Richard Gere Auctions Guitar Collection to Tune of $1 Million

He's not exactly Debbie Reynolds or the late Elizabeth Taylor, but Richard Gere is a draw at the auction house all the same.

The 62-year-old Chicago star unloaded his 100-plus guitar and amplifier collection at Christie's New York auction house Tuesday. The instruments fetched nearly $1 million.

Christie's reports a total sale of $936,438, with 102 lots of the 106-piece haul moving and the one item, a 1960 solid-body Gibson Les Paul electric guitar, going for just shy of $100,000 to a private buyer.

"I never planned to put together a collection," said Gear. "I just bought ones that I liked, the ones that sounded good and played well."

Gear, who studied trumpet and taught himself how to play piano and guitar, also parted with guitars formally owned by famous musicians such as Albert King, Peter Tosh and James D'Aquisto.

The profits from the sale, which Christie's originally estimated would sell in the vicinity of $1 million, will go to support global humanitarian causes.