British Columbia·Photos

Hollywood Golden Age memorabilia on sale at Richmond auction

From Elvis Presley to Marlene Dietrich to Harry Belafonte to Marian Anderson, Hugh Pickett knew them all through his work as a promoter in Vancouver. On Wednesday, over 1,000 items owned by Pickett connected to those stars will go up for auction in Richmond.

Hugh Pickett was a top promoter in Vancouver for decades, his collectibles are on the auction block

Decades worth of memorabilia from the world of showbiz will go up for sale on Wednesday when the estate of Hugh Pickett is auctioned off.

Pickett, who died in 2006, was a promoter in Vancouver from the 1940s to the 1980s. He brought stars like Elvis Presley, Nat King Cole and Marian Anderson to the city during those years.

Pickett was also a keen collector of Hollywood memorabilia and had a knack for identifying pieces that would have historic value.

"It's a little sad looking at all of this because I saw it all when it was in his home. It was part of a complete estate and part of a well-lived-in and well-loved home," said Pickett's long-time friend Robert Graham as he surveyed boxes of items.

"He knew the business, and he knew what was significant. And he always had a story."

Before the auction gets underway at Love's Auctioneers in Richmond, Graham and Pickett's long-time partner Gord Boyd showed The Early Edition some of the pieces for sale. You can view pictures of them in the photo gallery above.