Checkerboard

April 2024

• Fred Dodge Tobacco Tins: Addendum
• AAAA Convention: More Reasons to Attend
• AAAA Convention Prizes
• In Memoriam: Don Lurito
• Hot Dan the Mustard Man
• Indy Ad Show Reminder: May 4, 2024
• Indoor Antique Advertising Show
• Collectors' Showcase Magazine
• Video: The 155 Mile Store
• Wanted Items

Victorian Easter postcards, for some inexplicable reason, often depict rather odd images. Click here for an article that treats the reader to a number of hilarious examples.

The March, 2024 issue of PastTimes included a photo gallery featuring the outstanding Tobacco Tin Collection of noted author and collector, Fred Dodge (Antique Tins, Book 1, 2 and 3, published in 1995, 1998, and 1999, respectively). As promised, we are pleased to present an addendum to that gallery of tobacco tins in this issue of the Checkerboard.

To access the 9-page PDF addendum, just click the blue button immediately below.

Stay tuned for other varieties of tins from the Fred Dodge collection in future AAAA newsletter issues!

The 2024 AAAA Convention will take place in Dublin, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus. Many local attractions are available to add exciting further incentives to attend this exciting event.

For example, the Heart of Ohio Antique Center, (photo right) "America's Biggest and Best Antique Center" is located in Springfield, Ohio, just 40 minutes away from our convention hotel. Although that lofty claim is made on the antique mall's website, many AAAA members and industry experts share that view. Antique advertising is well-represented in the mall's huge inventory in addition to a wondrous selection in other collecting categories. Quoting again from their web site, the "Heart of Ohio has over 800 Vendors, featuring approximately 1,425 Booths and Showcases spread out over 122,000 square feet, all under one roof and comfortably climate controlled. That’s approximately one mile of booths and showcases!" For additional information, go to info@heartofohioantiques.com or call 937-324-2188.

Located just a few miles down the highway from Heart of Ohio is the Springfield Antique Center. According to their website, they are home to over 450 dealers and over 46,000 square feet of antiques. Further information can be obtained by going to: springfieldantiquecenter.webs.com or calling 937-322-8868.

Additional places to visit in the region include:

Columbus, Ohio

Eclectiques Antique Mall, 3265 N High St, Columbus, OH 43202, 614-826-0152

Greater Columbus Antique Mall, 1045 S High St, Columbus, OH 43206, 614-443-7858

Heritage Square Antique Mall, 1865 Channingway Center Drive, Columbus, Ohio 43232, 614-864-8722

Magpie Market, 1125 Kenny Centre Mall, Columbus, OH 43220, 614-929-5264

Dayton, Ohio (1 Hour from Dublin)

National Museum of the US Air Force (1 Hour from Dublin), Wright Patterson Air Force Base, 1100 Spaatz St, Dayton, OH 45433, 937-255-3286 

Dublin, Ohio

Historic Dublin, Ohio: Galleries, gift shops, restaurants, ice cream, along red brick sidewalks in a quaint setting. For further information: www.HistoricDublin.org

Springfield, Ohio (45 minutes from Dublin)

Heritage Center Museum, 117 S. Fountain Avenue, Springfield, Ohio, 937- 324-0657

Frank Lloyd Wright's Wescott House (Tours available), 1340 East High St., Springfield, Ohio 45505, 937-327-9291

Waynesville, Ohio (About 1.5 hours from Dublin)

Main Street Waynesville has several antique malls/shops in its quaint historical area.

Plans for the July 2024 convention in Dublin Ohio are progressing!! In the past, raffles have been an integral part of the fun. This year, we are proposing to include several antique advertising items as prizes and, for this, we will need the help of our members. 

Would you be willing to donate an item for the raffle? The item should be one that you yourself would be happy to win, a quality item with a value of perhaps $50.

