September 30, 2017 By: Staff Reporter, movies.indialivetoday.com
One of the most iconic dresses in cinema history almost ended up in a Goodwill donation.
"There were three trunks in the back of a warehouse," recalls Joe Maddalena, president and CEO of Profiles in History, the Calabasas, California-based auction house that specializes in entertainment memorabilia. Since March, Maddalena and his team had been cataloging items for "The Personal Property Auction of Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds," set for Oct. 7-9. The trunks, not discovered until early August, initially were ignored. "We had been told it was vaudeville stuff, nothing important. But we had a few hours to kill, so we opened up the trunks and started pulling stuff out."
Though Maddalena has unearthed more than a few Hollywood treasures in his career, even he couldn't believe what one trunk contained. "In addition to some other things, there were a few Mae West costumes, and then a dress that was instantly recognizable," he says. Any classic-film aficionado could easily identify the white strapless organza dress with ruffled hem and detachable train, with black floral embroidery embellishing both pieces: Maddalena was holding Audrey Hepburn's gown from 1954's Sabrina. Worn when her titular character makes a high-profile entrance at a party, the dress is key to illustrating Sabrina's transformation from chauffeur's daughter to chic sophisticate freshly returned from two years in Paris.
September 20, 2017 3:15 pm