This set of three fold-out small cat decorations was made by Whitney. This Massachusetts firm, which closed in 1943, was diffident about marking their many wares. Nearly the sole way to identify a Whitney item is to train your eye to recognize their art. The way I did it was to closely examine Whitney postcards, all or nearly all of which are marked. Imagery appearing in their postcards often become table decorations. Whitney also used a very open, unadorned font that is easy to identify. (Jason Walcott, a famed font designer and fellow Halloween collector, may be able to shed light on the precise name of the Whitney font.)
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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.
LARGE EARLY 1900S HALLOWEEN GERMAN CANDY CONTAINER NODDER IN BOX MINT NOS
The seller writes that this "Looks like this just came off the country store shelf." The reason it does is because it could very well have been made yesterday. Such questionable items are being seen in greater and greater numbers as the seasons pass. Bear in mind that such items, with few, if any, advanced collectors considering them truly vintage, have zero collectible value, merely scant decorative value.
Tin Halloween Noise Maker
This is a desirable Bugle tin litho noisemaker made in the late 1940s. Not as rare as once thought, my new edition gives this a Relative Scarcity Index number of "3" and a sustainable guide value of $125.
RARE VTG Jack-O-Lantern Halloween Lamp Light BEISTLE Honeycomb Cat Witch
The belle of the ball this cycle has most definitely been Beistle. Virtually all of the offerings for top-shelf Beistle items have been snapped up for prices that seem excessive to me. Although the overall condition of the dual faces seemed pretty choice, it was still missing its header, making the result that much more difficult to fathom. That said, arguably this is the most iconic Beistle item out there, alongside their 1923 fairy clock and their early Party Outfits.
Antique Vintage Halloween Noisemaker Rare Double Clapper Black Cat Witches Bat
I'm surprised this rare tin litho noisemaker lingered on Ebay for almost precisely a full day with such a reasonable BIN price. Yes, it definitely has some surface condition issues, but this is one rare item. I've seen it only a few times in 26 of collecting. Guide value is $225. Congrats to the lucky buyer. (Wish I would have seen it!)
Hard-to-find vintage Beistle Halloween laughing donut on mug cutout decoration
Wasn't Beistle scraping the VERY bottom of the creativity barrel when they issued this as a Halloween diecut? The once great firm, responsible for some of the most iconic Halloween imagery during the 1920s and 1930s, was reduced to this by the 1950s. They rebounded some after this but never again regained the preeminence they enjoyed during Halloween's Golden Age. (Beistle would be smart - and all of us would benefit - if they would hire an artist like Matthew Kirscht to helm their Halloween creative output today.)
Vintage 1921 Cardboard Horn Halloween Cat Devil Witch Noise Maker
I consider this to be one of the better lithoed paper over cardboard horns produced in the USA. The use of yellow as the primary background color is unusual, setting this noisemaker apart in a display case. The manufacturer isn't known. The Canadian manufacturer, Granger Company, in Montreal produced a black and white version that is scarcer but not as visually appealing. Sustainable guide value on the US horn is $100.
10/20 Update: A battle royale ensued over this horn as it sold for $194.50.
Vintage (Antique) Halloween Winged Ghoul (Ghost) Table Decoration Beistle
Given the missing as well as the detached knot plus the tear in the honeycomb, I feel this was an extraordinarily high price to pay for this 1920s Beistle item. Sustainable guide value for one in near-perfect condition is $400.
Vintage Halloween Witch Candy Wagon with Wooden Wheels
Given the single, rather poor photo, it's hard to tell if this is a truly vintage item or one of the reproductions. As I write on page 53, "Reproductions made beginning in the mid-1990s use a thinner, high gloss paper stock yet still have wood wheels." It would have been useful for the seller to have included a photo of the bottom to see if it is marked.
1930s-1940s TIN LITHOGRAPH HALLOWEEN WITCH TOY NOISE MAKER
This nicely engineered siren horn noisemaker was made by T. Cohn during the 1950s. In working order, these typically bring $80, so this went for a strong price.
Vintage Halloween Paper Mache BLACK FACE Jack O Lantern RARE & UNUSUAL!
The seller will have to channel his/her enthusiasm somewhere else as this is nothing but a newly made lantern amateurishly fashioned after a hard-to-find German diecut. This is a soulless item with zero vintage value.
Vintage Halloween Dennison's 1913 Original Bogie Book RARE HTF
This is the only Bogie Book that has eluded my grasp. The few I have seen are always too damaged to be part of the collection. Print runs for the 1909 and 1912-17 editions were small so there aren't many of these around. I'll continue to hold out for a better copy, especially with the steep opening bid of $185.
Unused Vintage Halloween Party Tissue Paper Lamp Lampshade Lantern Really Cool
I'm surprised at this result. Sustainable guide value on this shade is $135, far lower than what this fetched. I could better understand this result if the item was mint, but it isn't. Ebay is an odd marketplace!
A Group of 6 Early Die-Cut Embossed Halloween Figures, Germany, Cat Owl Bat
I think this seller made a poor decision to group these diecuts and sell them as one lot. The "wear" on the cat and owls isn't wear at all, but the highlighting technique the Germans used for a short time. I feel it is nearly always best to sell vintage Halloween items that are in fine or better condition singly. If this seller had done this with these items they would have surely reaped a much better overall return.
Large Embossed Halloween Die-Cut Collapsible Lantern RARE
The seller is absolutely correct - this is an imposing lantern. I feel it is the largest form factor Halloween lantern the Germans ever made. These rarely surface, and when they do they are typically faded and tattered. I know of only a handful in this condition residing in collections. Sustainable guide value is $800-900.
10/13 Update: The SGV was blown away by the ending result of $1358.33. Wow! The one in the collection is just as nice, if not nicer. If anyone is willing to step up to the plate (sorry, really into the KC Royals' run...) I am willing to sell mine for $1,300 plus shipping.