We would love to hear from you if you would be willing to participate. You can email Convention Co-Coordinators, John DeVolder at jcdvette@yahoo.com or Marianne Wink at nbluvette@gmail.com with what you would like to donate so we have an idea of what will be coming. Your item can be taken directly to the convention where it will be on display. You will be recognized for your donation!

In addition, we are also asking for volunteers to coordinate the raffle sales and manage the ticket drawings. If interested, please let John or Marianne know.

Our hobby suffered an unexpected and grievous loss with the recent passing of Don Lurito on March 29. To appreciate the essence of who Don was, please read his heartfelt and beautifully-written obituary by clicking the following link: https://www.faggas.com/obituary/don-lurito.

To antique advertising hobbyists, Don was well-known as a fierce and passionate devotee of Victorian chromolithography. He immersed himself in the history, the science and the art of this beautiful mode of expression, particularly as it was embraced in the early days of commercial advertising. He developed unique preservation and restoration methodologies, which, along with his genius as an artist, combined to bring new life to many damaged works of advertising art.

Don was a vital contributor to AAAA (and its predecessor TCCA) as the author of numerous important articles in our publications. In fact, he had completed a piece entitled Country Store Antiques for our PastTimes newsletter prior to his passing. It will be published posthumously later this year. Don was also a regular attendee of conventions.

Additional information about Don was passed along by one if his long-term collector friends, David Briggs, as follows: "In earlier days, Don loved visiting other collectors and was always prepared to negotiate a deal if there was anything of interest. He also loved attending Brimfield and other shows throughout New England, as well as scouring the countryside looking for antiques. Before the internet, he had assembled detailed road maps in binders by state/county/town that identified and rated every antique shop along every road he happened to travel--a testament to his attention to detail and thoroughness. I think in general, members knew Don was a collector/dealer with an interest in a variety of antiques and tins and a skillful restorer of tins and tin signs. One thing I suspect that most people didn't know was that Don loved hot peppers, and every year he would travel to the Boston produce market to buy a case of jalapeños to can in jars using a recipe he created. He relished using them on all his sandwiches." 

Don Lurito was an important contributor to AAAA and our hobby. He was well-known and well-regarded throughout the US. His unique skills, insights, knowledge and personal qualities will be sorely missed by his friends, family and fellow collectors.

It was an unlikely advertising stroke of genius: The creation of a small, bright yellow plastic character spoon.

And the name certainly was catchy, close enough to “hot damn” to make it a bit risqué.

Meet the 4 3/16-inch high “Hot Dan, The Mustard Man.” (Image right.)

On the face side it is marked: HOT DAN. The back handle is marked: DES. PAT. 97,344 FRENCH’S MUSTARD CO. MADE IN U.S.A.

Hot Dan was the cornerstone of an advertising campaign by French’s Mustard from 1936 through the 1940s. And it was astoundingly successful, with the R. T. French Company of Rochester, New York reportedly selling more than 50% of all mustard in the United States.

Hot Dan The Mustard Man spoon led the way, backed up by the Hot Dan character featured in print advertisements. How successful was it?

Consider this:

Sixteen million (that’s a 16 followed by six zeros) of the spoons were given away during the campaign. When first launched in 1936, the spoons were free with the purchase of a 10-cent, 9-ounce bottle of French’s Mustard.

Consumers could also write in for a free plastic spoon, according to a 1930s newspaper ad (image right).

Even the man behind Hot Dan was amazed at the spoon’s success 42 years after he created the character. “For such a small item, it was surprising how popular they were,” Oscar L. Westgate said in a 1982 interview in the Rochester Times-Union newspaper. “Thousands of people wrote in for them, and French’s mailed them in a special cardboard tube,” he continued. “A lot of women said the spoons were the best thing they could find for feeding their babies.”

Westgate, a World War I POW in Germany, went to work for French in 1928 being named advertising manager a year later and vice president in 1959, the year before he retired. It was October 19, 1935 that Hot Dan was born. It was on that date that Westgate was awarded Design Patent No. 97,344 for a “spoon or similar article” (image left).

