Collection of ‘Friends’ Props and Wardrobe Pieces to Sell at Auction
By CASEY FARMER
Wed, Aug 28, 2024 10:05am
2 min
2 min
An auction of clothing, props, and decor from the hit sitcom “Friends,” will be held next month to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the show’s premiere.
The sale, which will be held by Julien’s Auctions live in Los Angeles on Sept. 23 and online, will offer 110 lots of original props, studio-made reproductions and costumes worn by stars Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc, Courtney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, and the late Matthew Perry.
Leading the auction is a studio-made reproduction of the couch from Central Perk, the coffee shop that serves as a main hangout spot in the show. The orange upholstered sofa has a price estimate between US$2,000 andUS$3,000.
Other auction highlights include one wardrobe item from each member of the main cast, which includes Rachel Green’s grey sweater from season 7’s “The One With the Truth About London”; a blue long-sleeved shirt worn by Ross Geller in season 9’s “The One with the Boob Job”; and a teal, cashmere polo-style sweater worn by Chandler Bing in season 7’s “The One with the Holiday Armadillo.”
Also up for sale are Joey Tribbiani’s brown, striped short-sleeved button-down shirt from season 10’s “The One After Joey and Rachel Kiss”; Monica Geller’s brown and tan knit top from season 9’s “The One with the Mugging”; and a blue denim coat with faux fur on the cuffs and neck and embroidered Japanese flowers worn by Phoebe Buffay in season 7’s “The One With Joey’s Award.”
Each wardrobe piece worn by the main cast has a price estimate between US$1,000 andUS$1,500.
Costumes worn by notable guest stars will also be up for sale, including a polo shirt worn by Paul Rudd, a fur-trimmed jacket worn by Christina Applegate—who plays Rachel’s sister Amy—and a bright-pink dress and coat worn by Winona Ryder. Each of these items is estimated to sell between US$600 andUS$800.
Some original props included in the auction are five “Monica’s Catering” business cards (estimate: US$100-US$200 each) and a blue metal bike used by Ross’ son Ben—played by Cole Sprouse—in the season 7 episode “The One With All the Candy” (estimate: US$500-US$700).
“Friends” first aired on Sept. 22, 1994, and ran for 10 seasons, concluding with a 2004 series finale, which is the fifth-most-watched series finale of all time and the most-watched television episode of the 2000s.
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The U.S. now has more billionaires than China for the first time in a decade, driven by AI and a booming stock market.
By ABBY SCHULTZ
Fri, Mar 28, 2025 3 min
3 min
The number of U.S. billionaires in the world reached 870 in mid-January, outpacing the number in China for the first time in 10 years, according to a snapshot of the wealthiest in the world by the Hurun Report.
The U.S. gained 70 billionaires since last year, powered by a rising stock market, a strong dollar, and the insatiable appetite for all things AI, according to the 14th annual Hurun Global Rich List . China gained nine billionaires overall for a total of 823. Hurun is a China-based research, media, and investment group.
“It’s been a good year for AI, money managers, entertainment, and crypto,” Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of the Hurun Report, said in a news release. “It’s been a tough year for luxury, telecommunications, and real estate in China.”
Overall, the Hurun list—which reflects a snapshot of global wealth based on calculations made Jan. 15—counted 3,442 billionaires in the world, up 5%, or 163, from a year ago. Their total wealth rose 13% to just under $17 trillion.
In November, New York research firm Altrata reported that the billionaire population rose 4% in 2023 to 3,323 individuals and their wealth rose 9% to $12.1 trillion.
Elon Musk, CEO of electric-car maker Tesla and right-hand advisor to President Donald Trump, topped the list for the fourth time in five years, with recorded wealth of $420 billion as of mid-January as Tesla stock soared in the aftermath of the U.S. election, according to Hurun’s calculations.
The firm noted that Musk’s wealth has since nosedived about $100 billion, falling along with shares of Tesla although the EV car maker is benefiting on Thursday from Trump’s 25% tariff on cars made outside the U.S.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk’s wealth stood at about $336 billion as of the market’s close on Wednesday, although measuring his exact wealth —including stakes in his privately held companies and the undiscounted value of his Tesla shares—is difficult to precisely determine.
The overall list this year contained 387 new billionaires, while 177 dropped off the list—more than 80 of which were from China, Hurun said. “China’s economy is continuing to restructure, with the drop-offs coming from a weeding out of healthcare and new energy and traditional manufacturing, as well as real estate,” Hoogewerf said in the release.
Among those who wealth sank was Colin Huang, the founder of PDD Holdings —the parent company of e-commerce platforms Temu and Pinduoduo—who lost $17 billion.
Also, Zhong Shanshan, the founder and chair of the Nongfu Spring beverage company and the majority owner of Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise , lost $8 billion from “intensifying competition” in the market for bottled water. The loss knocked Zhong from his top rank in China, which is now held by Zhang Yiming founder of Tik-Tok owner Bytedance. Zhang is ranked No. 22 overall.
Hurun’s top 10 billionaires is a familiar group of largely U.S. individuals including Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Larry Ellison. The list has France’s LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault in seventh place, three notches down from his fourth ranked spot on the Bloomberg list, reflecting a slump in luxury products last year.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is ranked No. 11 on Hurun’s list as his wealth nearly tripled to $128 billion through Jan. 15. Other AI billionaires found lower down on the list include Liang Wenfeng, 40, founder and CEO of DeepSeek, with wealth of $4.5 billion and Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, with $1.8 billion.
Also making the list were musicians Jay-Z ($2.7 billion), Rihanna ($1.7 billion), Taylor Swift ($1.6 billion), and Paul McCartney ($1 billion). Sports stars included Michael Jordan ($3.3 billion), Tiger Woods ($1.7 billion), Floyd Mayweather ($1.3 billion), and LeBron James ($1.3 billion).
Wealth continues to surge across the globe, but Hoogewerf noted those amassing it aren’t overly generous.
“We only managed to find three individuals in the past year who donated more than $1 billion,” he said. Warren Buffet gave $5.3 billion, mainly to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, while Michael Bloomberg —ranked No. 19 with wealth of $92 billion—gave $3.7 billion to various causes. Netflix founder Reed Hastings, ranked No. 474 with wealth of $6.2 billion, donated $1.1 billion.
