Week 17I am writing this Sunday morning at the Creation Grand Slam show in Burbank, CA. Though it is a shame to see that what was once the best Star Trek convention of the year (a title now held by Creation's Vegas show) has become pretty average, with only about 2,000 people in attendance, it has been a great show as far as prop and costume collecting go. I have made 5 very good friends in the prop collecting hobby, gotten to spend a bunch of time with all the IAW people and spent about $ 5,700 on some great costumes and props (more to follow in my next post).
So on with the review:
The highest item was the Admiral Kirk Casual Wear from Star Trek II:TWOK which sold for $ 5,700. This was a nice piece and was sure to go high. This is the costume Kirk is wearing when Bones drops by with Romulan ale to celebrate Kirk's birthday, and you can see the screen caps here. Pretty important scene in what is still the best Star Trek movie.
The Spock Commando costume went for $ 4,292. I really think this is high considering it has no boots or rank insignia. There is another in the IAW inventory that has both, so it will be interesting to see what that goes for.
The Star Trek IV Admiral Kirk costume went for a healthy $ 4,050. Now, as was pointed out by one reader, the pants seem different
from the ones you see Kirk wear in most of Star Trek III & IV, and so these may well be the ones worn in the water scene at the end of ST IV. A logical explanation as the pants for those would naturally need to be of a material that were thicker in order to hold their shape better in water. This is the most common Kirk costume we have seen so far in that there are four known examples, as two went at Christie's that were complete (with jacket and belt) and there is one with the jacket at the IAW web site. I was also told that Profiles in History had one a few years ago, but I wasn't able to confirm that.The classic TNG Councilor Troi costume with boots went for a very healthy $3,389. TNG hero costumes are going to go higher just because they are older and rarer, many having been given away, taken from Paramount or such. Now, that doesn't explain why the Dr. Crusher costume went for only $1,575. That was CHEAP and a great deal by whoever got it.
The Chekov costume from Star Trek IV at $ 2,429 was a great deal as well. I know a friend was going to go up to $ 5,000 and bowed out because his friend wanted it, and then his friend messed up when bidding and neither of them got it! UGH. (second time that has happened to a friend of mine). This is a memorable costume and has a very rare black undershirt. We saw this costume a lot in ST IV and so I think this was a great deal.
The Captain Kirk Commando Costume was a stunt, so not used by Shatner, but went for $2,125 none the less. These are good looking costumes that display well. Try to get the ones with the boots if they
come up because the boots were specially made by Reebok and are dynamite.The Picard Romulan costume at $1,890 and the Data Romulan costume at $1,448 were both good deals on main character costumes. There are good deals to be had when you want a main character costumes when you look for important non-uniform costumes. These costumes were used almost the whole of two episodes, so are very recognizable, and any Romulan costume seems to always be well made as the heavy structure of the costume is representativ e of the Romulan culture.
The Admiral Bullock jacket went for $1,855 and got a lot of interest. It is pretty sharp and will look great on display. You just need to get appropriate rank pins. My good friend Grant won this one (don't tell his wife).
The red engineering Enterprise jumpsuit went high for a background costume at $1,275, but new bidders can always thrown things off. None the less, a fair price for a piece of Star Trek history.
The TNG Starfleet Admiral costume went for $1,275 as well, which was a fair deal on a pretty rare costume. (UGH, early Next Gen could be so lame).
The James Doohan Jumpsuit went for $1,136, which is fair considering it has no boots, rank insignia or Starfleet patch and an unattached bio-monitor buckle.
Finally, I think the Ambassador T'Pel's robes at hat at $899 was a good deal too for an important guest role costume.
As far as props go:
Eline's Probe Shapes necklace at $2,706 was the top selling prop in a week that had few desirable props. This is one of the most loved episodes of TNG and considering that the Ressikan flute went for $ 45,000 at Christie's, this was a bargain.The Large Silver 24th Century Carry Case at $1,112 was I think that was a bit high for this prop, but it looks nice and again, not a lot to choose from this week!
I liked the Defiant Mess Hall serving tray, but not at the $ 565 it went for. Seems a bit high, but it was quite nice.The Romulan Monitor console at $ 495 was a big piece, and the shipping may well be more than the cost of the item! But it is cool to have an item like this in your basement or office.
The Captain Picard Ready Room Data Module went for $ 375, which was right in the range I predicted. I think we will see more of these. Ironically, the smaller, Enterprise E data module went for $ 434. None the less, bolth aree cool props are reasonable prices.
Finally, two different sources who know the history of Star Trek props well told me that the resin ranks pins were simple extras made in case they didn't have enough metal ones. These all went for pretty reasonable prices for the lower ranks, though the Captain badge hit $ 306.
Resin
Rear Admiral $127.50Captain $ 306
Commander $ 202.50
Lieutenant $ 91
Lieutenant JG $ 53.50
Master Chief Petty Officer $ 59.06
Master Chief Petty officer $ 35.78
Chief Petty Officer $ 56
Petty Officer Second Class $ 35Ensign $ 51
Metal
10 Year Service Marker $ 63
Commisioned Commendation Marker $ 61
Officer Commendation Marker $ 47.08
So here are some awards for the week:
Best Costume of the Week: ST II: TWOK Admiral Kirk Casual Wear at $5,700. An important costume in the best Star Trek movie ever.
Best Prop of the Week: Eline's Probe shaped necklace just has too much history to it and is from a great episode. Plus, no other prop this week comes close.
Best Buy of the week: Dr. Crusher jumpsuit and lab coat at $1,575. For a TNG costume, a total steal!
Worst Buy of the week: Councilor Troi Yoga costume at $1,201. It is a freaking ugly swim suit!
Sleeper of the Week: The Dark Page Kirsten Dunst costume. This is an important costume that slipped by. You get a major star's costume from a guest shot in a very good Star Trek: TNG episode.
And here are some prices realized:
5 HIGHEST PRICED ITEMS THAT SOLD
ST II: TWOK Admiral Kirk Casual Wear $5,700
ST V Spock Commando Costume $4,292
ST IV Admiral Kirk Costume $4,050
ST: TNG Councilor Troi Purple Jumpsuit $3, 389
Eline's Probe Shaped Necklace $2,706
