I had a few interactions with Ben Novack over the years-- he was a very noted Batman collector who was, sadly, murdered in Florida a couple of years ago and his wife stands trial for the crime.
Ben was described on AMERICA'S MOST WANTED as having "the second largest Batman collection in the world"-- I'm not sure how something like that is determined, but Ben definitely had an impressive collection-- and the fact that he was a millionaire certainly made collecting easier.
With his death, his collection has gone up for auction--and these are two of the pieces I've picked up. I'm more interested in the provenance of the items than the items themselves.
Monies raised from the auctions goes to his heirs so there is that as well. I can't help but feel a bit ghoulish in the acquisitions but maybe I'm being a bit morbid.
Every major news outlet is covering the trial-- here's the take from ABC but here's the gist of it:
The case made instant tabloid headlines, as Ben Novack's father built the legendary Miami Beach Fountainebleau, a familiar backdrop from movies like "Scarface" and "Goldfinger." Narcy Novack stood to inherit an empire that included Ben Novak's millions in real estate, cars, jewelry and one of the world's largest collections of Batman memorabilia, including the original Batmobile.
