I just received an email from a friend along with an article written by an art market analyst in Austrailia who states that the art market has been manipulated and that prices are years ahead of where they should be. Even the Kovel’s are starting to quote the Chicken Littles of the world about the state of our industry markets. I really must say that if they truly understood the world economic considerations that are coming into play in these markets, they wouldn’t be thinking like this. And, if the dollar doesn’t strengthen, we haven’t seen anything yet.

For this very reason, I recommend that my club members only buy the best for resale. Why? With the dollar so cheap, the world is just waiting to buy the best of everything in the American Markets.

When the dollar was king, I was buying everything I could get my hands on overseas. I couldn’t spend a dollar at home, but my dollar was worth two dollars overseas. Overseas, everything they had for sale was a bargain to me. I bought Doulton, Daum Nancy, Meissen, Ruskin and many other things. I bought until my storage space ran out. But now, the tide is running the other direction.

I am telling my members that now is the time to buy the better items. There are more than enough customers waiting in the wings to purchase whatever we have for sale in this country. Yes, there will be a time that this will change, but it isn’t changing now. But we can still make a lot of money.

Now is the time to be bold and to go where others fear to tread. You can’t become a millionaire by following the crowd. You have to think for yourself. People like the Kovel’s have made their money on prices going up and telling others what to buy, so, why now are they getting frightened? We operate in these markets today — not ten years from now. So judge for yourself. Are these great markets or what? Let’s make our money now, and let tomorrow take care of itself.

I wish I could buy some great Chinese, Korean, German, Russian or British Antiques, Collectibles or Fine Art Paintings. And if you know of any that you are scared to buy, let me know, will you please? These countries are buying back their history from American collectors now, at fire sale prices when you consider the difference in currency values. If the crowd is going one way, make sure you go the other way. You’ll win big time.

On a Side Bar: Saturday at 10:00 A.M., Cindy & I will be at the Lotton Glass Studio Open House. 24760 Country Lane, Crete, Illinois 60417. Come on down, meet us, and see this fabulous glass being made right there in front of your eyes by the Lotton family of first class artists.

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about The Million Dollar Challenge.

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see what we’ve got listed in the 31 Gallery & Marketplace, click on over and take a look. You might even find a real bargain. We’ve got many high quality items priced reasonably. If you have a high quality piece you’d like us to find a buyer for, why not consign your item to us. No high fees when you sell with us. Contact us here.

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message. Chime in and participate with us.

Being that I am a teetotaler, I really haven’t had the opportunity to collect beer cans much. But “there’s money in them there cans,” as we would say in the South.. The canning of beer started in 1934 by American Can Company and continues to be the most popular way to serve beer today. Storage, breakage, and the ability to cool it faster seems to be the reasons for the change from the glass bottles.

Where I’m from, most of the people that wanted to enjoy this type of beverage simply brewed it for themselves, but I guess in the cities, beer served this way was the rage. Until 1934, beer came in kegs or bottles.

Most cans back then, from 1934 till 1962, were made from steel, but later ones are aluminum. It has been amazing to me how the thickness of these cans have been reduced while still being strong enough to hold the drink.

The style of the beer cans has changed from what were called the cone top, to what is now called the flat top. The earlier cone top cans bring the largest rewards. The true collector tries to find cans that were opened from the bottom, but for the life of me, I can’t understand why someone would have done this, but I guess they did.

Remember that condition is of upmost importance in collecting these cans. No dents, paint loss or rust can be on them, if they are the early ones. Beer bottles are also collectible, but I will leave that subject for another time.

There are people that, believe it or not, make their living today picking up beer cans on the side of the road. You may have seen them. As the price of aluminum increased, it made it profitable to collect these cans and sell them back to the processors. Did you know that in some state their is a return policy and you can return these cans for up to fifteen cents rebate? Just to throwing in a little trivia. Did you know that aluminum was more expensive than gold before the discovery of bauxite?

But let’s talk about values. When collecting these cans, you will find that there were many bottlers, as they were known in the early years. The ones that carry the highest values are cans used by the least known of these companies back then. For example, a can by Edelweiss Beer Company might bring a few hundred dollars today. can you imagine what the person that drank it and paid only five cents for the can full of beer would think if you told him the can alone today would be worth maybe three hundred dollars? Another great can to own is the Storz Gold Crest Beer Company can.

