A pair of ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz” have sold at auction almost two decades after they were stolen from a museum.
The slippers were sold by Heritage Auctions for $28 million after they were estimated to sell for $3 million or more.
The shoes have a bit of a history as they were stolen while on display at the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota.
In 2005, Terry Jon Martin used a hammer to smash the glass of the museum’s door and display case before taking off with the slippers.
The shoes remained on the lam until the FBI recovered them in 2018. Martin, 77, also remained unnamed as the thief until May 2023, when he was indicted in the case and later pleaded guilty in October 2023.
Martin said he used a small sledgehammer to break into the museum before he cracked open the case where the slippers were on display. He then admitted to taking off for home north of Grand Rapids, where he kept the shoes in a trailer.
In January 2024, Martin, who is bound to a wheelchair and on supplementary oxygen, was sentenced to time served because of his poor health.
Eventually, the shoes were returned last February to the memorabilia collector, Michael Shaw, who had loaned them to the museum.
The shoes were one of several pairs Garland wore during the filming of the ionic movie, but only four pairs are known to still be around. Among those bidding on them was the Judy Garland Museum.
The auction also included other memorabilia from the movie, including the hat worn by Margaret Hamilton, who first portrayed the Wicked Witch of the West.
The story has since been cast back into the spotlight with the film adaptation of the Broadway musical “Wicked.” The musical, and now film, is a prequel to “The Wizard of Oz” that reimagines the Wicked Witch of the West.