Mr. Hagman, 79, trotted down Wilshire Boulevard here on Thursday evening, alighting at Julien’s Auctions, across the street from Saks Fifth Avenue. Yes, he was on horseback. Joining him was Linda Gray, 70, who played his vodka-swilling wife, Sue Ellen, on that 1980s-era drama. The pair got a motorcycle escort by the Beverly Hills Police Department.
Odd? A little, perhaps. But Southern California, sophisticated as it may have become, remains show business country — a place where the bizarre is just part of business. Mr. Hagman’s dramatic arrival was part of a preview event for Julien’s Saturday sale of his stash of memorabilia and estate items, many from his days on “Dallas.”
Inside the auction house, potential bidders inspected the goods while eating cubed cheese and scooping guacamole from giant martini glasses. The holy grail, at least for hard-core fans, appeared to be the oil painting of the family patriarch, Jock Ewing, that once hung in the Southfork living room. (Estimated price: $2,000 to $3,000.)
Mr. Hagman, his eyes twinkling, said the horses were his idea. “They came to me in a dream,” he said.
Why is he selling? “There comes a time, even in J. R. Ewing’s life,” he said, “when you have to downsize.” Besides, he added, even with 413 items on the auction block, “I have more left at home than I know what to do with.”
As the “Dallas” theme song trumpeted, Charlene Tilton, the actress who played J. R.’s ne’er-do-well niece Lucy, stood nearby and lamented her lack of forethought about collectibility. “I didn’t save a damn thing,” she said.
Just then, two not-so-convincing drag queens walked by, sending mouths agape. “You never know who’s going to be a ‘Dallas’ fan,” Ms. Tilton said brightly. As it turns out, the two sometimes do security work for Julien’s (as men) and were thus invited.
But Ms. Tilton’s point was that “Dallas” was not just any show. Broadcast on CBS from 1978 to 1991, the series at times seemed to power the era’s culture, celebrating personal wealth and the shoulder pads that came with it. About 84 million Americans tuned in to find out who shot J. R. in 1980, an audience that remains one of the largest in TV history.
The lasting fan base is one reason that TNT and Warner Brothers are working on a “Dallas” reboot centered on the next generation of the Ewing clan. Mr. Hagman and Ms. Gray both appeared in the recently completed pilot.
“We love the ‘Dallas,’ ” said one Eastern European tourist who came running down the street upon spotting Mr. Hagman (and who insisted she was too busy snapping photos to give her name).
“I Dream of Jeannie,” Mr. Hagman’s 1960s comedy, shows up in the sale: a reproduction of that show’s signature purple bottle, priced at about $1,500. Mr. Hagman’s mother, Mary Martin, is represented with “Peter Pan” ephemera and stage costumes. But many items are furnishings from Mr. Hagman’s homes, like a taxidermy coiled snake, with exposed fangs and rattle, $150.
“This is somebody who has a global fan base,” said Darren Julien, owner of the auction house. “All of these things are very marketable.”
Not everyone was so sure outside Julien’s, which occupies a stately corner near Rodeo Drive. A man in a silver Mercedes stopped and, rolling down his window, inquired about the commotion.
“You mean, people are actually waiting in line to see Larry Hagman? Now I’ve seen everything,” he said before speeding off.