COVINGTON, Ky. — What looked like just another collectible has turned into a major find for a northern Kentucky thrift shop.

“We’ve been looking at some oddity items or things that have sat around that we couldn’t find much on and couldn’t figure out what we were going to do with it. And this right here is one of those great examples,” Be Concerned, Inc. executive director Andy Brunsman said. 

What You Need To Know

  • Be Concerned, Inc. found a golden Columbia Pictures statuette in their thrift shop

  • Academy Museum of Motion Pictures said this statuette is real and was created in 1935 for the film “It Happened One Night” which won 5 Academy Awards

  • The statuette is being sent to the museum for a Clark Gable exhibit

  • Be Concerned will receive $1,000 to help with their food pantry

 

For a while now, a golden statuette has sat on the knick knacks shelf in the thrift shop for a while. Brunsman said he and others looked at the Columbia Pictures statuette and had officials with the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures verify it was real. Museum officials confirm the statue is part of a series of miniatures that Columbia Pictures had created in 1935 to mark the success of “It Happened One Night,” a film starring Clark Gable. “It Happened One Night” was the first movie to win the “Big Five” (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Writing).

“That movie really put them (Columbia Pictures) on the map of being a real deal place to produce movies and Clark Gable obviously is a huge name that also helped contribute to that cause,” Brunsman said.

Brunsman said they researched the statue and found it was more than just a common knick knack.

“We found out they might have been valuable. We found one listed online that sold in 2017 out of an auction for like over $12,000,” he said.

While Be Concerned won’t pocket $12,000, they did strike a deal with the museum. The statuette will be sent out to California to be part of a Clark Gable exhibit and the museum will contribute $1,000 to Be Concerned. Brunsman said the food pantry has seen an increase in demand of families needing help recently.

“What we’re going to do with that $1,000 is turn around and buy about 500 dozen eggs, which will help us get through half of December and the Christmas program,” he said.

He said they’d love to hear more about the story of this statuette that was given to those involved in the film.

“It came in a box to our thrift store here. Someone actually rang the doorbell and put it so it’s a local person from somewhere in northern Kentucky that film or has a family history of being part of that film,” Brunsman said.

Brunsman said Be Concerned will continue fundraising to help continue feeding those in the northern Kentucky area.