GUEST: This is a sarong that was autographed by Dorothy Lamour for the battery that my grandfather was in, in the coast artillery. The pictures show her signing the sarong, and he's in the background here. And then there's another picture of them together walking along. These pictures were taken at Fort Kamehameha, right at the entrance to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Probably just before the beginning of the United States' involvement in World War II. My grandfather was stationed there starting about 1938. They were there during the Pearl Harbor bombing. And my grandmother and my dad came home in April 1942. I have no idea how he was lucky enough to get the sarong. Maybe because he was a master sergeant and was the highest ranking enlisted personnel in the battery. I don't know for sure.
APPRAISER: Well, what a lucky guy.
GUEST: Really.
APPRAISER: You know, when we think of sexpots, we automatically think of Marilyn Monroe. But before Marilyn there was Dorothy Lamour. She was born in New Orleans. She was a ravishing beauty. And in 1936, she starred in The Jungle Princess and wore a sarong. A sarong. Which made her then the sarong girl. And she looked fabulous in a sarong. But what really propelled her to stardom was her association with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby in the "Road to..." movies. She didn't really say very much. She was just really someone in there to look beautiful. She was a marvelous star in her day, and really beloved. We always say, "Get something that shows provenance." You can't get anything better than pictures of Dorothy actually signing the sarong and this wonderful photograph of your relative with her. I think it has a value at auction of between $2,500 and $3,000.
GUEST: Wow. We think it's a very unique item, and our family loves having it.
