August 2000 | Ramble Index | June 2000

07/23/00: DOA: DOA

7/21/00: 5:45 PM. The City of Cambridge mis-stickers street cleaning. The rat bastards tow my ride to the dead fringes of Somerville, forcing me to walk South. I head towards Harvard in a heavy mood. Day-Old Antiques "the place" is dead, killed by the net...

6:12 PM. I'm late. Passing under the shade of the Mass Ave Starbucks, I pick out Josh Fraser. He's looks down, camped out in front of the Montrose Spa. Not our usual chipper meeting. As we shake, the legendary Warren Schwartz trots over. Introductions are made and gifts exchanged. Mike Z comes out to greet us. We shuffle past an ominous "last call" sign -- straight into the mess.

6:28 PM: Liquidation. Some heavy-hitter is Up the Ladder taking down Dorvack toys for inspection. Mike is on the phone, looking flustered, closing a deal.

Warren and Josh sift through the weirdness: Robocon on a bike. Chintzy Baxinger. Giant vinyl Sausuraiger. All the fringe elements crawling out from under the basement.

Meanwhile, I'm thinking about Chokinzoku and my own agenda: to close two loops. For four years, I have passed paying top-dollar for this piece, bearing the scorn and ridicule of numerous "serious" collectors. Tonight, I'm committed. I will close out Day-Old with a sweet moment. I will pay for the symmetry of the deal.

I start shooting stuff from the ladder. It comes out that Josh is STILL carrying around that damn GA-51 in the temperature-controlled custom styrofoam container. All four of us are immediately startled by an anomalous missile hiding in a Dynaman DX set. It's strikes me that all of us seem fairly normal. It's clear that we are NOT.

We transact. Goodbyes are hurried: Mike's still half-open till the 30th. This is the last time I'll be here with friends.

I began my collection at Day-Old four years ago. Without the store triggering embedded memories of my past, there is no Toybox. Day-Old itself continues as a website -- but the analog experience is dead.

07/09/00: Timewarp Action Trade

Three years ago, I met my buddy Lester who sent me down the Path with my first Great Haul: a giant bag of Shogun Action Vehicles, including my first big expense, ST Kargosaur.

Despite the bogus hype and pricing of the Kargosaur at the time, Lester dealt me fair and square. He explained what was important to him about the toys, set the right tone, and inadvertently helped me define what kind of collector I'd strive to be in all my own transactions. I never forgot it.

Last week, I get a call. Lester's shedding again. It's time to hit the road.

Mr. Big: New England's very-own Patient Zero. Some 20 years ago he infects a gaggle of japanese-robot fiends who begin to map the globe. If you've bought a Shogun Action Vehicle that's frighteningly mint, bears a $1.99 clearance tag, and is inexplicably missing all of its sharp or pointy things, you thank Mr. Big. Huge names have passed through his influence: Josh Fraser, Warren Schwartz, Tom Franck, Mike Z. The list goes on.

I can't help but think of our collective history as Lester unpacks block after block of Tupperware. There was a time when the land was pure and unspoilt, when T28's, Varitechs and bags of Voltron adorned the shelves of the most common and base retail locations. We had our chance to support the retail bridge. We failed. Oh, the unplucked flowers of youth!

After a few hours, it becomes clear that the real gems aren't the choice cuts he's managed to preserve. It's the truly bizarre oddball stuff that makes you stop and think. Enjoy the pics...

	The missing link between Shogun Warriors and total crap. The perverse and disturbing Shogun Rocket Top. Talk about milking the twilight of a license.
	Finally. Vintage pricing which lines up with modern pricing. I still wouldn't pay $7 for this tawdry little Valvilos!.
	Hmm...Srungle. The chili-dog of mecha-toys. I was sWavering, but figured Harkavy would tell me to go for it.
	The totally awesome bootleg battery-op Goldorak. Here's a close-up. This thing rocks. I'd ride it around my house if I could.
	The big item of the evening, Jumbomachinder GodMarz. Lester's is pristine and heart-breaking.
	The obscure Godaikin Daileon. Apologies for my crappy photographic skilz. When have ever seen one of these up close? The toy's nothing special, but the rareness of the box really is.
	Historically significant hanging Dougrams from Children's Palace. I feel nothing for the 1/144 biddies, but the peg-based packaging is an eye-opener. They managed to this without destroying the gorgeous Takara boxes.
	Yes, it's nacho-cheese "Bag of Voltron." I can't really explain this item, but I do in fact need this part. Oh, the wisdom of ancients!
	Some terrible terrible giant robot prose about the "Secrets of Brave Raideen" from the 80's children's book. I was pretty sure Matt Alt could fade-in after hitting the Grand Marnier. But I am wrong.

August 2000 | Ramble Index | June 2000