Killer Shirt

I almost forgot. The Sin Alley Rumble wasn't a total loss. I scored this killer vintage shirt for 5 bucks! It's easy to find vintage women's stuff around here, but men's stuff is almost extinct.

Bye Bye Birdie

It's 12:37 AM & I'm sitting here watching Bye Bye Birdie. Not one of my favorite flicks, but my God, how I love Ann-Margret!

Cool Rides At The Sin Alley Rumble

The weather was great, the venue was cool & the guys in the club were terrific, but the turnout was disappointing. I didn't make much dough, but there were a few nice rides & some lovely Rockabilly ladies in attendance. I'll give it another shot next year. Maybe with a little more promotion, they'll get a bigger turnout. I took a few pics of the cars, but didn't want to seem like a creep taking pics of the girls. =)

Sin Alley Rumble

On Saturday July 17, I set up shop in Providence at the Sin Alley Saints show to peddle my wares. This year I decided I was done wasting money on the hockey puck burgers at the shows I sell at & I was going to start bringing my own lunches. Here's the flyer for the show & the makings of my pasta salad. My buddies keep busting my chops about me making someone a good wife someday! hahaha

Plymouth National Wax Museum-RIP

One thing I found at Brimfield left me heartbroken. A woman was selling the figures & props from the Plymouth National Wax Museum in America's Hometown, Plymouth, Mass. As a kid, we went to Plymouth every summer & visited the Mayflower, Plymouth Rock & The Plymouth National Wax Museum. I took my own kids there, a few years ago & was planning on a return trip this summer. Needless to say, I was horrified when I saw the figures on display at Brimfield. Apparently, a couple of years ago, the museum's lease came up & they were unable to reach an agreement with the landlord on a new one, so they closed the doors & packed everything up. I'm shocked that no one in this historic town made an effort to save this place or at least find a new location. After 40 years of teaching a very kitschy, entertaining history lesson to people of all ages & nationalities, the wax museum is now, you guessed it, luxury condos! The woman that rescued the figures & settings is still hoping to find someone to buy the whole lot & set it up again, but she didn't sound very optimistic. Sigh! Another piece of terrific roadside Americana bites the dust. I'm sure those 6 luxury condos are much more important to the town of Plymouth. Shame on the town government for letting this wonderful place go. I had trouble just finding any news of the closing online. If you have any cool or kitschy Americana near you, patronize it as much as you can, before it's too late!

Brimfield-Friday July 15

Last day of July Brimfield for me. A few more inexpensive trinkets to satiate my shopping bug.

A pair of Schmidt's beer tap handles, aka shift knobs; $15.00

Coupla pieces of WWII era sheet music; $1.00 each

A nice "Aloha" Hawaiian Islands postcard book postmarked August 20, 1945 by the U.S. Army Postal Service; $3.00

A killer souvenir photo of a dame dressed in grass skirt showing of a pair of fabulous gams. I'm guessing mid to late 1930's. The only marking is the word "Lovingly" written on the front.;$15.00

Finally, after I spotted the hula chick, a Tiki ashtray caught my eye on the same guy's table. problem was, there was sumthin' funny burning in it! t\The dude was burning Sage in this ashtray & boy did it stink. I bought it anyway & scrubbed the crap out of it when I got it home. I finally used vinegar to get the stench out of it! haha; $10.00

So that was the end of a frugal week for me at Brimfield. I'm already looking forward to September & I promise I'll have more dough in my pocket to spend on more stuff I don't need, but can't live without.

Brimfield-Thursday July 15

OK, Thursday comes & I'm at it again. I head out to meet George & begin the hunt anew. After finding nothing for the Tiki bar on Wednesday, I did find a coupla things on Thursday.

A handful of swizzles & picks; $2.00

A killer Toes On The Nose Hawaiian shirt, not too vintage, but oh so stylish; $12.00

And, finally, a coupla really nice vintage framed prints, titled Lei Maker & Hula Dancer.

Asking price; $60.00 paid $40.00.

They are 11" x 15" & are signed by John Kelly. If anyone has any info on them or Mr. Kelly, I'd love to hear it. Aski

Brimfield-Wednesday July 14

On Wednesday the 14th, I got my butt out of bed at the butt-crack of dawn to meet my buddy George at the Brimfield Antique Show in Brimfield, Mass. This show happens 3 times a year & is world-renowned. http://brimfieldshow.com/ Unfortunately, I didn't have a lot of dough to spend, so I had to concentrate on small stuff. This is my haul from the first day:

That swank pinky ring I've been wanting for so long. ;)

A cool Midgietoy Streamliner.

A coupla pennants, one from Benson's Wild Animal Farm that I frequented as a kid & one from Santa's Village that I have taken my kids to many times. I love traditional kiddie parks, zoos & Roadside Americana.

Next up, a neat little appetizer cookbook & a killer map of New England tourist attractions that I really should frame. It was put out by the New England Ford dealers & has a sweet red & white '56 Crown Vic on the cover.

I'll be back in a little bit, with Thursday's scores.

GM Futurliner

In 1939 & 1940, General Motors built 12 futuristic buses for use in their Parade of Progress. The Parade of Progress was a travelling exhibition of GM's latest cars & technology & of their visions of the future. The buses were designed by GM's legendary automotive designer, Harley Earl & were named Futurliners. GM intentionally omitted the "e" in Futurliner, so they could trademark the name. One of the 9 remaining Futurliners sold at auction, in 2006 for $4.1 million.

We are lucky enough to have one of the restored Futurliners here in Massachusetts. The Peter Pan Bus Company of Springfield are the proud owners of a well-restored Futurliner. On July 10, they were gracious enough to loan this beauty out, for what I understand was a truly nominal fee, to the Hot Rod Riot for use as the stage for the bands. It is truly an amazing piece of Mid-Century Americana. I hope you enjoy the few photos I took. Oh, and, by the way, that is The Gamma Rays on stage.

Hot Rod Riot

Yesterday, my son & I got up bright & early to peddle our wares at The Hot Rod Riot put on by The Murdercycles club of Connecticut. For the second straight show, things started off great, but we were soon scrambling to get our stuff under cover, as a monster storm blew quickly through. The show was kinda small to begin with, but we were making money until the rain hit. I think the fact that they had moved the show 3 times had as much to do with the turnout as the weather did. after the first storm passed, ( it continued to rain off & on for the rest of the day), we hung out with friends, checked out the cars & had our lunch while we waited for the bands to start.

Kool New Stuff

Here's a sample of the kool new stuff I got Friday to sell at the Hot Rod Riot. I got some killer new shift knobs, lights & accessories.

Thursday Night With The Boys

On Thursday nights, 4 of us meet up at my buddy's Kustom shop & shoot the breeze, work on our cars & go for a cruise, usually to get some grub. This week Henry fired up his Pro Stock Vega for the first time. He & Evil Genius have been working on it for about a year & a half. man, I haven't been to the strip in awhile & the sound & feel of that car really got my blood pumping. I can't wait 'til we take it to New England Dragway. Chico made his first appearance in weeks & the first time he actually brought his ride. Chico drives a '62 Chrysler Newport 2 door hardtop. we hung out for awhile & then cruised to Harry's in Westboro for Mac 'n Cheese Madness!