John Cobb died last night.
topstuf
Posts: 14,803 ✭✭✭✭✭
Only the oldsters would probably know him.
He was a contributor to the Overton book on Bust Halves and to my knowledge, did the first work and sold it to Overton.
I didn't know until today just HOW involved he was in coins back in the 60's and 70's (owning TWO Stellas, etc.)
If you want more details, you can read post #14198 on this other forum.
https://www.quicktopic.com/52/H/e8QCHa4sEpem
It's posted by a fellow who was a dealer when I was and he and I did lots of deals and knew each other for a long time.
John hosted several "Montanafests" at his home in Montana.
We shot, drank, discussed metals, coins, and guns and the general state of the world at these "Fests."
John is 3rd from the left, top row in this pic of our 2004 "Fest."
3
Comments
Very sad. I didn't know him but I read OP's link and it sounds like he was a remarkable fellow who suffered near his life's end. RIP.
Lance.
His legacy will live on. Rest in peace ❤
I didn't know the gentleman but my condolences to his family and friends. I am sure he will be missed.
Damn, that looks like a fun get together.
it was pretty wild.
Those folks came from all over the world.
Gold's a widespread interest.
I didn't know Mr. Cobb personally, but I certainly knew who he was, a legendary numismatist.
My condolences to his family and friends.
An authorized PCGS dealer, and a contributor to the Red Book.
Very sorry to hear; the best to his family.
Didn't know him but always sorry to hear of the passing of a dedicated numismatist - thanks for the news.
My condolences to family and friends..... RickO
RIP John.
Best place to buy !
Bronze Associate member
Sorry for your loss
I respectfully echo this.
Pete
My condolences to family and friends, my thoughts and prayers are with you,
I've never heard of him. During the years (1988-2014) when I made several trips annually to the coin shops in Montana,
I have/had personal relationships with the shop owners there and I don't recall hearing about him.
Of course, my condolences to his family.
RIP and condolences to his family & friends
The Journal of the Calif. State Numismatic Assn had an article on Cobb decades ago. Physicist turned coin dealer.
The article also noted that Cobb ran a sub-48 second quarter mile in high school. At the time it was the fastest in the nation. Remarkable.
Lance.
what a bummer. my condolences to his family and friends
Since that forum has a high turnover, I'll quote the post:
Norwester
10-29-2018
03:41 PM ET (US)
******************* Remembering John Cobb ******************
I won’t pretend to be the “that guy” who knew John Cobb any better than others who were able to spend time talking with him over the years, at ‘Fests or with phone calls to get his opinions of the markets, etc. I know that kapex spent as much time as any of us chatting with John on the phone….Erle spent a number of ‘Fest hours sharing ideas and listening to John’s perspectives, as did Duppy, Earl, IDT, and many others. He was always willing to chat and express his feelings about issues, as you know.
But, I was fortunate to meet John a great many years before any MontanaFests or
goldbug forums, back in the late ‘70’s when he was still semi-active in the coin
markets, having served for years as the President of the California State Numismatic
Association. I met him at a show in San Jose, as I recall – one of those quick “this
is so-and-so” introductions by the Show Chairman at that time. In his five-foot-eight
stature dressed in khakis that looked to need a good washing, a rumpled shirt and
his Cal Numi vest (loaded with medals), even his cowboy boots did little to mark him
as ‘special’ or anyone you’d think had the knowledge and abilities to be such. We
just chatted briefly – he asked me if I knew Gene Henry since I was from the Seattle
area, and I admitted that I did. He’d done his share of business with Gene when he
was in his 40’s and Gene a distant 25-ish and already a climbing frontrunner in the
coin business….But that was about the total of our brief conversation, and I never
connected with him again until the the ‘90’s when the KITCO forum came along.
For those who don’t know it, however, here’s a bit about John’s years trading in coins. John put together one of the finest known sets of Bust Half Dollars, those funky big ‘halves’ that were minted from 1794 through 1839 at which time the design changed. John had actually discovered the very rare overdate 1817/14 variety of this coin and passed that knowledge along to the author of the definitive book on these coins.
Even back in the early 70’s, he sold his collection of Bust Halves for ‘moon money’
(his term!) at the time to a young guy named Steve Marks who years later founded
one of the largest wholesale bullion houses in the country, A-Mark. I suspect a lot
of Forum folks have owned A-Mark rounds or bars over the years. As well, John
had assembled THE penultimate set of the horribly rare $4.00 Gold Stellas, a
strange and short-lived gold issue that was produced in 1879-1880. There were
two different designs manufactured in the total of 425 known, but fewer than
16-17 of the 1880’s of which John had owned two! Those coins of that quality
today would fetch well over a million dollars for the pair…..I won’t belabor raving
about his knowledge and expertise and ownership of so many incredibly rare
and desirable coins…suffice it to say that he was heads and shoulders above a
lot of the so-called “experts” of his time, mainly in the ‘60’s and ‘70’.
