Movie memorabilia brings in big bucks. Need more evidence that collecting unusual movie memorabilia can be profitable? Props and clothing from blockbuster movies sold for top prices at Julien’s Auctions late last year. Some of the top sellers: a wand used by the character Remus Lupin from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban sold for $7,200; main character Ron Weasley’s wand from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows brought $9,600; an illustration signed by director Tim Burton from The Nightmare Before Christmas sold for $27,344; a suit worn by John Travolta in Pulp Fiction was $32,000; and a leather jacket, pants and T-shirt worn by Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2: Judgment Day sold for $48,000.
Worn or Pristine “Harry Potter” Books Bring Tens of Thousands
Two collectors — one who collects first editions and one who was just thrifting — reaped unexpected rewards. It’s nearly impossible to predict a worldwide phenomenon, but a dash of disappointment and a sprinkling of a collector’s instinct paid off for a 68-year-old paper merchant director from England. His hobby is collecting first-edition books. In 1997, he paid $16.94 to pre-order one of only 500 first editions of the book “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling. He almost threw it out when it arrived without a dust cover and what he considered “poor quality” pages. “I decided to keep the book on the toss of a coin. It was a moment of destiny,” he said. Because of its quality, he refused to let his daughter read it. He also kept it out of sunlight for 25 years.
Another collector was at a charity shop last November and liked the wizard on the back of a worn and doodled “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.” So, he purchased it for 75 cents.
Both books sold at a Hansons auction in the United Kingdom in March. The pristine copy brought about $90,000 and the tattered copy brought about $20,000. Not bad for either collector!
If you are thinking of collecting first edition books, remember to do your research. The key points in determining a book’s value are condition, scarcity, content, nostalgia, and beauty. First editions of J.K. Rowling and the Harry Potter books, and some by Jack Kerouac and Kurt Vonnegut are hot. First editions are sought-after because the printings of first editions are smaller in quantity than later printings, when the books are gaining popularity. First editions are valued because they are like “getting close to the birth of a book.”
