antiques roadshow

On the second week of the new season of Antiques Roadshow, shows from Palm Springs, a man brought in what he was told was one of Marilyn Monroe’s dresses from Billy Wilder’s Some Like It Hot. But would it, in fact, turn out to be real? There are plenty of fakes & mistakes when it comes to Marilyn Monroe collectibles… Antiques Roadshow experts themselves have discovered frauds & fakes before — as well as made mistakes in identifying Marilyn Monroe’s signature… So what’s this dress’ story?

Dale Vandegriff, owner of the little black dress, was given the dress by a friend of his — Hollywood costume designer Don Feld. Counting Don Feld among your friends is already pretty enviable, but it certainly adds to the provenance of your vintage Hollywood costume claims…

The dress had a paper tag, from Feld’s collection, and it also had sewn into it a tag from Western Costume Company — with “M Monroe” written on it. The clincher was that the dress matches the dress worn by Marilyn as Sugar Kane in the film Some Like It Hot.

Appraiser Beth Szescila had this to say about the little (tiny) black dress:

The dress was actually created by Orry-Kelly, the Oscar-winning costume designer. He did a lot of clothing for Marilyn. He created the dresses specifically for her. And he would often actually sew her into the dresses to make them fit just right, to get that really sexy look. It’s in black peau de soie, a material that’s very similar to satin, with this wonderful fringe that gave her all the movement that she needed for her action roles. It’s really amazing looking at this dress at how small it is.

After a much-to-do about how small Marilyn was (and how tight the dress was), Szescila appraised the dress :

..worn by one of the greatest sex symbols of the 20th century. In an auction, I would not be surprised at all if it went for somewhere between $150,000 and $250,000.

As Vandegriff nearly hit the ground in a faint…

She continued:

And actually, with the unpredictability of the market for this type of item, it would not surprise me at all if it went much higher.

You can watch the appraisal via this clip at PBS.

Meanwhile, in our living room…

Daughter Destiny, knowing of my love of vintage Hollywood and Marilyn, was saying that she bet I wanted that dress. I told her that for that money, I’d sell it. That surprised her.

While it’s true I love vintage glamour girls & Marilyn, a dress like that, coveted by so many & so bringing Big Bucks, would in truth not bring me the same thrill as a pair of her blue jeans or, more ideally, a cosmetic jar of hers. Something personal, intimate, and more about her as a person. Something more Norma Jean Baker than Marilyn Monroe.

And as hubby says, a person with pockets big & deep enough to pay for an item like that, certainly would have the means to properly archive it.

I’m not saying I’d turn down any real Marilyn Monroe collectible, but when you could buy a house (or three!) with the profits from the sale of such an item — and still have money left over for one of her little cosmetic or cold cream jars (long expired of its contents even) — well, what’s to decide really?

Every collector, every collectible, has its price.

Although meeting Wes Cowan and chatting with him was a blast, the ultimate purpose of the Trash or Treasure events were to get the full Antiques-Roadshow-treatment for the things we didn’t know anything about.   Finding those items turned out to be the most difficult part for us:  while D and I aren’t the most focused of collectors, there’s very little in our house that we’re missing information on.   A few pieces here and there, but if it can be researched we’ve already done the footwork.   We were both surprised and satisfied that Cowan and his peers access the same resources as the rest of us, so it meant we were down to just the ’stumpers’ when it came to the appraisal fair.

We actually had two occasions for Cowan and Farnand to view our mystery items.   First was Friday night, at the VIP dinner.  Fine foods were catered by the museum cafe’s resident chef, local media hob-nobbed, and Cowan gave a short speech before reviewing the items on the front table.

Like last year, there were a lot of nice items, but none of the “$10,000-surprise” variety.  Cowan was, as every time we heard him speak, both charming and unhesitatingly honest.   One of the first items he picked was a European painting that the owner believed was at least a century old.   They learned, however, that while the frame had the darker patina of older wood, the painting’s stretcher was quite new, maybe a few decades old, and the painting itself was most likely a souvenir reproduction of an Italian master.   Another person brought a small reproduction of Whistler’s Mother, and was pleased to find out they paid the right price for it:  three dollars.    19th century books had quality issues and were of minimal value.  A — honestly quite beautiful — carved wood Italian table suffered from being stripped and repaired without a conservator’s touch.

