Steiff Bear, ca. 1950
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GUEST:
This is a dear old friend. He's 63 years old. His name is Dynamite. Say hi, Dynamite. Well, a little arthritis, maybe, like me. I got him as my bear in 1951. My dad got him for me because my dog had to go to stay with my grandmother in West Virginia because we were moving to Chicago. He's been with me ever since, all these years.
APPRAISER:
All those years.
GUEST:
Yeah, he used to be 35 inches... 36, but I measured him today, and now he's only 35, so I think he's got a little osteoporosis, too.
APPRAISER:
I guess so. I see here we have a picture of you back in 1951.
GUEST:
Yeah, with my mom there.
APPRAISER:
It always amazes me when somebody carries it around all through their life. And obviously you took care of it because he's really, really in good shape. It's so seldom that this stays so soft.
GUEST:
Well, I've kept him in a box.
APPRAISER:
Oh, there you go.
GUEST:
Sealed up.
APPRAISER:
As I said he's in great condition, but I do notice somewhere that somebody's done a little artistic work down here on his feet.
GUEST:
Well, yeah. I think that was probably my daughter and maybe my cousins. He's had a lot of loving from a lot of other folks, too, along the line.
APPRAISER:
Of course, this bear was made by Steiff, and they were the premier maker of toy bears. They started in business in the 1880s and just made regular little different kinds of animal toys. And it wasn't until around 1903 that they made their first bear. By 1907, they were making 950,000 bears a year.
GUEST:
Whoa.
APPRAISER:
And it wasn't until shortly after they were brought over into this country, which was right after the first introduction at a toy fair in Europe, that an enterprising toy shop owner heard about Teddy Roosevelt going off on a bear hunt in which there were some difficulties involved, and he said, "Well, let's call this bear a teddy bear." And that's why they're teddy bears, and that helped spur the incredible popularity. Of course, everybody who watches this show knows we look for a button in the ear. In this case, he didn't have a button. He had this little bear symbol on his collar, and it's surprising you still have it. Now, the bears that are really, really valuable are those ones from that very first era, right after 1903 into '07, and some into the early '20s. They can bring astronomical prices. If you were to put it in auction, which I doubt seriously you would, I think this guy would do well over the $100 your father paid for it. I think a fair auction price today would be about $3,500.
GUEST:
Oh, you're kidding. Wow. Dynamite, you hear that? $3,500. Wow, that's a dynamite price.
Appraisal Details
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