On Saturday, a pair of red shoes worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz was sold at auction for a record-breaking $28 million, making them the most expensive movie item ever sold. This sale marks a significant chapter in the slippers’ intricate history, symbolizing a remarkable moment in preserving and appreciating iconic movie memorabilia. The classic movie, The Wizard of Oz, was first shown in movie theaters in 1939. In the movie, a young girl, named Dorothy, becomes lost and embarks on a magical adventure. Along the way, she receives a pair of special red “ruby slippers.” By clicking the heels of her shoes together three times and reciting, ‘There’s no place like home,’ Dorothy can return home at the end of the movie.

Both the movie, and the ruby slippers, are famous worldwide. The movie was based on the book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. In the original book, the slippers are described as silver, highlighting a distinct difference from their iconic red portrayal in the movie. The movie makers changed the color of the slippers to red, so that the shoes would show up better when filming. Throughout the making of the movie, Garland wore several pairs of ruby slippers. Some pairs were designated for close-up shots, to capture intricate details, while the other shoes were specifically designed for dance sequences, to ensure comfort and flexibility for Her . After the movie was made, the shoes were stored away and forgotten. In the 1970s, someone found and sold the old shoes.

A man named Michael Shaw bought the pair of shoes for $2,000. He made money by renting the shoes out to people who wanted to see them. In 2005, he loaned the shoes to the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. However, a thief broke into the museum, smashed a glass display case, and stole the slippers. The ruby slippers remained missing for 13 years, during which time their whereabouts sparked intrigue and mystery within the entertainment memorabilia community. Then, in 2018, the FBI tracked down the slippers. It took five more years to catch the thief, who was in his 70s at the time when he was found.

Surprisingly, the thief had never seen the movie. Police believe Terry Jon Martin thought the shoes had real rubies on them. Upon learning that the shoes did not contain real rubies, the thief swiftly disposed of them. Shaw finally received his shoes back in February of this year. Many collectors were excited when they heard that Shaw planned on selling the slippers. Heritage Auctions, the company that sold the slippers, thought that they might sell for around $3 million.

However, within the first minute of the auction, the bidding frenzy propelled the price well beyond the initial $3 million estimate, setting the stage for an unprecedented escalation in value. For 15 minutes, the price continued to climb, as people offered more and more money. In the end, the slippers sold for $28 million. So far, the name of the buyer has been kept a secret. But the buyer will wind up paying even more than that. With taxes and the costs of the auction company, the total came to $32.5 million.

The slippers set a new record for the highest price paid for a piece of movie history. The previous record came in 2011 when the white dress worn by Marilyn Monroe in the movie The Seven Year Itch sold for $5.52 million.