Most of the older cans will still be found at garage sales, and when you pick them up for five or ten cent each, they will definitely make you happy when the final price is registered on your on line auction. By the way, when I was a kid, I would go the the ball games and pick up cold drink bottles and sell them back to the stores. That’s where my spending money came from up until I was about fifteen years old. –Daryle
Today’s picture is courtesy of Gene’s Can Shop

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about The Million Dollar Challenge.

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see what we’ve got listed in the 31 Gallery & Marketplace, click on over and take a look. You might even find a real bargain. We’ve got many high quality items priced reasonably. If you have a high quality piece you’d like us to find a buyer for, why not consign your item to us. No high fees when you sell with us. Contact us here.

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message. Chime in and participate with us.

Yesterday, I introduced you to Spatterware and the exciting prices that can be achieved if you find the right pieces. I hope you didn’t go rushing off to buy something and ended up with Spatterware’s poor cousin, Spongeware.

The technique used to produce Spongeware is totally different than that for Spatterware. With Spongeware, the design is applied by a sponge or piece of cloth, and often the entire surface of the item is decorated. The reason that I call this type of dinnerware the poor cousin is because you will find very few pieces selling over $1,000, while with Spatterware, $1,000 is often just the starting point.

Spongeware is more primitive than the Spatterware, so therefore, it is far less attractive for using as decoration, in my opinion. When I spent my early years on the farm with my grandparents, there was always a lot of spongeware being used in everyday situations. In fact my grandfather used a Spongeware crock to make his butter in. But just because it is the poor cousin, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t become familiar with it.

Looking through several books, I found that there are still pieces of this stoneware that you should be familiar with. For example, I find a maple syrup jug in blue and white with a bail handle will still bring over $1,000. Also a teapot might fetch up to a $1,000 if it is in mint condition.

In Hancock County, Kentucky, we didn’t make maple syrup, but we did have molasses made from sugar cane and real honey that we harvested right from the bee hive. These were always kept in Spongeware jars just waiting for grandmother’s homemade biscuits and freshly churned butter.

It is amazing how so many of the items I see, like Spatterware and Spongeware, return me in my mind’s eye to my wonderful early years spent of the farm. I am so thankful that writing for you gives me this opportunity to return to those times ahd share them with others. I’ve noticed that when people get to be a certain age, they long for some of the items that bring them back to their childhood days. I can see that there is comfort in that, and is probably the reason many people buy certain items. In fact, I just might go out and find myself a piece of spongeware to remind me of where I came from.

I remember some excitement on the farm one day when we discovered a bee hive inside the wall next to the chimney. Of course all the children were screaming and my uncles were setting the newspapers afire so that the smoke would scare the bees away. My little cousins and I all wondered if the whole house was going to be set ablaze. But, they did have the blaze under control and yes, we did get to enjoy all the honey later that day. I can still see that spongeware container. Yes, I do believe that God is truly in charge. - Daryle

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about The Million Dollar Challenge here. here

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see what we’ve got listed in the 31 Gallery & Marketplace, click on over and take a look. You might even find a real bargain. We’ve got many high quality items priced reasonably. If you have a high quality piece you’d like us to find a buyer for, why not consign your item to us. No high fees when you sell with us. Contact us here.

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message. Chime in and participate with us.

These aren’t Christmas colors, but if you commit these colors to memory, you might find a large present in your Christmas stocking. I’m talking about Spatterware. This is a soft paste dinnerware that originated in the late eighteenth century. While Spatterware is still being produced today, the early pieces were made in the Staffordshire district of England. And wouldn’t you know it, colors can count when you are buying Antique Spatterware. In this instance, it can mean the difference between a few hundred dollars and thousands upon thousands.

Often, you will find these pieces decorated with flowers or rainbow patterns. Usually, he more colors a piece has the more valuable it will be. Sometimes there will be animals on it. The name “spatterware” comes from the effect that looks as if the paint was spattered on the piece.

My first introduction to Spatterware was at a farm auction in southern Indiana. At farm sales in the South, everything that is to be sold that day is brought outside and displayed on tables or wagons for the customer to examine. As I was meandering among the tables full of small offerings, I came to a wagon loaded to the top with dinnerware. Nothing looked very interesting to me, but I did take notice of some pieces that had, what looked like, painted flowers on them with spattered paint surrounding the flowers.

I thought if I could pick up a few pieces of this dinnerware, perhaps a tea pot or a couple of cups and saucers for a few dollars, I would use them as decoration in my house. As the auctioneer got closer to the wagon, I noticed people shoving in, trying to get closer to where the auctioneer was standing. “What can this be all about,” I thought to myself.

