Anna Nicole’s ID Card Sells for $6,000! Bidders Cool to “Hot Potato” Diaries
06:39 PM CDT on Saturday, April 14, 2007
The top bidder for the diaries of Anna Nicole Smith backed out Saturday, after Howard K. Stern declared the diaries stolen property, according to Dallas station WFAA-TV and the Associated Press. When the second and only other bidder was notified he’d won, he backed out, too, said Heritage Auction House.
But Smith’s Texas ID card did sell for $6,000. The two diaries were written by Smith in the early 1990s and Stern claims they belong to the estate and should be returned.
In a letter to Doug Norwine, the director of music and entertainment memorabilia at Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, an attorney for Stern wrote that the diaries were stolen and therefore belong to him.
“On behalf of the estate, Mr. Stern hereby requests that the diaries be returned to him immediately,” the attorney, L. Lin Wood, wrote in the letter Wednesday.
The auction house obtained the journals, as well as a $16,954.66 receipt from a Bloomingdale’s shopping spree in 1992, a signed bank check from Smith and her 1994 Texas photo ID card, from an anonymous German businessman who purchased the items on eBay for more than $500,000 several weeks ago.
Norwine said he had vetted the history of the journals and believed they were legitimately obtained by a celebrity memorabilia dealer in Los Angeles before they went up for sale on eBay.
The diaries, from 1992 and 1994, cover a range of topics, from Smith’s love of octogenarian oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II to concerns about her eating.
Norwine said the German businessman decided to auction the diaries after securing the publishing rights. Opening bids will start at $20,000, Norwine said, and he expects both to fetch as much as $100,000
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SUNDAY NIGHT UPDATE: ASKING $25,000 MINIMUM BID FOR DIARY…AND A LAWSUIT?
The Associated Press
Sunday, April 15, 2007; 10:20 PM
DALLAS — Two diaries written by Anna Nicole Smith in the early 1990s failed to sell at an auction this weekend, but are now available for a minimum bid of $25,000 each, an the auction house said Sunday.
“We have a buy-it-now situation,” said Doug Norwine, the director of music and entertainment memorabilia at Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas.
There were at least two bidders on the diaries, but both pulled out of the auction that ended Saturday. Among their concerns were allegations by Smith’s lawyer-turned-partner, Howard K. Stern, that the diaries had been stolen and should be returned to her estate, Norwine said.
“They just got cold feet,” he said.
The auction house obtained the journals and other items from an anonymous German businessman who purchased the items on eBay for more than $500,000 several weeks ago. The German businessman decided to auction the diaries after securing the publishing rights, Norwine said.
Norwine said he had vetted the history of the journals and believed they were legitimately obtained by a celebrity memorabilia dealer in Los Angeles before going up for sale on eBay.
The diaries from 1992 and 1994 cover a range of topics, from Smith’s love of octogenarian oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II to concerns about her eating.
April 14th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
Anyone watch Geraldo At Large tonight. One of the guys kinda talked out of both sides of his mouth about the diaries. Makes it a little suspect about how he actually got his hands on them.
April 14th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
Great! I hope Ford Shelley gets what is coming to him also.
April 15th, 2007 at 4:27 am
Dear Art Harris,
It’s too, bad some people are so needy (or greedy) that they just can’t take that ‘high road,’ and at least offer, to ‘the estate for Dannielynn,’ momentos of her mom.
April 15th, 2007 at 8:16 am
Dear Harris, i would like to thank you for you honest reporting i am 65 years and the truth as older years does not flow every easy for the new any more it seen to me likeif they cant tell a lie and make it sound better for thier side they do and get away, I was born in the south where everyone says yes sir or no sir and if you didnt out back to the shed. i would also like to tell him to stand up and fight HONEY ,BUT THEN AGAIN THIER THE OLD SAYING YOU CATCH MORE FLY WITH HONEY THA VINGAR, THANK YOU MR HARRIS ONE MORE TIME FOR THE THING YOU STAND FOR IT IS A JOY TO READ YOUR WORKS
April 15th, 2007 at 9:47 am
I believe Mr. Howard K. Stern has been misjudged more ways than one. The recovery of Anna N. stolen items,especially her diaries, shows he is a man one should never push too far.
I also believe, he is a real man by they way he is helping Birkhead get DannieLynn. What a heartbreak that must be for Mr. Stern to give up the child he loves so much???
I wish Mr. Stern the very best, and hope he will get justice in the way he was treated, during this terrible time and future, if thats the case.
April 15th, 2007 at 11:57 am
Hey Art,
Thanks for the info.
The bidders backing out of purchasing the diaries seem to have a bit of knowledge about the laws pertaining to stolen property.
This confirms (in my opinion) that L. Wood stands up to his reputation of Super Lawyer.
He is a force to be reckoned with!!!
April 15th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
Thank you for this news item, Art Harris!
On behalf of anyone and everyone whose private diaries could be stolen and auctioned off post-mortem, I am delighted that the sale of these diaries might be prevented. I wish Howard K Stern and his team of legal-eagles all the cool-head, strength, and good luck they will need in this and other tasks ahead.
