Goodie Goldfaden alive & well!
sando69
Posts: 276
... or ever visit his shop on Santa Monica Blvd. (i think) in West LA?
am pretty sure that he was the first card/memorabilia shop on the west coast!
what an historic curator he was for alot of the stuff that we all now own!
i can remember buying my first T206 cobb (for $2) and first babe ruth card (1933 Goudey Sport Kings) for $5 from him!
oh yeah, that was also 1971!
any other old time collectors have memories of Goody to share?
am pretty sure that he was the first card/memorabilia shop on the west coast!
what an historic curator he was for alot of the stuff that we all now own!
i can remember buying my first T206 cobb (for $2) and first babe ruth card (1933 Goudey Sport Kings) for $5 from him!
oh yeah, that was also 1971!
any other old time collectors have memories of Goody to share?
0
Comments
I once saw a buy ad of his in a coin publication to buy sportcards & publications,
that was in 1938 !!!!!!!!
he was the 1st dealer to offer me a 1952 topps mantle, he just pulls two out of his shirt pocket, this was at a monthly card meeting in Fountain Valley Calif.......
he offers them to me & mike berkus for $75 each, berkus bought one,
then I uttered my most stupid words of my life........"I will never pay $75 for one baseball card"
geez, did I screw up or what?
I could go on but goodie was a hobby pioneer, he opened his store in 1948, more than 30 yrs before the store thing caught on in the hobby
talk about being ahead of the crowd
he finally sold a large portion of his publications to Notre dame University
Have seen or talked to him in yrs.......does anyone know if he's still around or finally retired
goodie was a pioneer and quite a character, to boot!
btw, i remember that monthly show at the rec center in fountain valley!
what EVER happened to tony galovich? how about berkus, riley & the other guy whose named started with a "b"?
zippy- are you a long time so cal collector/dealer?
You're going back a ways - I, personally, did not collect before 1986.
I have read a lot about Carter, Burdick, Gelman etc.
Was Goldfaden's store called Adco Sports Book Exchange in Hollywood, Cal?
mike
Always enjoyed his humor, never realized he was both a dealer and a collector.
Sorry to hear of his passing. RIP Gilbert Godfried ...
"How about a little fire Scarecrow ?"
to tell you the truth, i don' t remember, but that sounds very familiar!
have one of goodie's business cards tucked away somewhere so safely that i can't find it
mike-
did you grow up in so cal? what do you know about adco?
your friend,
mark
ps-
"You're going back aways"
how about zippy... who saw goodie's ad in 1938!
...which begs another question:
who is currently the patriarch of our hobby?
I only know them from Tuff Stuff magazine.
Back in the 90s, they had regular columns:
State of the Hobby by Mike Berkus and
Point to Ponder by Tony Galovich.
In fact, Mike Berkus wrote about the "electronic futue of our hobby" back in the early 90s where he was concerned about crap that was being written in SportNet - he called it a rumor mill that could hurt the hobby.
He called for a "bank" to be the middle man to deal with the transaction between buyer and seller.
Of course, this looks a lot like Ebay and Paypal.
Goody could be incredibly mean to kids, but until we started getting SCD and SCN and TTS it was about the only source for us to get pre War cards. You'd make an appointment, and then still be kept outside for 45 minutes anyway. His wife Esther was really nice though, so that partially made up for it.
Always looking for Topps Salesman Samples, pre '51 unopened packs, E90-2, E91a, N690 Kalamazoo Bats, and T204 Square Frame Ramly's
<< <i>did you grow up in so cal? what do you know about adco? >>
sando
No, I grew up in NYC.
Only thing I know is what I read.
Adco used to advertise in Sporting News in the 50s?
I would think more info would arise on this guy from regular participators of Net54.
mike
<< <i>I used to take the bus to Adco when I was a kid- and Goodie was a fixture at the monthly meetings in Fountain Valley with Merv Williams, Steve Brunner, Gavin Riley, Jim Nowell, Clay Hill and a bunch of others. As far as I know only Clay is still involved in the hobby. If anyone knows what became of Merv please pm me- he was really good to a few of us.
