1 ½ col

Grover Van Dexter amid a selection of vintage toys.

1 ½ col

The storefront was a beacon to all things childhood for nearly four decades.

Must Run 3/14

Second Childhood Vintage Toy Shop Closes Doors After 39 Years 2 cuts

AVV/CD #731187

By Henry I. Kurtz

NEW YORK CITY — Second Childhood, an antique toy story described by one travel guide as a “shrine to nostalgia…an oasis of joy,” closed its doors for the last time February 29.

The shop in Greenwich Village had been a magnet for collectors from all over the world since its proprietor Grove Van Dexter founded it in 1969. Over the years, toys of every make and model dating from the mid-1800s to the 1970s lined the shop’s huge illuminated display cases.

“I called it Second Childhood because that’s what people who came here were looking for,” recalled Van Dexter. “They came here looking for a piece of the past…maybe a toy they cherished during their happy childhood days.”

Those favorite toys might have included a Hubley cast iron car, a tin windup GI Joe Jeep by Marx, a Bing ocean liner, windup cars by Schuco, or old lead toy soldiers in shiny red uniforms and bearskin hats by Britains Ltd. All of these and more were to be found on the crowded case shelved.

Because of his earlier career as a stage and screen actor (he appeared in films with Walter Matthau, Faye Dunaway and Kirk Douglas, and once shared an apartment with Steve McQueen), there were always toys and mementos of Hollywood stars of the past. “Laurel and Hardy and Charlie Chaplin toys are very popular,” Van Dexter said, “We’ve had a bar of soap in the likeness of Shirley Temple that sold for $145 and a cardboard and lead Charlie Chaplin figure go for $1,700.”

Still spry at the age of 87, Van Dexter acknowledged that high rent and taxes, coupled with declining revenue, let to his decision to shut down the business. “I started Second Childhood on a shoestring,” he said. “I sold my stamp collection and emptied my savings account to get things going. It was the right time. The hobby of toy collecting was just taking off.”

Regular customers expressed their regrets at the passing of this Greenwich Village landmark. Jack Szwergold, a computer consultant said, “This place has been more that just a vintage toy store for me, It was a clubhouse, a place where you could come and meet people who shared your interest in wonderful old toys.”

“I can’t believe I won’t be able to come here anymore and pick up little treasures for my collection,” said John Gresham, another longtime customer.