New Hub for Sundry Collectibles!

Hi everyone.  A super quick note to let you know that I have generated a new hub for my multiple blogs!  You can check it out (and the blogs linked there) at sundrycollectibles.net.  Here you will find links to my Disneyland postcard site, my vintage aviation paper site, and my "Comics Data" site (I am excited about this one!)

I will occasionally come back here to point people to my new stuff...but this newly revamped site is now my "official" hub.  

Until next time...

Disney Postcard Database is Active!

Hi folks...I have been pretty much ignoring this blog recently (ignored but not forgotten!) as I work on my Disney Postcard blog and checklist.  I just recently made the searchable checklist live...so check it out!

You can see it at Disney Postcards - Checklist (New!)

Until next time...

P.S.  This is a WDW card of the Tahitian Village (0100-10212)...sweet!

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much

One of the things that I really enjoy doing is browsing through book stores.  As a collector, sometimes I am looking for something rare (as you may have guessed by some of the posts on this blog).  Sometimes, I am looking for something very specific, in a very specific category.  And sometimes, I am just looking...period.  But the cool part about a book store and book collecting is that it is such a rich hobby.  You can collect from any number of authors or subjects, art books, first editions, or even just collect bindings and fore-edge paintings.  Some people collect books about books...and that gets us to this book featured here, "The Man Who Loved Books Too Much", by Allison Hoover Bartlett.

A couple of years ago I got this for Christmas and it really was a great read.  It is a thriller, a mystery and a book about collecting all wrapped into one.  The true story of a man who...well, I don't really want to give it away, but the title says enough...he loved books too much.  

The problem chronicled in this book is not an uncommon one.  Criminals steal paintings from galleries, comic art at comic conventions, small antiques from mall dealers and high end dealers, and yes, they steal rare books.  A while ago, a comic dealer friend of mine had some original art stolen from his store.  My original thought was (and actually still is), "What an idiot!"  You can't display it and share it with people, there is only one...and for high end comic art, there are sites that track stolen work.  At the end of the day, collectibles are meant to be shared and enjoyed with other people...not holed up secretly where only one person can see them.  (Reminds me of the Getty Museum in LA...now THAT is the way to share a collection!)

Anyway...I have updated my Amazon recommended list to the right if you want to find a copy of this read.  I highly recommend it for book lovers and even non-book lovers.  It's an interesting peak into the whole world of rare books and rare book dealers.  

Until next time..(hopefully sooner rather than later)

Famous Funnies 212 - Another Frazetta masterpiece

When you go to a great restaurant, and have a great meal...maybe a really fabulous rack of lamb, or a particularly great salmon fillet, or maybe a great glass of wine...unless you are a professional, you may not be able to say why you liked it.  At the end of the day, it was just, well, REALLY good.  With wine, I like a good glass as much as the next person, but I can't tell if it is because of a great nose of earthy notes with a hint of cinnamon, or whatever...I just know, after having had quite a few bottles in my time...what is good and what isn't.

Well...this cover is a great example of that same sentiment.  I am not an artist.  I can't necessarily speak to you about the technical aspects of what is an is not great composition or what specific aspects of a pictures execution make it better than the next.  I might try, but at at the end of the day, I know what I like...and I can usually tell when an artist is committed to their craft.

Frazetta had command on this cover and the others in the series.  And while I am not an artist...I know well drawn figures when I see them.  And while I may not be trained, I think I have a sense for good composition...for good story telling that is accomplished without words.  Everyone knows today that people can't just float around in space...I suspect they knew that back in the early 1950's too...but that doesn't matter here.  The beautiful girl in distress, our fearless hero (Buck Rogers), the lunatic alien thugs and their fleet of ships.  The image is bold and dynamic.  It moves.  It brings back images in my mind of Mystery in Space #1...also a classic black covered sci-fi book from the early 1950's with cover art by Carmine Infantino.

So there it is...classic 1950's sci-fi that is really timeless.  Why?  Because these artists were serious about what they were doing and were not just turning the crank.  Thanks fellas!

Until next time...

Superman #252 - DC Super Spectacular

In the early 1970's, DC printed 100 page versions of a lot of it's titles and labeled them as "Super Spectacular" issues.  These issues are fairly collectible today and are often hard to find in decent shape due to the square binding. They started publication in the summer of 1971 with issue number 4 and went to issue number 22.  The books contained all reprints from earlier DC issues.

The other day a friend of mine gave me this comic as payback for a bottle of wine I had bought for him.  This particular issue is interesting for the Neal Adams wrap around cover.  A close inspection of the cover will show that Hawkman and Hawkgirl are on the cover twice, but DC aficionados will tell you that these are Earth 1 and Earth 2 representations of these characters...keep your lore straight!  And their is a funky looking flying doctor guy at the top "right" of the wrap around cover...not being a DC expert, I had to do do a little research on this one.  Thanks to "Giant Size Geek" for pointing out that there is a key to who all the character's are in the back of the magazine itself.  He reprints it on his blog.  (Turns out the funky looking doctor guy is "Mr. Keeper", by the way!)

     

Neal Adams was know for great work on Batman, Superman and Green Arrow.  This cover is a great example of that work...but do check out his Batman and Brave and the Bold covers.  They are some of the best work to come out of the 1960's and 1970's, in my humble opinion.

So...not a bad trade for a decent Beauregard Pinot Noir from Santa Cruz County.  Not a bad trade at all!

Until next time...

Disneyland Postcard Price Guide Completed!

When I first started this blog, I was talking about all of my collectibles in one space.  And I was diligent...in a manner of speaking.  Everyday for about 5 months I was bringing everything from sand to Star Wars cards to comic and postcards.  (That's nothing compared to Gorillas Don't Blog though....he started up and ever since day one hasn't quit for almost six years...really impressive).  Anyway, I finally decided to break out the Disneyland postcard stuff to its own site because it is a rather "nichy" collection.

Last night, I finally finished the price guide for all of the cards listed in the Nickel Tour reference book!  So...if you want to check it out, go to disneypostcards.com.  This effort has kept me from more frequent posts here...but keep your eyes out...I have plenty more non-Disney related stuff to talk about!

Until next time...

Postcard Booklets from the Past!

A couple weeks back, i saw this lot on eBay for a bunch of old postcard booklets.  These are about 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches and they can have some great vintage images in them.  I was mostly interested in the Disneyland HiLite book...I already have it, but the price was right for this lot so I threw in the one and only bid it took to win.

Shown here are the ten books in the lot.  Everything from Jackson Hole to the Ozarks to Hollywood!

Taking a look inside, there are a many interesting shots, but I will show just a couple here.  First off, a view of Sunset and Vine in Hollywood, California.  The NBC studio is there in all of it's mid-century glory.  I am guessing this image is early 1950's based on all the cars and the two women in the picture.  You need a magnifier, but they look to be in their early 1950's casual daywear!

Next is a shot from Mitchell, South Dakota.  The Corn Palace is a multi-purpose arena that still exists today and hosts concerts and events for the good folks of Mitchell and the surrounding area. It is of "Moorish Revival" architecture and built in 1921 after several predecessors.  The domes were added in 1937.  This photo appears to have been taken in the late 1950's...maybe even 1960.  The car on the far right looks like a Chevrolet Impala from that era or something very similar.  A rather interesting building to be sure!

So there you have it...a bunch of cool little postcard booklets from mid-twentieth century America!