Good Friends + Like Hobbies = Peanuts Anyone??

[Gonzai]

Not sure how well you all get along with your neighbors, but I get along really well with the people
who live next door to me. It is a super sweet couple in their mid 60s that are retired and just great
people to live close to.

I remember when I first met Jan and we talked about my collecting Animation Artwork, she told me
that I would get along great with her parents, because they were collectors of animation as well, and
though not artwork, they were huge collectors of anything and everything Peanuts. Now growing up,
I really loved Snoopy, so the first chance I got, I jumped on the opportunity to see what they
had. OMG - they had amassed a collection that was just mind boggling. @_@

Anything and everything you could imagine that was Peanuts, they had it. I was blown away. I thought I
was obsessed, but this was beyond my wildest imagination. It was cool to see a true collector. Made me
feel like my measly little artwork collection was nothing. -_-

Anyway, her parents passed away last year, and this weekend they had this massive estate sale. I took
my granddaughters to go see everything, and was amazed to find that it was not just Peanuts they collected.
They collected comics, baseball & football cards, decoy ducks *_*, tons of things. So many people there and
so much stuff. What surprised me the most, was the lack of (of should I say none) Peanuts - except some
stuffed snoopy and woodstocks, a few outside Christmas decorations, and some Christmas ornaments.

My first thought was that a collector, or ebaystore owner or someone scooped them all up. So, we went
and found Jan and asked her where all the Peanuts stuff was. She commented it was back at her house
waiting for me to pick it all up. I was stunned for a moment, thinking I heard her wrong, and then I think
I finally squeaked out the word, 'What'? She assured me that I wasn't hearing things, that they saved all the
Peanuts stuff to give to me. Since I was also a collector or animation. O_o

So tonight, I went over to her house and about fell over when I saw boxes and boxes and boxes of stuff
marked Peanuts stacked from the floor to the ceiling. Hundreds and hundreds of items from years and
years of collecting. I told her I couldn't take it all, since 1. I don't collect Peanuts, and 2. I wouldn't
know what to do with it all. She told me to do whatever I wanted to with them, since they had too
much stuff laying around, and they didn't want to keep it, nor did they want to auction it, instead,
they wanted me to have it - either to keep, or to sell. I told them that I would probably just sell it, and
they said that was fine. So, now my basement is completely filled with Peanuts. ^_^

This isn't a for sale thread, even though I am selling these, I just wanted to share a feel good story.
I already know I won't be keeping the figures, and most of them are in boxes that have never been
open, but I will let my granddaughters go through everything and pick out a few things they want to
keep, and then I will start listing them on eBay I guess. ^_^

So what about you guys?? Anything like this ever happen to you. Share your stories of interesting
things that friends you have met through the years may have done for you, or you may have done
for them. ^_^

[Matt]

Ah, very nice. Peanuts is great. No matter what I am going through I can put on a Peanuts cartoon or read the strip and it just brings a smile to my face. No matter how bad I think I am or how I am at the end of my rope I see good "ol Charlie Brown. Poor Chuck always has it worse, after all, out of all the Charlie Brown's in the world he IS the Charlie Brownest. ... which reminds me I have a large Peanuts update to do soon..
When you get everything organized it would be really neat to see the collection. Have fun!

Matt

[cutiebunny]

It's stories like this that make me really enjoy going to cons and spending time with other collectors. While I've never inherited anything like this large Peanuts collection, I've had a few collectors promise to leave me items should something happen to them. Whether they do or not is not an issue for me - I spend time with them because I enjoy being with them, and not because I hope to gain something later down the road.

I have a lot of stories, and they'd take too much room here. I try to network with other collectors as we all go to different conventions, and sometimes there are guests at these conventions that we'd like autographs from. So when I go to a convention, usually I'm not just there to add stuff to my collection, but also to pick up something that another collector or friend has asked. For example, this year I picked up a couple of Toshio Maeda and Tsuyoshi Nonaka sketches for various collector friends and a surprise gift signed by Sailor Saturn's Japanese seiyuu for a friend. And in return, one of the people I picked up a sketch for was able to get me an autograph from Rookiez iz Punk'd (J-Rock group). Sometimes it feels like I get the bum end of the deal, but I go to many more conventions than most collectors, so it's something I've accepted. I'd want someone to help me out if I were in their shoes too.

While I usually give boxes of tea or some other trinket to guests, this year I had the chance to do something a bit nicer for a mangaka. Koge Donbo was the primary guest at a small convention in Sacramento, California this summer called KintokiCon. I attended her panel and asked if she was given any artwork by the studio from the anime adaptations of her manga. She said that Madhouse never included her in their production of the anime, so she never received anything.

