Matthew Broderick’s vest from his classic 1986 high school comedy Ferris Bueller’s Day Off just sold for an eyewatering sum.
Inasmuch as the movie was set over the course of one day, the vest was featured throughout its runtime, becoming indelibly fixed in fans’ memories.
Viewers who fell in love with the film will instantly remember the camel and black geometric design of the acrylic yarn garment.
Ferris wears the piece all over Chicago, including during the fan favorite sequence set at Wrigley Field during a 1985 Cubs game against Montreal.
The vest at some stage wound up in the hands of Emmy-winning sportscaster Darren Rovell, and ultimately went to Sotheby’s New York, which put it up for auction.
Although the lot was initially expected to earn between $300,000 to $600,000, the vest was ultimately sold for $279,400 after 11 bids, Sotheby’s said in a news release, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Directed by John Hughes, who was famed for 1980s high school comedies like The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off was an instant hit.
Its rollicking plotline follows the title teenager (Matthew) playing truant from high school for a day with his girlfriend (Mia Sara) and best pal (Alan Ruck).
The movie’s costume designer Marilyn Vance actually initially acquired the costume piece as a cardigan, then sliced the sleeves off to create a vest.
She hoped the look of the garment would give viewers a sense of Ferris’ rebellious nature, his charisma and his singular personality, per Sotheby’s.
‘The only real expression of color in Bueller’s entire wardrobe, Vance’s sweater vest immediately became the character’s signature piece and emblematic of his most exciting quality — the ability to blend in anywhere, while standing out just enough to get exactly what you want from the world around you,’ the auction house stated.
Bidding opened on the lot on June 5 and closed this Tuesday, June 24 at around 11am Pacific time when the vest finally sold for its head-spinning sum.
It was bundled together as part of a package deal with several other pieces of memorabilia, including a ticket to the real Cubs game where the Wrigley Field sequence was filmed almost exactly 40 years ago in September 1985.
Other items in the lot include a 1980s National League baseball with a fake Charles Feeney autograph, plus an index card with Matthew Broderick’s real signature.
The buyer is also receiving a 1987 VHS of the film, plus 1980s ticket stubs to see the movie at a Japanese theater and at a Showcase Cinemas location.
Also in the lot is a ticket stub to a 1985 Chicago Cubs vs Atlanta game that is shown being played on a TV in the movie, plus a Ferris Bueller Bullies trading card.
Sotheby’s vice chairman of popular culture Ralph DeLuca said: ‘Few items in film history carry the instant recognition and cultural weight of Ferris Bueller’s sweater vest,’ in a statement given to WWD.
‘It’s more than just a costume – it’s a piece of 1980s Americana that embodies a character, a decade, and a universal sense of youthful rebellion.’
