Date: Fri 06-Nov-1998

Publication: Ant

Author: DAVIDS

Quick Words:

Atlantique

Full Text:

Atlantique City

w/cuts

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- It's not easy to become a household name in a city

filled with sparkling lights and flashy casinos. Neither is it easy to walk

away from that city a winner.

With Lady Luck looking over your shoulder, the latter is possible, yet the

major hurdle of building a successful reputation within that arena stands

tall. Promoter Norman Schaut, the brain child of Brimfield Associates, has

accomplished both scenarios with his world-famous Atlantique City shows. More

amazingly, he has made it look easy.

Schaut gambled right from the start of his Atlantic City venture -- with his

humble (in contrast to today's events) beginnings in the Miss America Hall on

the landmark Boardwalk, to the extravagant antiques show he promotes today in

the new and largest venue hall we have ever set foot in. Lady Luck certainly

must have glanced over Schaut's shoulder once or twice during his trek down

his straight and narrow path, but it was mostly his tenacity and vision that

propelled his biannual events into the winner's circle. Atlantique City has

evolved into what must be considered one of the country's ultimate antiques

events.

Atlantique City, now 1,600 booths strong, built its foundation as one of the

premier toy shows in the world, and that statement still stands true today.

Yet, Schaut has always shied away from that categorization. Over the years,

with thoughtful massaging from management, the fair has become extremely

diversified, although the vast majority of the show is still made up of

table-top type vintage collectibles and decorative accessories. This is

undeniably the core of the show's strength.

The most recent Atlantique City outing hosted a diversified selection of items

ranging from Tiffany and Handel leaded glass and reverse painted lamps to a

wonderful array of Nippon and Noritake. Orientalia was also readily available,

as was a wide assortment of jewelry. Folk art, which seemed to be selling

quickly, was somewhat scarce, and only time will tell as to when the furniture

dealers will come into their own.

The buying public that is drawn to Atlantique City is large enough to crowd

even the cavernous hall of the relatively new Atlantic City Civic Center.

Schaut offers tickets to early buyers in advance and they, all 12,000 of them,

gain admission to the show an hour prior to the box office opening for general

admission ticket sales. The show has become so popular that early admission

tickets were sold out more than two weeks prior to the event, and those with

early admission tickets appeared hours prior to the show's opening to get a

good spot in line.

The opening on Saturday morning proved interesting as the convention center's

fire alarm went off. Horns, flashing lights, blaring sirens, fire trucks and

firemen all added to the excitement. Few in line moved from their spot amidst

the confusion, much to the firemen's dismay, and more than one person was

heard speculating that the triggered alarm was merely a ploy by someone at the

end of the line looking to move closer to the entrance. As it turned out, the

culprit proved to be a truck that had clipped a sprinkler head off the fire

alarm system in the parking garage.

With one commotion over, another began as the 12,000 early buyers began

streaming into the show. About that same time, a second large line began

forming for people who had yet to get their tickets, and an hour later, a

second frenzied opening sent waves of buyers onto the floor once again.

Many know where the dealers they seek are located, as most dealers keep their

same spot for each of the Atlantique City events. For those who are unsure,

Schaut provides a computer graphic that lists the dealers both by name and

type of merchandise they carry.

Atlantique City is about accessorizing, and that is exactly what the throngs

of buyers do. Collections can be built in a day -- well, actually two days as

that is how long it takes to thoroughly traverse this show.

One of the flashiest accessories that we saw on the floor was in the first

booth we visited. Nestled deep amongst a vast array of dazzling colored

Bakelite was an extremely rare and desirable "Philadelphia" bracelet in the

booth of Matthew Burkholz. The Chatham, N.Y., dealer, who trades by the name

of Rt 66 Antiques, exhibited numerous eyecatching pieces including a large

multi-fruit pin and a politically incorrect pin decorated with dangling

cigarettes and matches. Also offered by Burkholz was a superb collection of

Noritake in Deco forms, including numerous harlequin pieces and airbrushed

flapper girl dishes.

Some of the early stuff in the show appeared in the booth of Hawk's Nest

Antiques, Hinesburg, Vt., with numerous weathervanes, hooked rugs, paint

decorated furniture and portraits. Business seemed good for the Vermont

dealer. A running horse weathervane sported a sold tag moments after the show

opened to the public. Folkier items were exhibited by With All Due Ceremony,

Elkins Park, Penn., with trade signs attracting a great deal of interest. Of

note was a large Oxford style shoe and a humorous sign advertising rooms with

"hot and cold water" being let for $1 per person. Two extremely large

yellowware pitchers were seen in the booth of Connecticut dealer Larry

Shapiro, with vivid banded seaweed decoration. Bear skin rugs, mounted moose

heads and wicker picnic baskets were displayed just down the aisle at Moose

Brand Antiques of East Rutherford, N.J.

