Aretha Franklin items sold at auction

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LIVONIA, Mich., Nov. 19 (UPI) -- Hundreds of people attended an auction Saturday in Livonia, Mich., to bid on clothing items once belonging to soul queen Aretha Franklin.

"The first thing they attacked was the hats," Jill Pendergast, who organized the sale of items from a storage unit containing Franklin memorabilia, told WJBK-TV, Detroit.

"I love hats. To me this hat has Aretha all over it," Melissa Vogel of Clinton Township, holding the black-and-yellow hat she bought for $225, told the TV station. "It's just pretty out there but I love it so I just knew I had to get it."

Items were sold from $10 to $2,000.

"What they're basically looking for is to get a piece of Detroit history," said Al Parham, who bought the storage unit containing the memorabilia.

"Obviously, Aretha had a big impact on Detroit and the music scene in Detroit. She's still at it right now, she's looking good and still going. People want to get a piece of that history."

Unsold items were available on eBay under "Aretha's collection," WJBK-TV said.