A prop enthusiast is sharing details about the stunts in “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.”
During a recent interview with Fox News Digital, Brandon Allinger, the chief operating officer of Propstore and Treasure Hunt, shared how he came into possession of the iconic fedora Harrison Ford wore in the second installment of the Indiana Jones franchise.
Gaining possession of the fedora, which he expects will sell for a minimum of $250,000, happened purely by chance, as he and his team happened to come into contact with stunt performer Dean Ferrandini when researching a jacket worn by a stunt performer in the movie. After a “lengthy research process,” he and his team were able to photo match the hat using stills from the movie, which is the “gold standard of authentication.”
“Obviously, in this one you have direct provenance. You know exactly where it came from. The guy worked on the film. Everything stacks up there,” he explained. “But to be able to go and place it specifically in photos and in screenshots, it really adds something to the collector’s interests and then accordingly to the value as well.”
‘INDIANA JONES’ STARS HARRISON FORD, KAREN ALLEN, KE HUY QUAN: WHERE ICONIC CAST IS NOW
‘INDIANA JONES’ STARS HARRISON FORD, KAREN ALLEN, KE HUY QUAN: WHERE ICONIC CAST IS NOW
Allinger is currently gearing up for an auction featuring many iconic props from various movies, including more items from “Temple of Doom.” Also up for auction is a Sankara stone, beetles that were eaten during the banquet sequence in the temple, a mechanical rat, and paperwork and production notes from the set, which he expects will start at $1,000 to $2,000.
Through gathering props and researching the different films, Allinger has learned a fair share of movie magic tidbits from the set of many films, one of them being the fact that real and mechanical rats were used during the filming of “Temple of Doom.”
WATCH: COO OF PROP STORE AND TREASURE HUNTER SHARES HOW HE GOT HARRISON FORD’S HAT FROM ‘INDIANA JONES’
“Sometimes you learn about cut scenes,” he explained. “I think we have another piece in the auction that is specifically from a cut scene in ‘Temple of Doom.’ It ties back to that same banquet scene that they use the beetles for. It’s like a big pig roast dish that they made for that film. I think you actually see it in the behind the scenes photo, but it’s not in the movie. They always shoot more than what makes the final edit, and sometimes it’s fun to see what they were thinking, but didn’t wind up in the film.”
Because Allinger gathered much of his information from stunt performers on the set of the different movies, much of the information he receives is about the stunts and the stunt performers.
Allinger was surprised to learn there was more than one stunt performer who took on Ford’s stunts, explaining that in addition to Vic Anderson, “a legend of the stunt industry,” they also used performer Dean Bandini, who Allinger said is “not a household name” when it comes to stunt doubles.
“I don’t know that you always get set secrets from film props, but I think really what you do get is just, a peek behind the curtain at kind of the magic, the magician’s tricks, if you will, and how they’re doing things,” he said. “That, for me, is always the most interesting part.”
In addition to “Indiana Jones,” the auction will also feature items from many other popular films, including “Star Wars.” One of the biggest props from the set of “Star Wars” is a biker scout helmet, with Allinger telling Fox News Digital, “As far as we know, it’s the only genuine film use biker scout helmet that’s ever come to public auction.”
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“It’s also known as the Scout Trooper, and it’s just a gorgeous helmet. It has a cool face that flips up on the front of it. Instantly recognizable,” he explained. “This is a really nice example. All the original paint and decals are there. It has a great weathered finish, and we expect a lot of attention on that one.”
They are also looking to auction off lightsabers from the “Star Wars” prequels, some of which he says include a blade, as well as an astromech droid head.
Allinger is also excited about the items they have up for auction from the 1989 movie, “Batman.” From that film, they have parts of the bat suit, a hand-painted sign that reads “Gotham 200” and at least one prop belonging to Danny DeVito’s version of the Penguin. The item he is most excited about is the bat wing. As he claims, it is the only one they built for the film, and this is the first time it has ever been up for auction.
WATCH: BRANDON ALLINGER LOVES GETTING ‘A PEEK BEHIND THE CURTAIN’ OF MOVIE MAKING
“It’s six feet wide, it’s huge, and it’s fully motorized and mechanical. It has all the features that you see in the movie,” he said. “So it has the functional balloon clippers that come out and grab the balloons. It has a little remote controlled Gatling gun. It has strobe lights and running lights and the whole kit and caboodle. Batman turns his head. It’s an incredibly cool piece.”
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Other items up for grabs at the auction include Rose’s sinking coat, worn by Kate Winslet in “Titanic,” in addition to White Star dinner plates and Titanic tickets, a mask from “Scream,” costumes from “Star Trek,” Thor’s hammer, a book from “Evil Dead,” costumes from “Gladiator” and much more.
“If they wanted to knock down the shine on the mask, they put a tape on it. And then if they wanted to bring the shine back to the mask, they’d take the tape away, and they’d actually get out a little stick of chapstick, and they’d go over it with chapstick and sort of polish it up,” he said of the “Scream” mask. “And that would become the glossy version of the mask, depending on what they wanted for that specific shot. So, you know, it’s all these tiny subtleties, all these little film secrets.”
WATCH: BRANDON ALLINGER SHARES BEHIND-THE-SCENES SECRETS FROM THE SET OF ‘SCREAM’
