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 /Las
Vegas Gaming Wire / - LAS VEGAS -- The pirates have been
vanquished from the new Treasure
Island at Spring Mountain Road and the Strip, and
the booty they left behind is ready for claiming.
MGM
Mirage, holding company for the renamed "TI,"
will auction the buccaneer memorabilia from the defunct
pirate show in the ballroom of Treasure
Island starting at 10 a.m. on September 29, 2003.
Treasure
Island President Scott Sibella said the items being
auctioned have been taken off the two pirate ships, off
the floor of the arcade, and out of the resort's restaurants
and bars over the past three years and are piling up in
a warehouse.
This
is the first auction conducted by Treasure
Island. "We wanted to do it right," Sibella
said, explaining the accumulation of original artwork,
swords, costumes, trunks, ceramic pots and sculptures.
Many
of the costumes from the former pirate show have been
donated to nonprofit groups. Other money raised will be
used to defray the cost of the new "Sirens"
show that premieres Oct. 26.
"There
are some great pieces. There are two bone chandeliers
from the Treasure island lobby that had been in storage
for eight years, each of which cost $400,000 (originally),"
Sibella said. Also
included are four major pirate figures from the pirate
show's walkway that originally cost $30,000 a piece, he
said.
He
and Guy Deiro, one of the auctioneers and president of
Robert Deiro and Associates, which is conducting the auction,
warn that neither pirate ship is being offered for sale
on September 29th.
Sibella
said representatives from major entertainment companies
such as Disney Studios are expected, but Deiro said most
of those attending are expected to be local businesses
and residents. "Most bidders will be just regular
people wanting to buy memorabilia material from Treasure
Island they can just carry away," Deiro said.
Some
local companies also are planning to bid on the pirate
memorabilia, including Victor Bernhard Fine Arts Associates.
"We're
interested in the art. It resells very well," said
Victor Bernhard, president of the company which specializes
in the resale of art items. "Anything made for Treasure
Island has a high resale value in our experience. And
these aren't copies, but original items made for Treasure
Island."
More
local residents than businesses showed up Friday to preview
the items for sale.
Koleta
Blum and her husband, Darel, of North Las Vegas, said
they have bought memorabilia at auction from the Aladdin,
El Rancho and the Desert Inn and want to add to their
collection. "And (my husband) is building me an enchanted
garden at home and I thought a treasure chest or a pot
from Treasure Island would just add to my treasures,"
Koleta Blum said Friday.
The
sale of more than 500 items originally valued at $2.5
million is expected to net more than $350,000. Registration
begins at 8 a.m. The auction is expected to draw between
750 and 1,200 people and last between four hours and six
hours.
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