Goody could be incredibly mean to kids, but until we started getting SCD and SCN and TTS it was about the only source for us to get pre War cards. You'd make an appointment, and then still be kept outside for 45 minutes anyway. His wife Esther was really nice though, so that partially made up for it. >>
Anthony
What year are you talking about?
This is interesting.
How come his name is not referenced in other areas that talk about guys like Burdick, Carter, Gelman etc.?
mike
Matt
1994 Pro Line Live
TheDallasCowboyBackfieldProject
you must know will (& ginnie) davis...
opened first card shop in orange county...
used to tell me stories about goodie only allowing 2-3 kids in his store at a time,
making the others wait outside til the ones inside were done!
will also told stories about the garages that goodie would rent & fill just to store all the "junk" he had!
One of the nicest guys I ever met and was incredibly nice to me when I was just a teenager interested in old memorabilia.
An ad in the Westcoast Peddler: Feb 2006
SPORTS MEMORABILIASPORTS ONLYBUY-SELL-TRADE Baseball, foot-ball, basketball, boxing, wrestling, jiu jitsu, olympics,billiards, body building, dozens of other sports. De-sire books, magazines, programs, tickets, other items1860 to date, also World Series - All Star - Super - RoseBowl programs. GOODWIN GOLDFADEN, 4501Cedros Ave. #122, Sherman Oaks, CA 91403, (818)986-4914.
Here's a 1948 issue of the Trading Post which has an ad in it by Goldfaden.
Very interesting.
mike
<< <i>griff-
you must know will (& ginnie) davis...
opened first card shop in orange county...
used to tell me stories about goodie only allowing 2-3 kids in his store at a time,
making the others wait outside til the ones inside were done!
will also told stories about the garages that goodie would rent & fill just to store all the "junk" he had! >>
That makes sense Sando
He gave Notre Dame tonnage!
mike
what year is that ad from?
<< <i>VERY cool items, mike-
what year is that ad from? >>
Feb 2006.
I thought someone said he's gone?
mike
i made the phone call & talked with goodie himself!
... am chagrined to report that the rumors of mr goldfaden's demise were greatly exaggerated
the good news is that goodie is alive & well, at 91, and still dabbling in the hobby with publications.
during the course of conversation, he mentioned that he used to have about 1500 babe ruth cards...
sold 'em all for $5 a piece & wondered if i had bought one of them...!
so, stone- thanks for helping me track goodie down.
hopefully we'll see him at the national this year!
now... how about some of those other old-timers...
riley, berkus, brunner, the barnings, et al...
what are they doing now?
Nick
I was going to Adco about '73 or '74. Sorry to burst a bubble here but Goodie was one the meanest, most unfriendly people I've ever dealt with, in or out of the hobby. I'd heard (as of last year) he was still alive but that Esther had died a few years back.
Goodie wasn't adverse to ripping a kid off, and that is where I learned that in any deal you have to really know your stuff and not believe what the seller is telling you. It's pretty standard practice, but a little harsh when you're 12 and find out you got ripped off on your purchase that took a month tossing newspapers to finance.
About '74 I was tossing those papers when I saw an ad in the sports section saying "card collectors wanted". It had been placed by Merv Williams in order to promote the monthly card show in a school cafeteria in Fountain Valley. Me and a friend called Merv (one of the nicest guys in the hobby at the time), and for the next 2 years he drove us down there once a month, never accepting a dime. The Southern California Card Collectors Club was run by Jim Nowell, Gavin Riley, and Steve Brunner. I believe John Parks was the principal at the school, and so the venue was procured. There would be a sale time, and then a meeting, followed by an auction. At one point I ended up being voted in as the vice president, and had completely forgotten about that until I found an old The Trader Speaks issue a few months ago that mentioned it.
These shows culminated in a convention held at the Anaheim Hyatt in August of '74 and '75 (and after that as well). These ( and the big show in Detroit that started about '69) were the forerunners of the National.
