Hollywood legend Steve McQueen does double-duty as a icon in both film and racing, so it’s no surprise when a rare piece of memorabilia from his film canon does really well at auction.
The iconic racing suit that McQueen wore in the 1971 hit film Le Mans was sold at auction for a whopping $984,000. The huge total, which is just shy of a million, is stunning in part because the item was only expected to sell between $200,000 and $300,000. The suit’s sky-high selling price gives it the distinction of being one of the most expensive pieces of automotive memorabilia ever sold.
In Le Mans, Steve McQueen portrayed Michael Delaney, who’s character races in the “24 Hours of Le Mans,” a prestigious annual car race held every year in France. The film has developed a cult following among race fans for its realistic depiction of the grueling event.
The same suit was previously donated by Solar Productions — the film’s production company —to The Observer, as part of a contest in 1971. Another piece from the Le Mans film, the Porsche that McQueen drives throughout the film, also made a significant sum at auction, worth $1.25 million.
(Via Profiles in History and The Hollywood Reporter)
