July 23, 1999
Greetings Accumulators!
It's hot and humid today in New York City - so what else is new? Let's see...
FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF WHO APPOINTED YOU THE LEGISLATOR OF MORALITY?
My intention had been not to mention the macabre circus imposed on us by
the media this past week. I felt that the untimely deaths of John Kennedy,
his wife and sister-in-law were a family tragedy and that, although we all
feel awful about it, we're really not entitled to share in what should be a
series of private rituals. However, it seems that some folks who acted in
bad taste (and apparent greed) by selecting this particular week to market
a JFK Jr. figurine on eBay were victimized by some other folks, who posted
phony high bids (as high as $9,000!) in an attempt to kill the transaction
by scaring away legitimate bidders. Their attempt failed, which is as it
should have been. No one, however grief stricken, has the right to
interfere with anyone else's First Amendment rights. True freedom of speech
includes the rights of those whose opinions we find repugnant, or whose
taste and sense of decorum we find lacking. The figure sold to a legitimate
bidder for $700.
And, in a sort of related story, a Florida couple has just pleaded guilty
to taking orders for Beanie Babies on the Internet, accepting the payments
for them, and then never shipping the toys. One of them, Kelly Williams,
also pleaded guilty to printing counterfeit money on - get this - her home
computer. Williams and Richard Davis are facing fines of up to $250,000
each and five year prison terms.
RELATIONSHIPS MAY COME AND GO BUT CORRESPONDENCE IS FOREVER DEPARTMENT
Lorraine Wagner, a woman who corresponded with Ronald Reagan from the time
she was a starstruck teen in 1943 until 1995, when a form letter arrived
telling her about the former U.S. President's Alzheimer's Disease, has sold
the 276 letters she received from Reagan. Wagner was once president of the
Philadelphia Ronald Reagan fan club, and visited the White House three
times. Some of Reagan's letters mentioned politics, as in 1948, when he
expressed pleasure at the election of Democratic Party nominee Harry
Truman. He also said, in 1976, that he thought Jimmy Carter was "a phony".
Ms. Wagner says she hopes the letters will wind up in Reagan's presidential
library. Apparently, no one has yet pointed out to her that she could have
realized that hope by simply donating them to the library instead of
selling them to a dealer.
WOW - WHOEVER IS THE P.R. PERSON FOR THE CITY OF CHICAGO DESERVES A RAISE!
You guys are really milking this one! Another cow-abuse story from
Chicago, lest we allow the images of their fiberglass bovines to escape our
consciousness for more than a day or two: Chicago police are paying
"special attention" to the fiberglass Cows On Parade after continued
vandalism, according to spokesman Pat Camden. Last Wednesday someone
dragged a cow from the Oak Street Beach to the pedestrian underpass beneath
Michigan Avenue, and someone removed a pair of eyeglasses from the cow
honoring the late Harry Carey, broadcaster for the Chicago Cubs. No word
on whether Harry ever expressed interest in being depicted as a cow.
DON'T MISS THIS SITE!
You have never seen anything like this before, and that's because there's
never been anything like this before. The site is called "The Century In
Shoes", and is aimed at collectors of vintage clothing and accessories.
But, whether these topics are fascinating to you, or they're a giant snore,
go to this site anyway. The incredible scope of its technical achievement,
the quality of its production values will make your head spin!
The Century In Shoes
REPRODUCTION ALERTS
ART GLASS ROLLING PINS: You know those art glass rolling pins you've been
seeing everywhere, from eBay to flea markets? They come in various colors,
including clear, cobalt blue, red and green, and have threads of
contrasting colors swirled through. They're all new. Every one of them.
There are no old versions of these. They have hollow bodies and solid
handles. A genuine old glass rolling pin has a means by which to fill it
with ice water, so the pastry can be kept cold. If you're not going to use
it to keep the pastry cold, why make it out of glass in the first place?
CERAMIC BULLDOG HUMIDOR: It's 8 inches by 6 inches, and features a bulldog
in a bowler hat. It is very detailed, even having a place to put a sponge
in the lid. The paint, most frequently olive green on the hat,
black/brown/green head, light brown or white collar, has an antique finish.
It's new.
I hope you've had some rain where you are, and that the weekend brings
great "saling" weather to you. Artie and I are going to Lake Champlain to
visit our good friends, the Fergusons, and to seek out some of those great
New England antiques. Have a great week, Accumulators. Happy hunting!
Best,
Judith
© 1999 Judith Katz-Schwartz. All rights reserved.
Antiques and Collectibles Newsletter #93
U.S. Library of Congress
ISSN 1520-4464
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Your comments, as always, are welcome. If you have something to say, write to me.
If you like, I'll subscribe you to the free short weekly email newsletter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RETURN TO INDEX OF NEWSLETTERS