Fans of Disney history who have some coin to spare should mark June 18th on their calendars.
That’s when the Collecting Disney auction will take place in Los Angeles (via Reuters). The event is being organized and held by Van Eaton Galleries, and will include more than 700 lots straight from the Disney archives.
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One item of interest happens to be a doll of Disney icon Mickey Mouse. The doll as actually one of the first ones ever made, and includes a signature from Disney on one of his feet. It was given as a personal gift. Gallery Owner Mike Van Eaton explained the item’s backstory.
“This particular doll was given to a woman that he drove an ambulance with in 1917 in World War One. A lifelong friend of his, he gave her one of his most cherished possessions and he signed it on the bottom in French dedicated to her.”
Mickey alone could bring in between $50,000 and $70,000, but it won’t be the only high-value piece on display. Furniture that used to be in Disney’s office is also estimated at $60,000 to $80,000, and will be offered alongside an original score of Mickey’s first song, which could pull in $15,000 to $20,000.
You can view all the items from May 25th to June 17th ahead of the June 18th auction, which also includes drawings of both Steamboat Willie and Plane Crazy (about $4000 each).
Van Eaton said: “It wasn’t the films that made the studio so much, it was the merchandise, the marketing of the characters that really made Disney what it is today and that’s what we’re trying to show in this auction.”
