Thanks for the Memorabilia

A none-too-small boatload of Bob Hope's memorabilia---including scripts (presumably, from his old-time radio years as well as film and television), props, costume items, and even a money clip from Jack Benny---will be auctioned come October, according to daughter Linda Hope.

Nearly 800 items of Hope history, from foolishness to fine art, will be sold to fans and dealers alike at a mid-October charity auction in Los Angeles commissioned by the family of the famed comedian, who died in 2003 at age 100. The auction will be televised live and online by the Auction Network, allowing viewers worldwide to participate in real time.

"Dad was a pack rat," daughter Linda Hope told The Associated Press. "He loved to collect things. Even when he wasn't conscious of collecting, people would give him things. They would be brought home, listed, photographed and placed in storage. There are 11,000 items in his memorabilia collection."

Now keeper of the family flame, Linda Hope, 68, made the first public announcement of the Bob Hope Estate Auction on a recent sunny morning at the comedian's longtime compound in North Hollywood---7 acres of mansion, office building, swimming pool, greenery and short-hole golf course. A selection of the items to be auctioned were spread atop two large tables.

"A lot of the things will go to the Library of Congress," Linda explained in a lounge where her father gave many an interview over lunch, including to this reporter. "Most of the paper goods will be going there, scripts and photographs and other things that Dad donated before he died. The Library isn't interested in three-dimensional items."

The sale, which will benefit charities and causes that were important to Hope, is being organized by Darren Julien, president of Julien's Auctions, who has arranged sales for Cher, Barbra Streisand, Ozzy Osbourne and other celebrities. He's now staging a benefit auction May 31 in New York for Music Rising, co-founded by The Edge of U2.

Hope's widow, Dolores, was recovering from a fall and not in attendance at the unveiling. Yet at 98, going on 99, she still keeps a close eye on the family business. "Mother agreed that (the auction) would be the thing to do and we got an agreement from the Library of Congress," Linda said.

"We decided that after giving important gifts to museums, there was still a lot of wonderful stuff that people could enjoy," Linda Hope said.

---Bob Thomas, Associated Press.

Old-time radio fans, of course, can have what's most important about Bob Hope any old time they choose it . . .