Michael Jordan's personalized "To Kill A Mockingbird" book by Harper Lee hits the market at $24,000
Michael Jordan's celebrity status means that he likely has countless personalized artifacts in his possession. Authors, artists, musicians, and other celebrities have likely signed copies of their greatest work for Jordan due to his popularity.
According to TMZ, one of Jordan's personalized collections is now up for sale. In 1995, Harper Lee sent the Chicago Bulls star a personalized copy of 'To Kill a Mocking Bird,' with a message and her signature.
When Jordan and his then-wife Juanita Vanoy divorced, Vanoy obtained the book as part of their settlement. A private collector then purchased the signed copy. The book is now on sale at 'Moments in Time' and is being valued at $24 thousand.
Given the popularity of 'To Kill a Mockingbird' and the rarity of having it both signed by Harper Lee and addressed to Michael Jordan, there will undoubtedly be significant interest from around the globe.
It will be interesting to see whether Jordan looks to purchase the book for himself so he can add it back to his collection or whether he will let the memorabilia be sold to a new collector.
Michael Jordan paid Juanita Vanoy $168 million
When Michale Jordan and Juanita Vanoy got divorced, the settlement was one of the biggest in history for a sports star. Jordan paid Vanoy $168 million, along with giving up custody of their three children and their marital home in Chicago, which was valued at approximately $29 million.
"Michael and Juanita Jordan mutually and amicably decided to end their 17-year marriage," the couple said in a statement through MJ's lawyer Frederick J. Sperling. "A judgment for dissolution of their marriage was entered today. There will be no further statements."
It would appear that Vanoy also got some other items in the divorce settlement, such as the signed copy of 'To Kill a Mockingbird.'
However, Jordan bounced back from such a hefty settlement and is now valued at around $3.5 billion following the sale of his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets. Jordan also has a lifetime deal with Nike for his Jordan brand and is seen as a highly successful businessman.
Following his divorce from Vanoy, Jordan married Yvette Preito, where there is a much fairer prenuptial agreement in place that would see Preito receive $1 million for each year they had been married. However, Should the divorce occur after ten years or more, Preito would receive $5 million each year the couple was married.