Tag Archives: auction

Pop Culture Potpourri: House Parts For Sale and Welcome To The Big House

HOUSE PARTS FOR SALE Good news for all of you Grateful Dead fans who missed out on the chance to bid on Jerry Garcia’s toilet. The man who bought the deceased guitarist’s house more than a decade ago is offering you a chance to own everything in the home, including the kitchen sink. Last year David Koltys sold Garcia’s toilet and other fixtures and donated the money to charity. Now he’s at it again. This time Koltys is offering up the home’s kitchen sink, Jacuzzi, stereo speakers and several other items. If you want to add a few of the … Continue reading →

Seeing Green

Green palms abound as celebrities and celebrity wannabes dig deep for charities, cars, and court appearances: PAUL NEWMAN The charitable actor is donating $10 million to his alma mater to help start a scholarship fund. Paul Newman says Kenyon College is a place he holds near to his heart. The actor graduated from the private liberal arts school located in central Ohio in 1949 with a degree in drama and economics and now wants to help others further their education there. “My days there were among the happiest and most formative of my life,” Newman said last week. “I believe … Continue reading →

Pop Culture Potpourri

Too Legit To Quit It was an auction where the winning bids were actually legitimate. (Translation: the items weren’t listed on eBay.) And the haul was quite substantial. According to news reports, a recent auction of Grateful Dead memorabilia netted more than $1.1 million. I’m related to a Deadhead so I am not surprised by the auction’s success, though I am a bit taken aback by some of the items Lawrence “Ram Rod” Shurtliff collected over the years. Some of the more noteworthy items included a 1975 cream-colored Travis Bean electric guitar played by vocalist and lead guitarist Jerry Garcia, … Continue reading →

Ebay Hoaxes

Well, all you doubters were right–the bid that set an eBay record last week proved to be a hoax. In a previous blog I wrote about the nearly $10 million dollar eBay bid some guy named William Fischer put up to purchase the car made famous by “The Dukes of Hazzard.” The bright orange 1969 Dodge Charger emblazoned with a Confederate flag and the No.1 garnered a winning bid of $9,900,500 just a few days ago. General Lee’s owner – actor John Schneider, who played blond hottie Bo Duke in the 1980s television series– is reportedly livid that the bid … Continue reading →

The Pope’s Former Wheels—Deal or No Deal?

Going, going… STAYING! So much for driving to Sunday mass in the Pope’s former car. Apparently, no one was willing to fork over enough money to pay for a 1999 metallic gray Volkswagen Golf believed to once belong to Pope Benedict XVI. The hatchback was up on eBay, but the auction ended Saturday without a winner. According to news reports, this is the second time in two years the car has been up for bid with no takers. This time the bids surpassed $204,000, but that still didn’t meet the reserve price. (A spokeswoman for eBay, told reporters it was … Continue reading →

Fulfilling Your Celebrity Fantasy

Okay, fess up. What is your ultimate celebrity fantasy? Is it appearing as a guest on “The Oprah Winfrey Show?” Or, would you rather cozy up to one of the hunk’s from “Grey’s Anatomy?” Perhaps, it’s to spend the day lunching with actor Jason Bateman on a secluded beach in Malibu then dining by candlelight with Dean Cain at one of Wolfgang Puck’s world-famous restaurants (oh wait, that’s my celebrity fantasy). If you are lucky (and have deep pockets) your fantasy could become reality thanks to an online auction sponsored by the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial. Organizers say the auction … Continue reading →

Charitable Celebrities—How To Get Your Hands On A Famous Guitar

In 1992 I joined more than 65,000 other rabid U2 fans at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin for an unforgettable 2-hour concert. I will never forget trying to scrape up enough money to purchase the bleacher seat that gave me an incredible view of Bono, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen, and The Edge. If I had enough money now I’d take part in an auction the famous guitarist is headlining. Okay, he’s not actually performing at the auction, but The Edge (whose real name is David Evans) is donating his favorite instrument to aid a charity he co-founded to replace … Continue reading →

How Much Would You Pay For Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Cloak?

I love auctions, especially the ones that include movie and TV memorabilia. I could never afford to bid on any of the pieces, but I never tire of hearing what others are willing to shell out for a piece of Hollywood history. Recently, the company, Angels The Costumiers, hosted an auction in an effort to cut insurance costs. It put more than 400 movie, TV and theater costumes from its 1.5 million-piece collection on the block and opened the bidding. To say that the auction was a success would be an understatement. According to the company’s president, there was no … Continue reading →

How Embarrassing!

There are a lot of people who are glad they aren’t in Governor Kathleen Blanco’s shoes right now. Not because the Louisiana politician continues to face withering criticism for her response to Hurricane Katrina, rather it has more to do with a recent incident, which involved dining with the embattled governor. Last week at a fundraising auction hosted by a group of business leaders a chance to share a meal with Blanco fetched a winning bid of $1. That’s right—a single dollar. Days later the president of the Monroe Chamber of Commerce, in northeastern Louisiana, reportedly called Blanco’s office to … Continue reading →

A Unique Auction

Libby and I have written a number of blogs on auctions. They seem to be in the news more and more these days. It has almost gotten to the point where not a day goes by that some celebrity isn’t making headlines for putting his or her personal items on the block. But, today’s auction blog is a bit different. It isn’t about stars making money from selling diamond rings or gowns worn to the Academy Awards; rather this auction blog is dedicated to the sale of far less glamorous items–Web addresses. Hundreds of Internet domain names were recently up … Continue reading →