When the auctioneer held up the teapot and began to chant, “Do I have one hundred?” I thought he had lost his mind. And then he kept on chanting. “Yes, I have one hundred, do I have two? I will take your bid at at five hundred, do I hear six? Yes, how about one thousand, yes I hear three, yes I do have four thousand. By this time, I was looking around to see if they could possibly be selling the house. But,no, it was just the teapot. And it finished at over $5,000.

You betcha, from that day on this southern boy started to look for this funny looking dinnerware with its strange looking hand painted flowers. In fact just this week in the Maine Antique Digest, I saw a creamer, just three and one half inches tall, that sold at Pook and Pook Auction for $7,605. Imagine that!

And, there are pieces selling for much higher than that. Wondering about today’s picture? This plate sold through Conestoga Auction Company, setting a new world record for Spatterware. You might want to be sitting down for this one, though. That plate sold for a whopping $37,400. I linked it to the auction house page because it’s so unbelievable. But, who knows what prompts someone to make a purchase like that. It just might have completed an entire set they picked up for an extremely reasonable price making this buy, all worthwhile.

Be sure to find some books that give examples of the old patterns. Then, if you run across this older Spatterware you can say, “Make my day.” You see, most people will be like I was, thinking that you should be able to buy these pieces for a few dollars. Are they in for a shock.

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about it here!”The Guy in the Red Tie” — Daryle Lambert

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see what we’ve got listed in the 31 Gallery & Marketplace, click on over and take a look. You might even find a real bargain. We’ve got many high quality items priced reasonably. If you have a high quality piece you’d like us to find a buyer for, why not consign your piece to us. No high fees when you sell with us. Just contact us here.

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message

I got a call about half way through the day from Cecil C. I am sure that you’ve heard me talk about him before. He is the one that I wrote about in the book 31 Steps to Your Million in Antiques and Collectibles. Remember the Kentucky Derby Glass that he bought for $12.00 and sold two weeks later for $12,500.00? This is my friend that never ceases to amaze me.

He asked if I was near my computer, and of course, I always am. He asked if I would go to AskArt.com and tell him what I could about an artist named Wallace Weir Fahnestock. Naturally I did.

I soon shared the information that Mr. Fahnestock was born in Pennsylvania but did most of his best painting in Vermont. His birth was in 1877 and he died about 1962. I hesitated and waited for him to tell me more about his great purchase, but instead he asked me to continue.

“The highest auction price for one of his paintings was November of last year,” I said, “and it brought $5,700. So what have you found, Cecil?”

“Well,” he said “I did find this wonderful winter scene with two little rabbits in it, about 20″ bt 24″. What do you think it’s worth?”

“Are you going to tell me what you paid for it, Cecil? I know you already bought it.”

“Ah, give me my momentary pleasure,” he toyed. “So what’s it worth?”

Well, I knew I should just give him the information. I was just feeling a little outdone by my own student. In fact, we’d even partnered on paintings in the past. I knew he didn’t pay much, but I found myself wanting to know just a wee bit more than him at that moment. I put that all aside and told him, “Good job, Cecil. Looks like it’s worth from $8,000-$10,000. Now, what’d you pay for it?”

“Only $800. So it looks like I did okay, don’t you think?”

I knew at that moment, he was one of my finest students. “Well done, Cecil.”

How does Cecil do this so consistently? He studies and he gets out there. He’s developed an eye for high quality work.You can do the very same thing, because it is this commitment that gets the job done.

For those that say there are no more treasures to be found, I say they must not know Cecil. I am still looking forward to the near future when I will be saying the same thing about you.

About the time I was going to really give him the praise he rightly deserved, he said to me, “Can I ask you about something else?” What else does he have up his sleeve today, I thought.

“I might have found a really good piece of Carnival Glass. Do you have your Carnival Glass Book,” he asked?

A Grape and Cable 9 inch plate in amethyst with the electric blue iridescent highlights that books for $500.00 to $800.00 was what Cecil found. It was hard for me to ask what he paid, but I did. “Sixty dollars, and it is in mint condition.”

Now, I would call that a great day by anyone’s standards. Boy, do I enjoy writing these stories. I am hoping that in a few months I will have to get a new key board for my computer because I will have worn this one out telling the world about the great treasures the 31 Club Members are finding.