April 15th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
Dear Art:
Thanks for you website, good job!
Did you know that Donna Hogan has inserts from these diaries in her book…hmmm interesting. Check out the pictures in the book. Is this the same license they sold? Where do you think she got this information from? Howard K. Stern said “Anna has a break in at the ranch in Texas and things were stolen. Along with the house in the Bahamas.” Did you ever find out what dumpster Ricco got these from?
April 15th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
if i had those diaries i would listen to howard stern , and would hang on to them until it is proven where the diaries belongif they are not stolen the facts will come out and the truth will be revealed, then if they belong to heritage then do whatever they want then
April 15th, 2007 at 3:43 pm
Why didn’t Stern try to stop the sale of diaries when they were on e-bay?
April 15th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
GREAT ARTICLE ART, I’M GLAD THE DIARIES WERE NOT SOLD. I HOPE THEY ARE RETURNED TO ANNA’S ESTATE. I’M GLAD HOWARD HAS LIN WOOD, I’M GLAD HE’S AFTER O’QUINN AND I HOPE THE FORD/SHELLY CLAN IS NEXT, THEN GERALDO.
IT’S NICE THERE IS STILL PEOPLE OUT THERE REPORTING THE FACTS AND TRUTH.
April 16th, 2007 at 7:21 am
“Jo” should not be indicting FORD SHELLEY for stealing these diaries! Those diaries were never in the Bahamas and Stern has NOT claimed they were among the items taken by Shelley for safe-keeping after Anna died. - These diaries were related to her estate in California and this is widely reported.
I KNOW that Mike Brooks, the alleged “investigative reporter” on Nancy Grace, has tried to blend information about the diaries and the house in the Bahamas. Sometimes I wonder what he does because he is always about a week behind on the news of the case and he does not seem to be able to grasp the details.
April 16th, 2007 at 7:51 am
Thanks Art for such great reporting. I knew Howard would start the ball rolling right on time. He is very smart. This isn’t all he’s going to do. His next lawsuit should be against Virgie, even though she doesn’t have any money. He can take her trailer. She just needs to be shown up for what she is.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:23 am
I think that anyone who would stoop that low to steal a dead woman’s things needs some professional help. The person buying is in need of even more help. What does that say about our society? We don’t respect anyone. Didn’t Ford Shelley go into Anna and Howards home and take possession of all of Anna’s things? That was at his own admission. Shame on you Ford. You should be the one under public scrutiny, not Howard. What you do in the dark comes out in the light. Thanks Art.
April 16th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
Some exerpts were on Ebay and had been made public, maybe that’s where Donna got them from.
Good question, Lord of the Flies, and Mr. Wood owes the Auction House a big apology for getting his diaries mixed up and thinking these were stolen from Horizons. Think he will admit his mistake?
April 16th, 2007 at 5:43 pm
Art,
Thank you for bringing us the truth! We have compiled A LOT of information on Virgie Arthurs family, facts. We would love to see an article on this factual information.
Email me and I will give you information and other people that have information also!!
People need to know the truth about this women who calls herself a loving grandma! The kind of kids she raises, the kind of people she marries, etc….
Take care!
April 17th, 2007 at 1:49 am
Please delete if copy & paste shouldn’t be allowed under your law:
http://janedevin.wordpress.com/2007/04/11/victory-and-the-future-ahead/
Birkhead introduced Smith to the shady Thompson-Shelley clan. And it was Thompson – not Stern – who arranged her Bahamian stay and set her up in a house, complete with maids and nannies. Stern was not responsible for this decision. He was not the “legal wrangler” trying to pull a fast one over on Birkhead.
It was these friends of Birkhead’s who stole items from Dannielynn’s nursery and sold her mother’s personal tapes to the media. When Dannielynn sees the “clown” video, it will be thanks to Ford Shelley. When the artwork stolen from her nursery goes up for auction on Ebay, and one of the only gifts she ever received from her mother ends up in the hands of a collector, this will be the doing of Birkhead’s friends, not Stern’s.
**No questions about the relationship between Larry Birkhead and Ford Shelly??
April 17th, 2007 at 7:05 am
# Linda Says:
April 16th, 2007 at 7:21 am
“Jo” should not be indicting FORD SHELLEY for stealing these diaries! Those diaries were never in the Bahamas and Stern has NOT claimed they were among the items taken by Shelley for safe-keeping after Anna died. - These diaries were related to her estate in California and this is widely reported.
I KNOW that Mike Brooks, the alleged “investigative reporter” on Nancy Grace, has tried to blend information about the diaries and the house in the Bahamas. Sometimes I wonder what he does because he is always about a week behind on the news of the case and he does not seem to be able to grasp the details.
