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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.

Vintage Halloween Lantern 4 Panel Paper Lantern Decoration Made In Germany 1

This is a 1990s or later reproduction of an authentic vintage German design first produced during the 1920s. The reproductions were imported into the USA by Blumchens. The black borders on truly vintage lanterns will be heavily embossed. This has only modest decorative value.

08/17 Update: The seller is listing several of these, being opaque about the fact that these lanterns are not vintage.

Vintage 1940s H.E. Luhrs Black Cats In A Band Paper Decorations

These are not vintage items. Around 2003 for just one, possibly two, seasons Beistle allowed another firm to offer reproductions of the eight-member black cat band. As I point out on page 54, these reproductions can be identified by their white accents, two bottom slots on each for a folded cardboard stand and orange/brown backsides. These reproductions have zero vintage value.

Vintage Lot of Die Cut Halloween Decorations Witch Pumpkin Bat Frankenstein Cat

Nothing pictured is truly vintage. The three members of the cat band were made during or after 2003. As I write on page 154, "Reproductions are easily discerned by the white accents, two bottom slots on each for a folded cardboard stand and their heavy paper stock with their orange/brown backsides." The cat atop a JOL was made a bit later. The give-away on that items is the glossy paper stock. 

BEISTLE "HEP CAT" HALLOWEEN DECORATION - MINT IN PACKAGE

Beginning in 2003, Beistle licensed a firm called Party Partners to issue reproductions of a limited number of their classic designs. Initially, these repros caused confusion in the marketplace. Although the packaging was clearly marked denoting the item as new, the actual items were not, so collectors had to rely on their knowledge of highlight colors, paper stock types and size to differentiate new from old. This association with Party Partners didn't last long. In 2012, Beistle decided to directly sell a line of their own classic designs. When I heard about their plans, I contacted Beistle to highlight the importance of altering their re-issues of their original designs in terms of size, colors, printed sides and paper stock - as well as the need to print the original and updated copyright dates directly onto these items so as to enable the secondary market to easily tell new from old. They found value in those suggestions and adopted them. Consequently, the market for vintage Beistle items remains one of the hottest collecting genres today. 

3 Paper Mache Jack-O-Lantern Pumpkins Vintage Halloween ~Tiny~ Candy Containers

Whomever bought this lot bought one truly vintage item, one reproduction and one fantasy item. Can you tell which are which? Let me help...The JOL on the right with the green eyes is the real deal. The middle JOL with the yellow eyes is the reproduction. Notice the differences in the surface texture between this one and the vintage JOL. The white JOL is a fantasy item. Note that the problematic items have bales, an element never present on the pulp nut cup JOLs. Also, the paper nut cup itself is present on the vintage item, whereas the openings on the others seem too big for the crenelated paper cup. The buyer should be unhappy spending what they did on this mixed lot. Buyer, if you are reading this, get your money back. 

ANTIQUE VINTAGE PAPER LANTERN HALLOWEEN ORANGE BLACK 4 PANEL

I was sorry to see that a collector wasted $199.99 on this reproduction. Blumchens began importing these reproductions from Germany in the mid-1990s. They are easily discerned from the old lanterns. With the reproductions, the paper lining is too bright and the overall embossing is either not present or is so faint that it does not resemble authentic vintage lanterns. Get your money back from the seller. 

CATALOG COLLECTION OF VINTAGE HALLOWEEN DECORATIONS

08/09 Update: I received an email this morning from the seller shedding light on this listing. I have edited only the seller's name and direct contact information: 

Thank you for your message. If I understand correctly, you are selling the one copy you received as a gift years ago and are not making copies of that copy. If so, I can see why Ben Truwe would have no objection. (Ben sells CD copies of his Catalog Collection reference through his site (http://id.mind.net/~truwe/tina/horder.html) for $12 postpaid.) I was surprised at the number of emails I received from readers unhappy with their understanding of your listing. I do not have any idea who the Ebay user, EIYS, is. I will post this exchange on my site as an addendum to the original post, only editing out your name and contact information. Regards, MBL

Mark..saw your comments this morning on my listing of the Halloween catalog collection. Years ago I was given this copy as a gift from a fellow collector who made the copy for me. I decided to list it and didn't give much thought about it until I received a vile e-mail from someone who only signed the e-mail with the ebay user-name EIYS...know who they are? You know who I am and could have reached out to me first before putting this on your blog (which doesn't change anything). I got 'spooked' by the email, and took down the listing. Giving it further thought, I called Ben Truwe and told him the situation. and he assured me he has no problem with me listing it as a copy..nothing for me to worry about! I then spoke with ebay's TRUST AND SAFETY dept. and they told me that if the author is OK with it, they are also fine with the listing. I disclosed that it was a copy in the listing! They also suggested that I could report (EIYS) for 'harrassment' because of the language used in the e-mail. I'll probably do that. 
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I don't approve of this kind of thing. The seller, who should know better, is offering a COPY of what has become a rare Halloween reference, originally published by Ben Truwe's Talky Tina Press in 2003 with an errata from April 25, 2004. Although the seller is clear that this is a copy, what right does he have to attempt to profit from another person's work? I'm sure that Ben Truwe, who worked hard assembling what I've found to be a very helpful reference, would be taken aback at such a rip-off of intellectual property. 

Tin Halloween Jack O' Lantern Parade Pumpkin Lantern Vintage

Several others have posted about this on the FB Vintage Halloween group, conveying their knowledge to the seller that this is a reproduction designed by Bruce Elsas and manufactured by Bethany Lowe about 7 years ago. The seller has refused to alter the listing in any way. I, myself, just sent an email to the seller (through Ebay) repeating what others have conveyed, plus letting them know it would be the subject of a blog post. I'd like to think that the seller is simply a naif rather than someone with ill intent. I'll monitor this listing. If nothing changes, I'll assume the seller is more of the latter than the former. This item, made in China, has decorative value only. DO NOT BE FOOLED!

08/08 Update: The seller never responded to my email, nor have they altered their listing in any way. The seller, regkel4, appears to be brazenly dishonest. 

08/12 Update: Some poor schmuck wasted $445 on this item, made by Bethany Lowe about 7 years ago. SHAME ON THIS DECEPTIVE SELLER!