Items From Carol Channing Estate Hit Auction Block

LOS ANGELES, CA — Items from the estate of longtime Coachella Valley resident and legendary Broadway icon Carol Channing will hit the auction block June 17 at 10 a.m. Pacific, it was announced.

The live online-only sale will feature Channing's Tony, Golden Globe and lifetime achievement awards, as well as Broadway memorabilia, stage-worn costumes and a personal collection of original Al Hirschfeld drawings. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Channing's alma mater Bennington College and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, according to Abell Auction Company.

An auction preview will be held by appointment only from June 7 to June 16 at the Abell gallery, 2613 Yates Ave. in Los Angeles. A complete catalog is available at www.abell.com. Buyers may place absentee bids with Abell directly, bid via telephone or bid online at LiveAuctioneers.com and Invaluable.com.

For more information, call 800-404-2235 or visit www.abell.com.

As a performer, Channing is best remembered for her enduring role as Dolly Levin in “Hello, Dolly!” (1964), for which she won her first Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and later performed major revival runs, appearing in the play at least 5,000 times during her lifetime.

Rising to stardom with her big smile and comedic timing, her stage credits also include “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” (1949), “Lorelei” (1974), “Sugar Babies” (1980) and “Jerry’s Girls” (1984).

Channing’s Broadway success led to many television appearances and movie roles, most notably, the film version of "Thoroughly Modern Millie" (1967), which landed her a Golden Globe Award.

She was the recipient of many other prestigious honors, including two additional Tony Awards for Special Achievement (1968 and 1995) and the Oscar Hammerstein Award for Lifetime Achievement (2004).

Distinguished as the first celebrity to perform at a Super Bowl halftime show in 1970, Channing was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 1981.

Channing died in January 2019 at her Rancho Mirage home at the age of 97. In 2020, the single-story Thunderbird Heights residence was sold for just under $1 million.