An Andy Warhol portrait of Farrah Fawcett belongs to the actor Ryan O'Neal, a jury in the US has ruled, ending a fiercely contested legal battle between O'Neal and the University of Texas.
Tuesday's verdict will allow O'Neal to keep the portrait in his beachside home, where he said it remains a powerful reminder of his long relationship with Charlie's Angels star Fawcett, whodied in June 2009. Fawcett left all her artwork to the University of Texas, her alma mater, but left nothing to O'Neal, her longtime companion.
Within days of Fawcett's death, O'Neal took one of two portraits of the actress that Warhol created in 1980 from her condominium. O'Neal had the permission of the trustee of Fawcett's belongings and testified the portrait was a gift from Warhol for arranging the artist's portrait session with the model and actress.
University lawyers attempted to discredit O'Neal's ownership claims with footage from Fawcett's reality show and a "20/20" television segment documenting the creation of the portraits.
O'Neal wasn't seen in the footage, and a producer didn't recall seeing the "Love Story" star at Warhol's studio. But she also said she had no knowledge of who owned the artwork or how it was delivered.
The case featured testimony from O'Neal and several of Fawcett's close friends, who testified the actress told them that one of the portraits belonged to O'Neal. Two late witnesses – Fawcett's chiropractor and a former nurse's assistant – also backed O'Neal's claims.
The university showed jurors footage from Fawcett's reality show in which she told the owner of an auction house that she had two Warhol portraits and was considering whether to sell one. O'Neal's lawyers noted that Fawcett never said on camera that she owned both pieces of art.
The school also showed the panel documents that Fawcett signed loaning the portraits to the Andy Warhol Museum in which she is described as the owner and artist.
University lawyer David Beck urged jurors to give the school the portrait in accordance with Fawcett's wishes. "You've seen Farrah. You've heard from Farrah," Beck said on Monday in closing arguments. "Please, please, speak for her."
The portrait has been a cherished possession for O'Neal, who told jurors it is one of strongest reminders of his nearly three-decade romance with Fawcett.
"I talk to it," O'Neal testified last week. "I talk to her. It's her presence. Her presence in my life. In her son's life."
Jurors heard widely varying estimates of the portrait's value, ranging from $800,000 (£500,000) to $12m.