HAL of a rare spacesuit back

The elusive 2001: A Space Odyssey spacesuit, believed to have been worn by Dr David Bowman when he “killed” HAL in the groundbreaking 1968 film, goes on the auction block next month.

The highlight of a Hollywood and space exploration memorabilia show that’s set for Friday and Saturday next week in Beverly Hills, the spacesuit is conservatively estimated to fetch between $200 000 (R3.4 million) and $300 000.

It’s a rare artifact from the classic by filmmaker Stanley Kubrick, who is thought to have destroyed most of the props and wardrobe from 2001 – widely regarded as one of most influential films of all time – to prevent their use in other productions without his authorisation.

According to Jason DeBord, chief operating officer of Julien’s Auctions, the only other significant piece from the film to go up at auction was the Aries 1B Trans-Lunar Space Shuttle, which in the movie transported Dr Heywood R Floyd from the International Space Station to the moon. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the organisation behind the Oscars, snagged that prop in 2015 for $344 000.

The spacesuit is believed to have been used in one of the film’s most iconic scenes – when Bowman destroys HAL 9000, a sentient computer that is killing the astronauts on board to uphold its programmed mission.

Auctioneers believe this particular costume was used in that scene because its helmet has a base green layer of paint, the colour of the helmet worn by Bowman, who was played by Keir Dullea.

The near-complete spacesuit was likely worn by other actors as well, as the helmet also has layers of white and yellow paint.

The suit also includes boots and an MGM shipping crate.

The piece was auctioned off in 1999 and has been in controlled storage for two decades.

“It just sort of fell off the face of the earth,” DeBord said. “It’s kind of magical, because it’s sort of a lasting artifact of the filmmaking process.”

He said film buffs are hoping to track down a production plan of the Oscar-winning film to “align the different layers of paint with the shooting schedule, and possibly even get a little more specific about where it might have been used in the film”.

Among the more than 900 items going up for auction at the event are the pilot control stick Neil Armstrong used on the Apollo 11 flight to the moon, estimated to go for $100 000 to $200 000, and an Apollo-era spacesuit glove designed for Armstrong, estimated at $10 000 to $20 000. – AFP