auction

A Portland teenager found a random old Lakers jacket in a Goodwill bin in January.

He paid $3.07 for it.

Seven months later, the item sold at auction for $89,600.

Turns out the old jacket wasn’t so random after all.

Verified by Sotheby’s auction house, it was a warmup jacket worn by NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain at least three times. That includes during the 1972 NBA Finals in which the Lakers defeated the New York Knicks in five games and Chamberlain was named the series MVP.

“This is Truly a once in a lifetime find,” Quinn Brown wrote on Instagram in January. “I am so grateful this jacket has landed in my hands.”

Brown, 19, has been reselling his thrift-store clothing finds online for the past three years. When he saw someone toss the short-sleeved Lakers jacket with “Chamberlain” on the back into a bin of clothes outside Goodwill, Brown grabbed it for his online shop.

Then he did some research. Brown found an online photo of Chamberlain wearing a jacket that looked very similar. He also discovered that the four-time league MVP’s jersey measurements closely matched those of the jacket.

This undated photo provided by Sotheby’s shows a warmup jacket worn by Wilt Chamberlain during the 1972 NBA Finals that was found in an Oregon thrift store.

(Sotheby’s via Associated Press)

After he posted a photo of the jacket online, Brown was contacted by Sotheby’s about consigning it for auction. He took the auction house up on the offer, and the jacket was whisked away in an armored vehicle.

Sotheby’s photomatched the jacket to three images: an undated photo from the 1972-73 season, a photo from a January 1973 game and a photo from a 1972 home game against the Knicks that was determined to be from either Game 1 or Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

Chamberlain had 12 points and 19 rebounds in Game 1, a 114-92 Lakers loss, and 23 points and 24 rebounds in Game 2, a 106-92 Lakers victory.

“I didn’t even think that finding something like this was possible,” Brown told the Associated Press. “I got very, very lucky.”

Sotheby’s estimated that the jacket could go for $150,000 to $250,000. While the final amount wasn’t quite that high, Brown told KIRO-FM (97.3) in Tacoma, Wash., that he’s “obviously happy” after making back 29,000-times his initial investment.

“$90,000 is pretty good,” he said. “I was hoping it would go higher. A little surprised, sitting there the last five minutes it didn’t really get any bids. So that was a little disappointing. But, still, a lot of money — especially since I only spent $3.”

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

How much would you pay for a pair of shoes? Someone else’s shoes, I mean.

Would you pay $7,000 for a chair on which Taylor Swift sat in a basketball arena — for an NBA playoff game, not for her wedding? Someone did.

There was one Swift chair up for bid. The Dodgers gave away 52,000 trading cards as part of a promotion for the Japanese animated series “One Piece” this month, and the current asking prices for one of those cards on eBay range from $784 to $15,656. Even at the low end … strike that, there is no apparent low end to the collectibles market these days.

Now add Shohei Ohtani to the mix. A pair of his cleats hit the auction block Monday, hyped by the promoter as “one of the most significant baseball artifacts ever” and “the greatest baseball footwear ever made available” and “the most culturally significant footwear ever worn on Japanese soil.”

In this case, the adjectives are more than breathless. Ohtani is the best player in baseball, the favorite to win his fifth most valuable player award in six years, an international tourist attraction, and a global pitchman making an estimated $125 million in sponsorships and endorsements this year.

So, the footwear: These are the cleats Ohtani wore when the Dodgers opened the 2025 season in Japan, decorated with art of his world-famous dog Decoy and signed by Ohtani with Asian kanji characters rather than English letters.

The cleats were purchased last year by Take to the Universe (TTU), a Japanese company that distributes beauty and wellness products in Japan and throughout Asia. State records show the company registered a subsidiary in Los Angeles two months ago.

The cleats Shohei Ohtani wore during the Dodgers’ 2025 season opener in Japan are on the auction block.

(The Realist)

“We thought, hey, we could actually use this to market our company and enter into the U.S. market,” said Ryoji Iguchi, chief executive of the subsidiary. Iguchi declined to say how much TTU paid for the cleats.

