Radio Station Theater Model
Watch
GUEST:
About six years ago, we saw it advertised at an auction in Fort Madison-- that's about 70 miles south of us-- and it said that it was made by Mrs. Barbara Cox of Washington, Iowa. A theater replica.
APPRAISER:
And now this Barbara Cox was...
GUEST:
My second cousin.
APPRAISER:
Your second cousin.
GUEST:
Yes, yes. So I talked my husband into going down to the auction, and I had to have it when we saw it.
APPRAISER:
And did all this documentation come with it?
GUEST:
Yes, it did.
APPRAISER:
And until then, you really didn't know...
GUEST:
We didn't even know it existed, no.
APPRAISER:
And in 1927, your cousin received a $1,000 prize.
GUEST:
Yes, it was a national contest, yes, advertising WOC radio station and Palmer School of Chiropractic.
APPRAISER:
What did you pay for it?
GUEST:
Oh, almost $200 with my husband, "Do you really want it?"
APPRAISER:
Well, you had to have it. It's a family heirloom. It's absolutely intriguing. It details how it was made out of cigar boxes and various things, and it's even illuminated. This apparently is an exact model of the railroad station which was owned by this chiropractic. But when you open it up, you see this wonderful little proscenium and theater with the masks. Even here, you have the Iowa corn.
GUEST:
Velvet curtains.
APPRAISER:
Velvet curtains... it's spectacular. And I noticed she has all these little paper slides that go in and out, and then when you take one out, you reveal a little background scenery. It's just absolutely fantastic. They had puzzles in the newspapers where they would have these pictures, and you'd put them together to make the various radio station personalities. And then these could be slid in... $1,000 in 1927 was a lot of money. I mean, this was quite a prize.
GUEST:
Yes, it was.
APPRAISER:
It's a really oddball thing-- one of a kind. As far as value, it's extremely difficult. But anyone interested in the history of radio... There are people I know who collect anything that depicts a proscenium. It is so finely crafted and so beautifully done, I could easily imagine this priced $1,500 to $2,500.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
It's really spectacular.
Appraisal Details
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