One of the most significant pop culture collections of the 20th century will produce a huge sale of TV costumes later this month.
Items from Dr Stewart Berkowitz’s collection will be sold at Heritage Auctions, Dallas, on 24 October.
The 300-plus-piece sale includes immediately recognisable items from Batman, I Dream of Jeannie and Star Trek.
Dr Berkowitz was a New Jersey oncologist and one of the most significant TV collectors of all time. He died in March 2024. In January 2025, a selection of the vehicles he had amassed was sold, with a 1960s Batmobile making nearly $500,000.
Dr Berkowitz was a well-known figure in collecting communities and, under the pseudonym Alfred, was known for having “the greatest Batman ’66 collection you’ll ever see”.
Batman items in this sale include full Batman and Robin costumes (worn on screen by Adam West and Burt Ward respectively) with a $200,000 opening bid; Catwoman’s catsuit, worn by Julie Newmar ($15,000); Batgirl’s costume ($25,000), worn by Yvonne Craig; and Penguin and Joker costumes ($25,000 each) worn by Burgess Meredith and Cesar Romero respectively.
The 1960s Batman TV show was much lighter in tone than the films of recent times. Adam West’s character was fun, low-tech and slightly ridiculous. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
From Happy Days comes the Fonz’s (Henry Winkler) leather jacket with a $15,500 current bid. Starfleet uniforms worn by William Shatner ($20,000) and Leonard Nimoy ($15,500) in the original Star Trek series are included, as is Barbara Eden’s Jeannie costume from I Dream of Jeannie ($15,000).
Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman ensemble carries a $100,000 opening bid.
Jordan Meddy, Dr Berkowitz’s son, said: “My dad started this collection before the auction world for this kind of material existed. He was an early adopter of eBay, and at first he collected what he came across, and was especially into The Honeymooners and Batman.”
“As one of the most comprehensive and passionately assembled collections of vintage television memorabilia ever brought to market, this auction represents a lifetime of love for these shows,” said Joe Maddalena, executive vice-president at Heritage Auctions.
Earlier this year, a major sale of TV memorabilia saw elements of a Wonder Woman costume, including boots and her magical bracelets, make over $240,000 in total.
In 2024, a sale dedicated to Game of Thrones, perhaps the biggest collecting hit of the streaming era, brought in over $21 million in total.
