In 2011 one of John Lennon's teeth was auctioned with a guide price of between £10,000 and £20,000. With it was a sworn affidavit from John's former housekeeper that it was genuine and given her by John.
A Canadian dentist bought it for £19,000 and he did in fact see it as a potential money-spinner.
I can only hope he didn't mislay such a tiny item, that it didn't somehow slip down the back of the sofa or get swept into the hoover.
Mind you, you can never be truly sure an item is genuine. Even if it comes with a sworn affidavit, is that totally reliable? But what the hell, if you can afford to splash out £19,000 you're probably pretty wealthy and won't miss the odd wasted £19,000.
Signatures are notoriously dodgy. Busy celebrities often leave their staff to forge signatures on their behalf, so something supposedly signed by the Fab Four may not be the real deal. The Beatles were known to be adept at forging each other's signatures.
Hand-written copies of famous Beatles lyrics sell for huge sums (the hastily-scribbled lyrics for Hey Jude went for $910,000 a few years back), but again there must be a money motive, since who cares what the original lyrics looked like?
But John Lennon's tooth got me wondering. What happened to all the other personal items belonging to the Beatles? John's toothbrush and toothpaste for example. Are they stashed in some millionaire's safe? Or were they just thrown out with the rubbish? Who knows?
It's all a gamble, there is no sentimentality of nostalgia in these outrageously pricey acquisitions. Just an investment. But a new low is someone's tooth. Kind of creepy when you think of it.
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www: It is rather creepy. I have no idea why he gave her the tooth. Or why she accepted it for that matter.
DeleteThe bigger question for me . . . why would John Lennon give his housekeeper one of his teeth? Weird stuff!
ReplyDeleteBijoux: Indeed, why oh why? I refrained from using the picture of the tooth, which is quite repulsive.
DeleteIt's a crazy world . A dirty slip of Madonna was bought for 1500 €. Some people seem to have problems!
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Hannah: Why anyone would want Madonna's dirty slip defeats me. Maybe to satisfy some obscure sexual tendency.
DeleteI've seen two variations of the Beatles' augographs on 'Flog It' and they said the same as you Nick, and also that stage hands became very adept as forging them. Starry eyed fans would give their autograph books to the stage hands believing that they would get the fab fours' signatures for them.
ReplyDeletePolly: I didn't realise the stage hands also forged the Beatles' signatures. There must have been more forgeries than genuine signatures!
DeleteAn amazing amount of cash to part with simply to stash another tchotchke in the house.
ReplyDeleteJoanne: It is. Of course he may have resold it by now for double the amount.
DeleteI wouldn't buy anything of any celebrity's things to get a kick or with the hope to resell it in future at a substantial profit.
ReplyDeleteRamana: I'm sure you're much more sensible than that.
DeleteI kept my dog's puppy teeth. But I don't want any celebrity clutter - obviously I have enough of my own.
ReplyDeleteIt's all daft, isn't it - putting value on old tut. Spin a yarn on any object and you could probably make a few bob.
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Ms Scarlet: Yarn-spinning indeed. The number of places in Ireland supposedly associated with St Patrick is ridiculous.
DeleteThis was indeed a strange story, Nick, and just goes to show that everything does indeed have a price.
ReplyDeleteBeatrice: I'm glad it was only John's tooth that was commodified. I shudder at the thought of a whole string of celebrities auctioning off their rotten teeth.
DeleteI've never understood the attraction of owning possessions of an entertainment celebrity, not even a personal friend, other than for potential monetary value, but then I'm not into that either. The same is true for autographs, too. I did get one when we went backstage to visit a name actress of the time, but only because once I faced her it seemed like it was expected I do so. I doubt it has any value but I've only gotten one autograph since, when I met a book author and again she seemed to expect to autograph her book I purchased so I handed her the book.
ReplyDeleteJoared: I guess there are people who just want to impress visitors by displaying something very valuable or something celebrity-related. Like someone who has a priceless Van Gogh hanging on the wall.
DeleteI think I once got Cliff Richard's autograph, goodness knows why!
I meant to say, "...maybe those given to me by a personal friend for sentimental reasons."
ReplyDeleteJoared: Well, I guess something given you by a friend for sentimental reasons is a bit different from a deliberate investment.
DeleteI would never pay for something like that from a celebrity. I think they get way to much attention as it is.
ReplyDeleteMary: They certainly get way too much attention. Mainly because the media and the general public are so obsessed with celebrity gossip.
DeleteWell, if I was going to buy John Lennon's tooth (eech, what a nasty idea) I wouldn't rely on a certificate from anyone - I'd be looking to have it DNA tested!! But I agree with you, it is a pretty strange idea to buy anything like that.
ReplyDeleteJenny: I think the buyer intended to have the tooth DNA checked, but I don't know if he did - or for that matter whether he still has the tooth or he resold it.
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