The 524 items from Michael Jackson’s last residence had been expected to realize $200,000-$400,000 at a weekend sale in Beverly Hills. Instead, bidders shelled out almost $1m at Julien’s Auction for the late pop star’s belongings. The highest priced lots were a $35,200 Utrillo watercolor, and a $46,875 oil by Adelsteen Normann, but buyers offered extravagant amounts for other offerings as well, like the $25,750 paid for a mirrored armoire on which Jackson scribbled a message to himself: “Train, perfection March April Full out May.”
The sale had some particularly macabre notes. A rug that had lain beneath the bed in which Jackson died had been estimated at $400-$600, but it sold for $15,360. More touching were items like the kitchen blackboard on which one of Jackson’s children had written, “I love Daddy, ” and “Smile, it’s for free.” It sold for $5,000.
