Retro Collectibles
Unleash your inner nostalgia with Retro Collectibles. This is more than just collecting; it’s a vibrant celebration of 20th-century charm. From the sleek lines of mid-century modern decor to the bold colors of 80s ephemera, we dive into the stories that race our hearts and spotlight the icons and oddities that shaped generations.
Toy Sleds: Just One More Run
by Douglas R. Kelly When my editor, Judy Gonyeau, pinged me a while back and told me that toy sleds might make for a fun topic for this Holiday issue of ...
Paper Trail
by Douglas R. Kelly Given the time and energy we spend pursuing antiquities and artifacts, it’s kind of surprising to me that we have a tendency to give short shrift ...
The Resurgence of Oasis: A New Era for Music Memorabilia Collectors
by Laurence Carpenter In recent months, the music world has been abuzz with news of an Oasis reunion. This long-anticipated event not only rekindles the flame of nostalgia for fans ...
Collecting Collectoys
by Douglas R. Kelly Louis Marx is never far from my mind. I didn’t know the man, but his company made so many cool and wonderful toys in the 1930s, ...
Summertime Scores
by Douglas R. Kelly Seems to me it doesn’t get much better than going on a summer vacation. This year, with family and job commitments, mine has been limited to ...
Out of This World Toys
by Douglas R. Kelly Science fiction movies made during the 1950s are among life’s greatest pleasures for at least two reasons. One, we didn’t know as much—as individuals or as ...
Micro Signage
by Douglas R. Kelly My great friend of many years, Renny Schoonmaker, likes to call these kinds of things “go-with items.” These are the displays, the ads, and the accessories that ...
From Tangible to Digital: The Evolution of Collecting in the Modern Era
By Shirley M. Mueller, M.D. Most collectors acquire their treasures through traditional methods – purchasing from dealers or at auctions that specialize in physical items within their areas of interest ...
Doing The Rounds
by Douglas R. Kelly If there’s an alternate me in a parallel universe, he may just be a milkman doing his rounds in a Divco milk truck. Not that I’m a ...
Hubley Manufacturing Company
by Douglas R. Kelly Hubleys have been pushing their way onto my radar screen lately. Over the years, I’ve more or less pursued the Pennsylvania-based toy maker’s “Real Toys” series ...
The T in Tinplate
by Douglas R. Kelly Most people familiar with automotive history know that Henry Ford’s Model T put America on wheels. In fact, the T changed the course of history, being ...
Antique Toys, Vintage Toys, and One-Of-A-Kind Toys as an Investment
by Charles Snider, Ruby Lane Customer Service A classic story about collectible toys and the market for toys is often a variation of someone rummaging through their parents’ home basement ...
A Bird in the Hand
by Douglas R. Kelly American toys that are made in Asia are nothing new. Over the last 35 years, many American producers have switched production to China. Before that, Japan and ...
Sports Fans Collect
You can always spot a sports fan in the crowd - whether at the stadium or on the street – because they’ll be the one sporting head-to-toe branded attire that ...
Come on Barbie, Let’s go Party!
by Charles Snider, Ruby Lane From being one of the most popular dolls and toys in the world in the 1950s, to being the star of a feature film in ...
Coin Banks: Cold Hard Cash
by Douglas R. Kelly Strange, but I don’t remember ever owning a piggy bank. What I did have growing up was a plastic bassett hound bank, which I’ve since learned ...
British Americans
By Douglas R. Kelly There’s an old saying among collectors that is more than just an old saying: “It’s not so much the toys/paintings/table clocks that matter … it’s the ...
Prize Power
by Douglas R. Kelly Who doesn’t like winning prizes? Real prizes, that is, the good stuff … a jumbo stuffed animal at the carnival, or a cool treasure you pull ...
Movie Posters: Collecting Trends and the Current Market
By Amanda Sheriff, Gemstone Publishing Collecting movie posters is plain and simply a fun hobby that expresses the love for a film and appreciation for art. From an advertising standpoint, ...
Hollywood Collectibles: For Collectors of the Stars
by Charles Snider Happy Oscar Season! These days movie buffs or families can watch most of the films nominated for Best Picture from the comfort of their own homes.; however, ...
Wishful Thinking
by Douglas R. Kelly You’d think I’d know better by now. I’ve been hunting and grooving on vintage toys for more than 40 years, and I’ve learned my share of ...
Comic Character Collectibles: In the Time of COVID-19: Pop Culture Thriving?
by J.C. Vaughn In recent discussions, a handful of auction houses and high-end comic book insiders confessed that in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic they really didn’t know ...
Comic Character Collectibles: April 2020
Spider-Man Meets Spawn to Celebrate Overstreet’s 50th by J.C. Vaughn It has been mentioned more than once in this space that 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of The Overstreet Comic ...
Comic Character Collectibles
By J.C. Vaughn [divider align="center"] Marvel Comics #1 Joins the $1 Million Club A CGC-certified 9.4 copy of Marvel Comics #1 has joined Action Comics #1, Detective Comics #27, and ...
Star Wars: Movie Poster Collecting Strikes Back
Comic Character Collectibles by J.C. Vaughn With Star Wars: Episode IX –The Rise of Skywalker due in theaters December 20, 2019, it seems like as good a time as any ...