The next day, we spoke briefly with Sue Petry, Public Information Manager for the Plains Art Museum and the coordinator behind the Trash or Treasure event, and she said she had been quite worried over the poor valuations that came out of the V.I.P. Event, concerned that the people who brought their antiques would be disappointed or offended at being told their stuff was not worth much.  Petry was reassured Saturday morning when the woman with the not-so-antique Italian painting was back with something else to glean Cowan’s opinion about.  Much of the entertainment of the V.I.P. appraisal night was Cowan’s friendly handling of the lack of value in some of the items.   He kept the event light and cheerful, without making the owner feel small for bringing in something of minimal value.   An antique book — missing quite a few pages — was worth more than a few jokes from Cowan and kept the audience laughing, including the book’s owner who shared a table with D and myself.  Everyone who brought items in seemed to have more than enjoyed themselves, regardless of the price tag put on their collectible.

As I said, Deanna and I had some difficulty coming up with what to bring to the V.I.P. appraisal fair.  D brought a small 19th century piece of advertising ephemera that Cowan couldn’t add much to what she already knew about it.   I brought in a selection from my 1930s A.O.U.W films, which Cowan said might have a marginal financial worth, but the Library of Congress would probably be quite happy to borrow from me for archival purposes.  While we both enjoyed ourselves at the event, we wanted to bring things to the general-public appraisal fair that would be less of a stumper for Cowan.

Wes Cowan seemed to have more to say about the paintings and artwork at the V.I.P. event, so D and I picked several pieces of art to bring.   Cowan also had commented that folk art was one of his recent favorites, so that also made us adjust our selections.   We picked a silk-and-watercolor piece of Japanese art, a relatively-rare paint-by-number of a bear walking along a mountain road, and the woolie D brought to last years’ Trash or Treasure.

Sue Petrie of the Plains Art Museum also said she was surprised and pleased with the turnout for the Saturday public appraisal fair.    Last year, we arrived a little late and had no trouble getting in line, but this year we had a nearly two-hour wait to get our funky art underneath Cowan’s nose.   We occupied our time with the charity rummage sale, and chit-chatting in the museum cafe.   When our number came up, however, we were ready to take what Cowan had to say about our art.

The first thing he said was, “this is where you’re supposed to say, ‘are you tired of seeing us?’” to myself and D, turning on that wit that we’d seen the previous days.   We knew we weren’t going to hear huge prices from Cowan, but were hoping for more information than anything.     He started with the Japanese silk, and said it was not as finely done as classical Japanese silk-work, but was probably a post-WWII souvenir, and definitely worth around the seventy-five cents we paid for it, give or take a dollar.    When he came to the paint-by-number, he was impressed that we had found the manufacturer, model number, and title: “you know more about this stuff than I do,” was Cowan’s response, which, of course, D is going to get printed on a t-shirt for next time she goes rummaging.

When he got to the woolie we were a little surprised, but it resolved some thoughts we had from the year before.   The Ivey-Selkirk appraiser said the woolie probably dated from the 1930s to 1950s, which the wood stretcher would indicate, but I had thought the materials looked newer and D also thought the style wasn’t as detailed or well-done as other period woolies.  Cowan pointed out that the color and style of the burlap back was very 1960s or 1970s, and his opinion was that the art was done by an amateur as a basic art project using whatever materials they had at hand.  While it moved it to the edge of being called a “woolie,” it is still a piece of amateur folk art, and his price wasn’t too far off of the Ivey-Selkirk appraisal from the year before.

All-in-all, the Plains Art Museum did an excellent job of hosting an enjoyable series of presentations, speeches, dinners, and events, bringing a little chunk of Antiques-Roadshow-style fun or our northern part of the nation.  Everyone we met had fun seeing what an actual History Detective had to say about their show-and-tell selections.  We’re already looking forward to next year!

I’m pretty sure all you collectors know Wes Cowan from 13 years appraising on Antiques Roadshow and six years as a History Detective. Many of you might also know that he was raised in a household filled with Victorian antiques by a mother who liked all things “old” and that he turned his love of “old” into degrees in anthropology and archaeology; eventually teaching and then becoming Curator of Archaeology at the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History. But what you might not know is that Cowan has always been a collector.

As a child Cowan collected fossils, arrowheads, and china plates; as a young man in college, he collected antique photographs. In fact, if it weren’t for a passion for collecting he might never have become “Wes Cowan, Auctioneer,” let alone a regular on those TV shows. After 15 years of collecting photographs, Cowan had amassed what was, at the time, the best collection of Frank J. Haynes photographs & stereoviews — which he (somewhat painfully) sold to start his business.

When we met Cowan briefly before his Thursday night lecture, part of the Plains Art Museum’s Trash or Treasure event, it was really clear that his passion for collecting isn’t just some front to appease collectors or fans of the shows. Within the first few minutes the talk turned quickly to collecting. Not just asking us what we collect, but making an off-hand comment that he’s been kicking himself for not starting a collection of hotel door key cards earlier. It’s just the sort of comment you’d expect a traveling collector to make.

