Bette Midler to Auction Personal Collection of Costumes

Julien's Auctions, the world's premier entertainment and celebrity estate auction house will offer an extraordinary collection of personal property from the legendary entertainer Bette Midler.

Midler is one of the few performers who are instantly known by their first name, and is regarded by all as "The Divine Miss M." Since her debut album in 1972, she has sold over 30 million records worldwide. Her Oscar-nominated role in "The Rose" established her as a premier actress in motion pictures, and she has conquered the worlds of Broadway, television and the concert stage in a career that spans over 40 years.

Her awards include Grammys, Emmys, Tonys, Golden Globes, a People's Choice Award, Oscar nominations, and record-breaking box office sales for her concert tours. She has played The Palace, The London Palladium, Carnegie Hall, The Met, and arenas and theaters all over the world. She has written two best sellers. Most recently she completed a sold-out, two-year run in Las Vegas in "The Showgirl Must Go On", and received an Emmy nomination in 2011 for the HBO film of the same name.

The auction will feature some of Ms. Midler's most iconic and instantly recognizable looks, including her famous mermaid costume, stage costumes designed by Bob Mackie, designer dresses from Valentino, vintage Emilio Pucci, costumes featured on record covers and promotional materials, costumes from her films, outrageous headdresses, spectacular stage sets, sketches, gold records, art, jewelry, and items from her personal collection.

Highlights include:

(Est. $2000 - $3000). Created by Bob Mackie for Midler, worn during the Bette! Devine Madness tour.Midler opened the show in this ensemble signing "Big Noise from Winnetka."

Bette Midler Album Cover Dress (Est. $2000 - $3000). Featured on the back cover of the 1972 debut album The Divine Miss M, and subsequently on the front cover of the 1976 album Songs For The New Depression.

Bette Midler Album Cover Dress By Bob De Mora (Est. $1000 - $1500). This dress was worn by Midler on the cover of the 1998 album Bathhouse Betty. Dress has since been utilized in a video shoot, photo shoots, and live performances.

Bette Midler Performance Jumpsuit (Est. $500 - $700). Worn by Midler during performances of the 1979 - 1980 Bette! Divine Madness tour.

Bette Midler's Delores De Lago Costume (Est. $1000 - $1500). Worn by Midler during performances of the 2008 - 2010 show at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace Las Vegas, The Showgirl Must Go On.

Bette Midler Academy Award Gown By Valentino (Est. $1000 - $1500). Designed by Valentino and worn by Midler to the 64th annual Academy Awards in 1992. Midler was nominated for Best Actress for her portrayal of Dixie Leonard in For The Boys.

There is no doubt in the minds of her millions of fans worldwide that Midler reigns as the self-proclaimed "Queen of Trash," which actually foreshadowed her second passion- one she says is the most important work of her life.She is the founder of New York Restoration Project (NYRP), a non-profit organization she created in 1995 when she and her family moved back to New York City and found many of its parks, community gardens and open spaces reduced by abandonment and neglect to a state of complete disrepair. A force of nature herself, she immediately mobilized friends and community leaders and began the now 16-year old greening organization that will benefit significantly from the auction sales.

The Exhibition of The Collection of Bette Midler presented by Julien's Auctions, Beverly Hills is designed by Rush Jenkins and Klaus Baer, of WRJ Design Associates, who have designed exhibits for The Collection of Michael Jackson, The Estate of Johnny Cash, The Collection of Cher, The Collection of Barbra Streisand and more recently The Estate of Tony Curtis. The Exhibition of The Collection of Bette Midler is free to the public and is open from 10 am - 5 pm on Monday - Saturday from October 31, 2011 - November 11, 2011.

Registering to Bid

Registration is required to bid in this live auction and can be done either in person at the exhibitions and auction or by visiting the registration page at www.juliensauctions.com before the sale or by calling (310) 836-1818 .

Placing Bids

There are four ways to bid in this sale:

Bid through Julien's Auctions Online Live in Real Time at JuliensLive.com.

Place bids in the room by attending the auction.

Bid over the telephone through an auction house representative, who sits in the room and conveys the bid to the auctioneer.

Enter Absentee bids. Absentee bid forms are printed in the back of each catalogue, and are also available by calling Julien's Auctions (310) 836-1818or online at our Register to Bid page at www.juliensauctions.com.

With expertise specializing in entertainment memorabilia, Julien's Auctions has quickly established itself as the premier auction house in high profile celebrity and entertainment auctions. Julien's Auctions presents exciting, professionally managed and extremely successful auctions with full color high quality auction catalogues unlike any other auction company. Previous auctions include the collections of Cher, U2, Barbara Streisand, the estate of Marilyn Monroe and many more. Official website is www.juliensauctions.com.

 

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/WM Photos