Book Review: Hubert’s Freaks

Bob Langmuir is the archetype of many of the antique dealers I know: a little socially awkward, more than a little obsessed with details, skilled with an eye for detail, and lucky has hell.   Bob dealt mainly in books, but had an eye for antiques of all sorts, finding the best stuff in “rabbit holes”, those off-the-beaten paths which haven’t seen the light of day in quite a while, the hidden places where the ‘good stuff’ lurks.  A couple years ago, Bob developed a taste for Black Americana, which, in 2002, led him to a dusty trunk full of papers, ephemera, and photos.   The ephemera was from Hubert’s, a ‘freak show’ museum in New York during the ’50s and ’60s; the photos were by Diane Arbus, master of the modern art of photography.   Bob quickly realized that he was sitting on something more than a box of paper and some funky snapshots.

The story is one that collectors and dealers alike can appreciate.    As a dealer, Bob’s biggest objective is to get paid what the collection is worth – but as a collector, he’s reluctant to break up the collection, or even part with it at all.  In order to succeed, Bob must navigate a cornucopia of characters and obstacles.  Everyone, from the relatives of the people in the photos, to other dealers and collectors, to the Diane Arbus estate itself, are all grasping for their share of the wealth, collection, and rights, pushing Bob to his limits to ensure he doesn’t take a wrong step.   The book’s story has a Wizard of Oz feel, the reader wondering where the road is going to turn next, and who’s the next person to step into the plot and try and push Bob off his track.

Langmuir’s struggle with the Arbus collection spilled into, echoing and aggravating his personal life, entwining his work and collection and crumbling marriage into a knot of trouble that seems on the verge of shattering Bob’s resolve altogether.   In the process, Bob finds the strength to grow emotionally, not only allowing him to move on in his personal life, but also providing the abilities needed to sell the Hubert’s collection for what it was worth, as a collection and a commodity.   The book ends at the tail-end of 2007, just before Langmuir’s collection was to go to auction, but the Hubert’s archive still hasn’t been sold yet: the web of interests surrounding the Hubert’s collection have held up its sale for nearly a year now.  By the end of the book, however, Bob had grown from a nervous, angry man to a patient, self-reflective gentleman who it seems can handle a setback or two with ease.

The people Bob encounters as obstacles in his journey will be familiar to most dealers or collectors.   At one point, Bob tracks down someone with the other half of the Hubert’s collection, and tries to make a deal; the collector starts out ready to trade, but becomes less and less accomodating as the nuts and bolts are discussed and he realizes he will be parting with some good stuff.   In an excellent section, Bob and the author of the book sit down with the family of one of the performers at Hubert’s, and Langmuir demonstrates his ability to deal with people on their level, comfortably and gaining their trust.  Having Arbus photos thrust him into the unfamiliar high-end art world, dealing with gallery owners, museum curators, and a hodge-podge of appraisers with varying skills, which he handled surprisingly well given his personality and experience.   The author of the book, Gregory Gibson, is an antiquarian book dealer himself, giving him the kind of insight to recognize the important factors in Langmuir’s navigation of the arts and collectibles world.  Gibson recognizes Langmuir’s skills as an antique dealer, succeeding despite his weak personal skills, and by the end of the book Gibson shows how Langmuir’s personal growth not only improves his life as a person, but also as an antiques dealer.    Every collector who fantasizes about that One Amazing Find will root for Langmuir through his trials, and every dealer will wish they had the luck of a man like Langmuir every time they leave the house.   As a dealer, ephemera collector, and photography fan, I enjoyed this book immensely.

Huber’s Freaks: The Rare-Book Dealer, The Times Square Talker, and the Lost Photos of Diane Arbus
by Gregory Gibson
Newly in paperback on 4/15/2009, but also in hardcover.