As a teenager in Washington State in the 1990s, it was required that I be a huge fan of Seattle grunge music. Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, The Melvins, Pearl Jam… they were all required listening. More so, perhaps, than actual school work. (Do my required reading of The Great Gatsby, or listen to Nevermind again? Not a difficult choice.)
As we all know, the thrill of the music was overshadowed by tragedy, as both Kurt Cobain of Nirvana and Layne Staley of Alice in Chains died young.
We’ve covered on this blog the van that once belonged to The Melvins. Cobain drove the band around in it before his own band hit it big. The Melvan, as that 1972 Dodge Sportsman is known, was for sale for $100,000 not long ago. It didn’t sell, was relisted at $50,000 and still hasn’t found a home.
Apparently the market for old beater vans isn’t very hot, even with a connection to a rock legend.
If the Melvan didn’t sell, would a 2000 Pontiac Firebird Trans-Am with the high performance package and a 6-speed manual that once belonged to Layne Staley?
At an Alice in Chains fan forum in January, an employee of the band announced the Pontiac was for sale:
The car is a 2000 Pontiac Firebird Trams Am with 26,000 miles on it. It is fully loaded with T-Tops and the Ram Air and WS6 package upgrades with dual leather electronic controlled bucket seats, stereo upgrade package with a trunk mounted 12 disc changer. 6 speed Transmission. there are many options on this car that Layne personally ordered from the factory. [sic]
There was no mention of price, just an invitation to begin bidding. Within a month another announcement was made that the car had found a home. The proud new owner posted the picture above.
Would you pay any extra for a used car just because it was once owned, or driven by, a celebrity?
-tgriffith
If it was owned by Layne Staley; I would give a organ for the car!
What a lucky gal.
Huge AIC fan, and huge Pontiac/Firebird fan;
Had I known about this, I would have put in a bid, but alas, I missed the boat.
I hope the current owner enjoys the car, and takes care of it – I know I would.
the act of ownership rarely imparts any extra value unless you can connect it very intimately with what made the celebrity a celebrity in the first place. Which is more valuable, a rusty old Beetle that belonged to Mickey Dolenz or the Monkeemobile? I’m sure you could find dozen of personal items like clothing owned by movie stars but screen-worn costumes from famous films are very valuable. Ditto for a stock rolls royce driven by Zsa Zsa is not likely more valuable than any other, although the one she was driving when she got arrested for slappig a cop might have extra value. Is that old Lincoln limo worth more if it was the one Kennedy was in when he was assassinated in Dallas? How about that old GM bus that Rosa Parks was riding?