bride of >> Frankenstein. The next day I brought a binder of Bride of Frankenstein >> stills to compare and after studying it for a while, including all the >> stitching, EVERYTHING matched up exactly. This was Boris Karloff's costume >> from The Bride of Frankenstein!! Not only that. The figure itself was >> supposedly used at the end of the film as a double for Karloff when the >> castle was blown up. The head itself was restored but this was the same one >> supposedly shown in publicity shots with James Whale and John J. Mescall, >> cinematographer for the film, where the head was on a stand. >> >> >> https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005796/mediaviewer/rm1739050496?context=default&ref_=nm_phs_md_1 >> >> On the initial viewing at the auction house, the figure was lying flat in a >> large wooden crate and the costume was in excellent condition. Security was >> very poor and I was horrified to find out after several days that people >> were ripping pieces off the costume as a souvenir; buttons off the jacket >> and pieces of leather off the boots!! I alerted Arlan Ettinger(owner of >> Guernsey's) about this but it was already too late when he now had someone >> standing guard. >> >> I was very interested as was my friend, the late Kevin Burns and we were >> thinking of going in on it together. We talked to Arlan Ettinger, the owner >> and auctioneer at Gurnsey's and found out that the minimum amount the >> consignor would accept was $10,000.00, which was a lot of money at the time. >> Kevin and I couldn't decide on an agreement on how to co-own it and when it >> was time to come up for sale, the press was there with live camera's and >> Ettinger was going to make it "sell", one way or the other. Well, it didn't >> sell but he made like it did and it was a lot more than the $10k minimum bid. >> >> Vey shortly after the auction, I was doing one of the poster/memorabilia >> shows in California and somehow by coincidence, I was talking to someone who >> was the consignor of the Frankenstein figure!! His name was Ken Kramer, a >> film collector who passed away in 2016. Ken told me that he responded to an >> ad in The Recycler about a garage sale in LA where he acquired the figure. >> He mentioned how he had the head restored. He wasn't at the auction in New >> York and didn't hear anything about what had happened to the figure, except >> that it didn't sell. I gave him the bad news that when he gets it back, >> it's not going to be in the same condition it was when he sent it to >> Guernsey's and he was basically speechless. >> >> Now sometime after this(not sure how much time) the figure ended up at a >> Christie's London Sale. I was at Christies East(on East 67th Street in NYC, >> I believe 219 E. 67th Street) and happened to see the catalog. It was a >> beautiful catalog, which I had to have with a closeup headshot of the >> monster. From what I remember at the time, it ended up selling for >> somewhere in the high 20's, something like $27,000, which was quite a bit >> more than the $10k, Kevin and I could have had it for. >> >> Well, that's my story as best as I could remember and yes, I did see this in >> person. >> >> Todd >> >> >> >> >> From: MoPo List <mopo-l@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU> on behalf of Phillip Ayling >> <mro...@earthlink.net> >> Sent: Wednesday, August 10, 2022 12:19 AM >> To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU <MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU> >> Subject: [MOPO] Has Your Frankenstein Monster Gone Missing? >> >> >> Has anyone seen this in person? >> >> https://planetnewspost.com/world/va-row-californian-museum-insists-seven-foot-frankenstein-dummy-was-sold-without-their-consent/amp/ >> >> >> To unsubscribe from the MoPo-L list, click the following link: >> https://listserv.american.edu/scripts/wa-american.exe?SUBED1=MoPo-L&A=1 >> >> >> To unsubscribe from the MoPo-L list, click the following link: >> https://listserv.american.edu/scripts/wa-american.exe?SUBED1=MoPo-L&A=1 >> > > To unsubscribe from the MoPo-L list, click the following link: > https://listserv.american.edu/scripts/wa-american.exe?SUBED1=MoPo-L&A=1 Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
