Few, if any, sneakers are more legendary than the Nike Mag, the self-lacing sneaker worn by Marty McFly in the beloved film “Back to the Future Part II.”
The most memorable sneaker in film history was already hard enough to come by in the versions Nike released in 2011 and 2016, but the holiest grail of all for sneaker and movie fans was just sold on eBay, an original Mag produced for the 1989 film. The astounding price it sold for: $92,100.
Originally a fictional sneaker made only for the film, the Mag became a reality in 2011 when Nike released 1,510 pairs via eBay and live in-store auctions to benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation, which sponsors Parkinson’s Disease research. The 2011 version was not equipped with power laces (the original pairs in the film didn’t have power laces, either), but the innovators at the brand realized their long-standing dream of the amazing self-lacing technology for the 2016 version, producing 89 pairs that were also auctioned off to benefit the foundation.
The famous sneaker was back in the headlines recently when a single shoe produced for the film went up for auction on eBay, posted by seller Shoezeum. Despite the sneaker’s highly deteriorated state, with all of the foam in the midsole and heel piece crumbling to pieces and the ankle strap completely detached, the auction for the extremely rare piece of footwear and film history ended at over $90,000 on Sunday night. It’s apparent that some collector out there has very deep pockets.
Watch on FN
During the auction, former Nike employee Tiffany Beers, who helped develop the self-lacing technology, appeared with Shoezeum founder Jordy Geller in a video to discuss the rare sneaker and how it was acquired. You can watch the full video below.