Back then it was a lot different- condition was not nearly as critical, and centering was rarely mentioned. If you were close to a set and the seller had the cards often as not he'd give them to you, with a a congrats and an announcement to the crowd of your achievement (this last part seems to happen on the set registry board lately).
But it wasn't all perfect, as trimmed cards were not uncommon, and I remember a guy selling a stack of #68 Ted Williams '59 Fleers before it was found out they were fakes. And you could go years looking for a card that would take you about 15 seconds to find on ebay now.
By '76 I had discovered surfing, skateboarding (I lived in Santa Monica and was friends with a lot of the guys that were the subject of Lords of Dogtown and Dogtown and the Zboyz movies) and girls. I stopped collecting, and in 1980 I rented a table at what I think was the first National and sold off everything. Took a 20 year break, started collecting again, and have often wondered what happened to all those old timers, especially Merv. I hope he's doing well.
Always looking for Topps Salesman Samples, pre '51 unopened packs, E90-2, E91a, N690 Kalamazoo Bats, and T204 Square Frame Ramly's
forgot to mention that goodie told me that he's been advertising in the westcoast peddler since they started (whenever that was)!
he also stated that he started collecting "stuff" in 1925!!!!!!
also mentioned that he used to have 15,000 t206's that he sold to "wert gammons" (sp?) as a lot back in the early 70's...
right around the time that esther died...
this guy is a "national hobby treasure!"
isn't there some way we can get him to come one day to the national in anaheim?
wouldn't you all (who are coming) really enjoy meeting this man? listening to his stories (and, believe me... he still has plenty!)
... and just appreciating the passion he has for our hobby?
comments?
Wirt Gammons, and he was a legend.
I'm fairly sure Esther died in the late '80's early '90's- I know someone that went to the sale Goody had at his house after her death in the mid '90's. I know she was certainly alive in the '70s'.
Always looking for Topps Salesman Samples, pre '51 unopened packs, E90-2, E91a, N690 Kalamazoo Bats, and T204 Square Frame Ramly's
bursting no bubbles here... just tellin it like it was (is, or just shouldn't be)...
can empathize with you about those early lessons, tho there still seems to be a silver lining...
merv williams...
i think we all had some sort of a "merv williams" in our lives at one time or another...
maybe he's the guy we should be immortlizing...!
to tell ya truth, griff...
i don't really remember too many "nice" guys in this hobby, in this area, in my lifetime...
guess i always figured that was just a microcosm of "real" life...
hope to meet you in anaheim in july!
mark
Sando
I will temper my thoughts to what Anthony has said and what you desire.
Age has a way of mellowing people - so perhaps he's a little more "philosophic" now?
This pic is of Carter and his wife.
This guy is still alive! He ranks up there with greats like Carter, Burdick, Gelman etc.
And, yes, they have some great stories to tell - I will tell you that SCD ran a nice series on Lionel Carter and published some of his handwritten notes.
We are the new "caretakers" - and as they are just passing thru history, so are we.
If I were one of the "kings" of the collecting world, I would consider it an honor to talk about the hobby - the good, the bad and the ugly.
mike
<< <i>i think we all had some sort of a "merv williams" in our lives at one time or another...
maybe he's the guy we should be immortlizing...! >>
yeah, that's certainly true. The "hero's" that were thrust upon us- the OJ's, the Namaths, the May's- really aren't the important ones that had an impact. It was the Merv Williams, the teacher, the coach, whoever, that believed in us and made us better.Those guys are the hero's.
Sando- hope we can meet in July- looks like we have crossed paths for too long without knowing it.
edit- my spelling bites tonite, sorry. You get the point.
Always looking for Topps Salesman Samples, pre '51 unopened packs, E90-2, E91a, N690 Kalamazoo Bats, and T204 Square Frame Ramly's
griff- do you remember tony alfaro?
crossing paths, but probably never connecting...
just like mike...
and others...
hoping to change that
mark
<< <i>perhaps he wasn't remembering correctly, but he said that esther died about 31 years ago...
griff- do you remember tony alfaro? >>
He's certainly know better than I. She was a nice lady.