For a Japanese company to leverage Ohtani and the Dodgers to introduce itself to an American audience is nothing new — not just for tangible consumer goods, but also for animated characters.

You wouldn’t actually go into a store and ask for a TTU product, though. You eventually might go into a store and ask for a beauty product made by another company. TTU would just get it there.

So how does selling a pair of cleats create brand awareness for a brand consumers would not even know?

“This interview,” Iguchi said.

The Ohtani Economy strikes again: You don’t know us, but we’re coming to America, we want to help you sell your wares — and we’re selling Ohtani’s cleats!

The sale was arranged by Scott Keeney, founder of the Realest, a Los Angeles-based enterprise specializing in sports and entertainment memorabilia.

The cleats Shohei Ohtani wore during the Dodgers’ season opener in Japan in 2025 are on the auction block.

(The Realist)

Keeney talks about the “museum-grade” and “investment-grade” quality of the cleats. You might find a trading card marketed as one of one, but someone could make another. In this case, no one can make another pair of cleats worn by Ohtani on that particular day.

“It’s no different than art, where you’re seeing paintings selling for tens, hundreds of millions of dollars,” Keeney said. “The top grails are in a category of their own.

“It’s what the ultra, the top 0.0001% want, and they appreciate faster than anything else in the category.”

So how much might the Ohtani cleats command, given the combination of sport and celebrity?

Kobe Bryant’s sneakers from the game in which he tore his Achilles tendon — and hit two free throws before he left the court — fetched $660,000. Michael Jordan’s “Flu Game” shoes sold for $1.4 million. Kanye West wore “Air Yeezys” to the Grammys, and the pair sold for $1.8 million.

The ball Ohtani hit for his 50th home run in his 50-50 season: $4.4 million. And, speaking of holy grails: Judy Garland’s ruby slippers from “The Wizard of Oz” fetched $32.5 million.

I cannot afford that, in this lifetime or any other. Perhaps you can. If you cannot, the Realest is offering this free-to-enter contest: Guess the sale price of the Ohtani cleats and, if you come closest to the actual sale price, you win 1% of the price. In the event of a tie, the first submission wins.

The cash would be nice, because this is just a pair of someone else’s worn shoes. But, since everything else Ohtani does seems to be unprecedented, this auction just might be too.

PINK was feeling in a very generous mood at the O2 Silver Clef Awards in London.

The American superstar forked out £16,000 on Harry Styles tickets during the auction on Thursday, only to hand them back to the charity — so they could have someone bid on them again.

An onlooker said: “Pink paid £16,000 to win the lot. She then donated it back. It was an incredibly generous gesture.”

Pink wasn’t the only one to dig deep at the bash — which raises money for music therapy charity Nordoff and Robbins — with Jessie J pledging £500 while Icon Award winner Lily Allen handed over £1,600.

Price Tag singer Jessie was handed the Outstanding Achievement award and opened up about her breast cancer diagnosis in her acceptance speech.

She said: “The last 18 months has been the most incredible, the most magical of my life. Also the hardest. But I believe we find the truest parts of ourselves in hard times.

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“So when you are faced with them, it’s life trying to teach you something.

“To become a mum after not thinking I would, having one tt just get chopped off out of nowhere. “You never know when a tt is going to be taken from you, so enjoy your t*ts while you’ve got them.”

Encouraging other celebs to get their cash out and raise some money, Jessie added: “You’ve obviously been invited because some of you are rich as f***, don’t be a vibe killer.

“I know I wrote Price Tag, but if you’ve got money now is the time to get it out.” It was an evening of revelations too, with John Bishop telling the crowd he had renewed his vows with wife Melanie.

The pair split for 18 months in 2000, but rekindled their romance after she went to watch one of his stand-up shows.

As he handed David Gray his Silver Clef gong, John said: “I could never have imagined that I’d get the opportunity to say thank you to this artist. “My marriage had failed, everything had gone s***.

