National Post (National Edition)
How a jockstrap could save Blockbuster from extinction
Late-night host donates items to Alaska store
If there’s anything that could save one of the last remaining Blockbusters, it might just be a jockstrap. Not just any jockstrap, of course. This particular garment happened to be owned by Russell Crowe, and worn by the actor in the 2005 movie Cinderella Man.
It was purchased during Crowe’s recent “divorce auction” in Australia, where he sold countless personal items, including other pieces of movie memorabilia, a guitar collection, paintings, furniture, luxury watches, jewelry, clothing and an actual chariot. He and his soon-to-be ex-wife Danielle Spencer managed to make a killing, including a whopping $125,000 for a breastplate Crowe wore in Gladiator, and as for the jockstrap? A cool $7,000, bought by none other than Last Week Tonight host John Oliver.
In a recent episode of his show, Oliver revealed he had purchased the jockstrap, along with several other auction items (including the robe and boxing shorts Crowe wore in Cinderella Man, his hood from Robin Hood, his vest from Les Misérables and a director’s chair emblazoned with his name) and shipped them to the struggling Blockbuster in Anchorage in hopes of keeping the last remnant of the once mighty video chain alive.
“We got a bunch of pointless Russell Crowe memorabilia, and I can think of no more fitting place for them to reside than an Alaskan Blockbuster,” Oliver gleefully announced on the show.
Kevin Daymude, general manager of the Anchorage Blockbuster, is grateful for the jockstrap and told The Telegraph, “I tell you, we’re going to get a lot of traffic, is what I’m expecting.” Daymude’s store is one of only four Blockbusters reaming in the U.S., three of which are located in Alaska.
In return for the generous gift, Daymude said he’ll be sending Oliver some trusty DVD copies of each of the films featuring the memorabilia. And no, for the record, he is unclear whether the jockstrap was washed before it was sold or shipped.
As for what it could possibly smell like? In the words of Oliver, probably “lilacs, and just a hint of spoiled venison.”