The name sounds familiar, but I can't think of specifics. I can only recall about 12-18 names, I could probably pour thru some old Trader Speaks and remember more.
Any idea what happened to Jim Nowell? He always had really nice cards, the only guy I recall being a condition fanatic.
Always looking for Topps Salesman Samples, pre '51 unopened packs, E90-2, E91a, N690 Kalamazoo Bats, and T204 Square Frame Ramly's
that name is not familiar either...
i do remeber clay hill always being condition conscious
did you ever meet bill heitman?
not a merv williams, but a plethora of hobby knowledge.
i think he went to work for beckett at one time
the name charley seaver is familiar...
haven't seen him in almost 20 years!
well, maybe 15 years!
also I told anyone who would listen graded cards will be the hot tip.......99.9999% of the hobby laughed in the mid 80's...including virtually every major hobby dealer at the time.....today I would say graded cards are a part of the hobby, like it or not.... & amazingly some dealers/collectors are still fighting the concept of graded cards.
but graded cards are not for all......that's the beauty of free choice
But if you could afford it, would you buy a T-206 wagner NOT certified by one of the major grading services?
I highly doubt it, unless your a hobby expert.
oh well I could go on but this thread is really kool
tony galovich
I have to agree with Griffins about Goodie Goldfadden. When I was 14 and 15 I lived in Northern California but managed to talk my dad into driving me down to those card shows. They were really small affairs maybe 30-40 tables and just about all were cards. Every the iconoclast, I wasn't much into cards at the time, but autographs were my thing. Much of my youth was spent chasing down athletes at hotels and writing off to players through the mail. I also collected programs, tickets, and such but I was really into the autograph thing mostly. Mind you my hobby was financed by paper route money.
Goldfadden wouldn't give me the time of day with his stuff, so frankly I never had any direct dealings with him. I guess he assumed that a 14 year old kid either didn't have the kind of money he wanted for his treasures, or maybe he just didn't like kids (granted I was a BIG - 6' tall kid). However others were genuinely nice to me and two in particular. Will Davis and Steve Brunner. Will is a heckuva nice guy and even years later would remember me when we crossed paths at shows even though I hadn't done any business with him in a long time.
But it was Steve in particular was very kind in letting me know about things that were "behind the table" as he mostly displayed cards. I can rightfully compare him with the late Dick Dobbins who so so kind and helpful to young collectors in Northern California. I still have two of the nicest items he sold me:
The first was an old autograph book...as I went through the pages there were dozens of beautiful fountain pen and pencil signatures from players in the 1920-30 eras. Lots of Hall of Fames and very, very difficult non-HOF signatures. I see Terry, Hubbell, Hartnett, and oooh! Rogers Hornsby!
As I'm trying not to drool on the thing he says, "Did you see it?". I wasn't sure what he meant so he said, "I think it's near the back". I paged through and then I think I might have stopped breathing for a moment:
I asked him how much and I don't remember the exact price but it was around $300 I think. Although it was pretty much all I had you know I had to have it. I went down again for a show either a year later, or maybe it was later in the same year and once again Steve and a "goodie" for me behind the table. Again, I had to empty my pockets but I went home with this:
great to hear from you... where are you living now?
guess you're probably pushin 60 aren't you... if not draggin it behind you
what's up with your health? what ever happened to tony alfaro or the davises or the barnings?
exchanged some very nice emails with bill heitman a couple of months ago.
can remember clearly buying some sets (that i still have coincidentally) at your card/comic shop on harbor blvd in garden grove (1978/79?)...
what was the name of that place? fantasy___(something)??
