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A huge pile of negatives from a previous photo shoot Marilyn Monroe Ever Set Before He Dies is due to be auctioned off next week, but the widow of the famous lensman who took the photographs is now trying to stop the sale, claiming the iconic images were stolen by organized crime and later used in an attempt to extort $3 million from them.
In court filings obtained by IndependentActress/director/writer/producer/model Shanna Laumeister Stern, who Secretly married Bert Stern in 2009A prominent fashion photographer of the 1950s and 1960s says that approximately 2,500 negatives disappeared from Stern’s apartment long ago “in the middle of the night.”
The collection of photographs became known as “final meetingCommissioned by Vogue magazine, she was taken to Suite 261 of the Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles during a three-day session in late June 1962. Monroe died six weeks later. Nowadays, different prints from the shoot Sell for up to $25,000In 2018, an unrelated controversy was found The copyright of the iconic images belonged to Laumeister SternBut the physical ownership of the negatives was never tested.
According to a complaint filed by Mr. Stern on Tuesday in New York County Supreme Court, Stern, who died in 2013, always “suspected that the Mafia was behind the theft of photo negatives, and that they were also responsible for the untimely death of Marilyn Monroe.”
“Bert Stern’s fears and suspicions seemed to be confirmed as he periodically received anonymous messages from a man in Las Vegas taunting him over the ‘missing’ photo negative,” Complaint State. “Thus, Bert Stern was legitimately intimidated and threatened by the circumstances surrounding the theft of the photo negative.”
The whereabouts of the negatives were unknown until 2023, when Laumeister Stern was contacted by a lawyer representing a woman identified only as “Jane Doe”. Doe said Stern had given negative items to her late husband as collateral for a loan that was never repaid, the complaint continues.
However, he argues that the alleged debt never existed, and that Laumeister Stern Doe’s lawyer was cut off after offering to return the negatives in exchange for a $3 million payment – the complaint described the offer as “a shock” [sic] Also possibly related to taunting messages Bert Stern received.”
Doe later shipped the negatives to a Dallas-based company. Heritage AuctionWhich is going to present them for bids on November 8. Mr. Stern now wants the negatives back, and is asking the judge to block the planned sale.
“The relief requested herein is necessary to prevent irreparable harm to the estate and legacy of Bert Stern and Marilyn Monroe,” the complaint states.
In a statement given to IndependentLaumeister Stern said, “I am completely distraught, heartbroken, and feel completely exploited. They have shown absolutely no respect for Bert or his legacy, which I am here to protect. They have shown a complete disregard for the property and for me. I feel deeply violated, used and taken advantage of. The stolen negatives have been returned to the Bert Stern Trust. Nothing will stop me.”
Representative richard aulisseA retired New York State Supreme Court judge representing Doe said Wednesday that the allegations in Mr. Stern’s complaint may seem far-fetched but are far from accurate.
“My client intends to fight this,” Aulisi said. Independent“There is no legal or factual basis for this action,”
In an email, a spokesperson for Heritage Auctions said, “The consignor has guaranteed good ownership of these items and we have no reason to believe otherwise.”
However, a source with knowledge of the situation said Heritage declined to answer any follow-up questions. Independent Stern described Doe’s deceased husband in negative terms in the late 1970s or early 1980s.
Her complaint states that after Burt Stern died, Shanna Laumeister Stern was put in charge of his estate.
But, it continues, more than 2,500 negatives were missing from his massive work. final meetingStern believed that someone connected to the mob was behind the robbery, and speculation by many people Monero has been added Death of La Cosa Nostra,
According to the complaint, over the past few years, Stern claimed he had been approached periodically by an unidentified man in Las Vegas who delighted in “taunting” him about lost negatives. Those comments intimidated Stern, the filing said.
“The location of the stolen photo negatives will remain a mystery until [Laumeister Stern was] In July 2023, a lawyer contacted and informed [her] The complaint states that he represents the unidentified owner of the photo negatives, whom he claims is a good faith holder who acquired the photo negatives from her late husband.
According to the complaint, the attorney “first claimed that the stolen photo negatives were retrieved from the trash, then claimed that the unknown owner’s late husband had acquired the photo negatives as collateral for a loan to Bert Stern that was never repaid, but no such agreement exists.”
Given the attorney’s “conflicting stories” about the negatives, as well as his “unwillingness to disclose the identity of his client,” whom he would only describe as Stern’s one-time “business partner,” the complaint states that Laumeister Stern “felt like it was a blow.”[,] Also possibly related to taunting messages Bert Stern received.”
According to the complaint, “Communication with this attorney ceased when he demanded $3 million dollars for the return of the photo negatives.”
When Laumister Stern learned on Monday that the negatives had been sent Heritage Auction and was “currently scheduled to be sold to the highest bidder on December 8, 2025,” she filed in the lawsuit.
Her complaint says she has demanded that Heritage cancel the auction and that Jane Doe return the negatives to her, but “these requests have been denied.” It also said that Laumeister Stern “has reported the pending sale of the stolen photo negatives to the FBI.” With no other recourse available, Mr. Stern is asking a judge to intervene.
Laumeister Stern is seeking a declaratory judgment that she is the lawful owner of The Last Sitting negatives, the return of the negatives, as well as monetary damages to be determined in court, plus attorneys’ fees and court costs.