Once he began his talk, Cowan focused on the appeal of History Detectives. He said that the show “taps into our inherent interests in the history of our country and the history of our families.” His enthusiasm for collecting and understanding of collectors was clear as he talked about how objects hold stories and how collectors should think of themselves as curators. (In my notes I wrote, “It’s like Wes reads my columns!”)

When discussing History Detectives, Cowan winced and ducked from imaginary tossed tomatoes as he told us that none of the stars of the show do the research. He explained that they may suggest objects and stories they run across but it’s the producers who select the objects & then assign them to the show’s researchers. Working in pairs, researchers have six weeks to do the research. From this research, a loose script or story lay-out is created, allowing the History Detective to provide off-the-cuff narration — including the inclusion of new or changing information as it comes in. Each History Detective then has three days to be filmed telling the story, with two days of travel. (With so much travel, it’s no wonder Cowan laments not starting that hotel door key collection earlier.)

Cowan feels honored to be a part of the show, saying, “It’s a privilege to be invited into homes & stories and to go & do what others can’t.” Watching him say it, there’s no doubt of the sincerity of his words.

Antiques Roadshow production has far more of a family atmosphere among the appraisers; not just because he’s been a part of the show for twice as long but because he and the other 75 appraisers work together at each show. And boy do the appraisers work at each show. Even if each city Roadshow visits airs as multiple episodes, it all was taped in one day. That means 75 appraisers work with 7,500 people — each one bringing multiple items — all in one day. None of the appraisers are compensated in any way for participating in Roadshow — flights, food, hotel etc. is all paid for out of each appraiser’s pocket. Each appraiser does it for the fun and exposure. Or I should say for the potential exposure. For while there are 12 million viewers, there is no guarantee that any appraiser will have a taped segment. As appraisers run into great stories, they have to make a pitch about being filmed to producers. If they make a strong enough case, they may get air time; if not, they’ve paid for the trip, done an exhausting day’s work, all for naught.

Well, almost naught…

Appraisers are allowed to set their cards and literature on tables. However, they are absolutely forbidden to solicit business. This includes verbally giving out their contact information. Cowan tells the story of a lady who asked how to contact him. He replied that he couldn’t say, but mentioned where his card could be found. When she stated she was unable to read the print on his card, Cowan told the woman she would need to get her granddaughter to read the card because he was forbidden to read it to her. That’s pretty strict; but just goes to show you how ethical Roadshow is.

As for his “day job” as auctioneer, Cowan says the business has changed a lot. “Farm auctions are no longer lucrative,” he said, and, “Sotheby’s & Christie’s have proven that auctioneering is all about marketing.” And he addressed the impact of the Internet too.

Within 5-7 years, eBay and the like have quickly shown that “rare” is indeed a relative term based on dealer opinion &/or experience. Once “rarely seen” things were shown for the readily available stuff they were, and the prices for low-to-middle end antiques & collectibles dropped drastically. However, the accessibility of the Internet has assisted those searching for scarce items, likely bringing stronger auction sales for high end antiques and art. He also said the accessibility was a good thing, allowing people to find objects, connect with other collectors & collecting groups, as well as research more easily.

On Friday, before the VIP Trash or Treasure dinner, we had yet another opportunity to talk privately with both Wes Cowan and his colleague, Danica M. Farnand, a specialist in American Indian Art. We have lots more to share from those conversations, but for now we’ll leave you with the one question that every collector & watcher of History Detectives wants to know: What are their favorite resources for research?

Farnand first mentioned Google, then added that she most often uses the Burke Museum database, as well as the Smithsonian database, AskArt.com, and Peabody’s database (but added that it was a bit difficult to use). Cowan added ArtFact.com, Prices4Antiques, Ancestry.com, ABE.com, CivilWarData.com, and The Library of Congress’ American Memory Historical Collection to the list. He also said that more and more universities and museums are adding their archives online, so the resources would only be growing.

Skeptical that they were hiding something, like secret databases and clandestine meetings in private libraries off limits to the average collector, we pressed a bit. “On History Detectives you have a lot of access to archives and libraries of organizations… Do average collectors have such access?”

“In my experiences, as a collector, researcher and auctioneer, I’ve found archivists & librarians are always anxious to help,” he said.

“Even if you’re not a History Detective?” we asked.

“It’s not like a librarian’s ever going to tell a researcher to go away,” he added, laughing. Then he leaned in, grinned and conspiratorily added, “But being a History Detective doesn’t hurt!”