Astounding Science Fiction (May, 1941)

22 May 2014

My favorite radio show is X Minus One which aired from 1955 to 1958.  X Minus One partnered with Astounding Science Fiction (and later Galaxy Science Fiction) magazine to create a radio adaptation of some of the short stories they published each month.  One of my favorite episodes is an adaptation of Robert Heinlein’s short story, Universe which was published in the May 1941 issue.

So on a whim, I searched around to see if I could find that particular issue.  I got discouraged when I saw this issue listed on eBay, the auction had already ended, and the only other place I could find it for sale had it for $125.  Since I didn’t see any winning bidder on eBay, I emailed the seller who said that no one bought it and he would put it back up on eBay for me.

Listen to the X Minus One episode here.

Total spent today: $43

 

Odds and Ends

4 May 2014

Jenny and I went antiquing a couple times in the last few weeks and got a small smattering of things.

We got a box that socks came in.  And since you couldn’t exactly Google lyrics to songs you heard on the radio, magazines of lyrics to popular songs were made so we got some of them.

And finally, a pack of 36 birthday candles from the Standard Oil Company.  Because the box says Chicago, my research tells me this is from the Standard Oil Company based out of Indiana.  The original Standard Oil Company was a monopoly founded by John D. Rockefeller, but was broken up into 34 separate companies in 1911 because of an antitrust suit.  The Standard Oil Company of Indiana was one of these offspring.  Anyway, pinning the decade on these is a little iffy, but they were only $1 and the style is right.

Total spent today: ~$13

 

Random Stuff From Brass Armadillo

23 February 2014

My sister is visiting and since we had run out of things to do, a trip to the Brass Armadillo is always a good idea.  I picked up a jigsaw puzzle (which, from Googling, is probably from the 1930s), a Yellowstone National Park brochure, some more Christmas ornaments, and some jars.

Total spent today: $28.50

A Catalog and Wrenches

26 December 2013

We stopped in Iowa City, IA on the way to Illinois for Christmas and I picked up a 1932 Montgomery Ward catalog.  The cover is missing, but the catalog has everything you would ever need for your home (for the time), including an entire two page spread dedicated to accordions.

On the way home we stopped at the Galesburg Antique Mall in Galesburg, IL and I got some old wrenches.

Total spent today: ~$22

Another Calendar and Some Unique Books

2 December 2013

While looking for a door for the room, Jenny and I stumbled across some more oddities.

First is a collection of pocket books published between 1922 and 1943 by Emanuel Haldeman-Julius, a Jewish-American socialist writer, atheist thinker, and social reformer. Apparently there are still fans and collectors of these things.  There were a lot more books than the 12 we picked up, but we snagged the ones that sounded the most interesting:

  • Is War Inevitable?
  • Are Americans Standardized?
  • The Fraud of Spiritualism
  • Science Versus Religion as a Guide to Life
  • Freethought and Agnosticism
  • How to Become a United States Citizen
  • The Conflict Between Science and Religion
  • The Origin and Development of the Atomic Theory
  • Rules for Success in Business
  • A History of Evolution
  • Racial Intermarriage in the United States
  • The Millennium: A Comedy of the Year 2000 Volume II
  • Two Masterly Ghost Stories

I also picked up a Nebraska Eighth Grade Examination Question Book which was published in 1933 and belonged to a Charlotte Stephan, who wrote answers to the questions all over the inside of the book.

Finally, I found another Travelers calendar that’s in very good condition.  This one is from 1943.

Total Spent Today: ~$51

 

A Painting and an Autograph Book

12 May 2013

Life has been pretty busy with starting up my company and finishing my master’s thesis, but last weekend we went antiquing again and found a couple things.

First is an oil painting whose tag said it was from the 1920s. The frame isn’t in good shape, but Jenny says she can do something about that.

We also picked up an autograph book for collecting (high school?) classmates’ signatures in. It seems to have belonged to a Wally Nelson and is dated 1943. Unfortunately, it’s completely blank.

Total spent today: ~$51

More Magazines… and a Surprise.

26 December 2012

Jenny and I went to visit my family for the holidays last week. We went to Champaign, Illinois and while there we went downtown to Carrie’s Antiques & Jewelry. I found some Life magazines, all in really great shape from the 1930’s to the 1980’s. They were $5 apiece so I picked up four of them, all from 1940.

I didn’t get around to really checking them out or taking them out of the sleeves until tonight and when I did, I got to see the back covers for the first time. Each one of the magazines is addressed to Mrs. F. K. Robeson Jr. This was a suprise.

The Robesons are a pretty famous family in Champaign. F. K. Robeson Sr. opened what would become Robeson Department Store in 1874; it stayed in business for 116 years, closing in 1990. Check out this article for more info. And check out this article for more about the Robesons. Incidentally, my parents live half a block away from Robeson Elementary School which is next to Robeson Park. So this is pretty cool.

Total spent today: ~$21

The Home Book of Party Games

3 October 2012

Jenny had a book exchange at work and brought home a 1944 version of The Home Book of Party Games. I don’t know who would get rid of this. It’s a great find, full of interesting stuff!

Cola Bottles and More Magazines

3 October 2012

So my visiting parents, Jenny, and I went to Platte Valley Antique Mall and I found some issues of The Saturday Evening Post, which I had yet to come across. They’re from 1946 which is later than I would have liked, but since they were in great shape and I didn’t know when I’d find any earlier ones and they were $4 apiece, I picked them up.

I also found some bottles of Perry Cola. Now the tag on the bottles said that they were only in business for 12 years, but Googling around, I couldn’t find much more info other than they were sold during the 1940s. Since it’s going to be pretty hard to pin down any other kind of soda’s decade by the bottle, I picked up a couple for $9.

Total spent today: $17.83

A Couple More of Grandpa’s Things

3 October 2012

So my parents came to Omaha for a visit and my grandma — who is going through her stuff while preparing to move — gave my mom a couple more of grandpa’s things: a picture of him from around 1941 (just after he finished boot camp) and a mirror that was made in 1940 and was given to all the soldiers for use in the field.

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