Today’s photo is an example of a Wallace Weir Fahnestock painting, courtesy of Askart.com
Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about it here!”The Guy in the Red Tie” — Daryle Lambert

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see what we’ve got listed in the 31 Gallery & Marketplace, click on over and take a look. You might even find a real bargain. We’ve got many high quality items priced reasonably. If you have a high quality piece you’d like us to find a buyer for, why not consign your piece to us. No high fees when you sell with us. Just contact us here.

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message

Many years ago I was at a neighborhood yard sale when I spotted a large green vase. I took a close look at it and seriously wondered why anyone would want to have it in their house. It was inexpensive, so I bought it anyway. I think I paid somewhere around $50 for it.

When I got home, I did some research and discovered that it was Teco Pottery, which, at the time, I had never heard of. When I found out that the vase I was holding could bring up to $2,500 I almost fell off my chair. I decided to immediately sell it, and it brought me $2,250. You can bet I will never look at that plain green color the same again.

Teco –The Terra-Cotta Tile and Ceramic Company was formed in 1887 by Williams D. Gates. This immediately became associated with the Prairie School movement and was included in most homes of the time that featured the Arts and Crafts Style. At the time, Prairie School and Arts and Crafts were new terms for this Southern boy. I was use to terms like Primitives and Folk Art, and these were the things we searched for in the South.

Frank Lloyd Wright, the famous architect, was one of the most notable members of this movement. I found his designs often imitated the great American Prairies that surrounded Chicago. This seemed to play in to his love of the Western movement that was happening in this country.

Some of the purists wanted to discount the value of Teco pieces, because there were very few pieces hand thrown, and most were massed produced. They had some of the largest factories producing pottery at the time and so their production was extremely large. In fact, Teco had over 10,000 different shapes in its catalogues. This pottery was primarily a commercial venture, and I am still rather surprised that it commands the prices that it does.

When others were making high glazed and very decorative pottery, Teco produced great designs and the highest quality pottery on the market. Most of their pieces are matt green with very little secondary glazing, however they sometimes do have a charcoal effect on them.

The variety that William Gates created with his pottery does amaze me, but even till this day, it looks common to me.

Damage to a piece of Teco will devalue it more than most other pottery, and as a general rule, it should be avoided. This is because it was mass produced, and true collectors will wait for a prefect example before they buy.

The larger the pieces in Teco seems to be where the value is. While many of the Teco shapes come in brown, maroon, blue, yellow, and pink, it is the Teco Green that is most valued by today’s collectors and will bring in the highest price. Some pieces will bring tens of thousands of dollars at the better auction houses such as Treadway and Toomey Auction Gallery and Rago’s.

Be sure to familiarize yourself with the Teco mark I’ve shown in today’s picture. Pieces of Teco will often have this mark stamped several times on their bottom and often the mark will be almost invisible.

So, be on the lookout for Teco, because it just might make your day. A good reference book on Teco Art Pottery is American Art Pottery by David Rago. Why not order either a used or new copy through our Amazon Link to help support the 31 Club Wealth Building?

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about it here!”The Guy in the Red Tie” — Daryle Lambert

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see what we’ve got listed in the 31 Gallery & Marketplace, click on over and take a look. You might even find a real bargain. We’ve got many high quality items priced reasonably. If you have a high quality piece you’d like us to find a buyer for, why not consign your piece to us. No high fees when you sell with us. Just contact us here.

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message

My mailbox was full of magazines today and each was filled with auctions ads. It looks to me as if everyone is trying to get their things sold before the market drops. But do I have news for them! The Antique & Collectible Market has a long way to run before the steam goes out of it. With the dollar collapsing and real estate in a free fall in many markets, where else are you going to put your money?

Foreigners are buying the best and highest quality Antiques and Collectibles from this country at fire sale prices because of the difference in the value of currencies. No, we haven’t reached the top yet. In fact, the top is no where in sight. If we have a change in government that moves us toward socialism, we haven’t seen anything yet.

So how do we take advantage of all this uncertainty? We must see the opportunities all this uncertainty creates. Remember, you don’t need luck when you have knowledge. Educate yourself so that you will always be ahead of the curve. Art work, fine silver, jewelry, pottery and other rarities will always have value around the world. If we want to make money, we’ll need to think about global markets and quit worrying so much about what is happening at home here. We’ll need to be taking action in areas that we can actually do something about. All things change. When they do, we must change with it.

A house might drop in value here because of the credit crunch, but we can’t move it to China. This isn’t true of a painting. We can ship a painting almost anywhere.

