Iconic booth from final scene of The Sopranos sold at auction

Tony Soprano places a quarter in the jukebox to play 'Don't Stop Believin'' and orders a starter for the table. His wife and son enter and join him for dinner, his daughter running late as she wrestles with parallel parking outside. A bell rings every time the door opens, tension escalates as Tony glances up after every chime.

What happens next has kept fans guessing since the final scene of the highly-lauded HBO series, The Sopranos, famously (or infamously, depending on your reservations) cut to black over 15 years ago. It has also kept a few of them incentivized enough to bid tens of thousands of dollars to own the diner booth where the finale was shot.

On Monday, that very same booth at a suburban New Jersey diner was sold at auction for startling $82,600.

Located in Bloomfield, NJ, Holsten's diner and ice cream parlor is preparing for renovation. With the fate of the iconic booth hanging in the balance, co-owner Chris Carley had a idea.

Last week, Carley put the maroon booth and yellow Formica tabletop up for auction on eBay, setting the opening bid at $3,000. He hoped to get $10,000 for it to help cover part of the renovation costs.

Within 24 hours, the bidding price had jumped to $52,000. By Monday, there had been over 230 bidders vying for the booth, pushing the price in excess of $82,000. The auction ended later that evening, where the booth sold for an extra $600.

 

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The sale included the furniture and the booth divider that displays a plaque reserving it for the Soprano family.

Locals, tourists and fans alike have made Holsten's a mainstay in the Bloomfield community, with countless patrons requesting to sit at the Soprano booth,. It became an casual shrine in 2013 after the actor James Gandolfini, aka Tony Soprano, died suddenly of a heart attack at 51.