Memorabilia dealer Profiles in History is holding a massive Icons of Hollywood Auction this week at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills. You've probably heard they're selling a pair of ruby slippers, one of the Back to the Future DeLoreans, and Marilyn Monroe's wedding ring, but they're also auctioning Elizabeth Taylor's custom trailer from the set of the 1963 film Cleopatra. Cleopatra, of course, was a bloated, overbudget debacle, so it's your big chance to own a piece of Twentieth Century Fox's financial troubles, as well as the very likely location of some of Taylor and Richard Burton's earliest trysts. According to the catalog:
To help Taylor remain focused and stay in character,Twentieth Century Fox spent a rumored $75,000 (in 1960s dollars!) to build a heavily customized 36-foot dressing room/trailer for the star, staying true to the theme of the Egyptian/Roman epic. The Aljo trailer is decorated with opulence, through the talent and expertise of the studio set construction crew. It features rose colored carpeting, hand-painted ceilings, hand-painted murals in the bedroom, detailed crown moldings, custom makeup dresser and vanity, half columns mounted on the walls and other columned furniture and decorative pieces. Silky curtains hang from a semicircular runner to separate the bedroom from the rest of the living area. This special hideaway was designed to make the star feel like the Queen of Egypt. After the film wrapped, the trailer was kept on financier/Watergate developer Nicolas Salgo's Oregon ranch until 1980 (Salgo had helped secure financing for Cleopatra). When Salgo sold the ranch, he gave the trailer to his neighbor, who happened to be the owner of the Lakeview Fantastic Museum. For a while, the trailer was an exhibit in the museum; now it's a guesthouse at the owner's place in Lake Tahoe.
Unfortunately, the round bed was taken out forty years ago, but the furniture, fixtures, and curtains are all original (things like telephones, mirrors, and photos are staged). The trailer has "minor moisture damage" that the catalog says is easily fixable. Estimated price is $50,000-75,000.
· Icons of Hollywood Auction [Profiles in History]
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