Yes, the dollar will rebound, but when is the question. So, let’s not be waiting for the event to occur. Let’s take advantage of the circumstances as they present themselves. There is no crystal ball that can tell us how long this change might last, so let’s not be a chicken little and bury our heads in the sand. We’re going where the smart money is going. This can only be done when we are educated in the ways of the market place. This is what the 31 Club will be making every effort to guide you through. We want our members to be the best equipped individuals in the market place.

If people are rushing to get out of the market, it might be time for us to get in. They might be selling out of fear, or they might need money to make their larger house payment on the adjustable loans that are readjusting. We need to be ready to buy.

Local Auctions that aren’t well advertised should be a gold mine for our members, as there will be fewer people, and your ever-increasing knowledge level will help you immensely. Try to buy the best of these offerings, because that is where the true treasures will be found. Go to every house sale that you can attend, and look for the most expensive things offered. This isn’t the time to be buying two dollar items that might sell for four dollars. This is the time to step up to the plate while the iron is hot. We, at the 31 Club, will back up our members to the limit of our ability with our Associates Program. If you see something you might want to partner on, call or email us. Let’s take advantage of these markets together. But you must be a member, first.

I believe very shortly, the prices that we are seeing for the rarities will seem cheap, so remember: The Trend is your Friend. Let’s start the new year off with a bang.

By the way, I was asked what kind of painting I bought from Joan C. It is a beautiful little painting of flowers in a vase. I pick it up Wednesday and will show it to all of you.

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about it here!”The Guy in the Red Tie” — Daryle Lambert

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see what we’ve got listed in the 31 Gallery & Marketplace, click on over and take a look. You might even find a real bargain. We’ve got an Erte Bronze, “Femme Fatale”, Lotton Glass, and many many more high quality items priced reasonably with no buyer’s premiums. If you have a high quality piece you’d like us to find a buyer for, why not consign your piece to us. No high fees selling with us.

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Thank you for the little break over Thanksgiving. Too much food and football, but alas,another Thanksgiving becomes a chapter of family history. It was wonderful.

These last couple of days have given me time to think about where we at 31 Club Wealth Building have started and the wonderful progress we’ve have together on the road to fulfilling our dreams. We have had some fantastic success stories and I believe they are just beginning. Cindy, Chris, Clarke and I have begun to lead you on your journey to find treasure. We are only beginning to ascend our 31 Steps to our Millions, and what better way to do this than to have an open discussion where we can share our ideas, experiences and knowledge and a place to track our progress.

Membership is growing at a wonderful rate and should pick up now that we are into the Christmas season and people are beginning to buy Christmas gifts. Why not share our book and club with someone near and dear to you?

Content both on the website and in the blog is gaining popularity, and members are responding at a ever increasing. So if you haven’t contacted us yet, drop us an E-mail with your comments and questions, and let us know you’re out there. I would say that we are definitely on target. But that still leaves us to find the answers we are looking for on how to complete The Million Dollar Race. I think I have it. We need more information to work, with so here we go.

At the present time art work, both American and European, appear to be where the big money is. So, where do we find the knowledge needed to compete in this field? One suggestion is to find a set of the books by William H. Gerdts call Art Across America. This set come in three volumes. The East and Mid-Atlantic, The South and The Midwest, The Plains and The West. By studying these books you will familiarize yourself with the greatest artists of this country. There are hundreds of artist that most dealers will not have heard of, and if you find a painting by one of them, you will have found a treasure. I made a list of all the artists mentioned in the book on The South and Mid-West to keep in my wallet. You might want to do this with several books that list artists. After all, we know that it is virtually impossible to commit to memory all the listed artists there could potentially be great finds for. We’d really appreciate any support for the club, and you can help keep us going by ordering used or new books through our Amazon Link. If you don’t find what you’re looking for there, try Abes Books.

Sometimes the treasures we find might not be in dollar value, but be personal treasures, priceless in our mind and heart.

I participated in a service at the Glen Oakes Nursing Home on Wednesday night, which is something I’ve been doing regularly for a while now. When the service was over, a wonderful lady I know asked if I would visit one of the people that was not able to attend that night.

