Absolutely!
In this day and age, 68 is far, far too young, but is there ever a right age when it comes to death and the grief that comes with it? My heart felt sympathies to his loved ones.
Shelly
----Original Message Follows---- From: Todd Brown <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [MOPO] MoPo: A great collector is gone Date: Tue, 3 Aug 2004 09:02:41 -0400
Thank-you Bruce for posting that touching eulogy of Mr. Parnum. I have never met, nor had dealings with him, but his passion for this hobby was known, and will be missed. It always energizes me when I hear stories of people's passion for their collections. He and his family will be in my thoughts today. Thanks, Todd Brown
In a message dated 8/3/2004 1:14:52 AM Eastern Daylight Time, Bruce Hershenson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
>I posted this yesterday in my weekly e-mail club (2700 members) and am
>posting it here as well for any non-club members who knew John Parnum.
>
> It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of legendary
>collector John Parnum (on July 12th). Since the 1960s John collected
>exclusively horror/sci-fi/fantasy items from all years, and unlike some of
>the other major collectors who focus mainly on posters, John loved all
>sorts of movie paper, and had extensive collections of vintage stills,
>pressbooks, and lobby cards in addition to his posters. And John did not
>discriminate against "lesser movies" or against re-releases. If an item
>was horror/sci-fi/fantasy related, there was a place for it in John's
>collection!
> John was fortunate to have started collecting decades ago, when
prices
>were much more affordable, but unlike the vast majority of collectors from
>that time, John resisted the impulse to "cash in" on his collection as
>prices went higher. I have encountered numerous "old-time" collectors who
>have told me "if only I had held onto what I had back then". John was the
>exceptional person who DID hold onto what he bought decades ago. Even
more
>surprising, John continued to pursue items that had eluded him, even as
>prices rose. Most collectors can't bring themselves to buy items for
>hundreds of dollars, if they remember seeing them years before for a
>fraction of that amount, and that fact alone often hastens the end of
their
>collecting.
> But John continued to actively pursue the few titles missing from
his
>collection, and he was more than willing to pay above "market price", for
>he more than anyone knew just how rarely offered certain items are. When
>you only see an item offered once in 20 years, you know you should make an
>extreme effort to get it, for it may be many years before you see it
again.
> Unlike many collectors, I don't think John was in any way
motivated by the
>"investment" side of collecting. He truly loved his collection. There
>were many times when he acquired an inexpensive item for his collection
>from my auctions or sales lists, and he would let me know how very happy
he
>was to get it, and he would communicate that with the type of excitement
>one might expect from someone who had just made a "great buy", and yet it
>often was an obscure $10 item that few people but John cared about. To
me,
>John epitomized the "true collector", someone who loves what he collects,
>and would probably be happy if prices on what he collected went far lower,
>for then he could afford to buy that much more.
> But more important that being a great collector, John was a really
great
>guy! I had dealings with him by phone, mail, and e-mail for many
>years. Usually he was buying from me, but on some occasions we bid
against
>each other, and when I outbid him, he sent me a nice congratulatory
e-mail,
>showing only joy for my winning, and no trace of bitterness or regret. I
>knew the depth of his knowledge of horror movie paper, and a few times I
>asked him for help in identifying a still (or giving his opinion as to its
>originality) and he always was quick to help and never had any thought of
>wanting something in return.
> I only met John once in person. That was five years ago when I
was
>auctioning an item he had looked for for decades. He called me before the
>auction and asked about phone bidding. I told him how it worked, and he
>said he just couldn't stand the thought that he could get cut off (even
>though I assured him this was a remote possibility) and he said that he
>thought he had better come out and be there in person. Besides, he told
>me, this way, once he won the item, he could hand carry it back home and
>not have to wait out the days after the auction to make sure it arrived
safely!
> At the auction, John came in and introduced himself. He was just
as he
>had been those times on the phone, a sweet down-to-earth likable guy. As
>he previewed the item, he said, "I finally am going to get this after all
>these years" and I cautioned him that he might not get it, for you could
>never tell who might end up bidding against him. He just looked at me and
>said, "I am going to get this", and the way he said it, I believed him! I
>was very happy when he got it for a somewhat reasonable price (true
>rarities never go for bargain prices, so getting a reasonable deal is all
>one can hope for). After the auction ended he came over to me and
>apologized for disturbing me, but said he just wanted to thank me for
being
>instrumental in helping him get what he had wanted for so long! He was
>just that kind of guy. To me, that is the true definition of being
"classy".
> On occasion John's name would come up in conversation with other
>collectors or dealers, and always I heard the same kind of comment ("what
a
>nice person!", "what a down-to-earth guy", etc, etc). I would bet there
is
>not a single person in this hobby with anything but nice things to say
>about him!
> John was 68 years old. For the last few years he battled a
debilitating
>illness, and yet he stayed sweet and kind and completely unchanged in our
>communications, even to the very end. Those of you who are under 30 are
>probably thinking that he lived a long life, but as I get older, I realize
>that 68 is far too young an age for life to end. I am sad that John did
>not get many more years in which to keep pursuing those last few elusive
>titles he was searching for. He will be missed by many in our hobby.
>
>Bruce Hershenson
>eMoviePoster.com
>
> Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
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