“When I was at my lowest I was introduced to David Gray and he’s been a constant part of my life ever since.

“He was there at the lowest point of my life but then when me and my wife reconciled and went on to renew our wedding vows we played Sail Away as we walked down the aisle.”

Melanie C was handed the Global Impact Award and paid tribute to her Spice Girls bandmates, after a feud put paid to a proper celebration of their 30th anniversary of Wannabe earlier this week.

She said: “We’re all in touch obviously, all of the girls, we’re so grateful and respectful of each other.

“We came together, and we achieved our wildest dreams, and we changed our lives forever, and the world forever, some would say.”

ELLIE OF A GAME FOR OUR BOYS

ELLIE GOULDING has thrown her support behind the Three Lions as we take on Norway in the World Cup quarter-finals.

The Burn pop star announced she had been booked to perform during the clash.

Ellie shared the news on Instagram last night and added: “Performing at half time for England vs Norway has me feeling like truly anything could happen.

“I already know the boys will make England proud. It’s coming home.”

Insiders confirmed that Ellie would play a medley of songs inside the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

KASABIAN are giving fans an early Christmas present – with five huge shows later this year.

The band, fronted by Serge Pizzorno, will kick off their run at Birmingham’s Utilita Arena on December 11, followed by gigs in Glasgow, Cardiff, London and Manchester.

The announcement comes after their sold-out headline date in front of 45,000 fans at London’s Finsbury Park last weekend.

SCHULTZ: TRACK IS PERSONAL

CAGE THE ELEPHANT’s new single has special meaning for frontman Matt Schultz.

The US rockers, who supported Oasis on tour in America last year, released Beaches In Tennessee yesterday – their first new music for two years.

Matt, said: “It’s no secret I went through a mental health crisis a few years back. This song symbolises me finally being able to move past it.

“I was hospitalised for nearly three months, and the song addresses it by creating a fictionalised account of it.

“It was my attempt at reclaiming the ability to write about something serious that happened in my life, from a place of genuine experience.

“As a band, we were able to reclaim the ability to write a song rooted in a difficult and turbulent real-life event, but do it in a lighthearted way.”

TEN FANS ON SIDE

DECEMBER 10 celebrated the launch of their debut EP, On Your Side, by playing two intimate gigs at Circuit in Kingston upon Thames.

The fast-rising group ­– Nicolas, John, Josh, Sean, Cruz and Hendrik – celebrated the release as more than 1,000 fans packed the south-west London venue across the sold-out shows.

The six performing members, with Danny currently taking some time out, treated the crowd to stripped-back versions of tracks from the EP including Angel and Run My Way.

AHEAD of Iron Maiden’s historic show at Knebworth tonight, support act The Hu went on a sightseeing trip.

The Mongolian metal band, whose third studio album, Hun, drops on July 24, visited Buckingham Palace and Big Ben in London before heading to the venue.

Temka, who plays a traditional Mongolian guitar called a tovshuur, is a huge Chelsea fan and is thrilled to be performing here while the World Cup is on.

He said of tonight’s game: “I hope England play Argentina in the semi-final. Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham are great, and Anthony Gordon.”

GOLDEN GIRL ZARA

IT’S taken Zara Larsson over ten years since her debut hit, but she is a now a true pop superstar after this sizzling show.

She oozed charisma in this strappy gold top and denim shorts at Madrid’s Mad Cool Festival on Thursday night.

Zara was lifted into the air by her dancers to sing Midnight Sun.

She then did the splits during Ain’t My Fault, drove a car on stage for Hot & Sexy and also got a fan up to do her viral Lush Life dance with her.

With amazing vocals and dance moves, Zara deserves to be the biggest pop star in the world.

Mad Cool also hosted Lorde, Jennie, Cmat and Florence + The Machine, proving female pop music is thriving.

MATTY TO KICK OFF STAG DO

IT is turning into the summer of celebrity weddings – and I’m told Matty Healy will tie the knot with American model Gabbriette a week today.

The 1975 rocker will kick off the festivities in LA with a huge stag do tonight.

