Joe Maddalena is Executive Vice President of Music and Entertainment for Heritage Auctions.

Joseph “Joe” Maddalena joined Heritage Auctions as Executive Vice President in January 2021 following an unparalleled 35-year track record of success as the founder of Profiles in History, which he built into the world’s largest auctioneer of coveted Hollywood memorabilia and popular culture keepsakes. Some of the iconic items he brought to market included Luke Skywalker’s light saber, Dorothy’s ruby slippers, Indiana Jones’ whip and Peter Fonda’s Easy Rider chopper, along with the 2011 Debbie Reynolds auction that was highlighted by Marilyn Monroe’s Seven Year Itch “subway dress” realizing $5.52 million.

Born into a family of antiques dealers in Rhode Island, Joe learned early on how to turn his passion for collecting historical autographs into a career. Upon graduation from Pepperdine, he made the decision to become a full-time dealer of historical documents, and opened his first office in 1985. Profiles in History now owns virtually every Guinness Book record for prices of original screen-used memorabilia. Joe is a lifetime member of the Manuscript Society and is widely recognized as the nation’s leading authority on entertainment memorabilia and historical documents. In addition, he starred for three seasons in Syfy’s Hollywood Treasure, which gave viewers an inside look at the world of showbiz and pop culture memorabilia.

Joe brings deep and long-lasting relationships with major collectors in a myriad fields, as well as an encyclopedic knowledge of multiple categories such as nature and science, rare books and wine. His years of experience in these numerous categories and expansive role at Heritage will allow him to serve clients far more efficiently and effectively than ever.