Art News

Top horror film actor Bela Lugosi’s "Dracula" cape up for auction at Profiles in History

BEVERLY HILLS, CA (REUTERS).- It may be the perfect addition to a Halloween costume, but “Dracula” fans will have to wait until next year to wear it. The iconic cape worn by Bela Lugosi in “Dracula,” one of Hollywood’s earliest horror films based on the world’s most famous mythical vampire, will go under the hammer in December and could fetch between $1.5 million and $2 million, auctioneer Profiles in History said on Thursday. The “Icons of Hollywood” sale will feature many items from various Hollywood films, but the black cape worn by Lugosi in the classic 1931 horror flick is expected to be one of the biggest selling items. Lugosi, who was among the top horror film actors in the early days of Hollywood in movies such as “Son of Frankenstein” and “Murders in the Rue Morgue,” was buried in his “Dracula” costume after his death in 1956, except for the original cape, which he wanted his son to have, the auctioneer said. The actor’s family is selling the cape