Estate of famed soprano Beverly Sills up for NYC auction; collection includes jewelry, artwork

September 30th, 2009 Collectors say valuable paintings stolen in Calif.PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Authorities say artwork by Jackson Pollock, Matisse, Rembrandt and others has been reported stolen from a California rental home in the wealthy enclave of Pebble Beach.

September 22nd, 2009 Angie Harmon kicks off celebrity shoe auctionNEW YORK — Angie Harmon is hosting a celebrity shoe auction in New York City and sending her baby daughter through an obstacle course to raise money for charity. Nine-month-old Emery Hope is among the babies crawling through a terrain of mock mountains and ski slopes on Tuesday while their moms bid on shoes signed by celebrities including Melissa Joan Hart, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Tori Spelling.

September 12th, 2009 Los Angeles police are hunting for a multi-million dollar collection of ANDY WARHOL artwork stolen from a private collector earlier this month (Sep09). Authorities were called out to the home of businessman Richard Weisman after he found 10 pieces of his Warhol collection had been taken.

September 11th, 2009 10 Warhol paintings stolen from LA homeLOS ANGELES — A multimillion dollar collection of Andy Warhol artwork depicting famous sporting figures was stolen from a West Los Angeles home, police said Friday. The 10 pictures, each 40 inches square, were taken from businessman Richard Weisman's home sometime between Sept.

September 10th, 2009 Bergman belongings on auction in StockholmSTOCKHOLM — A writing desk, film cameras and Golden Globe awards belonging to Swedish film legend Ingmar Bergman are attracting a huge interest from collectors as they go up for auction in Stockholm. Auction house Bukowskis says the 337 Bergman items for sale include the chess pieces most probably used in the director's 1957 film "The Seventh Seal" and a 1960s portrait of Bergman by Irving Penn.

September 1st, 2009 Pa. museum gets artist Peter Grippe's collectionALLENTOWN, Pa. — An eastern Pennsylvania art museum has received one of its largest gifts ever — about 500 works and property once owned by modernist artist Peter Grippe.

August 31st, 2009 Annual arts festival coming up in Jackson HoleJACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — Thousands of art-lovers attend the Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival each year, scheduled this fall for Sept.

August 25th, 2009 Crypt above Marilyn Monroe sells for $4.6 millionLOS ANGELES — The price for spending eternity above Marilyn Monroe is more than $4.6 million. That's how much the crypt directly above the actress went for in an online auction that ended Monday.

August 12th, 2009 Gheorghiu withdraws from start of new Met 'Carmen'NEW YORK — Soprano Angela Gheorghiu has pulled out of the first six performances of the Metropolitan Opera's new production of Bizet's "Carmen," which opens New Year's Eve. The Richard Eyre staging was designed around Gheorghiu, making an unusual foray into a role written for mezzo-sopranos, and her husband, tenor Roberto Alagna.

June 29th, 2009 Michael Jackson's brothers visit Neverland ranchLOS ANGELES — Three of the brothers who sang and danced beside Michael Jackson in the Jackson 5 made a private visit to the pop star's Neverland Ranch, where they walked the manicured grounds and reminisced about his life. Jackie, Jermaine and Tito Jackson were joined for lunch Saturday at the estate by billionaire investor Thomas Barrack, who previously set up a joint venture with Michael Jackson that took control of the ranch after the singer nearly lost it to foreclosure last year.

June 26th, 2009 Michael Jackson memorabilia up for sale in VegasLAS VEGAS — A collection of Michael Jackson memorabilia is up for auction in Las Vegas — a potentially lucrative coincidence a day after the singer's death. A celebrity auction Friday at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino has been planned for months, and was promoted mostly as featuring Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe items.

June 17th, 2009 Jimmy Choo to design for Sweden's H&MSTOCKHOLM — Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz AB on Wednesday unveiled the name of its next designer collection team-up: British accessory brand Jimmy Choo. H&M said the famed shoemaker — one of the favorite pump labels of "Sex & the City" character "Carrie" — will launch the collection in 200 H&M stores on Nov.

May 14th, 2009 Hockney painting sells for record $7.9 millionNEW YORK — David Hockney's painting "Beverly Hills Housewife" sold for a record $7.9 million after fierce bidding Wednesday, a sign that collectors are eager to buy rare and high-quality works despite the recession, the Christie's auction house said. A Claes Oldenburg sculpture "Typewriter Eraser," from 1976, also set a record, selling for $2.2 million at the auction of post-war and contemporary art.

May 13th, 2009 Italian mezzo-soprano Bartoli wins Sonning prizeCOPENHAGEN — Italian mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli has won Denmark's Sonning Music Prize. The award committee says Bartoli's "sound is unique, her technique has not been surpassed and her radiation on stage is like (opera legend Maria) Callas." The Leonie Sonning Music Foundation says Bartoli is "our days' great diva." The committee says in a statement released Wednesday that Bartoli will receive the 600,000 kroner ($110,000) award during a concert in Copenhagen on June 16, 2010.

May 8th, 2009 Picasso, Giacometti works fetch $7.7M each in NYCNEW YORK — Pieces by Pablo Picasso and Alberto Giacometti sold Wednesday for more than $7 million each at an auction of impressionist and modern art, showing that collectors still are willing to spend despite the global recession, the Christie's auction house said. The 1971 Picasso painting "Woman with Hat" was consigned by film director Julian Schnabel to help finance a real estate project.