In addition to the spoon, the Hot Dan character was the star of nationwide newspaper and magazine ads, many times saving the housewife from serving tasteless leftovers. Newspaper ads in the 1930s included the following two examples:

There also were full-page color ads in popular magazines in the 1940s, one featuring Hot Dan sticking out of a bowl of mustard surrounded by eight hot dogs (image below).

According to his obituary in the December 4, 1989 edition of Rochester’s Democrat and Chronicle, Westgate was raised in Brooklyn and joined the Army’s 27^th Infantry before graduating from high school.

In 1918 on the front lines at the Hindenburg Line near St. Quentin in France , he was wounded by machine gun fire and captured by German soldiers. Months later he was repatriated by British forces. Altogether, he spent 15 months in hospitals for a shattered arm.

After the war, Westgate graduated from the Wharton School of Business, despite not having a high school degree, and began his advertising career. He died of heart disease at the age of 94 in 1989.

Robert Timothy French launched the R.T. French Company in Rochester in 1885. His brothers, George and Francis, developed a new kind of prepared mustard and the company began production in 1904.

By 1912, the company, well on the road to success, had moved to a new headquarters and listed its address as One Mustard Street.

In 1926, the brothers sold the company for a reported $3.8 million to J & J Colman of the United Kingdom, a major mustard maker. (It returned to U.S. ownership in 2017 when acquired by McCormick & Company of Baltimore.)

In 1973 the company moved its manufacturing operations to Springfield, Missouri and, in 1987, French said its final goodbye to Rochester, relocating its office operations and test kitchens to New Jersey. It was sad news for Rochester and resulted in an editorial in the Democrat and Chronicle on May 3, 1987 (image below):

The Indoor Antique Advertising Show, owned and managed by Damon Granger, took place on March 16. The show returned to the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, Indiana. The eagerly awaited annual event was a huge success. Once again, they totally filled the 65,000 square footage of dealer space in the Champions Pavilion.

There was something for everybody at all price points at this show. Following recent trends, signage was very much in demand. Sales appeared to be very strong, as evidenced by the number of shoppers carting their new acquisitions around with big grins on their faces. There was much new material offered by dealers and collector/sellers.

This show continues to enhance its already positive national reputation throughout the industry. It is highly regarded by both sellers and shoppers and is known as a genial setting for finding excellent antique advertising from friendly dealers.

The photos below provide a glimpse at the high quality and diversity of the offerings. The images were taken in the last moments of set-up, just before the doors opened and the show was descended upon by a hoard of eager shoppers.

The spring installment of the Indy Antique Advertising Show, more popularly known as the "Indy Ad Show", will take place on Friday, May 3 (9:00 am-5 pm) and Saturday, May 4 (9:00 am-3:00 pm). This highly-respected semi-annual event is a decades-old staple of the antique advertising industry. It is owned and managed by Morphy Auctions of Denver, Pennsylvania.

The semi-annual show will once again take place at the spacious Boone County 4-H Fairgrounds, 1955 Indianapolis Avenue, Lebanon, Indiana 46052 (approximately 20 minutes from Indianapolis). There will be two full days of outdoor and indoor activity with dealers offering a broad range of high quality and desirable vintage advertising. Collectors and dealers across the nation in the know consider this a "can't miss" vintage advertising event. For the uninitiated--go! You won't be disappointed. Early Buyers Admission on Friday will cost $100, valid for both days. General Admission on Saturday will cost $10.

For additional information about this outstanding show, visit the website at IndyAdShow.com, call 877-968-8880 (x755) or contact Cheryl Goyda at Cheryl.Goyda@MorphyAuctions.com

A few images from last fall's show appear below.

In the May, 2023 issue of the Checkerboard, an article appeared about Collectors' Showcase magazine. At the height of the interest in all types of collectibles in the 1980's and 90's, this outstanding magazine was very popular. While this periodical covered all sorts of collectibles, antique advertising was an area that was well-represented, both in terms of articles and advertising.

