|
Auctionbytes-NewsFlash, Number 750 - April 29, 2004 - ISSN 1539-5065
Previous Story |
| Next Story
Wedding Dress Guy Breaks eBay Record with 6 Million Hits
By Ina Steiner
AuctionBytes.com
April 29, 2004
|
A guitar player in a band called The Buzzcuts made eBay history this week when he auctioned his ex-wife's wedding dress. Larry Star, who said he had no idea his auction would get so much attention, started the bidding at $1. "I’m selling it hoping to get enough money for maybe a couple of Mariners tickets and some beer," he wrote in the auction, along with an offbeat tale that revealed bitter feelings toward his ex-wife.
People began posting links to the auction on discussion forums and emailing it to friends. Star, a burly tattooed fellow, posed in the auction photos wearing the dress with his face whited out, "not to protect the ex-wife but to protect me from my bar buddies and co-workers finding out about it." He revised the auction periodically to answer questions sent to him by potential bidders and reported he had received three marriage proposals.
The auction gained the attention of the media, with Star appearing on the Today television show and CNBC. eBay's Dean of Education Jim "Griff" Griffith, whose radio show airs on Tuesdays, made a special "breaking news" segment on Wednesday to interview the eBay seller.
According to Griff, the wedding dress auction broke all eBay records for number of views with close to 6 million hits. "I've never seen anything come close to a million," Griff said. Star told Griff he hopes to get an appearance on Leno or Letterman, and is developing a Web site called WeddingDressGuy.com. (Star had revised his listing to include an announcement of the site and the URL TheeBayWeddingDressGuy.com. He later removed it. Sellers are not allowed to include links in their auction descriptions.)
Many media outlets picked up the story, and the counter continues to climb with over 6 million hits on Wednesday evening. During the course of the auction, the price reached exorbitant amounts from nuisance bidding, forcing Star to limit the sale to pre-approved bidders. The auction closed Wednesday with a final selling price of $3,850.
|
Email this story to a friend.
Previous Story |
| Next Story
Related Stories
eBay Auction Has Your Number - February 16, 2004, Issue #701
eBay Auction for 'Pop' Phone Number Is Disconnected - February 18, 2004, Issue #702
Jenny Is Now Toll-Free: Seller Puts 800-867-5309 on eBay - February 20, 2004, Issue #704
Entrepreneur Sells OperationIraqiFreedom.com on eBay - March 03, 2004, Issue #711
Does Sex Sell on eBay? - June 01, 2004, Issue #772
DotComGuy eBay Auction Ends Today - July 23, 2004, Issue #812
Kerry Edwards Holds Online Auction for KerryEdwards.com - July 26, 2004, Issue #813
It's Murder on eBay - October 07, 2004, Issue #864
Disneyland Holds 'Haunted Mansion' Auction on eBay - October 14, 2004, Issue #869
Healthcare Attorney Wins Disneyland Charity Auction with $37,400 Bid - October 28, 2004, Issue #879
eBay Powerseller Uses Loch Ness to Make Monster Profit - November 04, 2004, Issue #884
Flu Shots for Sale on eBay - November 15, 2004, Issue #890
Mobile Publisher Places Bet on eBay Grilled Cheese - December 01, 2004, Issue #901
Casino Gets Addicted to eBay, Gambles on Ghost - December 08, 2004, Issue #906
No Snooze for this eBay Auction: Ad Space Wins $37,375 Bid - January 25, 2005, Issue #939
GoldenPalace Makes Another Cheesy eBay Purchase - March 24, 2005, Issue #981
eBay Recipe for the Perfect Friend - April 08, 2005, Issue #992
Online Appraiser Puts Value on Al Capone's Arrest Card - April 25, 2005, Issue #1003
|
Discuss this story in our forums.
|