Robbie the Robot sells for $5.3 million in auction

The science fiction movie prop Robbie the Robot has sold at auction for $5.3 million, making it the second most expensive movie prop in history.

The complete Robby suit, control panel, his jeep, numerous spares, alternate original “claw” hands, and the original wooden stage shipping crates, were sold yesterday (November 21, 2017 ) by Bonhams in New York for US$5,375,000 including buyers premium.

The only purpose-built movie prop to have ever sold for more is Marilyn Monroe’s “subway dress” from The Seven Year Itch (1955) which was sold by Profiles in History for $5,520,000 (inc. buyers premium) in 2011.

Samantha Whates – Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand)

An evening pause: Hat tip Jim Mallamace, who tells this story about the song’s origin: ” Future country music star, Jeannie Seely, worked as a secretary at Liberty and Imperial Records in 1963. The producer for the record company, Eddie Ray, was looking for a new song for Rythm & Blues legend, Irma Thomas.

“After each day’s work, Seely would work on her own compositions on the studio piano. One day, Seely was asked to attend an Artists and Repertoire meeting by Ray. She came to the meeting with her stenography pad but was told, no, he wanted her to sing that song she was writing the night before.

“‘Anyone Who Knows What Love Is’ became a 1964 hit for Irma Thomas in both the R&B and Pop charts. It was the first song Seely had published.”

250,000 Dominoes

An evening pause: I haven’t posted one of these in awhile, and this one is a doozy, including three new US domino records: largest domino field, largest domino structure, and largest overall domino project in America. It took 19 builders from 5 countries 7 days (over 1,200 combined hours) to build it.

As I have noted before, I welcome suggestions for evening pauses. If you have suggested before, please suggest again! And if you have never done so but have something you want to suggest, comment here (without mentioning the suggestion itself) and I will provide you info on how to submit your suggestion.

The Danish National Symphony Orchestra – Star Trek Medley

An evening pause: It is never a bad thing to listen to the music from Star Trek (though I would have preferred a larger percentage of this piece devoted to Alexander Courage’s original score).

Hat tip Willi Kusche.

Readers: If you want to contribute to Behind the Black, you can! I am in need of Evening Pause suggestions. If you haven’t suggested any before and want to now, comment here (without posting the link to your suggestion) and I will contact you!

30 day timelapse at sea

An evening pause: Quite hypnotic, and captures the feel for what a modern ship freighter is like, which is nothing like the romantic past. And somehow, this feels fitting to show on the anniversary of the day Columbus first touched shore in the New World in 1492. He pushed the envelope possibly more than any human has ever done, and changed human history in doing so.

Hat tip Steven Golson.

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