Well, another season is nearly in the books. I hope you were able to purchase great things at reasonable prices. The latter seem to be very scarce on eBay! I’ll be making an effort to add to the new Acquisitions section of this site during the remainder of this year before my attention turns to preparing for my annual May auction. As always, I’ll offer high-quality, rare vintage items in 2019. I already have wonderful things put away for the event.
Enjoy the day!
Now, this is one helluva freaky, fantastic diecut. When I first saw this Gibson listing, I prayed that it would be in collectible condition. I was disappointed when it fell far short of the acceptable threshold for my collection. This is precisely the kind of odd imagery and disorienting colors I eat up. I contacted the seller who stated this was the sole example of this diecut she had available. My decision was easy not to try for it. (The ending price of $610 blew me away. I sure am glad I began collecting 30 years ago, as collecting truly vintage Halloween is rapidly becoming a hobby for the wealthy!) I will add it to my very short “Holy Grail” list and hope one comes my way.
This Gibson party sign diecut with their classic signature slanted exclamation point went for FAR more than I would have guessed. Prices tend to moderate at this stage of the season, but I haven’t seen much evidence of this usual trend this year. This seller had several wonderful diecuts - all of which sold for astronomical prices. Given the final photo in all of her listings, I am curious how many of each will be on offer over time.
Dennison’s output from these years is top-notch. Their design aesthetic was amazing. It is great to see such a rare invitation in such great condition. This first appeared in the 1928 Dennison Price List pamphlet with a stock number of H580.
11/06 Update: This item sold for a ridiculous $510. Anyone wanting the mint one from my collection can buy it for $500.
The seller is correct - this is a hard tin litho noisemaker to find. However, the condition is poor, so the asking price seems steep. Kirchhof made two complementary designs, both of which can be seen on page 204. Of the two, this one will be seen more often, all else being equal. I’d say fair value for the one on offer is $150.
This Beistle novelty card was issued for a single season. It is the very first time I’ve seen one “in the wild.” Lavin states this was released in 1932. The conundrum here is that the day and date of the party written on the inside limits the years this would have been used. The nearest years with October 16th being a Saturday around 1932 are either 1926 or 1937. Perhaps Marilyn Smathers’ family was frugal and kept this Dance Program card for 5 years, using it as an invitation. The Great Depression was gripping the country tightly at that time, so that may be a possible explanation. Another is the release date cited by Lavin is incorrect. Who knows? What I do know is that this is exceedingly rare. I pondered for some time as to whether I’d be satisfied having this for the price it would take to acquire it, given its condition - slight tear at the top, edge chipping and marred by writing. I’ve decided against trying to acquire it. It’ll be informative to see what this rare item fetches. As of this writing it has been bid up to $565.77.
10/28 Update: This brought $752.44. A close friend acquired this, so I’ll have a chance to see on what I chose not to bid!
Beistle sure made some “out-there” designs. This demon frog hat from 1931 certainly fits the bill. The eccentric and memorable design reminds me of the coveted art done by arguably the finest folk artist working in the Halloween medium, Matthew Kirscht. The condition issues of the hat, detailed no nicely by this stellar seller, really weren’t material. I wish I had seen this listing. I would have been a player for more than the reasonable ending price.
I like this friendly heavily embossed German diecut. This design wasn’t made for many seasons, almost certainly accounting for its relative scarcity. Unlike so many of the prices seen on eBay for small paper and diecuts, this ending price is actually a sustainable one.
This listing contained an item produced by a firm I’d never heard of before. One of the many joys of collecting vintage Halloween is that so much remains unrevealed. A plethora of small local and regional firms produced loads of small paper items for various holidays. Most of these aren’t marked, causing those of us who care about such things consternation when trying to attribute an item to a particular manufacturer. I saw this listing’s photos and realized I had never seen the rightmost item. Surprisingly, it is marked, but the company’s name wasn’t familiar to me. Now I have another design point of reference when evaluating small paper items. (By the way, the buyer received a rare bargain in acquiring this lot for $40.)
There were at least three diecut designs released in sets of four in glassine envelopes, produced by manufacturers in Saxony. You can see them at the top of page 170. This price of $205.50 for a single diecut is folly. If someone with deep pockets wants the trio of complete sets shown in the book, they can be yours for the bubblicious price of $3000, shipping not included.
This desirable shade was produced by Gibson during the 1930s. Gibson seems to have the monopoly on using teepees as part of Halloween iconography!
10/18 Update: This sold for $155.27.
The stars of this lot are the two nut cups at the bottom made by Dennison. The complete set has four pieces, all of which can be seen at the bottom of page 260. These first appeared in their 1929 Price List pamphlet.
I’m not sure what to make of this item. It bears a resemblance to the refined German railroad lantern candy container shown on page 59. This item isn’t gracefully designed and seems clumsily executed. It is smaller than the one that has been in the collection for nearly 30 years. The borders are so thick and claustrophobic that they obscure the central JOL face on each of the four long sides. I wonder if this could be something made in Japan? I know I don’t care for it.
10/16 Update: The broad collecting market must have shared my doubts about this item. It brought $720, much less than half than an indisputably German item would have brought.
This is the first time I’ve noticed one of these exceedingly rare “nut or candy trays” offered for sale. Beistle sold these in enveloped packets of four for, I believe, one season only around 1930. Sold with a stock number of 760N, you can see the oh-so-rare complete set on page 221. The seller greatly understates the condition. It has been repeatedly folded and is quite faded. Still, outside of when I acquired the complete set in 2007, I’ve never seen even a single example offered for sale.
10/16 Update: This sold for a strong $171.50.
This is a diecut that is almost impossible to find. Made by Dennison, it first appeared in their 1930 Price List pamphlet. This definitely has serious condition issues, most notably the punched hole in the hat area. Still, if you are a Dennison completist, this may be an example of rarity trumping condition. When I bought the one in the collection, I had no idea just how elusive this would prove to be for others. (It was acquired decades ago.) As I’ve covered before, Dennison’s output plummeted in the early 1930s, so items from this period are seldom seen.
10/09 Update: This sold for $372.88!