*************************
HOW DO YOU KNOW THEY WERE NOT LINKED TO THE BREAK-IN AT HORIZONS? THOSE ITEMS WERE NEVER MADE PULIC BY HOWARD OR THE MEDIA….UNLESS YOU ARE PRIVEY TO INFORMATION THE AUTHORITIES AREN’T THEN I SUGGEST YOU, LIKE ALL THE OTHERS THAT HAVE WRONGFULLY SPOKEN OUT AGAINST HOWARD, REFRAIN FROM NEGATIVE COMMENTS UNLESS AND UNTIL YOU CAN PROVIDE PROOF…
LIN WOOD IS AM AMAZING OFFICER OF THE COURTS AND HE DELIVERS JUSTICE…
THESE TWO BUYERS FOR THE DIARIES ARE WELL AWARE OF THE CONSEQUENCES OF PURCHASING STOLEN PROPERTY…AND IF THOSE ENTRIES ARE IN DONNA HOGAN’S BOOK THEN I AM ALMOST CERTAIN SHE (ALONG WITH HER CONSTITUENTS) WILL BE RECEIVING PAPERWORK FROM LIN WOOD AS WELL….
April 17th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Dear Art Harris.
When you have the time and possibility, do swim against the anti-Howard K Stern tide! You are an investigative journalist, and I hope that you will indeed stay on the high road, and investigate … the Larry Birkhead and Ford Shelley connection.
What hurts me in particular, as a woman and a mother, that the man Anna Nicole Smith had made a clear and public effort to escape from (for reasons best known to her, reasons we, the public, will never know), is now taking her daughter, and her estate, including (per the latest news) her house in California. The question of who will ultimately profit from her death, is plain as day now.
All the players in this drama are strangers to me. What got me interested in the first place, was and is the attacks on Howard K Stern, a total stranger as well. The unfairness of it, the media hype, the language, the racial and religious firestorm expressed by some posters on sites such as tmz, feels bizarre to me. It shows how people can be manipulated by hype, and the employing of an army of p.r. psych-savvy barracudas.
You and Jane Devin are among the few who dare show the other side. Good luck!
April 17th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
In response to Joy. How do I get your email address? I would love to know what you have found out about Mommie Dearest!!! She makes me sick, I just hope that she does not get access to that baby. She and Larry are two of a kind!!! I really wish the judge would rule in Howards favor and let him keep the baby, after all in the Bahamas he is the presumed father, and it is what Anna wanted. He is the only one with her best interest at heart. And the nanny they chose, she loves that child like her own grandchild. Anna must have loved her too for that reason.
April 18th, 2007 at 1:07 am
mr harris
I have been keeping up with this story about anna nicole smith and everyone. My question is why is nobody reporting on virigie arthur.SHe was sumons to court in the bahamma over a legal bill she owed of about 50,000 for legeal work that a lawyer did. Seems funny that this was pushed under the rug as us older people would say. I want to wish larry and howard all the luck in the word with her.I don’t see her going away any time soon. To the person that has stuff on virigie and her family. maybe you should forwrd it to the bahamma courts.
April 18th, 2007 at 6:12 am
GO HOWARD,GET ALL OF THOSE CRAZY PEOPLE. O QUIN MAKES ME SICK. I THINK HE IS REALLY LOSING HIS MIND. I BET THAT HE IS PAYING FOR MOST OF VIRGIES BILLS IN THE BAHAMAS.O QUIN WANTS THE BIG MONEY FROM THE MARSHALL ESTATE. LARRYS FRIEND SLEEPS WITH ANNA AND THEN LARRY TURNS AROUND AND HANGS WITH THEM AND CALLED ANNA NOT THAT SMART ON TV. LARRY IS NOT REAL BRIGHT. I BET IF YOU CHECKED HIS SHCOOL RECORDS YOU WOULD FIND OUT. WHY HAS LARRY NEVER HAD A GIRFRIEND?
April 18th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
The auction house had authentication that these diaries were in Los Angeles at a store for the last 3 or 4 years. There is no evidence that these were stolen and I think you are getting the diaries mixed up, as did Lin Wood.
Donna’s publisher most likely paid the owner for the entries, there is no way a publisher would steal images and publish them.
Lin Wood does not deliver justice. In my opnion, he is a bully libel lawyer that has done more harm to our first amendment rights than any other entity. He got lucky with Richard Jewel and then was able to gather up high profile clients. basketball fans were overjoyed when it was because of his actions, no criminal case was persued in the Kobe Bryant case. Sends the message to millionare athletes they can rape women and get away with it if they pay them off.
April 20th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
There is black and white, then there is all that grey matter in-between, it’s called your brain.
April 21st, 2007 at 5:35 am
Art, whether the diaries were stolen or not, the point remains that these were private and should not be going to the highest bidder. Anyone who has ever had a private diary or journal will agree that they would not want to have them on the open market.
I read Cindy Adam’s column regarding the newest diaries of ANS that have surfaced and I was more appalled by the remarks Ms Adams made concerning the contents of those diaries than I was about the actual contents.
I am always delighted with your reporting and look forward to the next article.
April 25th, 2007 at 11:40 am
I believe it’s against the law to sell or trade a Driver’s License.
However, since this has to do with Anna Nicole, I guess anything’s possible.