Antique street fair big fat zero…then I walked by a pool hall…

[CarltonHendricks]

Today I went to the Petaluma Antique Street Fair and it was a total bust…barely even saw anything interesting much less to buy…In all the years I’ve been going to that show I’ve never found a thing…so today I figured I’d give it everything I had by getting there real early…got up at 4:30AM... got to the fair at 6:15AM…I envisioned finding a Spalding Trophy or something for all my early rise dedication…nada…still nothing….

So at 10 went to a local church service then got something to eat after and starting going thru the local stores…and they weren’t much better than the fair…the parking around the downtown was impacted so I parked a little up the street for the last store…So as I’m walking up the street I go by a large pool hall…I looked in and saw what appeared to be some pool related prints and décor…so I walked in and started looking around…Just as I walked in I saw the broadside above…I’m wild for broadsides and I know how rare they are…and this one was for a world championship…and was very striking…I walked all thru the huge cavernous pool hall but didn’t see anything else that had my attention…

I knew nothing about the pool hall and just assumed it wasn’t for sale…but I looked it over carefully anyway…the design had me…the way it was laid out…It had photos of Kramer and Riggs so that was a big plus…and it was stopping power yellow…with contrasting dark blue letters…and the way the venue was displayed on the side with the city Oakland, and date was unique…I’d never seen a poster laid out like that…Had some staining but I didn't care looked great to me...

So in the back of the hall was another large room with pool tables and pool furnishings of every sort for sale…and there was a guy sitting at a desk…real friendly guy says hi and everything…so we start talking about pool stuff and I asked if the decorations in the hall were for sale…He chuckles well…everything’s for sale…sort of like…they weren’t actively selling stuff but they might...and he asks what I was interested in…How much for “that tennis poster” I said…he goes I don’t know I’ll call the owner he’s just up the street…I wait and can feel a nose bleed price coming…He hangs up and laughs…He doesn’t really want to sell it and gave me a pretty high figure…more that I wanted to pay…but in actuality I ball parked it about ½ it’s potential considering how rare it was…nevertheless I wasn’t paying nose bleed for a tennis piece…and so I left…on the way out I studied it again and took some shots…I went out to my car and got on my lap top and looked up the match…from a cursory look it appeared the match was part of a series that played in various cities…since the same match was played in NYC in 1947…so I figured it was from 1947…

Later I ascertained there was no Saturday February 21st in 1947…but later learned there was in 1948…and later I learned a lot more about the series in a 2009 book about one of the participants Pancho Segura called “Little Pancho”: The Life of Tennis Legend Pancho Segura, by Caroline Seebohm…according to what I read the series went on for a few years I believe…

So anyway…I went back in and looked it over again…I concluded that although later than I normally collect…it was important and I liked it a lot…So I went back in the sales room and told the guy to call the seller and offer $XXX.XX…half of what he quoted…but it was serious money and I felt he would take it…took a while but he came back with $150.00 over my offer…I felt my offer was pretty strong but I upped it $50.00…more third party phone negotiating and waiting…but the desk man collected advertising so all the while we were having a good time talking antique signs as the afternoon wore on…Finally the desk man gets a text reply from the owner…. $XXX.XX…$50 over my last offer…

I didn’t feel I was raking the guy I just felt my offer was very fair and I stuck to my last offer…and I was going to leave but the desk guy and I kept on talking signs for about 15-20 minutes…then in comes the big guy in person…Him and I had nowhere near the comradery as his employee…nothing hostile or anything but he seemed all business…We chatted a little but I was getting worn out and wanted to get going…so I thanked him but said that was all I could do…and he reluctantly caved…He went out and unscrewed it from the wall…I paid him and walked out the new owner…And that was my Sunday...

[hcv123]

Great story! Enjoy the piece!

[CobbSpikedMe]

My wife and I used to go to the Petaluma Street Fair every year when we lived there. My wife loved it and when I told her you went there she was sad that she missed it again. Anyway, I don't recall ever seeing much in the way of sports memorabilia either. I do remember seeing a pair of vintage cleats in the original box, but of course they were overpriced.

Thanks for the memory Carlton. And nice pick up on the broadside.

AndyH

[WWGjohn]

That's a honey of a poster, Carlton.

John

[CarltonHendricks]

Thanks all for the approval...Poking around on the internet I came across the posters above that sold in 2009 in NYC at a Guernsey's tennis auction....the one with Kramer and Riggs went for $750.00...Now that I'm into this a little I wouldn't mind finding the poster from the Kramer vs. Riggs match at Madison Square Garden...I seem to recall some similar tennis posters in a Leland's auction years ago...

[Jay Wolt]

Carlton, great story & pickup! Congrats!