April 8, 2000
Greetings Accumulators!
I love it when the weatherman gets it wrong! Today was supposed to be
rainy and cold in The Big Apple - and it's a beautiful day. So, I'm going
to write to you and then Artie and I are going to hit the road.
FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF I'M SO PROUD OF DAVE!
David Maloney, ISA, CAPP (Yes, we know he's important because he has half
the alphabet following his name), publisher of "Maloney's Antiques and
Collectibles Resource Directory", Chief Appraisal Officer of The Collecting
Channel.com, TV personality on "Treasures In Your Home", past President of
The International Society of Appraisers, devoted husband and father and
stalwart friend, has just been presented with ISA's Lifetime Achievement
Award, for almost twenty years of distinguished service. You may think that
this is just another one of those boring and stuffy awards, but Dave's
impact on the collecting world has affected all of you, Dear Accumulators,
as well as myself. He has labored long and hard to help elevate this hobby
and business to the level of professionalism it deserves, while ensuring it
remains exciting and fun. Congrats, David!
VE HAFF VAYS UFF MAKING YOU TALK DEPARTMENT
World War II buffs will remember the Enigma machine, that Nazi coding
machine used to send messages, that was eventually foiled by British spies,
who figured out the code and helped to win the war for the Allies in the
Atlantic. Someone has stolen the machine, believed to be one of only three
in existence, from Bletchley Park in London, formerly the spy center, and
now a museum. Here's the interesting part: it seems there's a growing
interest in World War II memorabilia, and authorities suspect that this
machine was stolen in order to sell it on the (illegal) collectibles
market. It is believed to be a special model used by elite SS units,
police told the London Times, and worth more than $160,000 on the secret
street. Let's hope it doesn't turn up in a trash bin in Los Angeles.
SPORTS MEMORABILIA GETS FLUSHED AGAIN
Amid a growing public awareness that lots of sports collectibles are
nothing but hype or fantasy, what was supposed to be a high-ticket sports
memorabilia auction fell on its face this week. The much ballyhooed Joe
Dimaggio sale at Christie's failed to earn even minimum bids on most of the
98 lots of his personal items. As I've been advising people for the last
couple of years, if you're hoping to send the kids to college on your
investments, don't put your money into sports memorabilia.
AND NOW FOR THE COMBO PLATE
The themes of today's newsletter, Dear Accumulators, seem to be stolen
collectibles and sports memorabilia. And now, for the ultimate article: a
combination of the two. It seems that two of Mike Tyson's title belts had
been stolen from a storage locker in Las Vegas. The alleged thief has now
returned the belts, via his attorney to Tyson's "people". And what, pray
tell, prompted William Eaddy, a former Tyson employee, to give them back?
Perhaps it was the realization that he will never be a rocket scientist.
The belts were being offered for sale on eBay, at $50,000 each. Eaddy,
cooling his heels in an Albany jail after being charged with burglary in
the affair, is probably still trying to figure out how they knew he did it.
Accumulators, the weatherman assures me it will, indeed, turn into a
horrible day later. So, Artie and I are off to enjoy whatever we can
before it becomes ugly. Hope the weather is lovely where you are, and that
the garage sale and yard sale finds are astounding. Oh, one more thing. I
wasn't going to mention this, but what the heck. I'm going to be trying my
hand ( and my mouth) at stand-up comedy Wednesday night, April 12, at The
Lamb's Theatre on West 44th St. in NYC. If you're in the nabe, stop by and
say "hi!" It's free. Happy hunting!
Best,
Judith
© 2000 Judith Katz-Schwartz. All rights reserved.
Antiques and Collectibles Newsletter #115
U.S. Library of Congress
ISSN 1520-4464
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