Judy Garland's Famous Ruby Slippers From 'Wizard of Oz' Found 13 Years After Being Stolen
Thirteen years after the robbery, Grand Rapids Police Department in Minnesota and the FBI have found the slippers.
What does ruby slippers remind you of? For me, it is the sparkling pair of shoes worn by Dorthy Gale in the famous The Wizard of Oz. The classic novel became a movie in 1939 in which Judy Garland played Dorothy Gale. While in L. Frank Baum's 1900 book, Dorothy wore silver shoes, in the MGM Studios' movie, they chose to put red slippers on her feet to show off new Technicolor film techniques.
She wore a magic pair of slippers which became so popular that they were kept in a Minnesota museum. However, in 2005 someone broke in through a window and stole the shoes. Thirteen years after the robbery, Grand Rapids Police Department in Minnesota and the FBI on Tuesday announced that the slippers were found. The recovered slippers are one among the three pairs used while shooting the film.
When the shoes were stolen they were on loan to Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota by private collector Michael Shaw as part of a special tour. Garland was born in Grand Rapids. The slippers were stolen in August 2005. The burglar entered the museum through its back window and smashed the Plexiglass case inside which the slippers were kept. Neither did the alarm go off nor were there fingers. The only thing left was a single red sequin.
Here's a clip from the movie:
An anonymous donor once offered a USD one million cash reward for the stolen pair but nothing was recovered. The slippers are often said to among the most valued props in movie history. It is said that the pair was insured for USD one million but experts have said they could be twice the amount now. The shoes are covered in about 2,300 red sequins.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 07, 2018 12:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).