Examples of articles related to vintage advertising include: "Coffee--It's Hot" by Tim Schweighart; "Canadian Tin Containers" by Glen Parul; "Sewing Related Trade Cards" by Evelyn Eubanks; "Novelty Ice Cream Dippers of the 1920s" by Wayne Smith; "Peter Sidlow Advertising Collection Auction Preview"; "Oreo: King of the Cookies" (uncredited); "Collectors' Profile: Roi & Ruth Davis" by Donna Kaonis; "Tindeco" by Kristin Helberg, "An 1880's Pharmacy" by Donna Kaonis; and so on.

For collectors of antique advertising and other collectibles who appreciate the value of good reference material, this magazine is highly recommended. AAAA member and pioneer antique advertising collector, Jerry Glenn, is making his collection of Collectors' Showcase Magazines available for purchase. Some issues are still available. Interested parties should contact Jerry at 843-384-0303.

Sprinkled throughout the internet are charming video presentations featuring the general stores of yesteryear. Some of these videos are historical in nature. Others chronicle visits to the dilapidated ruins of once-thriving establishments. And still others celebrate still-functioning general stores with a long and proud history of serving their communities. We are pleased to introduce the first in a series of videos about general stores that will be included in this and future issues of the AAAA Checkerboard.

These videos are accessed on the YouTube platform. Hopefully, your computer or other device includes the necessary software to play these videos. Important Note: YouTube videos typically contain one or more commercial ads that can be skipped by clicking the "Skip" button in the lower right corner of the screen. You may need to be patient in skipping through several of them.

The majority of these videos are "professionally" produced but a few are unabashedly "point-and-shoot". Nevertheless, each video is informative and tells an honest story about a general store's history and its unique, passionate journey. We hope you will enjoy this series. Please be advised that these videos may have been produced some years ago and it is unknown whether the general stores they feature are still in existence.

The first video in this series features the 155 Mile Store, located near Williams Lake, British Columbia, Canada. The production opens with an account of the family history that led to the establishment of the general store in the year 1900. The store functioned as a vital fixture within the community until 1963, when it was abruptly shuttered upon the death of its owner. In the years since its closure, the store and its contents, some dating back to its earliest days, have been frozen in time. The store's entire inventory still fills the shelves and the fixtures remain intact. The video provides a fascinating tour of the fated establishment, appearing just as it was forsaken back in 1963.

Click on the arrow below to view the video.

In this column are those sought-after items of desire that seem to be elusive. If you know where any of these items can be acquired or if you have one available, please click the link to reply directly to the seeker. To place a listing in this column, click here. There is no fee for AAAA members. Up to three listings per member are permitted.

"You Pay" Spinners Wanted. Colorful, early, tin litho only. Also known as "Who Pays" Spinners, "Your Turn" Spinners, etc. Used in drinking establishments to determine who pays for the next round. Please contact plefkov@gmail.com.

In search of Raven's Horse, Cattle & Poultry Food poster. Last sold Showtime Auction, April 2013. Dimensions: 13 1/2 x 21 1/2. Motivated buyer. Please call Ken Opengart at 256-520-5211 or email at kenopengart@gmail.com. To see a photo of the poster, click here.

US cigarette boxes, packs and wrappers from 1870-1935 wanted. Please text or email any you might have available for sale. Jon Canfield, joncanfield@gmail.com, 917-841-0275.

Pre-1885 advertising items related to barbed wire and farm fences. I am interested in primary material. Let me know if you have any items including illustrated catalogs, wire company published newspapers, illustrated postal covers and letterheads, flyers, signs, salesman samples, patent models or anything else related to my specific wants. Larry W. Love, wirefence@att.net, 214-497-6787.

