Press Release

Born Burton Leon Reynolds on Feb. 11, 1936, in Lansing, Michigan, and raised in Florida's Palm Beach County, Reynolds first made a name for himself as a football star and earned an athletic scholarship to Florida State University. But his promising football career ended with injuries and Reynolds turned his sights to acting. After appearing in summer stock and plays, Reynolds moved to New York where he studied at the Actors Studio and landed a role in the New York City Center revival of "Mister Roberts" in 1957. Television roles soon followed when Reynolds moved to Hollywood and nabbed roles on the westerns, Riverboat (NBC, 1959-1961) and Gunsmoke in 1962-196 (CBS, 1955-1977) as Quint Asper, the half-Comanche Dodge City blacksmith. But it was as outdoorsman Lewis Medlock in John Boorman's 1972 classic thriller Deliverance (Warner Bros., 1972), about four friends who embark on a canoeing river trip into the dangerous American back-country that became Reynolds’ breakthrough role. The film went on to be nominated for three Oscars including Best Picture in 1973 around the same time Reynold’s status as a charismatic sex symbol was cemented when his now iconic Cosmopolitan centerfold sold a staggering 1.5 million copies. His mega stardom continued with his performances as an ex-football player Paul "Wrecking" Crewe in prison in The Longest Yard (1974), Semi-Tough (1977) and Hooper (1978). (photo top right: Reynolds’ boots and below left cowboy hat)

Reynolds’ roles ranging from Southern heartthrob to comedic tough guy as well as his famous moustache and playful macho persona would contribute greatly to his iconography but it would be his role as Bo "Bandit" Darville in Smokey and the Bandit (Universal Pictures, 1977) that made Reynolds king of the box office and a 1970s and 1980s pop culture icon. Starring opposite Sally Field and written and directed by the legendary stuntman Hal Needham, the comedic action film grossed $126 million and spawned a film franchise as well as boffo sales of the Pontiac Trans-Am that his character Bandit drives in the film. Reynolds went on to star in The Cannonball Run (20th Century Fox, 1981), the fun, high octane film that spawned another franchise and other films including, Sharky's Machine (Warner Bros., 1981), one of many films and television shows which he also directed, all of which made Reynolds Hollywood’s No. 1 box-office attraction from 1978-1982.

Reynolds demonstrated his romantic comedy side in Starting Over (Paramount Pictures, 1979) opposite Jill Clayburgh and Candice Bergen; The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (Universal Pictures, 1982) with Dolly Parton; Best Friends (Warner Bros., 1982) with Goldie Hawn and The Man Who Loved Women (1983) with Julie Andrews. He earned People's Choice Awards in 1979, 1982 and 1983 as all-around male entertainer of the year and won an Emmy award for his role as Woodrow "Wood" Newton, a former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback who returns to his hometown to coach high school football in the 1990-94 CBS sitcom Evening Shade. In 1998, Reynolds won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor in his portrayal of porn film producer Jack Horner in the film "Boogie Nights," and earned an Oscar nomination for the role.

In addition to his renowned career as one of Hollywood’s most popular leading men, Reynolds also made his mark as a director, producer, author and philanthropist who founded the Burt Reynolds Institute for Film & Theatre in his home state of Florida. Reynolds was cast in the upcoming film "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood," directed by Quentin Tarantino but had not yet started shooting his appearance in the film at the time of his death. Reynolds died at the age of 82 on September 6, 2018 in Jupiter, Florida.

One of the top highlights of the auction event will be a 1979 Pontiac Trans Am built by Bandit Movie Cars and owned before his death by Burt Reynolds and his business partner Gene Kennedy. The spectacular vehicle, synonymous with Reynolds’ iconic character “Bandit” from one of the top box office road movie franchises of all time Smokey and the Bandit, is estimated at $300,000 - $500,000 (photo above right taken by Melvin Kennedy.

Other highlights include an oil on canvas portrait of Burt Reynolds' favorite horse titled "Cartouche," (estimate: $20,000-$30,000) (photo left); Reynolds’ three western style armchairs each monogrammed with "BR" (estimate: $1,200-$1,800) (photo right above); a poker table with four Jacobean style chairs (estimate: $1,500-$2500): a western style office desk decorated with four squares of Walt La Rue cowboy drawings on canvas (estimate: $3,000-$5,000); a Gunsmoke commemorative belt buckle labeled "Quint/Gunsmoke; " (photo left below) a black wool tuxedo with a label reading "Cotroneo/Costume/ Burt Reynolds" (estimate: $1,000-$2,000); a black Eddy cowboy hat in black leather with stone-adorned hatband with stage make-up evident on the inner band (estimate: $500-$700); a colorful "Evening Shade," billiards lamp (estimate: $400-$600); a pair of black and yellow leather cowboy boots (estimate: $800-$1,200); other artwork including a huge oil on canvas portrait of Burt Reynolds dated 1984 (estimate: $800-$1,200), two of Reynolds’ Smokey and the Bandit original working scripts from the film, one of which is signed by Reynolds (each estimated $2,000 - $4,000); "Outzs' with Evening Stars," oil on canvas by Dean Gioia, which either Burt Reynolds or another person overpainted "Ouzts Oyster Bar" to read "Quints Oyster Bar," after Burt Reynolds' character Quint Asper in Gunsmoke (estimate: $1,000-2,000), a portrait of Burt Reynolds, oil on canvas by Al Shelton (estimate: $2,000-$4,000), "Cowboy Nurse," a 2015 watercolor on paper by Buck Taylor, an artist who was also an actor in Gunsmoke (estimate: $1,000-$2,000), his tall case clock gifted from Smokey and the Bandit co-star Jerry Reed, monogrammed cane, long horns and more to be announced.

“Burt Reynolds was a true American icon whose larger than life persona, style and swagger epitomized the very definition of masculinity,” said Darren Julien, President/Chief Executive Officer of Julien’s Auctions. “We are honored to be working with his family in curating this exceptional collection of his most iconic items that could now be owned and cherished by a lucky few of his millions of fans around the world.”