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EcommerceBytes-Update, Number 22 - September 23, 2000 - ISSN 1528-6703
Collector's Corner
1) The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
By Ina Steiner
When my sister Kim suggested I write a piece about The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (MFU) for Collector's Corner, I remembered that I still had the "Music from the Man from U.N.C.L.E." LP that I had received on my birthday. (No, I'm not telling you which one.) Curious as to its value, I went to completed auctions on eBay (09.21.00) where, to my surprise, I found over 600 MFU items, like the 1966 MFU Thrush Ray Gun Affair Game (with two pieces missing) that went for $72! And the three MFU puzzles that sold for $80.98!! And the Corgi diecast MFU car (MIB) that found a buyer for $510!!!
Of course, there were many less expensive MFU collectibles, like Viewmaster reels, paperback books, and several copies of my record, one of which sold for $12.95 (Darn! I thought I was rich!), but the action of MFU items in the collectibles market made me realize that spies don't die. They don't fade away, either. They just live forever on the Web.
It's hard to believe that a series that is not being shown regularly on any nationwide network could continue to generate devotion in fans old and new, but a search of the Internet revealed a number of sites dedicated to Napoleon Solo, Illya Kuryakin, and the United Network for Law and Enforcement. (I admit that I, too, was once a diehard fan and that I still think of them fondly.) The series is something of a worldwide phenomenon, as there are fan pages in Dutch, French, Spanish, and even Japanese!
TNT holds the broadcast rights to the series, and though they use it primarily as filler, they do have a Web page devoted to the show. The site http://www.tnt.turner.com/action/uncle provides a concise history of the series (did you know that Ian Fleming was an early collaborator and contributed several ideas, including Napoleon Solo's name?), a multimedia archive, and a fan chat room.
Though TNT is the "official" site, two others offer much more extensive and interesting fare. The first, The Fans from U.N.C.L.E. at http://www.manfromuncle.org, offers a much more detailed history of the series, an episode guide, fan articles, a section called Buying and Collecting U.N.C.L.E. and lots more.
The second, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Episode Guide (http://members.aol.com/Wmkoenig/unclepg.htm) is an award-winning (Lycos and Britannica.com) site with synopses, reviews, interviews, and a really great, up-to-date index of related sites. It is terrific.
To read more about the show, you might want to consult the following:
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Book: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of a Television Classic, by Jon Heitland (Introduction by Robert Vaughn). Paperback, 1987. Available from Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312000529/auctionbytescom) for $12.55 (plus shipping), this is considered the series "bible". You can view a sample chapter at Jon Heitland's Web site, http://members.aol.com/heitlandjo/UNCLEbook.html where you can also order the book, which the author will autograph for free.
Live long and prosper!
2) Old Stock Certificates
By Ina Steiner
"WHAT IN THE WORLD IS SCRIPOPHILY? http://www.scripophily.com"
This headline caught my eye in the Antiques & Collecting Newsletter (published by http://collectingchannel.com), because I had just sent off the paperwork to get my shares of AirTouch Communications switched to shares of Vodafone. I discovered that scripophily is the hobby of collecting old cancelled stock and bond certificates.
I had decided in preparing my Vodafone paperwork that I would keep the AirTouch Communications stock certificate, even though this would result in a fee (please don't tell the stock-certificate police). Perhaps some day I would frame the certificate and hang it in my office, and maybe it would be worth something someday. It appears my instincts may have been correct.
Stock certificates are pretty, in a monetary kind of way. They feature artwork such as scantily-clad Greek men with laurel wreaths on their heads (The Gillette Company) or famous people like Alexander Graham Bell (AT&T Corp.). The stock certificate paper is thick and connotes a feeling of value.
Many of the phone company "Baby Bells" have changed names as a result of mergers and acquisitions. I wish I had thought to keep all the certificates I had owned and traded in. It's thanks to my Mom that I own the stocks (thanks, Mom), and she's the one who encouraged me to get paper certificates instead of letting the company keep track of my stocks electronically.
Here's a link to a picture of my Air Touch stock certificate http://www.auctionbytes.com/images/airtouch.JPG
I learned that the value of old stock certificates is higher if the certificate was issued to someone noteworthy. And, like any other collectible, age, condition and scarcity will also increase its worth.
You can go to http://www.scripophily.com and http://www.numistoria.com and see some stock certificates for yourself. Or ask your parents, grandparents, or Old Aunt Florence if they have any - it's fun to handle the real thing.
3) Ask the Expert
By Ray Tipton
Dear Ask the Expert,
My question is about Pokémon: I was wondering if you know anything about it. Well, I am sure you have at least heard about the cards from Wizards Of The Coast. Well, I need some information about how much I should sell my two cards for on an online auction. I am talking price. If you don't know, do you know any Web sites that might be able to help me? THANKS!
Unsigned
Dear Unsigned,
Probably the best place to look for the value of your Pokemon cards would be at the Web site http://www.pojo.com. Their Pokemon section has an in-depth price guide of all of the Pokemon cards (including Japanese). They publish a monthly Pokemon magazine and are the #1 Pokemon Web site on the Internet with over 150,000 hits per day.
I would have to know what cards you are trying to sell to be more specific than that. Please note that many Pokemon cards sell from about 20% to 50% less on eBay than what the price guides indicate. You should browse though eBay for similar cards to see what the current auction price is.
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