Can it really be a quarter-century now that Steve McQueen has been gone? Felled in 1980 while undergoing last-gasp holistic treatments for mesothelioma in Mexico, the actor who ruled the box office in the 1960s and '70s wowed the folks once more with an auction of his motorcycles and memorabilia that netted more than $980,000.
Offered by his third wife, Barbara Minty McQueen, the 216 lots ranged from toys to firearms to furniture. Most of McQueen's collection of 130 motorcycles and 35 cars went on the block four years after his death at the famous Imperial Palace auction, but three bikes and a favorite pickup truck were part of this new sale, held before a standing-room-only crowd at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles and organized by the Bonhams & Butterfields auction house.
 |
| Juvenile delinquent, Marine, oil-field roughneck, lumberjack, actor, producer, motorcycle racer, sports car driver, pilot, Steve McQueen was the undisputed King of Cool. |
Of course, had McQueen done nothing more than bankroll On Any Sunday, everyone's favorite motorcycle movie, that would have been enough. But as Sheryl Crow sang in her recent hit, “Like Steve McQueen, all I need's a fast machine.” The man truly, genuinely loved cars and motorcycles, starting with his first bike, an old 1946 Indian Chief.
“I was so proud of that Indian that I rode it over to see a girl I was dating,” he remembered. “She said, 'You don't expect me to ride around with you on that, do you?’ I surely did. The girl went and the bike stayed.”
Later, dirtbike racing would captivate McQueen—often competing under the nom de guerre “Harvey Mushman” to fool the studio's insurance agents—but even a simple cross-country tour with friends could get interesting…well, when the country was Cuba and there's a revolution raging.
“Batista and Castro were shooting it out across the countryside. There were uniforms everywhere, but we had a great adventure, which is one of the things that make motorcycling so great,” McQueen said. “It never fails to give you a feeling of freedom and adventure.”
In naming McQueen to its Hall of Fame posthumously in 1999, the AMA said, “His contribution to motorcycling helped the sport overcome its outlaw image and helped set the stage for the popularity of the sport in the 1990s.”
 |
| Proof that even celebrity auctions have affordable goods, CW Editor-in-Chief Edwards won this 1920s glass-front oak cabinet for $600. It housed McQueen's vintage toy motorcycles, and will be used for the same purpose in David's office. |
Fitting then that a 10-foot-tall photo of McQueen in his 1964 International Six Days Trial riding outfit looked out over the audience as the bidding got underway. In attendance were bike collectors and movie memorabilia hounds, millionaires and mechanics, all looking to get a piece of the McQueen magic. Celebrities included Steve's old riding pal and stunt-double Bud Ekins, and Bo Derek (making 50 look very good it must be said), who bid $1700 and won a tin 1930s Indian advertising sign.
An early indication that prices would go through the roof was the bidding on the star's 1947 Wurlitzer jukebox. Estimated to bring between $3000 and $5000, it sailed to $23,000 (plus a 17% buyer's premium)! A pair of chaps worn in Tom Horn went for $14,000, while a leather-bound, embossed presentation script from the same movie rocked the crowd with a winning bid of $30,000—pre-sale estimate was just $1000-$1500.
Too rich for ya? Then how about a T-shirt “heavily worn and faded with holes and rips throughout” for $3250? Or maybe one of the man's baseball caps, old and crumbling, for $2500? If McQueen sweat in it, it was worth money.
More big ticket items: McQueen's 1879 .44-caliber Winchester rifle, one of 18 guns for sale, went for a cool $20,000 (estimate $2500); a personalized Idaho license plate—MCQ3188, the number referring to his ID number at the Boys Republic reform school—was a shocker at $4500 (estimate $100); and his circa 1920 Indian Powerplus board-tracker (lead photo) brought $130,000 (estimate $60-90,000).
Following the final lot, Barbara McQueen addressed the crowd. “Steve would have loved this,” she said. “He'd have dug the whole thing.”
|