Matty and his pals will watch England play Norway in the World Cup quarter-final – and hopefully they will still be celebrating by the time the final whistle blows.

On Instagram last week, Gabbriette shared a video of the couple watching England take on Mexico, where her mum is from.

Thankfully, they were still on good terms afterwards.

The pair started dating in 2023 after Matty’s split from Taylor Swift – but their nuptials will be a lot more low-key than Taylor’s which took place earlier this month.

A source said: “They are flying out their nearest and dearest but it’s an intimate ceremony.

“The spectacle of Taylor’s wedding isn’t their thing.”

His bandmate George Daniel with his wife Charli XCX will be there, along with Matty’s mum Denise Welch –  so I’m sure there will be plenty of tales to tell.

CAUGHT LIVE

Johnny Marr @ Castlefield Bowl, Manchester

★★★★☆

JOHNNY MARR was at his mercurial best for his sellout homecoming gig in Manchester.

There were plenty of Smiths classics, a couple of seriously decent new singles and a stunning disco-ball moment that turned the baked concrete of Castlefield Bowl into a club dancefloor.

It was the indie icon’s biggest solo show to date, ahead of the release of his fifth album The Age Of Everything in October.

Marr kicked off with Generate! Generate!.

It was a rousing opener, but it was the second track, The Smiths’ Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before, that got the crowd going.

New Town Velocity, from his 2013 album The Messenger, was a welcome moment of reflection while new track Spin went down a storm.

The finale was epic. The juddering riff of How Soon Is Now brought the curtain down on the main set, before a trio of classics – Panic, Iggy Pop’s Passenger, and There Is A Light That Never Goes Out – culminated in arms wrapped around shoulders.

DAN CAIN

It was the summer of 1949 when a 22-year-old, newly hired Milwaukee photojournalist was assigned to take portraits of an unknown 23-year-old actor passing through town on a publicity tour. John Ahlhauser spent 30 minutes capturing seven photos of the up-and-coming starlet. One was published in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Ahlhauser took the other six home.

That unknown actor was Marilyn Monroe (although her legal name was still Norma Jeane Mortenson).

To celebrate Monroe’s 100th birthday on June 1, five photos from the shoot are being auctioned off through proxy bidding until Tuesday morning, when the live auction will occur. The photos were shot as part of a promotion for Monroe’s brief role in the Marx brothers’ final feature together, “Love Happy.” According to Ahlhauser’s daughter, Mame O’Meara, these pictures represent an unguarded and unedited version of the celebrity.

“When we took it to ‘Antiques Roadshow’ — which it did not get on at that moment — they said these are before she got her nose job, before she went platinum, and that she had developed a look in her eye in January of 1950 that really kept you out of her personal space,” O’Meara said. “They describe these seven little pictures as windows into her soul.”

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ran one photo in 1949 and a second image was used in Gloria Steinem’s 1988 book, “Marilyn: Norma Jeane.” In 2011, all of Ahlhauser’s work was placed in a trust, including his photos of Monroe.

Monroe’s estate was controlled by Anna Strasberg, the second wife of Monroe’s acting coach and close friend, Lee Strasberg, since his death in 1982. O’Meara explained that the family waited to release Ahlahauser’s photos of Monroe because of the “contention” over Anna Strasberg’s ownership of Monroe’s image. Strasberg died in 2024.

“Strasberg was fighting in court for all of the images of Marilyn, and we put these in a trust and actually worked to keep them quiet at that time,” O’Meara explained.

When Ahlhauser died in March 2016, O’Meara and her five siblings inherited hundreds of their father’s yellow Kodak photo boxes. Inside the boxes were his photos of Monroe, organized with the “sleeve dated and with the assignment on the outside.”

“I wanted to touch absolutely everything in the boxes,” O’Meara said. “[My siblings] were both gracious, and none of them wanted to, and so I have had the privilege the last six years of going through every print he ever made, and I’m just working on the negatives now.”

