Leonardo DiCaprio spearheads effort with help from Steven Spielberg, Terry Semel
Beverly Hills, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
has acquired a pair of the iconic ruby slippers from "The Wizard of Oz"
for the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Actor Leonardo DiCaprio led a
group of "angel donors" whose gifts to the Academy Foundation enabled
the purchase. In addition to the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, a
component fund of CCF Environmental and Humanitarian Causes, donations
came from producer-director Steven Spielberg and Terry Semel, co-chair
of LACMA and the former chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. and Yahoo!,
along with other donors.
"The ruby slippers occupy an extraordinary place in the hearts
of movie audiences the world over," said Bob Iger, president and CEO of
the Walt Disney Co. and chair of the capital campaign for the Academy
Museum of Motion Pictures. "This is a transformative acquisition for our
collection."
"Leo's passionate leadership has helped us bring home this
legendary piece of movie history," added Academy CEO Dawn Hudson. "It's a
wonderful gift to the Academy museum project, and a perfect
representation of the work we do year-round to preserve and share our
film heritage."
These slippers, known as the "Witch's Shoes," are in the most
pristine condition of the four pairs of ruby slippers known to exist. It
is widely believed that these are the slippers Judy Garland wore in
close-ups and insert shots, most famously when Dorothy clicks her heels
three times to return to Kansas. They are called the "Witch's Shoes"
because they are likely the pair seen on the feet of the Wicked Witch of
the East after Dorothy's house falls on the witch.
After production of the film ended in 1939, the ruby slippers
were stored on MGM's Culver City lot for the next three decades. Several
pairs of slippers were discovered in 1970 by costumer Kent Warner while
he was preparing for that year's historic auction of MGM costumes,
props and other production-related items. One pair of slippers was sold
at the auction and was donated anonymously to the Smithsonian in 1979.
Warner kept the finest pair – the "Witch's Shoes" – in his
private collection for more than a decade before selling them at auction
in 1981. They were sold again in 1988 to another private collector, and
have been displayed publicly only a handful of times in the years
since, most notably at the National Portrait Gallery and the Library of
Congress. The 2012 sale to the Academy was handled by auction house
Profiles in History.
Last October, the Academy and the Los Angeles County Museum of
Art announced plans to establish the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
inside the historic May Company building, currently known as LACMA West.
The building has been a Los Angeles landmark since its opening in 1939,
the same year "The Wizard of Oz" premiered.
ABOUT THE ACADEMY
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is the world's
preeminent movie-related organization, with a membership of more than
6,000 of the most accomplished men and women working in cinema. In
addition to the annual Academy Awards—in which the members vote to
select the nominees and winners—the Academy presents a diverse
year-round slate of public programs, exhibitions and events; provides
financial support to a wide range of other movie-related organizations
and endeavors; acts as a neutral advocate in the advancement of motion
picture technology; and, through its Margaret Herrick Library and
Academy Film Archive, collects, preserves, restores and provides access
to movies and items related to their history. Through these and other
activities the Academy serves students, historians, the entertainment
industry and people everywhere who love movies.
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