Leila Dunbar, Senior Vice President and Director of Sotheby's Collectibles department, commented, "We are delighted to have the opportunity to offer property from the Estate of Katharine Hepburn. Her iconic status as one of Hollywood's most important actors is only matched by her zest for life at its fullest. As she herself said: 'Life's what's important. Walking, houses, family. Birth and pain and joy - and then death. Acting's just waiting for the custard pie. That's all! ' It is a sentiment well illustrated by the personal possessions that are included in this sale".
Katharine Hepburn
Born in Connecticut in 1907, Katharine Hepburn sought a theater career after graduating from Bryn Mawr in 1928. She rose to stardom quickly, winning her first Best Actress Academy Award in 1933 for her performance in "Morning Glory," the year after she entered films. From the beginning she specialized in playing self-confident, independent women and worked with gifted directors such as George Cukor, starring opposite leading actors including Cary Grant, James Stewart and Humphrey Bogart. After several box office set-backs in the mid-1930s, her career hit a rough patch and she responded by going back to the theater in the play "Philadelphia Story," by prominent playwright Philip Barry for which she acquired the film rights. The hit play became a hit movie classic in which she co-starred with Cary Grant and James Stewart; Miss Hepburn never lost control of her career again. In 1941 she took the script of "Woman of the Year" to Louis Mayer, the head of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and asked for Spencer Tracy, whom she had never met, as a co-star. The successful film was followed by their pairing in such memorable films as "Adam's Rib" and "Pat and Mike." Other great triumphs of her film career include "The African Queen" in 1951 as well as her Oscar-winning performances in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" (1967), "The Lion in Winter" (1968) and "On Golden Pond" in (1981). During her lifetime and through her bequests, Miss Hepburn's spirit of generosity was clearly in evidence, with many donations of her costumes, awards and other career-related items to charitable organizations. Miss Hepburn died at Fenwick, her home in Connecticut, in June of last year at the age of 96.
Early Childhood Mementoes
The June auction will include a number of mementoes from Miss Hepburn's early childhood including a telegram announcing her birth (est. $400/600), sent to her uncle Fred Garlinghouse on May 12, 1907: "Catherine [sic] Houghton Hepburn, second, came at seven eleven tonight, Eight half pounds, all well." It has been widely reported that Miss Hepburn was born on November 8 - the birth date of her brother Tom, who died at the age of fifteen - and it was not until 1991 that she admitted her true birth date of May 12 to the public. Also included in the sale are an early photograph of Miss Hepburn and a lock of her baby hair (est. $800/1,200).
