An Oscar May Be Deemed Priceless By Some, But Its Monetary Worth Underwhelms
Photo 52527324 © Jaguarps | Dreamstime.com
Think snagging an Oscar could be your golden ticket to wealth? It’s perhaps best to come up with a plan B. While bagging one of those shiny statuettes might be the dream of those in Hollywood, their actual cash value isn’t necessarily plated in 24-karat gold.
As it turns out, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has a tight grip on those golden starlets. Since 1950, it’s had a rule that before an Oscar can be sold, it must be offered back to the organizers for the grand sum of $1. This move essentially caps the statuette’s open market value at a dollar, putting a damper on any dreams of auctioning off your Oscar for a small fortune.
However, the dollar agreement doesn’t apply to all prizes, only to statuettes awarded after 1950. Some earlier ones, in fact, have fetched eye-watering sums at auction. The golden guy for Gone with the Wind, for instance, raked in over US$1.5 million. The buyer? Michael Jackson.
Despite AMPAS’s best efforts, some Oscars have landed on the black market, reportedly fetching hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Beneath that golden glow, though, is a 13.5-inch tall, 8.5-pound piece of bronze, and the award is only plated in 24-karat gold. The actual material cost of one of these icons is a modest US$400 to US$500—not bad, but not exactly a windfall.
[via CBS News, Parade, Fan Arch, cover photo 52527324 © Jaguarps | Dreamstime.com]
