March 31, 2000
Greetings Accumulators!
It's a perfectly lovely Spring day here in The Big Apple so, before I find
an excuse to be out there instead of in here working, I'm happy to take a
few moments for an early morning chat with you. Here in the Northeast,
Spring means an explosion of garage sales, yard sales, tag sales. Out
comes the loupe on the long red ribbon, the one that leaves my hands free
for digging around in boxes and under tables.
FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF TAKING THREE YEARS TO CATCH UP
The Antiques Roadshow has "fired" two of its appraisers for allegedly
staging an appraisal in 1997. The quotation marks are there because
Roadshow appraisers are not paid. They are on the show to promote their
businesses, which are credited during the broadcast. The two appraisers,
Russ Pritchard and George Juno, brought someone on the show with a
Confederate army sword. WGBH, the producer of Roadshow, says the
appraisers pretended not to know the person who brought the sword on the
show, although he was a friend of Pritchard's and the sword had been
borrowed from one of George Juno's clients. The friend pretending to be
the owner of the sword said he'd found it in an attic. He also said he
used it to slice watermelons. Since nothing is actually sold on the
Roadshow, I can only surmise that Pritchard and Juno were seeking to
promote and publicize the value of the sword so Juno's client could sell
it. WGBH's announcement about the whole affair was clearly an effort to
let the public know it can depend on the show's integrity. This is not the
first brouhaha on The Antiques Roadshow involving allegedly shady dealings
by one of its appraisers. In fact, an earlier incident involved a lawsuit
against one of the appraisers, also regarding Civil War memorabilia. No
word on the disposition of the Confederate sword. Or the watermelons.
GENDER CONFUSION FOR MODERN PERSONS DEPARTMENT
In Nebraska, they honor their first ladies by displaying dolls wearing
their inaugural gowns, in their First Ladies display. However, Kay Orr,
the first female elected governor in the U.S., happens to be married to a
man (not trying to be difficult, I'm sure. It just worked out that way).
Of course, there were no First Man dolls available, just a whole bunch of
ceramic First Lady dolls, and I'm assuming Governor Orr's husband, William
D. Orr, if he has any cross-dressing proclivities, did not exhibit them on
Inaugural Day, so there probably was no gown to display. I wouldn't blame
Mr. Orr for refusing to be depicted by, say, a Ken doll (the worst
boyfriend of all time, and a well-known commitment-phobic. Sheesh! After
35 years or so, where's the ring, Ken?). So, a special man-mold had to be
constructed, and dressed in a replica of Mr. Orr's Inaugural tuxedo. It is
now in the First Ladies display, along with 31 First Lady dolls, in the
Nebraska Governor's mansion. Word is that Mr. Orr found the whole situation
mildly amusing.
MAYBE THE AIR IN CALIFORNIA AFFECTS THE BRAINS OF WOULD-BE THIEVES
In an event that echoes last week's behavior by the individuals who stole
55 Oscar statuettes, the thief who took a $50,000 19th century Russian
dagger from the Queen Mary in Long Beach apparently dumped it near a phone
booth in Hollywood, after phoning the LAPD anonymously to tell them where
it could be found. The artifact, part of an exhibit of gifts given to the
last Czar of Russia, and on loan from the Russian Museum of Ethnography in
St. Petersburg, is an 11 inch curved-blade dagger encrusted with rubies
and turquoises. A local television station aired the story of the theft,
along with a picture of the dagger. It must have slowly dawned on the
thief that the item might be difficult to fence, or to drop off at the
local pawn shop. The knife was found in an envelope marked "Handle With
Care". How considerate.
SITE TO SEE
Gaga for Gonder - I find myself growing ever more respectful and
appreciative of American art pottery. The more I learn, the more I love
it. If you'd like to learn more about some exquisite and tough to find
American pottery, click on over to The Gonder Museum .
You'll find a comprehensive
reference and price guide here for some very beautiful pottery.
Accumulators, I am going to go outside now. On Saturday, I'll be at the
Spectrum Auction Gallery Show in Philadelphia, doing free appraisals of
antiques and collectibles (no weapons!) from 12 noon to 4PM. If you're in
the nabe, stop by and say "hi"! And bring money. My favorite auctioneer,
at The Old Red Barn in Cuddebackville, NY is having a wonderful auction on
Saturday night, and I'm so sorry I won't be back in time to attend. The
sale features some beautiful Stickley furniture and pristine Maxfield
Parrish prints, along with great primitives and other really great
furniture. If you can't go either, and you want to leave an absentee bid,
you can phone Vince or Ron at (914)754-7122. Have a great week,
Accumulators. Happy hunting!
Best,
Judith
© 2000 Judith Katz-Schwartz. All rights reserved.
Antiques and Collectibles Newsletter #114
U.S. Library of Congress
ISSN 1520-4464
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