The stop-motion cuteness of one of the most beloved Christmas movies ever can be yours in time for the holidays.
The original Rudolph and Santa puppets from the classic 1964 film “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” are going up for auction, Hollywood memorabilia dealer Profiles in History announced this week.
But Rudolph, Santa, the sleigh and the misfit toys will cost a pretty penny. The rare and iconic figures in American pop culture will be sold together for an estimated $ 150,000 to $ 250,000 on November 13 in Los Angeles.
“Finally, after all of these years, (the owner) has decided to pass ownership of these enormously famous characters to a new owner,” said Profiles in History President and CEO Joe Maddalena. “It is with great pride and enthusiasm that we make this special offering as we usher in the 2020 Holiday Season.”
Crafted by Japanese puppet maker Ichiro Komuro, the puppets are made of wood, wire, cloth, leather and yak hair and stand less than 1 foot tall. They were filmed in stop motion “Animagic” at Tadahito Mochinaga’s MOM Productions in Tokyo, according to the auction house’s press release.
Following production in Tokyo, the puppets were housed at the Rankin/Bass Productions offices in New York until the early 1970s when they were passed down to a series of owners. Producer Arthur Rankin, Jr. gifted the puppets to his secretary, who eventually passed them to her nephew. The nephew went on to sell the puppets to a collector in 2005, the release states.
In 2006, both Santa and Rudolph were lightly restored, replacing a side of Santa’s yak mustache and white fur ball on the end of his hat along with Rudolph’s nose bulb and some electrical wiring allowing his nose to continue glow.
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