The most expensive film memorabilia ever sold

Top of the Props…

Earlier this week as ATV Today Entertainment reported Gibson Guitar has launched a new campaign to track down the Gibson guitar featured in Back to the Future, in celebration of the film’s 40th anniversary next month.

A global search for the Cherry Red Gibson ES-345™ guitar that Michael J. Fox played in the 1985 film is underway. The stunning guitar was showcased during a sequence, “Enchantment Under the Sea” school dance scene – a pop culture moment that has inspired many musicians to pick up guitars for the very first time after witnessing the character of Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) play the legendary song “Johnny B. Goode.”

During the making of the 1989 sequel to the film, the filmmakers went to look for the guitar, and it was nowhere to be found. Now, music fans worldwide have the chance to help Gibson find the most important guitar in cinema history. Fans who have any tips as to the whereabouts of the missing original Cherry Red Gibson ES-345 guitar is can contact Gibson via www.LostToTheFuture.com

In light of this search, a study has taken a deep dive into the most expensive TV and film memorabilia ever sold. Topping the list is the ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in MGM movie The Wizard of Oz (1939) which sold for £24,414,261 last year, valued at £24.8 million after inflation. These slippers, worn by Garland as Dorothy, have become one of Hollywood’s most iconic and recognisable symbols.

The slippers were auctioned fairly recently in 2024 and are one of four pairs of shoes that survived from the set.

The Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz sold for £24,414,261 in 2024

The study also found Robby the Robot from the 1956 science-fiction classic Forbidden Planet ranks second, selling for around £4 million, or £5.3 million after inflation. The famous white dress Marilyn Monroe wears in The Seven Year Itch holds third place, selling for £3 million or £5 million after inflation.

The James Bond Goldfinger Aston Martin DB5 is the most expensive film memorabilia in the UK, selling for more than £3 million at auction in 2010. And four Harry Potter memorabilia items sold at auction collectively fetched approximately £2 million before inflation and £2.3 million after adjusting for inflation.