Gregory Peck’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ script sells for over $84K
The script actor Gregory Peck used for his role as attorney Atticus Finch in the 1962 film “To Kill a Mockingbird” has sold at auction for $84,375.
The NY POST reports Dallas-based auction house Heritage Auctions sold the 1962 leather-bound screenplay belonging to Peck on Feb. 23 as part of a larger auction of personal property from the estate of the late actor and his wife Veronique, a journalist and philanthropist.
The couple’s children Anthony and Cecilia Peck Voll made an assortment of their parents’ memorabilia available for an online and live auction last week. The auction also includes a 35th-anniversary copy of the 1960 novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” personally autographed and gifted to the Pecks by author Harper Lee. Other items include photos, film scripts, clothing, awards and art, such as a bespoke pair of Gregory Peck’s brown leather John Lobb monk-strap shoes and pieces by artists Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Raoul Dufy.
Harper Lee once said the role of Atticus Finch gave Gregory Peck the chance to play himself, Anthony Peck told the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Tribune News Service), noting that his father embodied Finch in real life.
Peck won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Finch in 1962.
Anthony Peck told the San Diego Union-Tribune that it was difficult for him and his sister to part their parents’ items.
“We had my dad all of his life and all of our lives. He was so loved and respected. We wanted to make some of these most meaningful things available,” said Peck.
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the auction items will be donated to World Central Kitchen.
The Pecks were known for their community work and philanthropy. Gregory Peck often returned to his native La Jolla in San Diego during the summer to work with the La Jolla Playhouse as an artistic director and to support the acting community. In the late 1960s, Veronique Peck also raised $50,000 through a fashion show to benefit the Inner City Repertory theater, a South Los Angeles center that introduced teens to the arts.
Anthony Peck and Cecilia Peck Voll have also donated a number of their parents’ items to the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.