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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.

Very Rare1950s Antique Vintage Halloween Star Molding Box 12 Black Cat Candles

It’s a treat to see items I’ve not seen before. Star Molding Corporation was a family-run firm that seems to have left East Aurora, NY after a fire in 1956. They almost certainly had a regional reach only, far eclipsed by their much more established competitor, Gurley, of Buffalo, NY. I think it is more likely this set is from the late 1940s rather than the 1950s. The graphics, especially the way Halloween is spelled with the apostrophe, lead me to this conclusion. I can see the appeal of this complete set. With the great instruction/advertising card, it would make for a killer display. At what price will it end? Many of us will be watching!

Beistle Co. Cat & Witch Halloween Silhouettes with Envelope – Vintage 1920s-30s

These large Beistle enveloped sets have picked up pricing steam of late. The envelope is the star of the show. (The clasped-back style was used by Beistle during the early 1920s. They then switched to a envelope style with a flap, probably a change driven by their relentless drive to reduce costs.) The larger silhouettes comprising half of the contents of the set of eight are notoriously difficult to locate in near-mint condition. Unlike Whitney whose boxed and enveloped sets were filled with seemingly random designs, Beistle was much more disciplined. I wouldn’t have been surprised to have seen this set garner even stronger dollars.

RARE Antique Vintage Halloween Matchbox Diecut Witch Decoration ca. Teens-1920s

I was surprised by this result. I am thrilled for the fine seller who through her photographic and descriptive efforts attained top (TOP) dollar for her consignor. I feel this is simply the result of some long-ago end-user imaginatively taking a table card (We know now that this is a hard-to-find design.) and using glue to attach it to a generic match box. It would then be placed on a table as a useful prize or souvenir of a Halloween party. This is known as a married piece. A common example of married piece components is when an end-user would glue a small German compo item to an otherwise unremarkable wood ratchet to create something with more eye-appeal and oomph.

4 Antique Vintage Halloween Black Cats on Fence Diecut Cut Out Cardboard Whitney

The various fence table centerpieces that have been sold publicly have brought strong dollars, even examples like this with many condition issues. The #1 producer of these items was Whitney. They had many great designs, all now highly prized. The seller of this fence, or a previous owner, did a nice job replicating the four missing tabs in such a way that the replication is obvious. Missing tabs is the most common flaw with these designs as they just didn’t hook and unhook all that easily. In my view, the best Whitney fence is the one shown at the bottom of page 274. It is much larger than other fences with bright colors and bold graphics.

Summer Break

Hello Readers,
It is that time of the year when outdoor pursuits beckon. My garden needs tending, some property fences need mending and the allure of nearby Folsom Lake is never far from my mind.
So, I will take a break from the more Autumn-oriented world I mentally inhabit when tapping away to update the site.
Enjoy the summer! Best, Mark

Vintage Halloween Chenille & Crepe Paper Witch & Cat Large Table Decorations

Chenille/spun cotton-based decorations made in Japan is a market segment to which I have never paid much attention. Obviously, from this stellar result, collectors have tuned in. Many of this type of decoration were small and meant to be used for cupcakes and the like. The large, table-top decorations like these are not as common. Even so, I am surprised at the result. Examining the bidding history, it looks like four determined bidders were responsible for the price ending where it did. It will be fun to see if other table-top decorations of this ilk will appear and how they do.

Rare Antique Vintage Beistle Halloween Humpbacked Witch w/Broom & Black Cat

This diecut was produced by Beistle during the late 1950s. There were three designs comprising the full set. (Please refer to page 159.) All have become quite desirable. This example was in relatively poor collecting condition yet two determined collectors bid it up to an ending price well beyond the baseline established by the bulk of bidders of ~$200.

NEAR MINT SCARCE Antique Halloween 4-Sided Owl Shade Decoration, Germany 1920s

If you look on page 46 you can see the three designs that comprise the full set of shades to which this owl design belongs. Beside the owl shade, JOL and black cat face shades round out the set. All of these have become much harder to find over these last few years. I sell things periodically from the collection as my interest waxes and wanes. Most of the time I never look back but I regret selling the trio of shades in 2019. Since then I have seen the owl design numerous times but never the other two. I hope this trusted seller will perhaps offer the other two in due course. The RSIN on all shades has changed to “2” in my mind.

Antique Vintage 1916 Peggy’s Halloween Party Box Complete Unused Ultra Rare!

An item of this rarity, especially complete, surfaces so infrequently that a great number of collectors and potential bidders had added it to watchlists. I’ve only seen the slip of paper with the listing of contents one other time - in the set shown on page 127. I hoped the set would go for big bucks but was concerned with the opening bid level being too high. My experience is that a high opening bid discourages bidding and depresses interest, but I needn’t have worried given the reported final price. That said, it was interesting to note there were only six bidders. If there weren’t those last two determined bidders, the set would have ended in the $2,000s. This set is quite beautiful. I always felt the best thing about it was the box’s cover art. I had trouble displaying mine properly, so made the call to sell it in August of 2024. The new owner is one of my favorite collectors. She’ll be an excellent steward of the rare set!

Rare Vintage Halloween Trick or Treat Wowee Whistle Wax Chewing Gum Candy Box

What a beautiful item! Prior to this listing, I hadn’t seen this box before. Everything about it is stunning. I feel the buyer made a wise purchase. The candy box market segment has been very strong for about 3 years. Even the commonly seen Milky Way and Butterfinger boxes bring multiples of what they did 3+ years ago. I think I understand why - the boxes make excellent displays and the graphics are generally fun and eye-catching. I have a few of the more obscure boxes in the collection and seriously considered trying to add this gem to the others. Congrats to the prevailing bidder!

RARE Vintage Halloween Tin Cat & Bat Pan Noisema 1920s J Chein

These domestically produced small diameter pan clangers, whether they were produced by Chein or Kirchhof, are difficult to find. I’m not surprised at the reported ending price. Ones produced in either Japan or Germany typically bring even more dollars as they were produced in far fewer numbers.

Vintage Halloween Dennison U.S.A. Cardboard Candy Nut Cups lot of 4

These small late 1920s Dennison treasures don’t surface very often, especially when several identical designs comprise a single lot. I do wish the seller would have included many more photos, especially images of the other sides of the nut cups. As the listing stands now with over two days left, bidding has reached only $26.

05/26 Update: This lot sold for $240.50!

Vintage HALLOWEEN c1950 OWL NOISEMAKER Rachet.

I feel this is a married item. The heavily embossed owl diecut would typically be found on both sides of a clapper noisemaker as shown on page 196. I’ve not seen this combination before, leading me to think that someone just attached it to a generic ratchet. The marketplace seems to have shared my doubts as it only fetched $49.