A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging the ownership of a blue and white gingham dress worn by Judy Garland in 1939’s “The Wizard of Oz” that Catholic University of America in D.C. plans to auction.
Catholic University has said Father Gilbert Hartke, the founder of the school’s drama program, accepted the gift on behalf of the school in 1973. The dress was misplaced for years, but was discovered in a shoe box in 2021, years after Hartke’s death in 1986.
In May 2022, one day before the university and Bonham’s auction house’s planned offering to the highest bidder, the auction was halted by a federal judge in New York City, when a niece of Hartke filed suit, asserting her family owned the dress, rather than the university.
Now, Judge Paul Gardephe has ruled Barbara Hartke has failed to establish that she had legal standing to claim ownership to the Dorothy dress.
Father Hartke had received the dress from actress Mercedes McCambridge, a close confidant of Judy Garland, according to Gardephe’s opinion, which was issued Monday. Hartke had counseled McCambridge — an artist-in-residence at Catholic, at the time — regarding alcohol and substance abuse.
After Hartke’s death, the blue pinafore dress with a white blouse was lost for decades. Catholic has said the dress was discovered in 2021 in storage on the university campus, among Hartke’s belongings.
In March 2022, the university entered a consignment agreement, to have Bonhams auction the dress.
But now, Gardephe said Barbara Hartke has not demonstrated “that she is authorized to bring a claim on behalf of the estate, she lacks standing to bring this action, and her claims must be dismissed.”
However, Gardephe gave Barbara Hartke 10 days to argue why he shouldn’t lift the injunction that has blocked the auction since May 2022.
Contacted by WTOP, Barbara Hartke’s attorney, Anthony Scordo said he intends to challenge the judge’s dismissal within the allotted 10 days.
Scordo said his client “has yet to be appointed estate representative, primarily because of a backlog in D.C. Probate Court resulting from the pandemic.” He said “we intend to attempt to expedite the probate process and take back the Dorothy dress once she is formally appointed.”
“Simply put, there is not a shred of evidence that Father Hartke ever gave the Dress to Catholic, and they have no right to his family’s property. None,” Scordo wrote in an email.
In a statement to WTOP, a spokesperson for Catholic University said the institution is “very encouraged and pleased ” the motion to dismiss was granted, and it hopes to reach the case’s end in the coming weeks.
