Original Ruby Slippers stolen- Page 2

[Pinaud]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 1:02pm

JHart, I thought I had heard a while back that there was some confusion, and misrepresentation when it came to the ruby slippers; as they had made at least one pair for Judy Garland's stand-in? And that these stand-in slippers have been touted as Judy Garland's, but they weren't. Apparently there was a noticeable difference in the shoe size of the two women. Is this true, and are any of these circulated four pairs actually a stand-in slipper?

[JHartnow]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 2:35pm

David Elkouby's Ruby Slippers


I've received about a dozen emails from people asking specific questions about the original ruby slippers. First of all, no, I don't know much about the "jeweled shoes" that Michelle Federer and (enter your favorite Nessa here) wear in "WICKED", except they are custom lasted silver leather pumps with silver sequined uppers and clear/blue rhinestone ornaments on the toe.

Out of the 4 remaining pairs of Judy Garlands ruby slippers that have matching sequined overlays and jeweled bows, the sizes are as follows:

Smithsonian:
right shoe: 5.5B
left shoe: 5.5C
• The right shoe has an embossed silver INNES SHOE COMPANY label.

Michael Shaw:
right shoe: 5.5C
left show: 5.5B
• The right shoe has an embossed silver INNES SHOE COMPANY label and JUDY GARLAND is hand written into the kid leather lining. As BEST12BARS said, this pair of shoes was mixed with the Smithsonian's shoes during construction because Judy wore a slightly larger shoe on her left foot. Shaw's shoes are in immaculate shape, and were most likely held back as a back-up or duplicate.

Philip Samuels:
Both shoes are a matching set and are a 5B and have a silver embossed INNES SHOE COMPANY label. There is no orange felt adhered to the front foundations of these shoes as with the other pairs. This combined with their small size and very minimal wear leads us to believe that they were used on the dead feet of the Wicked Witch of the East. "#7 JUDY GARLAND" is handwritten on the inside lining, but it is speculated that Kent Warner wrote this inside of them when he uncovered them at MGM in 1969 to start rumor and speculation. He was, to say the least, a jokester.

David Elkouby:
Both shoes are a 6B, but are NOT a matching set. The right shoe has an embroidered cloth INNES SHOE COMPANY label. On the white kid leather lining is written the word "double". This, most likely, was the pair that Bobbie Koshay, Judy's stand in, wore during the stunt scenes, light tests etc. No one is sure if Judy ever wore this pair of shoes, but being only a .5 size bigger, she could have worn them for static publicity shots. They do have the clearest provenance though, being given to Roberta Jeffries Bauman as a film club prize in 1940. She shared them with her friends and family in Memphis, TN until 1988, when she sold them through Christies East for a then astounding $165,000.00. Long time Judy Garland enthusiast Anthony Landini bought them and carried them back to his home in Florida, where he quickly decided to loan them to the Disney/MGM Studios theme park. They were prominently displayed there until 2000, when Anthony sold the shoes, again at Christies, for $666,000.00.

[Jon]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 3:17pm

I hope the person who stole them is wearing them... considering the other things he could be doing with them...

[JMVR]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 5:12pm

I was very sad to see that the pair at the Smithsonian is dusty and in very poor condition. The shoes just look terrible. I can't believe they haven't cleaned them and put them under better lighting!

[Gothampc]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 5:22pm

***THE PERSON WHO STOLE THEM HAS BEEN FOUND***

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 5:46pm

Michael Shaw's shoes were indeed immaculate. I looked very closely at them for a few minutes when he showed them to us. Kinda freaked me out at the time to be so close to such a Hollywood treasure.

They were "clean" to be sure, no scruffs, with orange felt on the bottom, as has been mentioned (this was to muffle steps during sound takes). One interesting thing: They're not red at all. They're dark burgundy sequins. This is not due to fading or old age. It was because of the bright lighting needed back then for Technicolor, combined with how they would look (most of the film) next to the yellow brick road. A few initial tests showed that the red sequins turned orange in the lighting. The burgandy sequins reflected red light back into the camera, and so they were used. If you ever see a pair of them live, you'll see what I mean.

(So if they're RED, they're fake!)

Updated On: 8/30/05 at 05:46 PM

[ForTheLoveOfLea]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 5:47pm

Thank God! I thought a piece of my childhood was about to die. Is there an official article stating this?

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 5:51pm

ForTheLoveOfLea: I think that was a bad joke, based on the pic of Chenoweth underneath the quote. Ha-ha.

I had the same reaction you did at first, though!

Updated On: 8/30/05 at 05:51 PM

Posted: 8/30/05 at 6:14pm

Awww... thats horrible, their like Movie History!

"There not just shoes"

[XOsweet_dancerOX]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 6:20pm

hmm i heard it this morning on the news... who wants to steal only one shoe? you might as well take the other! not that i would take it to start with...

[moppetros]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 7:57pm

I can't believe no one has said this already, but...

They're just shoes...let it go.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 8:30pm

I can't believe you were the first either! Too funny.

Here's more on the crime...

Stolen shoes...

Updated On: 8/30/05 at 08:30 PM

[PalJoey]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 9:43pm

Did Michael Shaw really say he's burn the slippers before giving them to Debbie Reynold? That's the gayest thing anyone has ever said.

[HamletWasBipolar]

Posted: 8/30/05 at 10:50pm

I didn't take them..they don't match my handbag.

[Tag]

Posted: 7/11/15 at 9:29pm

Digging this thread up as there is a new $1,000,000 reward being offered, 10 years after the theft.

[NoName3]

Posted: 7/11/15 at 10:32pm

I read just a few weeks ago that something was up with this cold case (technically it was still open), as the police sent divers into the waters of an abandoned local quarry looking for the shoes. Evidently, someone has started talking.

Crews search for 'Wizard of Oz' ruby slippers

This 1989 book is an absolutely fascinating history of the slippers, their creation, their rediscovery and later (but obviously not recent) events.  Anyone who loves The Wizard of Oz, mysteries, or the true crime genre will love it:

The Ruby Slippers of Oz at Amazon

 

Updated On: 7/11/15 at 10:32 PM

[Tag]

Posted: 9/4/18 at 9:41pm

Some closure to this thread.

They have been found!