Wow!
That is an amazing and exciting story, Rick! I was going to write
about the mistake I made about my credit card which made me lower my
bid and lose a 'White Pongo' 3 sheet but now that you've unleashed
this great tale, my big monkeys seem so small. But I still regret
that. And I have others that I shoulda...
Take care,
Michael
On 11-May-08, at 8:00 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
About 25 years ago, there was an ad in a Pennysaver-type weekly
paper here in L.A. for a "Frankenstein 7 Foot Statue" being sold
for $75. I would check the paper every week religiously when it
came out on Thursdays and immediately call if anything sounded
promising. On this particular Thursday, something "important" came
up and I somehow didn't get around to making the call about the
"statue". I remember I couldn't sleep that night, kicking myself
for not contacting the person who'd placed the ad. My "rational"
mind told me-- "this thing is probably some blow-up, dumb piece of
garbage from the 70's or 80's that isn't worth anything---it
COULDN'T be! I mean--the guy--whoever he is-- only wants 75 bucks
for it!"
I finally made the call at 10 the next morning---the guy who
owned it told me that the probable buyer was walking up his
driveway at that very moment---"but if he doesn't buy it", the guy
told me, "I'll call you back".
Of course, he didn't call me back. The buyer had paid the $75 and
left with it. I asked the seller about it and he said it was a
full-sized 7-foot likeness of Boris Karloff used in the movie
"Frankenstein". I remember telling myself that he must have been
mistaken---I couldn't admit to myself that I'd missed out on
something so incredible....
Flash forward 3 or 4 years--- I had listed a movie poster for
sale in the same weekly publication. To make a long story short, a
man called me and after speaking with him for awhile I discovered
that he was the guy who was walking up the driveway a few years
earlier...the guy who bought the Frankenstein "statue" that I'd
missed out on because I was a day late with my phone call. The
"statue" turned out to be a 7 foot tall "stand-in" for Boris
Karloff from The Bride Of Frankenstein. It was dressed with the
original wardrobe of the monster and had a life-mask of Karloff as
its face. The guy told me the face needed a little restoration--
but once that was completed he was going to put it up for auction
somewhere. Looking back now, I can't believe that I never asked
him if I could swing by and take a look at it. Those were the
early days of my collecting. It's been quite a long time and I
really can't remember how our whole conversation went...
Flash forward again...2 years. I remember looking at Movie
Collector's World or possibly even the L.A. Times---I'm not really
sure which. Anyway, there was a short article about a movie
memerobilia auction ( it was called Guernsey's) that included what
I'm sure was the very same Karloff stand-in statue from The Bride
Of Frankenstein---that I could have had for 75 bucks---having sold
for $50,0000! This was probably in 1988. I don't know where that
incredible piece is now, but I have no doubt that in today's market
it would easily sell for a million bucks! And I coulda had it for
$75! For me, THAT'S the one that got away!
Rick
rixposterz
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