Celebrity psychic Uri Geller launched a range of five teddy bears at the Tenth British Bear Fair at Hove Town Hall.
Mr Geller said a teddy bear saved his life when he was a baby in Israel.
He said: "It was during the British occupation and for no apparent reason a soldier fired two sniper bullets through the window.
"My mother had placed a teddy bear called Matsko beside me moments before and it had rolled over on to my face. I owe my life to that bear."
He said he always carried a teddy bear with him as a talisman. He said: "I believe teddies have a spirit and absorb energy. They give unconditional love."
The Uri Geller bear range includes a Tarot Reader bear, which sold out within the first few hours of the fair, attended by hundreds of collectors from around the world.
The other bears, each costing £120, were called The Alchemist, The Palmist, The Fortune Teller and The Astrologer.
Collector Robin Blasdell, 47, of Fulham Close, Crawley, bought The Astrologer.
She said: "I fell in love with the face. I have only been collecting bears for about seven years but I have about 100 already."
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