Bertoia’s Toy Auction in Vineland, New Jersey

When I was a kid, after living in New York City, my parents moved to Vineland, New Jersey for a few years so that my father could be closer to his family and because my uncle had secured him a job with the public school system there. We lived on Elmer Street, a quiet little street, with a branch of the local library at the corner and Newberry’s five and dime down the street. I attended, Maurice Fels Elementary School, a small four classroom school that housed kindergarten thru third grade.

I still get to Vineland once in awhile to visit my aunts who still live there and I am always amazed at the change of the little town into a bigger city with bustling stores, shops and neighborhoods. When I visit, one of my aunts insists that I take her to our old haunts, the Berlin Flea Market and the Cowtown Flea Market. Even back then as youngster, I couldn’t get enough of the old things.

Vineland will swell with even more people next weekend. Bertoia Auctions, which is based in Vineland, is having a three day Toys for All Seasons auction on Friday thru Sunday, November 7 – 9, 2008. This auction promises to have everything from cast iron toys to board games and Halloween figures. The star of this auction will be a 27” tall Santa mechanical toy store display, which is expected to bring in more than $10,000. Bertoia, which specializes in antique and collectible toys holds auctions in New Jersey a few times a year.

George Vlosich III – Vintage Etch a Sketch Toy on a New Level

I was reminiscing the other day about being a kid and not having a care in the world and playing with my toys. One such toy I remember getting one Christmas from my Aunt Lucy in New Jersey was an Etch a Sketch. I remember playing with that toy for hours, trying to “draw” animals and cars and such. The catch to this toy was that you had to be creative, because it was not like drawing on paper where you could lift your pencil; you had to draw with one continuous line. This is a difficult process at best, unless your name is George Vlosich III.

Mr. Vlosich has taken Etch a Sketch drawing to a higher level and it all started in 1989 when on a trip to Washington D.C., he started drawing the U.S. Capitol on his Etch a Sketch. He has now been perfecting his method of art and has been featured on many television programs to include, Inside Edition and American Journal as well on many news programs on all the major networks. He has created portraits of many different celebrities to include, President Clinton, Elvis Presley and the cast of the Andy Griffith Show. His works, which can take anywhere from 50 to 70 hours to produce, are just unbelievable. Click on the picture above to view his amazing work . . . .

NOVA-Antiques Newsletter Archive December 1, 2005 . . . .

Lordy . . . Lordy . . . Looks Who’s 40 – Hot Wheels Having a Birthday

One Christmas I remember that I couldn’t wait to open my presents that were under the tree. I had asked for a special present and was sure I was going to get it because I had been "a good little boy"if there is such a thing. In any case, our family tradition was to all get together on “Noche Buena” or the Christmas Eve and after what seemed like a long night to us kids of dancing and eating, we would all gather and open our presents. The night, I was not disappointed, I opened the colorful wrapping to reveal my Hot Wheels race track and cars.

Of course, my brother and I could not clear enough space on the floor in the family room that evening to set up the track and play with my present so we had to wait until the next morning. I can still see us pushing the Hot Wheels cars thru the garage portion of the track that also housed “the engine.” It was nothing more than two large rubber bands spinning the cars our other side with what was hopefully enough force to send it around the singe track one complete time. If it did, the car would theoretically continue to spin around the track. Unfortunately, in most cases the cars would either stop short of the garage entrance or would careen off the side of the track onto the carpeted floor.

I’m sure that Hot Wheels, which are die cast toy cars, brought many children happiness in those times where things seemed simpler; we didn’t have video games or computers to complicate our lives. Hot Wheels were simple toys where kids had to use their imagination and creativity and were introduced in 1968 by Mattel Toys. The first car ever produced was a custom Volkswagen along with 15 other different models. Its top competitor at the time was Match Box, of which my brother and I owned some, but nothing compared to the designs of the Hot Wheels, that were designed by Harry Bentley Bradley.

Mattel will hold a kickoff ceremony at its El Segundo, California headquarters followed by a countrywide tour of life sized versions of their famous cars. You can look at the cars and join the festivities at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on August 30th, Detroit’s Automotive Hall of Fame on September 1st and at Watkins Glen Grand Prix Festival on September 5th. The celebrations will also include Hot Wheels memorabilia, autograph sessions with different designers and many other things, including the display of a one of a kind diamond encrusted Hot Wheels car created as a memento to their four billionth car.