Bulldog tobacco oval-top tin. Convention Hall coffee tin (Ridenour-Baker Kansas City) any variation. Big Horn 1 lb or 3 lb coffee tin. scross1@cox.net.

Philip Morris Tin & Porcelain Advertising Signs, thermometers, door push signs. Excellent to mint condition preferred. Daryl Crawford (804) 721-7294 or email drc4@msn.com

Justrite Pet Foods. The Justrite Company General Office was located in Milwaukee WI. A National Account. Advertising, displays, signs, tins, boxes all with logo on it. Most would come from the 1930s through 1950s. Thanks for the help… Gordon Addington. To reply, click here.

Old Topper Brewery Calendar of the late 1940s featuring a pin up artist nude in large format wanted. Always seeking any Rochester Brewery memorabilia. John DeVolder 585-697-4047 or jcdvette@yahoo.com.

"Jenny" Genesee Brewing Company's girl of the 1950s. Seeking cardboard point of sale-and other items that feature Jenny, who had a ten-year run from 1953 to 1963. Also interested in any cardboard point of sale items from the 1930s through the 1950s from any of the Rochester Breweries. John DeVolder 585-697-4047 or jcdvette@yahoo.com.

Coca-Cola 24" button porcelain sign with bottle in center. Want several in as close to mint condition as possible. Call 336-970-9867.

Books on Oil & Gas Collectibles. Also looking for books on signs. Call 336-970-9867.

Yellow Kid wanted: 50 year collector looking for the unusual. Reply to: yellowkid@tds.net.

Pedal Cars: Photos, postcards, calendars, catalogs and advertising related to pedal cars. To reply, click here.

Beer cans, soda cans, beer and soda tin-over-cardboard signs, cork-backed bottle caps, key-wind coffee cans, quart oil cans. Please email Jeff Lebo at jefflebo@aol.com.

Pedal car related items. To reply, click here.

Matchbook holders. To know what these are, see my articles in Checkerboard

for Nov. 2020 and May 2021. I will consider all items, in any material from plastic to gold, and not necessarily with advertising. Email Andy at matchbookholder@yahoo.com.

Cigarette Packs. Advanced collector looking to purchase vintage packs. Please contact Dheeraj by email: DHEERAJ.KHIYTANI@GMAIL.COM.

Donald Duck Goyer Coffee Cans; One pound can & 3 oz sample size in good condition with lids. Please send email with photos & prices to Jessica_l_Upton@yahoo.com.

Morimura Brothers (Japanese import company operating in NYC from 1880-1941) advertising items wanted: trade cards, pamphlets, catalog pages, salesman sample pages, porcelain items with advertising. To reply email at victdelit@aol.com.

DeLaval Items and Farm Advertising Signs. Always looking for top quality and unique items. Contact Gregg Hillyer at hogs2gregg@aol.com.

Antique advertising pertaining to country store or drug store products or places. Especially those showing women or girls with the product or location shown. I would consider any  antique advertising (paper, cardboard & metal signs). Quality a plus! Dale Peterson at cpeters2@sbcglobal.net.

Unusual one pound peanut butter tins. Tin litho or paper label. To reply, click here.

Marshmallow Tins. Smaller than 5 Pound Size. To reply, click here.

American Cookie, Biscuit and Cracker Tins and Boxes. To reply, click here. 

Banjo related advertising wanted Pre-1940s. Long time collector buying banjo company signage, catalogs, billheads, periodicals, minstrel banjo items such as posters, broadsides, sheet music (pre-1870s) with illustrated banjo covers, early photographs showing banjo players (pre-1915). My main collecting interest is in 19th century material. To reply, click here.

"Antique American Medicine Bottles" by M. Knapp... soft cover book with price guide. Printed in 2012. Cemartinjr@comcast.net or 781-248-8620. Also, see my other want ad for Clarke’s ephemera and bottles.

