ABC News April 23, 2018

Michael Jackson's moonwalk shoes up for auction

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A piece of Michael Jackson's legacy is up for auction: the very shoes he wore the first time he moonwalked on stage.

"The bidding is already well over $10,000," Brigitte Kruse, a curator with GWS Auctions, told ABC News in a statement.

GWS Auctions
Michael Jackson's black loafers that he wore when performing the moonwalk onstage for the first time will be auctioned off by GWS Auctions.

The King of Pop wore the black loafers during rehearsals for the "Motown 25" TV special in 1983, Kruse said.

"The shoes were given to choreographer and dancer Lester Wilson by Jackson after rehearsing with his brothers," Kruse added.

Larry Busacca/WireImage/Getty Images
Michael Jackson performs in concert circa 1991 in New York City.

The shoes were kept in a private collection for many years, and GWS Auctions also had them examined by several experts to verify the authenticity, Kruse said.

The shoes are a size 9 1/2.

A preview of the auction begins May 26 at the Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, and bidding will be open online.

Kevin Mazur/WireImage/Getty Images
Michael Jackson performs at the 12th Annual MTV Movie Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Sept. 7, 1995.