Princess Leia's White Dress From 'A New Hope' Is Up For Auction
Carrie Fisher’s iconic Princess (or General, if you prefer) Leia is arguably one of the most identifiable pop-culture cinematic icons to date. One of the first images to come to mind are her center-part hair buns resting on either side of her ears and the white gowns she is seen wearing in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. It was long believed that the gown she wore with the armored belt at the end of the film when she presented medals of honor to her separated at birth “space twin”, Luke Skywalker (played by Mark Hamill) and Han Solo (played by Harrison Ford) was lost and gone forever.
According to Stephen Lane, Propstore Auction founder, the costume was found hanging on the back of an old crew member’s office door in a “ratty old plastic bag.” Lane noted at the time that the dress was in poor condition. However, he recognized it by the characteristic armored belt. What makes this discovery particularly significant is twofold. Firstly, this dress has been MIA for the last 40 years, with collectors on the hunt for it. Secondly, it is the only Princess Leia costume from the original movie to still be in existence. Costume Designer John Mollo created Princess Leia’s gown and won an Oscar for his work on A New Hope in 1978.
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Now, if you happen to find a couple of million dollars in your couch cushions, you could have planned to bid at auction on this highly coveted collector’s item as the bidding closed on June 28. Entertainment memorabilia vendor Propstore Auction hosts both live and online auctions and listed the item as the “original screen-matched ceremonial dress,” describing the gown as a “historically significant piece” and expected to bring in a minimum of $2 million when all was said and done. While bidding has closed, a winner has yet to be formally announced. The highest bidder for this lovely dress is currently listed at $975,000 per the Propstore Auction website.
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Sources: CNN, Propstore Auction