An archive containing more than 200 negatives from the filming of Niagara, part of the late photographer Jock Carroll’s estate, are will go under the virtual hammer this Wednesday, March 4th, at RR Auctions (with copyright), TMZ reports. Bidding starts at $10,000, but the online auctioneers hope it will sell for much more.
Carroll’s stunning book about the shoot, Falling For Marilyn, was posthumously published in 1996 and includes his interviews with Marilyn. His novel, The Shy Photographer (1964), is also said to have been inspired by this memorable encounter. (You can view more of Carroll’s photos here.)
A number of other Monroe-related items will be auctioned, including her December 1961 letter to Lee Strasberg detailing her unrealised plans to expand the Actors Studio and Marilyn Monroe Productions.
“The pics — 227 total, 198 of which depict Marilyn — were snapped by Canadian journalist and photog Jock Carroll in 1952, while she was preparing for her first top billing as Rose Loomis in the noir thriller.
The set of photos is mostly comprised of black-and-white negatives but includes some color positive transparencies. And, along with shots of Monroe, there are several of the sets, scenery and of course … Niagara Falls.
The negatives could become much more than just a collector’s item too … because they include the copyright to the images. Carroll signed the rights over to his son [Angus Carroll] before he died, and the son will grant them to the buyer.
This means the highest bidder at the auction will have the right to print and even sell copies from the negatives, which could lead to big bucks. Commercial use requires permission from Monroe’s estate, however.”
UPDATE: The Josh Carroll archive has been sold for $61,866.25 – more details on the auction here.