Arnold Schwarzenegger flexed his comedy muscles at the Stanglwirt Resort in his native Austria on Thursday, appearing at a hugely successful auction for his charity as a custom Audemars Piguet watch he donated fetched $293,000.
The watch was at the center of controversy after the Terminator star, 76, suffered an hours-long delay at Munich airport after arriving in Germany on Wednesday.
The Hollywood stalwart was unfazed by the fuss as he made a series of off-color jokes about the charity auction experience on Thursday.
‘Can you even believe that I suddenly had handcuffs on? I was in handcuffs! Not because of the watch or because of the customs office, but I had a warm night last night with my friend Heather,” he said, referring to girlfriend Heather Milligan, 49.
Schwarzenegger continued, “I mean, it’s unbelievable. The woman there at the customs office said, “If you don’t behave, I’ll put handcuffs on you.” (I said) “That’s okay, that’s a good deal because I usually pay $500 for that!”‘
Arnold Schwarzenegger, 76, flexed his comedic muscles in his native Austria on Thursday, appearing at a hugely successful auction for his charity as an Audemars Piguet watch he donated fetched $293,000. Pictured in Kitzbühel, Austria
The watch was at the center of controversy after the Terminator star, 76, suffered an hours-long delay at Munich airport after arriving in Germany on Wednesday
The FUBAR actor continued, “This was a wild experience, let me tell you. Because please, you’re trying to take this amazing watch… this very special watch.
‘Now they find it in the luggage, after which the man starts looking for a second watch. He couldn’t find it. Because I hid it. But I can’t tell you where, because I can’t sit down today.’
According to TMZMore than 350 people attended the fundraiser, where the Kindergarten Cop leading man spoke for a total of about eight minutes.
Schwarzenegger’s watch cost a total of 270,000 euros, which works out to about $293,000 in U.S. currency, the outlet reported. This suggests that the publicity surrounding the actor’s adventure at the customs office increased the initial estimated value of $100,000.
Customs spokesman Thomas Meister told the AP that the bodybuilding icon’s delay was part of a routine check-up.
According to the outlet, duties must be paid on items worth more than 430 euros ($467) left in the European Union.
Schwarzenegger’s Audemars Piguet watch, which was initially undeclared, had an estimated value of around 20,000 euros ($21,739), German newspaper Bild reported.
The Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative told the AP in a statement on Wednesday that the reason authorities arrested the former California governor was due to “traveling with a watch he owns, which he may auction at his charity auction in Kitzbühel.”
The Kindergarten Cop leading man spoke for about eight minutes in total during the fundraiser
Schwarzenegger’s watch cost a total of 270,000 euros, which is approximately $293,000 in US currency
The True Lies star “cooperated every step of the way, even though it was an incompetent shakedown,” and said he would “prepay any taxes on the watch,” despite the fact it was his personal watch, the organization said.
The organization said the watch would likely still be sold at auction and that it would “properly report it, as all Arnold nonprofits do.”
In total, approximately 1.3 million euros were raised during the event, with the record proceeds benefiting the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative organization.
Its mission statement states that it aims to raise “awareness of the climate crisis and the urgent need for action every day,” with a focus “on presenting actionable solutions, supporting best-in-class climate action projects and serving as a ‘matchmaker for climate leaders’. .”‘