However, O’Meara and her siblings aren’t entirely ready to let go of Monroe yet. While they’ll be auctioning off five of the photos, they’re planning to keep two.

“We’re selling these five, and people can take the copyright and put them on coffee mugs, or make an AI movie, or whatever they want to do with them,” O’Meara said, laughing. “We’ll just keep the two really nice ones that he was so proud of. We’ll keep those in his collection, and we can sell prints if we feel like it.”

While Ahlhauser’s photo of Monroe may become his most iconic image, the session didn’t feel like a particularly notable event in his career. It wasn’t as impactful as when he photographed the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago or civil rights marches in 1960s Mississippi. But for O’Meara, that’s where the beauty of these photos lies.

“They are both really nobodies; they’re both people doing a job,” O’Meara said. “And yet, when I look at those pictures, I think they both had to really allow themselves to let the camera find the vulnerability, and that to me is the art in it.”

Matthew Perry’s collection of “Friends” memorabilia, fine art and other prized possessions is going up for auction next month, nearly three years after the actor died at age 54.

Auction house Heritage Auctions announced Tuesday that it will partner with the Matthew Perry Foundation to sell the late actor’s collection. The proceeds will go toward the nonprofit, which seeks to support people living with addiction and move past the stigma that surrounds substance use abuse disorder.

The auction for items from Perry’s estate officially begins June 5, but interested buyers can preview the items from May 18 to May 29 at Heritage Auction’s showroom in Beverly Hills. They can also start placing proxy bids. The listed items notably include plenty of “Friends” memorabilia, ranging from art pieces depicting the TV cast to magazines featuring the “Friends” crew and Perry to episode scripts signed by the cast. Currently, the bid for the signed script of the “Friends” pilot is set at $3,600.

Perry’s painted portraits are up for sale as are his Screen Actors Guild Award from 1995 (he and his co-stars won the prize for performance by an ensemble in a television comedy) and trio of nomination certificates. Perry famously portrayed the wisecracking Chandler Bing in the hit sitcom, which aired on NBC from 1994 to 2004. He starred alongside Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston.

Before his death, Perry shared his love for Batman via social media, often calling himself “Mattman.” His Batman fandom is also abundantly clear in the more than two dozen items of Batman-inspired art, furniture and trinkets that are also up for sale.

The actor and author’s personal art and vintage movie posters collection — including a pair of Banksy works, a piece by Pablo Picasso and a framed “It’s a Wonderful Life” movie poster signed by its star James “Jimmy” Stewart— are among the listings. A handful of miscellaneous items — sports gear and equipment, a Nintendo GameCube, accessories and fine jewelry and a black bi-fold wallet — are also up for auction. The full catalog of listed items can be found on the website for Heritage Auctions.

“Matthew believed addiction should be met with compassion and science, not stigma and silence,” Lisa Kasteler Calio, chief executive of the Matthew Perry Foundation, said in Tuesday’s announcement. “This auction fuels the Foundation’s work to expand access to evidence-based care and confront stigma. It is one more way we ensure that no one has to fight this disease alone.”

Perry, who had been open about his struggles with addiction, died Oct. 28, 2023, from acute effects of ketamine, a drug sometimes used to treat depression, officials said. The woman known as the “ketamine queen” who provided the drugs that killed Perry was sentenced last month to 15 years in prison. Jasveen Sangha pleaded guilty in September to one count of maintaining drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s impending sale has rattled Hollywood — and the company’s balance sheet as the auction’s high costs increasingly come into focus.

The New York-based media company released its first-quarter earnings Wednesday, which included a $2.9 billion loss. That amount includes $1.3 billion in restructuring expenses, including updated valuations for Warner’s declining linear cable television networks.

Contributing to the net loss was the $2.8 billion termination fee paid to Netflix in late February when the streaming giant bowed out of the bidding for Warner. The auction winner, Paramount Skydance, covered the payment to Netflix but Warner still must carry the obligation on its balance sheet in case the Paramount takeover falls apart. Should that happen, Warner would have to reimburse Paramount.

