Costumes from hit series "Dallas" sold in Paris

PARIS (Reuters) - Stetson hats, suede fringes and cowboy belt buckles worn in the iconic 1980s U.S. television series 'Dallas' went under the hammer on Tuesday as former cast members emptied their closets for a charity auction.

The three dozen articles of clothing worn during the shooting of the internationally popular show fetched 12,500 euros ($17,000), an organizer from Artcurial auction house on the smart Champs Elysees boulevard announced after the sale.

Some of the 200 people packing the hall rushed up the aisles to take pictures of former cast members Larry Hagman, Linda Gray, Patrick Duffy, Steve Kanaly, and Charlene Tilton, who opened the sale to the French version of the show's theme tune.

A white Stetson hat belonging to Hagman, 75, who once played cunning and philandering oil baron J.R. Ewing, raked in the most money for a single item -- 1,300 euros.

"It's my favorite hat," Hagman said before throwing autographed fake dollar bills to the crowd.

Organizers said profits made off the memorabilia from the Texas tale of wealth, greed, and betrayal would go to a charity for sick children based in the southwestern city of Toulouse.

Dozens of die-hard French fans had to be restrained by bodyguards as they crowded around the actors as they left the auction house.

The 357-episode series ran in the prime time evening slot from 1978 to 1991 in the United States and became a global hit, translated into dozens of languages.