I had the chance to spend quiet time with him at his cluttered coffee table there
in the house alongside the Kootenai, trading stories, him showing me his various
Gold nuggets and/or gold coins he’d acquired over the years (many of which I’d
found for him), and planning for the upcoming MontanaFest. And, after the Fest
had ended and others had headed home, I’d usually spend an extra few days with
John as we’d grab our shotguns and head out onto the back roads looking for a
few “chickens” as he called the local Ruffed Grouse. We always found a few, but he’d
be ready to stop when we had 3 or 4 in the back of his old Scout. As was his fashion,
he’d say, “Aw, that’s enough for dinner – let’s leave some for next season”. We’d fry
‘em up with onions and big mushroom chunks, making a thin gravy afterward to have
with rice and leftover ‘Fest rolls. It was a great memory and a nice wind-down after a
hectic week of drinking, and golfing, and shooting, and cooking, and evening poker games. John would pull out bags of Eisenhower dollars or comparable to use as
chips in those games and surprised us with a “trophy” of sorts for the winner of the
last series of games we had….I still have that case of poker chips that I won beating
out Erle on the last-man-standing hand of seven-card stud. It’s a helluva nice set, too!
For all his generosity and assistance he gave to many others, behind the scenes, John
struggled with his own demons as his kids and others who knew him in his earlier days will tell you. Unfortunately, it came back to haunt him later in life not long after the last MontanaFest we held. He’d intentionally put-off having an operation on his hip which was in really rough shape – some folks may have noticed him doing a ‘Chester from Gunsmoke’ kind of limp there as it hurt severely, though he’d never admit it. But, he finally had it operated on, in Kalispell, I believe, and started a recovery thereafter. I know his daughter, DeeDee, was coming over virtually daily to make sure he was eating, to wash clothes, and cleaning his house. It was during this time, though, that John started ‘self medicating’ on his own, ignoring his doctor’s advisements and taking the “sinner, save thyself” approach….which wasn’t what was needed. . .
I’d call usually 2 or 3 times a week to chat with John, to see how he was doing, to
get his feel for the markets as I’d done for years. But, it got to the point that I wasn’t ever sure which John would be on that phone at any given time….was it going to be the pleasant, upbeat, and chatty John we all loved, or was it to be the growly and
gloomy and downright depressing John that had begun with his hip surgery. And,
when it got to the point that any conversations seemed to become almost impossible
as he was slurring his words so obviously, I began calling only once a week or
fewer. It was obvious that his “curative” was alcohol and, likely mixed with his
prescriptions or his own home remedies, it was turning him into a snarly, quite
angry, and often despondent old man, not the John I’d known for so long. . . .
John Cobb had virtually entrusted me with hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth
of his own ‘holdings’ over the years, sending me back to Seattle on one occasion
with a 100+-oz. Australian Nugget, several others in the 25 to 60-oz. range, and,
on one occasion, over 100 Gold Eagles to help me climb out of a hole I’d ended
up in when conned out of $180K via phony cashier’s checks. I owed John Cobb
a debt of gratitude beyond any simple “Thank You” as he gave me the time and
ability to dig out of that hole over several years, hardly ‘charging’ me a thing for
the use of his gold, other than an occasional lot of refurbished gold chains, etc.
which he was selling from a case in a music shop in downtown Libby. But, we
had a falling-out during his going-off-the-wagon time before his family finally
intervened and got him into a treatment facility. I won’t go into detail, but he said
some quite hurtful things that were probably the whiskey talking, but even when
I called him back days later, he was equally as venomous, so I gave up trying.
A strange voice answered the phone when I called weeks later. It was his son-
in-law from California and, while he wouldn’t go into detail, he allowed as how
they’d intervened to get John help. I understood, then, that it was his old demons
talking and not the cheeky, gentle tough-guy that we all knew.
Some months later, I called again, but the “old John” I’d known still seemed to
be a bit of a mess and, sadly, refused to apologize for what he’d said in those
earlier twisted conversations saying something on the order of “Well, I probably
meant it, just hadn’t said it before,” hanging up on me with those words. I never
called John again after that, once he’d moved in with Ross and DeeDee, though
kapex kept in touch with him. I probably gave up on him too easily, but after all
we’d done for each other, it hurt to be ‘slammed’ as I was. Maybe I deserved
it, I don’t know nor do I know why, but I wasn’t going to subject myself to any more,
even as much as I’d cared for and respected the man…..It was a very sad parting.
So, despite our difficult days over the last six or so years, I cannot begin to
emphasize what a giving and caring person John Cobb was all those years I’d
known him. Ross, his son-in-law could go on-an-on, I’m sure relating other
stories of things John did to help folks he knew, as they worked together for
a number of years down in California before they all ended up in Libby. For a
man of his smaller stature, John cast a huge shadow and touched a great many
lives in his years on this earth. He’s now past his years of pain and declining
health and likely looking for his next investment in a better place. . RIP John.