I felt really bad about this, especially as I was toting around two layouts from the series that I originally was just going to have her sign. Here's the creator of the series and she has nothing from the animated version of her creation. I knew she would appreciate the sketches far more than I ever would. When I went up to her during her autograph session, I explained that I felt really bad that she had nothing from the anime version of the series. I presented her with the two layouts I had and told her they were a gift. Both she and her agent were very touched by the gesture, and as her favorite character is Digiko, she was on the verge of crying as she touched the drawing of Digiko. So yeah, it was a very memorable experience, and one which I never thought I would have with any guest, let alone the creator of a manga.

[JWR]

What you may want to look into is instead of trying to sell this collection piece by piece on Ebay due to it's size and I would expect quality it might be better to contact some of the auction houses like
Christies http://www.christies.com/
Bonhams & Butterfield http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/
Sotherby's http://www.sothebys.com/en.html
Profiles in History https://www.profilesinhistory.com/

You might get a better price (even less their commission) and less hassle and maybe you can split any profits with the family.

[Gonzai]

Ooooooo - thanks for the links Joe. never thought about that. What I found to be interesting,
is that last night I went through about 10 boxes of stuff, and found tons of duplicate items. O_O
I am guessing that they didn't realize they already had these pieces and accidently purchased
them again?? So many items that have never even been open - its insane. -_-

I grabbed out a group of duplicates and decided I would start with these listings on eBay, just
for the heck of it. Already listed one duplicate last night - a unopened Monopoly game. Looked
at what others were going for and slapped a price of $50 on it. Already had someone ask if I
would ship it Internationally. @_@

So, that may be the way to go, since I hate shipping anything. I will see how this first group
goes, and if I absolutely hate it, then maybe auction house is the way to go. ^_^

<------- Walks away thinking that 10 boxes isn't even close to scratching the surface here. If you
all don't here from me for a while - send search and rescue. I am sure I am buried somewhere in the heaps. -_-

[Gonzai]

Hee - I should go down and take a picture of all the stacks of boxes.

Well, the Monopoly set sold already - less than 24 hours. And yes - it went International.

Yippee - now I get to ship the darn thing. I listed up about 6 more auctions

tonight just to see how things go, but I can tell already I am not going to enjoy this.

Taking pictures, and doing research on things I know nothing about is a real pain.

What is nice, though, is the ones I listed are duplicates, so if my granddaughters

want anything, they can still have them. I think this with the Monopoly game and

Water Globe.

Anyway, for those who showed some interest in what might be in the lot, I will try and

get pictures uploaded to Photo Bucket or somewhere. In the meantime, here is the

link to the auctions I listed. This is a small sample of what's to come for me.

Good thing I have bottles of wine in the fridge.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_odkw=&i ... &_from=R40

[Matt]

Glad to hear the ebay thing may work out. I have been actively collecting Peanuts artwork, statues, books, ornaments and even over-sized Snoopys for over ten years now. I don't know everything but if you need help I'd be happy to give it a shot

Good Luck!

Matt

[Gonzai]

That is awesome Matt, cause I, on the other hand, know absolutely nothing.

You should have been the one to inherit all of this. I must say, I still feel bad

about it all, since I really do not even collect it.

[tex-chan]

What a wonderful story. I'm so glad the Peanuts stuff found its way to someone who can appreciate it, as well as appreciating the time and effort it took to build such a wonderful collection. Even if you don't know much about Peanuts ... and even if you don't intend to keep the collection, you do know what it means to be a collector and the feeling of elation at getting that "one special piece" into your collection. And you know how much joy a collection can bring into a person's life. I think it would make your neighbor's parents happy to know another collector is stepping in to see their beloved Peanuts memorabilia along on its way to new homes.

Do you have any pictures of the stacks of boxes? I would love to see them all together, before the ebaying starts.

[Gonzai]

I will go down into the basement tonight and take a picture of the stacks.

I actually got onto a Peanut's collectors board, and chatted with one

of the mods, who is going to have someone contact me about maybe taking

a huge chunk of it from me. That would be really cool, since I know if they

are on a Collector's forum, they must be serious about it. ^_^

[Gonzai]

Ok, so here is a sampling - well - all of the duplicates anyway. ^_^

http://www.ebay.com/sch/pudge031791/m.h ... 7675.l2562

Hope they sell well. My dog needs surgery, so this will help fund it.

Seems like this was all good timing. ^_^

[tex-chan]

Some really great stuff in this first round. I hope your sales go well.