Wildly successful auction of Betty White memorabilia brings in $4 million

The appetite for Betty White memorabilia exceeded all expectations this weekend, after an auction that was estimated to bring maybe $600,000 made more than $4 million.

About 1,600 pieces of memorabilia from Betty White's life and career were sold in Beverly Hills this weekend, making six times more than Julien's Auctions originally estimated.

"You would be hard-pressed to find an individual as iconic and well-loved as Betty White, whose impact is absolutely multi-generational," Martin Nolan, executive director of Julien's Auctions, said in a statement.

A director's chair used by White during the production of "Golden Girls" sold for $76,800, far exceeding its original estimate of $1,000. Scripts from the show's pilot and final episodes, which were signed by the cast, sold for $57,600 and $51,000, respectively.

A sapphire and diamond ring worn on "The Mary Tyler Moore show" sold for $32,000, 35 times its original estimate, Julien's Auctions said. 

And it wasn't just show business items that fetched a high price. A 1950s oil painting of White sold for $43,700.

Betty White died at the age of 99, just before her 100th birthday, on New Year's Eve of 2021.