Stolen Oscar Controversy: Orson Welles’ Replacement Statue from Citizen Kane Sparks Legal Questions
The replacement Oscar won by Orson Welles for writing the iconic film Citizen Kane has ignited a legal controversy. The statue was recently sold by Heritage Auctions for a staggering $645,000, but according to a report from Deadline, the sale may not have been entirely legal due to a stipulation in a release signed by Welles’ daughter, Beatrice.
The sold statuette was not the original Oscar that Welles had received; it was a replacement requested by Beatrice in 1988, three years after her father’s death. The filmmaker’s family was unable to locate the original Oscar among his belongings when he passed away, prompting Beatrice to petition the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences for a replacement.
The Academy obliged and sent a replacement statue, but it came with a stipulation. Beatrice signed a release stating that the statuette could not be sold unless it was first offered back to the Academy for the price of just one dollar. This had been the standard agreement since 1950, with previous Oscars often being sold or auctioned off.
However, the story becomes more convoluted. In 1994, the original Oscar that Welles had won was put up for auction at Sotheby’s in London. It was linked to Gary Graver, a cinematographer who had worked on Welles’ unfinished film, The Other Side of the Wind. Graver claimed that Welles had given him the Oscar as compensation for his work on the financially troubled project. The Oscar was eventually sold for $50,000 to an unknown company.
When Sotheby’s contacted Beatrice to verify the authenticity of the Oscar, she sued, and the court ruled in her favor, returning the original statuette to her. In 2003, Beatrice attempted to sell the original Oscar, but the Academy prohibited her from doing so. She eventually sold it for an undisclosed amount after a judge’s ruling favored her.
The recent Heritage Auctions sale of the replacement Oscar raises questions about its legality. Beatrice’s agreement with the Academy stipulates that the statuette cannot be sold without first offering it back to the Academy for a mere dollar. While the buyer remains unidentified, it is believed that they are now attempting to sell the Oscar for $967,000 or more.
It is unclear why Beatrice did not list the replacement Oscar as part of the Welles Estate, unlike other items sold through Heritage Auctions. The auction house has a policy that ensures every consignor is legitimate and legally able to sell the item. If the replacement Oscar originated from Beatrice and not the auction circuit, the buyer would be bound by the agreement she signed in 1988.
The Academy intends to investigate the situation further, stating that they will be looking into it. As the legal controversy surrounding the sale unfolds, the fate of Orson Welles’ replacement Oscar remains uncertain.
