I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for “The Scream”

“Munch made four versions of “The Scream.” Three are now in Norwegian museums; the one that sold on Wednesday, a pastel on board from 1895, was the only one still in private hands. It was sold by Petter Olsen, a Norwegian businessman and shipping heir whose father was a friend, neighbor and patron of the artist.”

Four versions, eh? Lesson: cut those annoying friends of your parents’ some slack. Edvard Munch was a violently psychotic alcoholic who had to undergo electroshock therapy, but it was softened a bit by his resemblance to Paul Newman. (If only they’d known this in the 1880s!) The version of “The Scream” that sold Wednesday set a record at $119.9 million dollars.