Appropriate for the season was a huge composition pumpkin with wonderful

patina in the booth of Baltimore dealer Robert Sullivan. The large piece,

originally found in an upstate New York attic, was believed to have been a

store display used in the 1940s.

Fancier items were also abundant and included a nice assortment of lamps in

the booth of Bonnacolta Antiques of Fort Lee, N.J. Among the offering was a

nicely colored Handel "Autumn in Woods" lamp, a rare Pairpoint puffy yellow

Poppy lamp, a Handel Wild Roses lamp and a nice Tiffany bronze candlestick.

Nippon Etc, of Audubon, N.J., obviously specializes in Nippon, and its

offering was grandiose enough to even attract the attention of the non-Nippon

attentive crowd. At the forefront of the booth were several impressive large

urns including a 19-inch bolted urn in green with draped jewel decoration. IT

was marked with the "M and wreath." Sales had been brisk, according to the

proprietors, with the first sale of the day being a rare Moriage portrait vase

with a blue maple leaf mark.

Baltimore dealer Renata Ramsburg displayed an impressive selection of American

and Continental silver, but specialized in Baltimore silver. Numerous pieces

were offered including a repousse tea service. Mt Kisko, N.Y., dealer William

Drucker was also among the numerous dealers on the floor offering silver, and

among his selection was a large selection of Georg Jensen and William

Spratling wares. Jensen items included a large variety of jewelry, yet the

exemplary piece in the booth was a rare pitcher designed by Henning Koppel and

commonly referred to as the "pregnant duck."

The selection of toys was lofty, and among some of the standout items was a

small collection of fire apparatus in the booth of Russ Harrington. The

Baltimore dealer explained that he was in the process of dispersing a large

collection, and among the select items left were several cast iron fire toys.

Included in the lot was a 1906 Hubley pumper and a Wilkins 1895 rubber tire

fire toy. Also seen in his booth was a great collection of the diminutive

painted German tin toys known as penny toys. Among the assortment were fire

engines, trains, rocking horses, boats and a wide variety of other items that

ranged in price from $350 to $1,800.

Vineland, N.J., dealers Bill and Jeanne Bertoia have reduced the shows they do

to one a year, choosing just Atlantique City. Jeanne had her half of the booth

filled with a wonderful selection of doorstops in original paint, while Bill

had his typical assortment of top shelf toys. Among the qualitative items

Bertoia offered was a Disler champion scull toy in the original box, which he

said was "produced to emulate the great races between Harvard and Yale." At

the opposite end of the toy spectrum was Plymouth, Mass., dealer George

Newcomb of the Plymouth Rock Toy Company. The dealer offered a rare atomic ray

gun water pistol by Hiller Manufacturing, circa 1948, which retained the

original box.

Steiff has always been well represented at the show, although this year the

selection seemed to be extraordinary. Old Friends Antiques of Sparks, Md.,

offered a variety of merchandise that had collectors clambering. Strong

interest was being paid to a selection of dinosaurs and trophy head mounts,

but the real eyecatchers were the Mickey and Minnie Mouse figures, especially

the four-inch Minnie. The dealers explained that the Mouses came in three

sizes and that approximately one Minnie was produced for every five Mickeys.

Charlene Upham, Mardella Springs, Md., offered one of the premier Steiff items

on the floor, a growler tiger that measured almost seven feet from stem to

stern. Yet another of the Steiff rarities, seen in the booth of Charles Landon

of Baldwinsville, N.Y., was a "complete, intact, and original" set of

skittles, or ten pins. The rare set included a bear "king" pin with red cape

and crown. Other rare figures included a monkey and a poodle.

Anne Timpson, Essex Falls, N.J., offered doll houses and furniture, but two

items in particular stood out from the rest. Both carried a provenance of the

Atlanta Toy Museum, which was dispersed at auction in 1986 by Bill Bertoia.

The first item, which had sold within minutes of the show opening, was a large

size Gottschalk doll house, circa 1890, in the Victorian style. Even more

impressive was a butcher shop, circa 1850, with a Neapolitan flair. The rare

piece was complete with a butcher carving of a ham, and the interior of the

shop was loaded with cheese wheels and a variety of meats hanging everywhere.

Vintage clothing also proved to be a popular item in Atlantique City and

leading the way in sales was Vachon/Bopsie's funwear. The chic dealer offered

a variety of couture including collapsible top hats, waist jackets, furs,

spats, purses and, naturally, party dresses.

Perhaps one of the rarest pieces seen on the floor was in the booth of Bond

Street Antiques. It offered a German panorama Kalliope music box. The rare

box, one of two or three known, had a 20« disc and featured a horse race

panaroma theme.

Atlantique City continues to evolve, and promoter Norman Schaut commented

after the show that he has had the largest number of requests in the show's

history for larger booths and also reportedly has long lists of dealers trying

to get into the show. Could the largest indoor show we have ever been to

possibly be getting bigger?