Warner also spent another $100 million to run the auction and prepare for the upcoming transaction, according to its regulatory filing.

“As we prepare for our next chapter, our focus remains on executing our key strategic priorities: scaling HBO Max globally, returning our Studios to industry leadership, and optimizing our Global Linear Networks,” Warner Bros. Discovery leaders said Wednesday in a letter to shareholders.

Warner generated $8.9 billion in revenue, a 3% decline from the same quarter one year ago, excluding the effect of foreign exchange rate fluctuations.

Its streaming services, including HBO Max, notched milestones in the quarter and 9% revenue growth to $2.9 billion. The company launched HBO Max in Germany, Italy, Britain and Ireland during the quarter.

Advertising revenue for streaming was up 20% compared to the first quarter of 2025.

The streaming unit posted a 17% increase to $438 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA).

Warner’s studios, primarily its TV business, had a strong quarter.

Studios revenue rose 31% to $3.1 billion, compared to the prior year quarter.

Television revenue soared 58% (excluding exchange rate fluctuations) due to increased program licensing fees to support the launch of HBO Max in international markets. Those launches also propelled the movie studio, which saw revenue increase 21%.

Video games revenue declined 30% because of lower library revenues.

Adjusted EBITDA for the studios grew $516 million (158%) to $775 million compared to the prior year quarter.

The company’s vast linear television networks saw revenue fall 9% to $4.4 billion compared to the prior year period.

TV distribution revenue tumbled 8% largely due to a 10% decrease in domestic linear pay TV subscribers.

The company also felt the loss of its NBA contract for its TNT channel, which NBC picked up. Advertising revenue fell 12%. “The absence of the NBA negatively impacted the year-over-year growth rate,” Warner said.

As the costs of the merger with Paramount come into clearer focus, the opposition has grown louder.

More than 4,000 artists and entertainment industry workers, including Bryan Cranston, Noah Wyle, Kristen Stewart and Jane Fonda, have signed an open letter warning about the dangers of the merger with Paramount. “This transaction would further consolidate an already concentrated media landscape, reducing competition at a moment when our industries — and the audiences we serve — can least afford it,” according to the letter.

“The result will be fewer opportunities for creators, fewer jobs across the production ecosystem, higher costs, and less choice for audiences in the United States and around the world.”

Adjusted EBITDA for the television networks fell 10% to $1.6 billion, compared to the prior year quarter.

Warner ended the quarter with $3.3 billion in cash on hand and $33.4 billion of gross debt.

THE black leather biker jacket George Michael wore for the music video of 1987 hit Faith fetched £176,400 at auction.

Organisers said “a fan” bought the item, made by London fashion brand La Rocka, and confirmed it would remain in the UK.

The jacket, which George also wore on his 1988 Faith tour, features a BSA logo on the back embellished with crystals.

When first sold in La Rocka’s London shop, the jackets cost £290.

Also sold at the Propstore auction in London was a Gibson Les Paul ’59 once owned by Slash of Guns N’ Roses.

It fetched £233,100, a record for a guitar at auction.

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It was one of 327 rare instruments, handwritten lyrics, stage-used pieces, and iconic personal artefacts sold at the event, which achieved an auction total of £1.9m.

Further success came from the sale of Peter Hince’s Queen collection, which realised a total of £350,000.

Lots from the former roadie for the legendary rock band were led by Freddie Mercury’s Gold Shure 565 SD Microphone Award, the first of his microphones with direct provenance to come to market, which sold for £151,200.

Peter Hince said: “I’m absolutely thrilled with how the auction has turned out, especially seeing Freddie’s gold microphone achieve such a strong price.

“It means a lot to know these pieces are going to fans who truly appreciate what Queen meant and still means today.”

A poster signed by John Lennon, one of the last four items he signed, was sold for £75,600 and Oasis hitmaker Noel Gallagher’s Les Paul Custom 20th Anniversary Guitar also sold for £34,650.

The fedora worn by Michael Jackson in his 1987 Pepsi commercial sold for an eye-watering £34,650.