Judge obstructs auction of ‘Wizard of Oz’ gown by Catholic University

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Judge blocks auction of 'Wizard of Oz' dress by Catholic University

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A blue and white examined gingham gown, used by Judy Garland in the “Wizard of Oz,” holds on screen, Monday, April 25, 2022, at Bonhams in New York.

Katie Vasquez|AP

A federal judge in New York obstructed Tuesday’s arranged auction of a gown used by Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz” that had actually been anticipated to bring up to $1 million or more for The Catholic University of America.

Monday’s injunction disallowing a sale of the gown by Bonhams auction home in Los Angeles came more than 2 weeks after a Wisconsin female, Barbara Hartke, took legal action against to stop the sale, declaring it came from the estate of her late uncle, theRev GilbertHartke The claim will continue in Manhattan federal court.

Judge Paul Gardephe purchased Catholic University, which lies in Washington, D.C., and Bonhams not to offer the gown up until the claim is dealt with.

Anthony Scordo, the lawyer for Barbara Hartke, in an e-mail to CNBC stated, “I am pleased with the ruling preventing the sale. I feel the judge carefully reviewed the submissions of all parties and came to a fair result.”

In its declaration, Catholic University stated, “The Court’s decision to preserve the status quo was preliminary and did not get to the merits of Barbara Hartke’s claim to the dress. We look forward to presenting our position, and the overwhelming evidence contradicting Ms. Hartke’s claim, to the Court in the course of this litigation.”

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Hartke got the “Oz” gown in 1973 as a present from Academy Award- winning starlet Mercedes McCambridge while functioning as head of Catholic University’s drama school, which he established. It is not understood how MacCambridge acquired the outfit from the traditional 1939 movie.

As a successor to the priest, Barbara Hartke stands to acquire a portion of the ownership to the gown if she dominates in her claim to show that it comes from her late uncle’s estate.

The gown had actually been missing out on for years prior to it was discovered in a garbage bag in a space at the drama school in 2015. Catholic University then relocated to put it up for auction, creating prevalent media protection last month.

The university argues that it is the legal owner of the gown, due to the fact that Hartke, as a Roman Catholic priest, had actually taken a vow of hardship which the gown was meant to benefit the school.

The school likewise sent affidavits from a grandnephew of Hartke who kept in mind that “my grand uncle Father Gilbert Hartke said to me that I could not have it as the dress belonged to Catholic University.”

That guy, Thomas Kuipers, with a cousin stated that they and other descendants of the priest supported the auction of the gown with the understanding that it was offered as a present for the school.

In its declaration, Catholic University stated that “it continues to be committed to its plan to use proceeds from a sale of the dress to endow a faculty position in the Rome School of Music, Drama and Art, which it believes is in line with Mercedes McCambridge’s original intent and Father Gilbert Hartke’s desire to support and grow the University’s drama program.”

The gown is among just 2 gowns understood to still exist of the a number of produced for Garland to use in “The Wizard of Oz.”

The other gown was auctioned in 2015 by Bonhams for more than $1.5 million.