Here’s What a Golden Globe and Other Award Statues Are Actually Worth
Earning a prestigious award such as a Grammy, Oscar, Golden Globe or Emmy can boost an entertainer's career -- and earning potential. But aside from the added clout, how much are the awards themselves really worth? Most of the statuettes cost hundreds of dollars to make. But when it comes to resale value, some are worth significantly more than others.
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Just what is the estimated value of the statuettes to be handed out to winners at the 80th Golden Globes, to be held on Jan. 10 and televised by NBC? Read on to learn more.
Grammys
Cost per award: $15 for materials, plus additional manufacturing costs
All the Grammy Awards that are given out annually originate with one man: John Billings, who handcrafts them at his shop in Ridgway, Colorado, and has for the past four decades. The statuettes are crafted from a strong zinc alloy -- which Billings has dubbed "grammium" -- and are then gold-plated. He uses about 6,000 pounds of grammium each year to make the statuettes, according to the website of Billings Artworks. The cost of each trophy is a closely held secret, but The Denver Post reported each one requires about 15 hours of labor. As for the cost of materials, Vocativ reported that Desmond Barlow, an engineer at die-casting company Cast-Rite, estimated the cost per award at $15, plus the manufacturing costs. Once the statuette has been awarded, its actual value drops to $0, as the Recording Academy has banned the resale of its awards, but they're still sold.
Still, it has a definite monetary value for winners due to the phenomenon known as the "Grammy bounce." According to a Forbes report in 2012, a sampling of performers and producers who won a Grammy saw a 55% boost in concert ticket sales and producer fees in the year following their win.
Johnny Cash's Grammy Sold for $187,200
Although the Recording Academy has reportedly banned the resale of Grammy Award statuettes, some have been sold at auction. In 2004, a 1986 best spoken word or nonmusical recording Grammy awarded to Johnny Cash for a collaborative album called "Class of '55: Memphis Rock & Roll Homecoming" was sold by Sotheby's for $187,200. The sale of the statuette was part of an auction of property from the estate of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash.
The Champs' Grammy Sold for $62,500
In May 2015, a Grammy auction conducted by Nate D. Sanders fetched $62,500 for a statue that was given out at the first-ever Grammy Awards ceremony back in 1958. The statue originally belonged to guitarist Dave Burgess of The Champs, who won the best rhythm and blues performance Grammy for the song "Tequila."
Oscars
Cost per award: $400
Oscar statuettes cost $400 to produce, reports Forbes, and they are plated in 24-karat gold. However, the value of the award is actually only $1, as written in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences regulations. A 2015 court ruling upheld that the statuette must be offered to the Academy before it can be put up to bid. Its value has dropped over the years: The value was $10 at the time of the ruling but has since declined.
Statuettes are given to Oscar winners in 23 categories, bringing the minimum cost of the awards given out to $9,200. The real cost is actually greater, as some categories, such as best screenplay and best visual effects, can be given to multiple people. In addition, the Academy makes extra statuettes each year to account for ties and the possibility of multiple recipients in some of the categories, since they are not privy to the winners before the live envelope opening.
'Gone With the Wind' Oscar Sold for $1.54 Million
The most expensive Oscar ever sold at auction went to Michael Jackson, who bought producer David O. Selznick's "Gone With the Wind" best picture statuette for $1.54 million at a 1999 Sotheby's auction. After the singer's death in 2009, the statuette was considered missing as no one knew where he stored it, The Hollywood Reporter reports. A representative for the estate told THR they were hopeful the statuette would be found so it could be reclaimed by his children. It's unknown whether the Oscar ever was found.
Orson Welles' Oscar Sold for $861,142
Orson Welles' 1942 best screenplay Oscar for "Citizen Kane" sold for nearly $1 million dollars at auction, but the statuette had been embroiled in legal battles for years before being sold to its final owner in 2011, AOL reports. The Oscar went missing and resurfaced 10 years after his death in 1994 when a cinematographer attempted to sell it at auction. Welles' daughter Beatrice sued for repossession, won and then tried to auction it off in 2003.
However, the Academy sued Beatrice, as they had banned the selling of statuettes -- except back to the Academy -- in 1950. But because Welles won the award before that rule was put into place, the statuette was able to be auctioned off. It was ultimately sold by Nate D. Sanders' auction house for $861,142.
Herman Mankiewicz's Oscar Sold for $588,455
The best screenplay Oscar for "Citizen Kane," awarded to Orson Welles' writing partner Herman Mankiewicz, was also a big winner at auction. His statuette sold for $588,455 at an auction held by Nate D. Sanders in 2012.
Golden Globes
Cost per award: $800
The Golden Globe Awards statuettes are created at a small factory in Grove, Oklahoma, by Society Awards. The awards were redesigned in 2007 by the company to make them "sturdier and more visually appealing," the Hollywood Foreign Press Association said, per the Tulsa World. They are made of marble and zinc and plated in 24-karat gold. Each statuette costs about $800 to make, Bennett Awards estimates.
The Golden Globes will be presented in 27 awards categories, plus two special categories, bringing the total minimum cost of the statuettes for the show to $23,200. Society Awards, however, undoubtedly produces more than that to account for multiple people winning in each category or ties. That increases the total cost of the awards.
Marlon Brando's Golden Globe Sold for $68,500
Marlon Brando's 1955 Golden Globe for best performance by an actor in a motion picture - drama for "On the Waterfront" was sold for $68,500 at a 2013 auction conducted by Heritage Auctions, The Hollywood Reporter reports. According to the report, the award sold for tens of thousands of dollars despite scratches on its marble base.
Natalie Wood's Golden Globe Sold for $17,500
Natalie Wood's first Golden Globe -- her 1957 new star of the year award for her role in "Rebel Without a Cause" -- fetched $17,500 during a 2015 auction held by Bonhams. Her Golden Globe for "From Here to Eternity" also sold for $17,500 during that auction.
Emmys
Cost per award: $400
The Emmy Award statue -- which pictures a woman with wings holding an atom -- costs $400 to make, People reports. Each statue takes 5 1/2 hours to produce and is coated with copper, nickel, silver and gold. The Television Academy actually gets some of the money they spend to make the statues back: In certain categories where the winners include a large number of people, some have to pay a fee to keep the statue, according to People.
Each year, the Television Academy contracts with R.S. Owens, a Chicago-based awards creator, to make about 400 statuettes for the Primetime Emmys, which are given out on the Primetime Emmy telecast at the Creative Arts ceremony.
Station Achievement Emmy Award Sold for $17,365
Even though the winner of the 1954 station achievement Emmy is not marked on the statuette, the rarity of the award itself enabled it to rack up $17,365 at an auction held by Nate D. Sanders in 2012.
'The X-Files' Emmy Award Sold for $15,786
During the same 2012 auction held by Sanders, an Emmy for outstanding makeup for a series for the 1998 to 1999 season of "The X-Files" sold for $15,786. The award was given to makeup artist Mark Shostrom for his work on the episodes "Two Fathers / One Son (Parts 1 & 2).''
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Jami Farkas contributed to the reporting for this article.
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Here’s What a Golden Globe and Other Award Statues Are Actually Worth