Joan C. greeted us with her warm smile as we entered the room. I found out that Joan had served others for forty years as a nurse until illness and the loss of a leg ended her career. She’d been married for fifty seven years, had five children and twelve grandchildren, was a member of Mensa, and had accepted Jesus when she was seventeen. We had a lot in common right off the bat. It wasn’t until I started admiring the beautiful paintings on the walls in her room that I was pleasantly surprised to discover that she was the artist. And a very accomplished one. I immediately picked one of her pieces I wanted to buy, but before I could get the words out, my friend said she wanted to buy that one. I said, “No you don’t!” We both laughed because she knew I had my eye on that one, and being gracious she told me I can have it. We prayed together, and I am certain Joan and I will become close friends. Wednesday, I added a real treasure to my personal collection from a very special artist. This personal treasure will always be with me. –Daryle

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about it here!”The Guy in the Red Tie” — Daryle Lambert

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message.

May you have a warm and restful Thanksgiving. We at the 31 Club wish you a wonderful time of giving thanks with your friends and family.

Cindy, Chris, Clarke and I are so blessed to have you in our lives. We pledge to do everything in our power to see that the coming months are successful for you. God has blessed each one of us in many ways and meeting all the members of our club through the Internet has been one of the greatest blessings for us. We look forward to the day when we can meet each and every one of you face-to-face.

These last five months have seemed to whiz by, but look at all we’ve accomplished working together. The website that Chris has put together is second to none, getting more and more recognition each passing week. Chris just put up the video of Joshua, if you haven’t seen it yet. I am so thankful that his wife and children have been so understanding during our start up period.

Cindy has been my constant source of strength. When I wondered if I had another blog in me she would say “Just be yourself.” How thankful I am to have such a talented person to cover up all my mistakes. Wow, can she write or what? I was joking with her the other day that I was afraid others would see her talent and heir her away from us.

You haven’t heard much from Clarke but he was sure there when we needed him and he is waiting to be called upon again.

May your lives be richly blessed this Thanksgiving Day and remember — In this business, you don’t need luck when you have knowledge.
Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about it here!”The Guy in the Red Tie” — Daryle Lambert

If you wish to leave comments use the ANONYMOUS button and then you don’t have to sign in to leave your message.

I no sooner finished and posted my Football Collectible Blog when a Kentuckian — a relative– asked me, “What about Basketball, Daryle?” You see, people from Kentucky bleed blue for their basketball team.

So to keep peace in my family, here we go. Yes, basketball is in my blood. To this day, I remember My Dad taking me to the State Basketball Tournament when I was very young.

Owensboro High school had a player by the name of Cliff Hagan, and you might recognize that name today because of his Cliff Hagan Boys and Girls Club. Our school won the tournament, but what stands etched in my mind the most was when they rolled out the table with all of the trophies. I couldn’t believe all the gold and silver shimmering right before my eyes. To me, that table looked like a mile long.

Cliff Hagan attended Kentucky University after high school. There, he became an All American under the tutelage of the Great Adolph Rupp. Cliff had the sweetest hook shot I have ever seen, even better than Lew Alcindor (Kareem Adul-Jabbar).

My next greatest basketball moment was when Kentucky played a game in our hometown. I was able to get all the coaches and player’s autographs.

Just like football, there is a never ending search for items signed or used in games by the upper echelon players and coaches. Signed cards, programs, jerseys, shoes by the better known players can bring tens of thousands of dollars, and even more if they are extremely rare.

Oh, if I could only own a jersey that belonged to Bill Russell or Wilt Chamberlain. What a dream come true that would be. Do you remember The Big O or Pistol Pete? Now, that’s going back quite a number of years, but as a child, I would marvel at the gymnastics these player could perform on the court. In his day, Magic Johnson was one of my favorite players. I can still see him in my mind’s eye weaving in and out before exploding toward the basket.

Wondering about today’s photo? That basketball belongs to a 15-year-old young man whose mother is part of the 31 Club Wealth Building. You might not be able to make out the signature, but it’s Michael Jordan’s. This young man’s father was able to obtain Michael’s autograph, when he was making a delivery to Michael’s home. It was signed in person, right on Michael’s own driveway, in honor of a very special occasion in this young man’s life. Now, this young man, who had also had the privilege to see Michael in action at the many Bulls games he attended with his parents, has a real treasure.

The rare pieces of Basketball memorabilia will only increase in value, and these may show up anyplace. So do keep your eyes open at every sale you attend. That special piece might be in that old trunk or in the bottom of a sack in the back of a closet waiting to be discovered again.

Go hunting. And remember, you don’t need luck when you have knowledge.

Be sure to visit our web site for more information about how you can join the 31 Club Wealth Building and start your own race to your millions! Read more about it here!”The Guy in the Red Tie” — Daryle Lambert

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