Oscar statuettes are fascinating awards, standing at 13-and-a-half inches tall and weighing about eight-and-a-half pounds. They are crafted from bronze and coated in real gold. Interestingly, during World War II, due to metal shortages, the Oscars were temporarily made of painted plaster, but winners were allowed to replace them with bronze versions once supplies improved. There’s a quirky piece of trivia that suggests handling the statuettes too much can cause the gold to tarnish, so winners must treat them with care. The statues are produced by Polich Tallix, an art foundry based in Chicago known for its work on prestigious projects like Roy Lichtenstein’s art and the Korean War Memorial.
One key rule about these coveted awards is that they don’t truly belong to the winners. Since 1951, the Motion Picture Academy implemented a strict policy that prohibits recipients from selling their Oscars at any price. This regulation was introduced to preserve the image and prestige of the awards. According to the Academy’s rules, winners cannot dispose of their statuettes—by sale or otherwise—without first offering to sell them back to the Academy for a mere dollar.
This restriction extends to heirs and those who may have received an Oscar as a gift. While there have been some instances of Oscars slipping into the black market, the majority are either displayed in museums, held by studios, or cherished in the homes of the talented individuals who earned them.
To elaborate, the Academy maintains that Oscar winners have no rights associated with the statuettes beyond the honor of receiving one. For instance, the Academy’s official rule clearly outlines that award winners must comply with specific regulations regarding the statuette.
Interestingly, some Oscar statuettes have found their way onto the auction market despite the rules. Notably, pop icon Michael Jackson purchased the Oscar for Best Picture won by “Gone with the Wind” for a staggering $1.5 million in 1999. Long before this no-sale policy came into play, actor Howard Russell sold his Oscar from 1944 for $60,500 to cover medical expenses for his wife. More recently, the Oscar awarded to screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz for “Citizen Kane” fetched $588,455 at auction.
In 2007, a seller attempted to auction two Oscars belonging to actress Mary Pickford from the 1920s, which prompted the Academy to take legal action to reclaim the statuettes. Similarly, in 2014, the Academy sued the nephew of Oscar winner Joseph Wright when he auctioned off his uncle’s Oscar, successfully retrieving it.
Renowned filmmaker Steven Spielberg took it upon himself to return Oscars won by Clark Gable and Bette Davis back to the Academy. He purchased Gable’s statuette for $607,500 and Davis’ two Oscars for $758,000 at auction in 2002, choosing to donate them rather than profit from the transaction.
In a more controversial move, magician David Copperfield sold an Oscar he owned for an impressive $2 million; it was the coveted statuette won by director Michael Curtiz for his work on “Casablanca.” Copperfield had acquired it initially for $231,500 in 2003, showcasing the fluctuating market for these prestigious awards.
While the Academy’s no-sale policy was established only in 1951, many stories involving Oscar sales are tied to earlier decades, specifically the 1920s through the 1940s. If you do come across a more recent Oscar, chances are it has been donated or lent to a museum for exhibition. Currently, there’s no official count of how many statuettes remain unaccounted for, which would require extensive research and investigation. Nonetheless, it’s clear that film enthusiasts across the globe share the Academy’s commitment to maintaining the Oscar’s prestige and allure.