"some people like expensive hobbies."
all visionaries to some extent, don't think any of us could foresee a 20-25 year cyber-reunion on the grading company's message board, nor the myriad changes that have accompanied the journey!
will you be in anaheim this july?
best wishes, tony... don't be a stranger here...
some pretty interesting characters here & provocative subject matter...
you'd fit right in!
mark
wonderful items & great memories!
please share more...
also someone was asking about clay Hill, he works @ SCP as well
haven't spoke to will or Ginnie Davis in yrs, have no idea what they are doing, I'm sure ginnie finally closed her store in fullerton, the 1st ever baseball card shop in orange county, then Mark Christensen opened up his in LaHabra a few months later & I opened up a few months after that, the good ole days.......last i hear mark tried out for the Globe trotters but couldn't jump high enuff
same for bill heitman, he fell off the face of the earth as well, but still have his little T-206 booklet which was super for its day, next time u speak to him ask him about the strippers & the portable record player & how much they earned in cards that day.....now those were the interesting card show stories u don't read about in SCD.......can't say much more as this is a family oriented site......I may have to write a expose....I mean a book about the hobby yrs ago......today the hobby is all about new krap & $$$$$
how about bob lee, randy thyberg, harlon werner, jack mayes (sp?), kevin struss...?
any idea about them?
Always looking for Topps Salesman Samples, pre '51 unopened packs, E90-2, E91a, N690 Kalamazoo Bats, and T204 Square Frame Ramly's
upon examining your world series program more closely, i find it to be an absolutely spectacular piece...
those colors, the buffalo nickel, the ny skyline... this is a classic!
those magnificent autos of gehrig, ott, ruffing, dickie & gomez are clear & obvious...
who are the others?
(and who was zeb terry?)
bill hughes, matt wozniak, gregg hara (scripps ranch sportscards), george grauber (sp?) & their monthly show at the scottish rite temple in mission valley (san diego)...
BOB LEE... whatever happened to bob lee (all-american card shows)?
griff, moose, zippy, et al-
any recollections? any others you'd like to mention or wonder about?
you guys' descriptions & anecdotes of goodie reminded me about lew lipset... he was every bit as curmudgeonly & difficult
but we'll save those stories for another thread...
Ray Hess was another one that was nice to kids, and a guy named Tom Tuttlemeyer.
No argument on your last comments.
Always looking for Topps Salesman Samples, pre '51 unopened packs, E90-2, E91a, N690 Kalamazoo Bats, and T204 Square Frame Ramly's
<< <i>HI.......What ever happened to Tony Galovich? Well I'm okay, retired due to health reasons, still collecting & trading......just the prices are a bit higher than the $75 52 Mantles that were even considered expensive at the time....but oh well I did predict cards may be a viable investment, check in the 1st two issues of Baseball Cards magazine,(1981) on the hobbys 1st investment oriented articles.
also I told anyone who would listen graded cards will be the hot tip.......99.9999% of the hobby laughed in the mid 80's...including virtually every major hobby dealer at the time.....today I would say graded cards are a part of the hobby, like it or not.... & amazingly some dealers/collectors are still fighting the concept of graded cards.
but graded cards are not for all......that's the beauty of free choice
But if you could afford it, would you buy a T-206 wagner NOT certified by one of the major grading services?
I highly doubt it, unless your a hobby expert.
oh well I could go on but this thread is really kool
tony galovich >>
Tony
You mean Mr. Points to Ponder?
That was the first place I would go each month in Tuff Stuff!!!
Sorry to hear about the health problems.
I hope you're doing OK now?
I always wondered how Andy Rooney would do giving "his" points on TV about the state of the hobby?
Do you talk with TJ at all? He's had a shop forever also? I'm from the east coast and am not familiar with the shops referenced here.
mike
matt wozniak used to be partners with tony alfaro awhile back, but that deal is over
in my are there is a chain of bob lee tire stores .........is that him?????
kevin struss works for mastronet
jack mayes still selling baseball card supplies in orange country
harlon werner.......well harlan is just being harlon, represents Ali, koufax etc.......only deals in big deals......no time for the little peons in the hobby, but I know the Harlon, before he made it big.......those were the days!!!!!!
hope this helps