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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.

Back From A Vacation...

Hello Faithful Readers,  

I have been away on a 10 day road trip driving through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and back through central California to Sacramento. If you ever have a chance to visit such places as Bonner's Ferry, ID, Libby, MT, Missoula, MT, and even Jackpot, NV - do so. I had a fine time traveling with some friends. I returned last night and wanted to update my blog before too much more time went by. I feel that Halloween is quickly nearing, although that may very well be wishful thinking! I have noticed a slight uptick in the quality of items being offered on Ebay and Ruby Lane, always a good thing. 

For those who enjoy shopping at antiques shows, I typically set up and sell at only one per year. This year I'll be at the American Folk Art Festival at the Madonna Estate Winery in Napa, California on Saturday, September 7th from 10-4. If you are out that way then, come on by! 

H.C. CAPWELL Halloween GOOGLY EYE Candy Container Figure German Antique

This seller has been trying to unload this item for well over a year, offering it again and again at the same high price of $899.95. This listing exemplifies one of the more irritating trends on Ebay, wherein sellers just keep endlessly recycling items that no one wants at the offered price. I wish this seller would catch a clue and either offer it in a true auction format with a starting price of no more than $99.99 or simply toss it in the air and test his aim with a 44.  

Antique TIN HALLOWEEN NOISEMAKER, US METAL TOY Black Cat PADDLE CLANGER Vtg BOO!

The seller claims that this tin noisemaker is an early version, citing his research that informed him later versions had round clappers and an orange rather than a green back. I am not sure where this seller gets this erroneous information. It may very well be that the seller is merely hyping an otherwise perfectly fine, although quite common, item. In any event, the seller, like so many sellers on Ebay these days, is fully valuing the offered item at the minimum "auction" price. 

R I P Stacey Heffernan Paulucci

One of my dear friends, Stacey Heffernan Paulucci, who I was lucky enough to meet through our shared love of all things Halloween, passed away after a multi-month battle with cancer just a few days ago. She was only 45. What a true loss. Stacey was someone who always preferred the optimistic side of life, who knew that people were full of good and worthy surprises and was always much more concerned about how YOU were doing. In fact, when I visited her in the hospital a scant few weeks before she died, what she wanted to talk about was my recent trip to Kansas City and whether I had found great vintage Halloween pieces to add to the collection. It sounds trite, but she was one of the good ones, the kind of person whomever originated the phrase, "Only the good die young," had in mind when they uttered it. I will miss her as will all those lucky enough to have known her. I take comfort from the fact that she is at that great Halloween party in the sky, surrounded by all things vintage! Goodbye, Stacey!  

Stacey.JPG

Halloween Fibro Toy Cat Pulling Pumpkin Cart Near Mint 1920's ULTRA RARE

The seller's breathless prose notwithstanding, this is a desirable item, less due to its touted scarcity and much more due to condition. The truth is these Fibro Toy cat wagon candy containers aren't all that rare. (On my scarcity scale of 1-5 detailed in my book, I rate this item a 4.) It is unusual to see them in this very nice condition. However, I think the seller has nearly fully valued the item with his opening price of $149.99, a ploy I dislike on Ebay that is becoming all too common. As I write on page 55, these were made from 1934-1953. "Later iterations have no markings on the underside. These are more common and have a lesser value. REPRO ALERT: Reproductions from the 1990s are made from a thinner, high gloss paper stock and still have wood wheels." 

OUTSTANDING VINTAGE HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN CANDY CONTAINER, MARKED GERMANY, MINTY

Finally, amidst the piles of dreck that have plagued Ebay's vintage Halloween category comes a worthwhile item. This diminutive 1920s German compo wash over cardboard candy container is the real deal and in nice original condition. Another plus is that it is being sold by a great seller - someone who has been on my approved list for a long while. Combine all this with the seller's embrace of the auction system and it yields a great listing to bid upon! 

vintage pumpkin jack-o-lantern Halloween collectible candy bucket made Germany

The mark on the bottom reads, "Container Made in Germany." As I point out on page 7, "German items made after 1949 would bear a number of different markings, such as ..."Container Made in Germany," or simply "Western Germany."" So, although this authentic JOL was made in Germany, since it was made during or after 1949, the value is considerably less than other similar JOLs made prior to World War II.  

VTG FOLK ART WOODEN BLACK CAT GREEN EYES...HEAD MOVES ..UNIQUE!!!

Given that one of these appears in the omnibus photo in the listing I flagged directly below this one, I don't think this ersatz item is as unique as the seller believes. I am having trouble understanding what the seller means by writing, "Probably more than just vintage." What does that even mean? I think this item was made offshore and made to look as if it had some age to it - more than vintage or not.  

Wonderful Vintage HALLOWEEN Spooky Pumpkins+Cat-Pulp-Hard Plastic-Tin-12

Looking at this lot, I wonder what kind of pipe the seller was smoking in arriving at the BIN price of $850? I wish this trend of sellers slapping ridiculous prices on mediocre goods would go away. If the seller wishes to dispose of an entire lot, start the bidding, yes bidding, out at $9.99 and let the market decide the worth. Another option would be for such sellers to actually photograph each item well and list things separately with reasonable starting prices in an auction format.  

VINTAGE HALLOWEEN DEVIL NOISEMAKER CLAPPER GERMANY ULTRA RARE TIN TOY LITHO OOAK

This is a German tin noisemaker with a great design, so typical of the care those artisans took in crafting their Halloween goods, made strictly for export. As I point out on page 7, "Sometimes a D.R.G.M. mark is seen. The initials stand for Deutsches Reichs-Gebrauchs-Muster, which means German Federal Registered Design.  This mark was used in Germany from June 1891 through early 1945, and then only on items that had more than a decorative purpose."