History Detectives - Day Two

Greetings readers of Manion's Collecting News.

The day of shooting an episode for History Detectives went really well. Like I mentioned in yesterday's post, I already knew a bit about the subject they checked out for me - and yes they have some great insight for anyone interested in WWII history, military use of canines, and more tremendous examples of the superior service Japanese Americans exhibited during the Second World War - and these specific acts have been virtually unknown up until this time.

Other than that, I've agreed not to give too much of the story away. Talk to me at a show and I'll give you more details . . .

Anyway, it was indeed an honor to get to hang out with Tukufu all day long - he is indeed a gentleman of unparalleled academic achievement - and, as it turns out, a collector of militaria in a specific genera: he collects Civil War, WWI and WWII related posters featuring Africans and people of African descent!

As of now, the word is that the show will air on PBS anywhere from June to October of 09. I will be sure to let you know.

Here are some pics from the shoot. Until next time, thanks for reading.

History Detectives

Hey folks.

Some of you may have heard that yours truly will be appearing on an upcoming episode of the PBS program History Detectives. I've just arrived in Richmond, Virginia and we begin shooting first thing in the morning. My host will be Tukufu Zuberi, and it will be an honor to meet such an accomplished scholar and historian.

I knew a bit about the history of the grouping I asked them to investigate from my own research, but apparently they have some big surprises in store for me - should be pretty cool.

At any rate, I will try to shoot some video of my own and take some pics during the shoot - check back here tomorrow evening and I should have some posted.

Unfortunately, I can't seem to get the MU game here so looks like I have to go find somewhere that does . . . may be a hard task. Check back here tomorrow!

MAX show comes to a close

What a show!

The MAX militaria show has officially come to a close. We have taken in a ton of consignment (literally) with more coming in tomorrow during dealer breakdown. It was a pretty good event, but seems a little smaller than it was last year, and no vets were present signing autographs. Looks like my trusty copy of Band of Brothers will have to wait until the SOS to gather any more signatures.

It was great to see Ralf from our German office again. He's a heck of a good guy and runs our European arm effortlessly. We are certainly lucky to have him on the team. We have had a heck of a good time hanging out with him and his buddies from Germany, Stephan and Thomas. Those fellas know how to have fun!

Our new realized price guide went over really well. We donated a couple of them for the MAX show raffle and sold out of the rest. Our friend, and publisher, Matthew Roth already has orders for nearly 500 of them, so a word to the wise - you had better get on it if you want a copy because we only had 1000 printed. You can order from Amazon on the front page of www.manions.com.

Speaking of Matthew Roth, it is his birthday today and it looks like we are going to celebrate. Pittsburgh beware.

After we pack up tomorrow and drop Ralf off at the airport, John, Steve, and I are heading to Chicago to pick up a massive WWII German collection and check out another huge Vietnam group. To quote the movie Jaws - "We're gonna need a bigger boat".

It's been a long last few weeks, but all of this travel is just making the auction stronger and stronger and helping us to serve our consignors and bidders even better. I've posted some pics below from the MAX show as well as the afore mentioned Air Force Museum. Enjoy.

US Air Force Museum









































































































MAX Show 2008

MAX militaria show and more!

Hello again readers!

It has been a busy busy past few weeks for yours truly - for the last three weeks I have been traveling to various militaria shows: and loving it!

First I was in Des Moines for their yearly militaria collector event. It was a nice little show with friendly dealers and a wide variety of collectibles available at fair prices. It was the first time I attended and I was impressed with their organization. Traffic wasn't over the top, but most of the dealers kept a positive attitude and many did very well.

Then last weekend I attended the Minnesota/St. Paul Militaria show at the state fairgrounds in St. Paul. This was my fifth or sixth time at this event and it just keeps getting better and better as far as the auction is concerned. I brought back more consignment than ever, with several first time sellers loading me up with boxes to bring back.

This week myself, John Conway, Steve Allen, and Ralf Ganzel (from our German office in Hamburg) are attending the MAX show in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Steve, John and myself arrived last night and Ralf gets here this afternoon. We don't get to see Ralf that much, so it is always a pleasure when he makes it to the states.

It was quite a haul from KC to Steeler-ville, and we got sidetracked by the Air Force museum in Dayton, Ohio. The museum was unbelievable, if you have ever considered visiting, make it happen the next time you are in the area. Don't think you're going to get in and out of there in an hour, either. We spent nearly seven . Admission is FREE, too, which definitely sweetens the deal. I'll post some pictures at some point this week.

Well, we're off to get set up for the MAX. Check back in throughout the week for updates, pictures, and maybe even video, from the event.