Looking for 3 Vintage Tins. American Eagle "Oriental Mixture" tobacco (dimensions approx. 6.5" long, 2.75" wide, 1.5" tall); 1 Gal. Indian Head Hydraulic Brake Fluid; and Packham´s Caramel Toffee. Any offer is welcome and any condition considered. To reply, click here.

Morton Salt, older items, and also Pacific Coast Borax, especially a crate or box. Email pego1950@hotmail.com or call Peggy Dailey 612-522-9211.

Comic Book-Related Advertising Items: Must be from before 1980. To reply, click here.

Clarke’s Vegetable Sherry Wine Bitters, Sharon, MA & Rockland, ME: All sizes, variants, smooth/pontil base. Especially need labeled Clarke’s any size! Also, any Clarke’s ephemera…trade cards, almanacs, newspaper ads, etc. Charlie Martin Jr., 781-248-8620. Email: cemartinjr@comcast.net.

George Petty: Advanced collector looking for unique or rare items. Photo’s, store displays and non paper items. NO Esquire pages. Pete Perrault. To reply, click here or call (502) 290-7661.

Ice Cream Advertising: Mr. Ice Cream desires better graphic ice cream advertising including: postcards (Advertising and RPPC), trade cards, letterheads, billheads, booklets, poster stamps, blotters, magic lantern slides, pinbacks, watchfobs, and pocket mirrors. Allan Mellis, 1115 West Montana St. Chicago, Illinois 60614-2220. mellisfamily@rcn.com To reply, click here.

Stock food, poultry food, veterinary advertising wanted. Posters, medicine packages, give-aways. Email kenopengart@gmail.com or call (256) 520-5211.

Singer Sewhandy Model 20. Green-regular paint, not hammertone. To reply, click here.

National Biscuit Company, Nabisco, Uneeda Biscuit, Uneeda Bakers, Muth Bakery, NBC Bread toys, signage, tins, containers, displays, historical items. Please Email jbarney@ameritech.net or call (937) 205-2232.

Early Cigarette Rolling Papers: Pre-1940s - American, Zig Zag, Braunstein Freres, Bambino, and Ottoman papers wanted. To reply, click here.

Antique/Collectible Banking and Financial System "Giveaway" and advertising items. Specifically from Pennsylvania. Alarm devices and such. To reply, click here.

VITAMINS advertising, displays, signs, bottles, and anything related: Hadacol is an example. Most would come from the 1930s thru the 1970s. Also anything related to cod-liver oil and WEIGHT-LOSS, REDUCING, ANTI-FAT, and OBESITY ITEMS. To reply, click here.

Early tin signs lithographed by Tuchfarber, Wells and Hope, Worcester Sign Company, Sentenne and Green, etc. I can pay more for good condition, but would be interested in any condition. Don Lurito DRelington@aol.com also in the directory. To reply, click here.

Dwinell-Wright Co. Royal Ground Spice Cardboard Spice Boxes. One side displays horizontally. Approximately 3.75" by 2.25". Any type of spice is OK. To reply, click here.

ENSIGN Perfect and ENSIGN Perfection vertical pocket tobacco tins to enhance my collection. Feel free to contact me at 614-888-4619 or k8pyd@breezelineohio.net to see if you can help fill the voids.

Edmands Coffee Company, Edmands Tea Company, 1776 Coffee, American Beauty Tea, Japan Tea, Devonshire Tea, (imported by Edmands, Boston/Chicago): Any items such as tins, signs, paper, or anything else related to the Edmands family of companies in Boston is desired. To reply, click here.

The AAAA Checkerboard is a monthly e-newsletter that is made available to all AAAA members at no cost. The mission of the Checkerboard is to increase knowledge about antique and collectible advertising among AAAA members. The Checkerboard also provides news and updates about AAAA. It is produced each month with the exception of the four months per year when the award-winning PastTimes print newsletter is published. Paul Lefkovitz (plefkov@gmail.com) serves as the Editor of the AAAA Checkerboard. Copyright 2024, Antique Advertising Association of America.