Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Thief slips away with Dorothy's shoes
Tuesday August 30, 2005
Dorothy's shoes from The Wizard of Oz
Will they follow the yellow brick road home? Dorothy's shoes from The Wizard of Oz
Who could have done this wicked deed? The most famous shoes in movie history, Dorothy's ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz, were stolen from a Minnesota museum on Saturday night.
The shoes, insured for $1m (£560,000), were one of four pairs worn by Judy Garland in the film. It had been on display at the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, the actor's native city, when someone entered the building through a window and broke into the small display case holding the slippers.
"There's not a whole lot of evidence," police chief Leigh Serfling said. "We're hoping that someone in the community has seen something."
The shoes belonged to a Los Angeles-based collector, Michael Shaw, who had loaned them to the museum for 10 weeks. "It's the worst nightmare for me," said Mr Shaw. "The theft is not only a crime against me, but against children. Those shoes have been used to raise money for Aids, for helping get kids off the street, reading programmes, and for children with Down's syndrome and autism."
"As director, I am devastated," said the museum's head, John Kelsch, in a statement. "Michael Shaw is a friend of this museum and has been a guest at the Judy Garland Festival for years. It is our hope that the slippers can be recovered immediately."
Other memorabilia from The Wizard of Oz on display was left untouched.
Dorothy's shoes from The Wizard of Oz
Will they follow the yellow brick road home? Dorothy's shoes from The Wizard of Oz
Who could have done this wicked deed? The most famous shoes in movie history, Dorothy's ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz, were stolen from a Minnesota museum on Saturday night.
The shoes, insured for $1m (£560,000), were one of four pairs worn by Judy Garland in the film. It had been on display at the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, the actor's native city, when someone entered the building through a window and broke into the small display case holding the slippers.
"There's not a whole lot of evidence," police chief Leigh Serfling said. "We're hoping that someone in the community has seen something."
The shoes belonged to a Los Angeles-based collector, Michael Shaw, who had loaned them to the museum for 10 weeks. "It's the worst nightmare for me," said Mr Shaw. "The theft is not only a crime against me, but against children. Those shoes have been used to raise money for Aids, for helping get kids off the street, reading programmes, and for children with Down's syndrome and autism."
"As director, I am devastated," said the museum's head, John Kelsch, in a statement. "Michael Shaw is a friend of this museum and has been a guest at the Judy Garland Festival for years. It is our hope that the slippers can be recovered immediately."
Other memorabilia from The Wizard of Oz on display was left untouched.
