In 1999, Sotheby’s hired Leila to head the Collectibles Department, which in her nine-year tenure sold more than $75 million in pop culture memorabilia via live and online auctions, largely in the areas of sports, entertainment and music memorabilia, as well as toys, animation art, comic books, art, vehicles and movie posters.
Here is a partial listing of the sales that Leila ran during her time as director of the Sotheby’s Collectibles Department:
2000 With Colleague Peter Looking At A Toy Collection
2000 Sothebys.com Advertisement With Colleagues Chris Jussel And Leigh Keno
2000 Sotheby’s Marilyn Monroe Collection Of Bernice Miracle Memorabilia Exhibition, With Colleague Laura Woolley
2000 Sothebys.com Lone Ranger Auction Exhibition With Dawn Moore (Daughter Of Clayton) And Colleague David Redden
June 2000 Sotheby’s La Rose Shoe Collection Auction Exhibit, With Colleague Marianna Klaiman
June 2000 Sothebys.com Auction Of The Boston Garden Parquet Floor Reception
June 2000 Sothebys.com Wilt Chamberlain 100 Point Game Used Sneakers
October 20-November 2, 2000 Sothebys.com Auction Of The Collection of Lone Ranger Memorabilia, The Personal Collection of Clayton Moore Auction Catalogue
April-13-June 1, 2001 Sothebys.com Jeff Lotman Animation Auction Catalogue
February 14-28, 2002 Sotheby’s Auction Of The Frank DiAndrea Collection Of Rock And Movie Posters Catalogue Front Cover
February 14-28, 2002 Sotheby’s Auction Of The Frank DiAndrea Collection Of Rock And Movie Posters Catalogue Back Cover
June 2002 Sothebys.com Advertisement For The Marilyn Monroe And LaRose Auctions
2003 Sotheby’s.com & Julien’s Auction Of Fight Worn Robes And Trunks From The Bundini Brown Collection Exhibition
2003 With Marsha Malinowski Speaking At eBay, Sothebys.com
June 10-11, 2004 Sotheby’s Auction Of The Property From the Estate of Katherine Hepburn
June 10-11, 2004 Sotheby’s Auction Of The Property Of The Estate of Katherine Hepburn – Katharine Hepburn’s artwork caused the most commotion at the sale as items estimated in the hundreds sol in the tens of thousands. This “self portrait” was painted by Miss Hepburn boating on the Housatonic River in CT.
September 14-16, 2004 Sotheby’s Auction Of Property From The Estate of Johnny Cash Estate
From 1999-2003, Sotheby’s Collectibles sold more than $18 million through online sales on Sothebys.com, including collections of memorabilia from the Boston Garden including the center court Celtics logo panel ($335,000), the estate of Wilt Chamberlain including his game worn sneakers from his 100 point game ($52,000), the Lone Ranger, Marilyn Monroe, “Seinfeld”, the Beatles, Madonna, Cher, Billy Martin, Muhammad Ali, Secretariat and the Halper Baseball Collection Part II; also Louis Armstrong’s first cornet from the New Orleans Home for Colored Waifs in 1912 (Smithsonian Institution), Billy Holiday’s 1950’s original working lyrics to “Lady Sings the Blues” and the Austin Powers “Shagmobile.”
The Bundini Brown Collection of Muhammad Ali memorabilia, including Ali’s robe from the 1971 “Fight Of The Century” against Joe Frazier, brought $98,000 in 2003; his 1975 “Thrilla In Manilla” trunks sold for $58,000 in the same sale. The 2007 sale of the Jeff Ellis Antique Golf Club Collection brought $2.2 million, a record for a golf collection. In 2008 Joe Frazier’s personal collection of robes and memorabilia were sold.
In 2010, Leila again teamed up with Sotheby’s to sell the Original Rules Of Basketball, created by Dr. James Naismith in 1891. The Rules sold for $4.38 million, the second highest price paid for sports related memorabilia and the most expensive sports document ever sold.
Entertainment memorabilia highlights include the Estate of Katharine Hepburn ($6 million); the Estate of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash ($4 million) and Property from the Collection of Cher ($3.5 million) and the Planet Hollywood “From The Vault” Auction ($1.2 Million).
December 2, 2004 Sotheby’s & SCP Auctions Auction Of « The Babe Comes Home, » Important Memorabila And Cards, Including the bat Ruth used to hit the first home run on Grand Opening Day of the New Yankee Stadium, April 16, 1923, sold for $1,250,000 in 2004. The home run was against the Red Sox, of course.
June 10, 2005 Sotheby’s & SCP Auction Of Important Sports Memorabilia And Cards, Featuring The 1919 Sale Agreement Of Babe Ruth From The Boston Red Sox To The New York Yankees
Sotheby’s Mickey Mouse 75th Anniversary Statue Auction, September 2005, 1 of 2
Sotheby’s Mickey Mouse 75th Anniversary Statue Auction, September 2005, 2 of 2
December 10, 2005, Sotheby’s & SCP Auction Of Important Sports Memorabilia And Cards
October 2-4, 2006, Sothebys & Julien’s. Property from the Collection of Cher Exhibition
October 3-4, 2006 Sothebys & Julien’s Auction Of Property from the Collection of Cher
October 3-4, 2006 Sothebys & Julien’s Auction Of Property from the Collection of Cher , Cher’s Bob Mackie gowns were the stars of the auction, selling from several hundred dollars to $75,000 for her 1983 outfit worn in the music video “If I Could Turn Back Time.
October 3-4, 2006 Sotheby’s & Julien’s Auction Promo For Property From The Collection Of Cher
September 27-28, 2007 Sotheby’s Auction Of The Jeffrey B. Ellis Antique Golf Club Collection Exhibition