Coca-Cola Advertising Trays, ca. 1930
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GUEST:
So it is something that I inherited from my father. He spent years collecting. He did have an antique store, and so as a child, my brother and I would go find antiques with him, and so part of the Coke tray collection was something that I zeroed in on and liked, even as a child. Some would have dings or would be damaged, and then we would find a better, more mint condition tray, and then he would then sell the other trays as part of his antique store.
APPRAISER:
He was a professional, so he knew what he was doing, and this is a good lesson to all people who are collecting, and going out and doing it. This is the way to do it. You constantly upgrade. You sell what you have to get a better one, and you got to witness that. So you spent years combing through the markets, and he slowly curated this collection that you guys put together, together really.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
You have a really wide range. You have celebrities, you have Johnny Weissmuller, and he's with Maureen O'Sullivan in this tray. Johnny Weissmuller, obviously, who famous played Tarzan, and starred with Maureen O'Sullivan in Tarzan. He's a very desirable tray. You have Frances Dee, you've got Madge Evans over here, and these are some of the more glamorous representations. You've got Norman Rockwell up next to you. We have a sporting image here, we have the girl with straw, we have the 1932 yellow bathing suit beauty, who's a pin-up. So it's a really wide range, and it's a testament to how much Coca-Cola obviously knew its market. They were constantly changing with the times, keeping up to date on what was going to sell their product. One of the other things you mentioned is the other reason you do trade up through time is because condition is so important. And that is what struck me about your collection. You've got really vibrant colors, beautiful representations, great imagery pulled throughout the years, and this is just a small segment of your collection. So do you know what your father paid for the collection that we see here?
GUEST:
He would typically pay anywhere from $25 to $120, maybe $150 for a tray. I was surprised that you picked some of the collection that you did here, because these were some the ones that my father had also valued as the highest.
APPRAISER:
There's a method to our madness.
GUEST:
You knew what you were doing.
APPRAISER:
These weren't the only ones. Honestly, your collection is so deep, we could have picked another ten or 15 out of the collection. These are some of the most rare. One of the more popular ones is the Johnny Weissmuller. The only thing detracting from the value on this one is the scratch here.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
And you have a little bit of a scratch over Maureen O'Sullivan. So that's going to detract slightly. It's still, in this condition, is going to be worth $1,500.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
You also have the Norman Rockwell, which is $1,500. Frances Dee, $1,500. The rest are all about $1,000 apiece.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
So all together here is about $8,500, if I've done my math correctly, in a fair market environment. For insurance or for retail, it would probably be even more than that. You said you and your brother helped your dad. Why did you get this collection?
GUEST:
Growing up as, you know, part of an antique family, you always have antiques in your home, as well as your store. And as children you learn everything is for sale.
APPRAISER:
You're describing a kid who grows up on a farm and doesn't want to name the barnyard animals. So you never tried to become attached to the property?
GUEST:
Yeah, but obviously I was. And one day I came home from high school, and the wall where most of these were mounted was empty. And I was just broke down and just, you know, was horrified that they had been sold. And my dad did not realize how much that I was attached to the collection. So he went back, and negotiated, and bought it back.
APPRAISER:
And I can see you're emotional about it because obviously, your father means a lot to you. It's a really touching and sweet thing that he did for you. So this is kind of a legacy of your father.
GUEST:
It is a legacy.
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