Thanks to this Forum a producer from PBS called last week and said they saw the photos on here and wanted my Tahiti bar sent to Pittsburgh for the Antiques Roadshow for appraisal and to archive it in their records.

They sent a Professional "White Glove" Art moving company to come pick it up and secure it with a tracking device and off it went to Pittsburgh. They said they had 1,600 pieces of furniture to choose from and could only move 9 total for each show. I was one of those nine ... pretty cool.

Should be exciting to see what happens next!

That's awesome man! It's great on so many levels. :) I am sure about 90% of the folks around here watch that show, myself included. :) Too bad we will most likely have to wait a year to see it. :) Congrats!

Let us know if and when your piece is aired on a future episode of AR!!! That is a beautiful piece of Witco, by the way!!!

Indeed, it is a beaut! :)

I am curious as to how they will arrive at their evaluation.

Such a beautiful bar Witco made... can't wait to see the show, let us know when.
Sven, I'm thinking you may be getting a call soon from the ARS..:wink:

Check Out Da Website...www.beachbumz.com

[ Edited by: beachbumz 2011-08-13 20:16 ]

Wow...that is great to be called out like that and obviously ARS is feeling the Tiki spirit by cruising this board...they found a mecca of experts and collectors!!!

But seriously....HOW are they gonna appraise that piece? I never put a "price guide" into Tiki Modern. Do they have access to all Witco e-bay auctions ever held? If they have found the bar through your thread, MikenRich, they probably saw my original 1973 receipt that I posted...

..and the fact that the original price was 798.- bucks. But where is the precedent of a Witco "Tahiti" bar sale TODAY that will provide a ball park figure?

Depending on their judgement, the price of ALL Witco may rise or fall....

Congrats! I must (sheepishly) admit that, when I first read you post I thought it said Witco HEADBOARD! I thought "That's a funny looking headboard, but OK" :lol:

Great to hear that ARS is appraising your bar. The number one tool for the appraisers on the show is past "realized" auction prices. If they fail to find a similar item in the auction data base they also travel with a huge library of books on all types of collectibles and antiques. If a precedent can't been found for an auction price a consensus is taken among the experts at the show as to the estimated value. Form, function, design, quality of the construction, even regional appeal of the piece are all taken into account to come to an estimated value. Like it or not Witco does have a place in American furniture and design as Sven has shown so well in Tiki Modern and I am sure the book now has a place in the ARS traveling library. Your piece should do well. Forgive me about going off of the topic.

Not ready for prime time!!!

The PBS folks were kinda stumped when it came to WITCO

Yes they did have BigBroTiki's book, a tattered up version, and he did say it is in their traveling library and archive.

They are trying to introduce more modern and kitschy items to the program as the older generation is dying off and their early Foo-Foo fancy furniture and antiques don't appeal to the younger demographic.

Host Mark Walberg getting Make Up

Inside the Pittsburgh Convention center

My Tiki Bar getting prepped for the TV area to be filmed

[ Edited by: MikenRich 2011-08-17 05:26 ]

[ Edited by: MikenRich 2011-08-17 05:27 ]

The appraiser was not familiar with WITCO or Tiki culture ... I probably knew more than them because of all of you here on this forum! ... They did visit this forum prior to me getting to Pittsburgh and they printed out a lot of the pictures and the receipt BigBroTiki posted here.

Without being an expert on Tiki or Witco he gave me my appraisal if only the Bar were in the open market like a Antique Store or Antique Furniture dealer. His appraisal was $2,000 to someone who didn't know what it was and was buying it for it's Kitschy Appeal.

To a collector or someone who knows WITCO he appraised the Bar and Stools only between $8,000 - $15,000

The whole set I have Bar, Stools, Card Table and Bar Back, he appraised the whole set if it were on the Auction Block at $10,000-$17,000 ... If he had it for sale in his shop he would hang a $15,000 price tag on the set.

My written Insurance appraisal from them is for $20,000 for the set.

Here is a photo of it from the PPG website

Sad to say but Tiki Culture is still too Lo-Brow for Antiques Roadshow so Tiki Culture will not make the Prime Time TV cut. They won't air the appraisal.

We did however shoot a Web Exclusive Appraisal that they will air on their Website or Facebook.

The Tahiti Bar will be shown on PBS Antiques Roadshow in HD Prime Time TV in all the background shots, so keep an eye out when the Pittsburgh show airs next year.

People went crazy when they saw the Bar and it looked real good on TV even without makeup.. I hope it doesn't go to his head! He is now the most famous Witco Bar next to Elvis's.

I had lots of fun, met great people in Pittsburgh and got several solid offers to sell my Bar. (NO-NO-NO)

Thank you to PBS for paying for everything and making us feel like VIP's

Here are links to the two stories they did on me in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11219/1165296-67-0.stm

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11226/1167282-53.stm

And the Video you can watch here, You can see the Bar in a few background shots
http://multimedia.post-gazette.com?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=6150191

They just dropped it off .... Home where it belongs

[ Edited by: MikenRich 2011-08-17 06:23 ]

I hope it doesn't go to his head!.

Don't you mean "heads"?

LOL... How right you are

"Heads"

Bummer...too bad you didn't make the cut. But like you say...at least you got a free ride and you are hanging in the background. :wink:

On 2011-08-14 20:25, MikenRich wrote:
The PBS folks were kinda stumped when it came to WITCO
Yes they did have BigBroTiki's book, a tattered up version, and he did say it is in their traveling library and archive.

They are trying to introduce more modern and kitschy items to the program as the older generation is dying off and their early Foo-Foo fancy furniture and antiques don't appeal to the younger demographic.

Tattered? We are talking "Tiki Modern", not the "Book of Tiki", right?

I think they are on the right track with their attempts to "modernize" their vintage choices, but it must be hard since there is less accepted scholarship out on the newer stuff. Do they ever have mid-century modern pieces? That genre has become a valuable commodity now, even in the big auction houses like Sotheby's.

I would have thought that by playing up the Elvis and Hef Witco ownership they could have validated the bar enough to make it screen-worthy, but alas, it will remain our little secret for some time longer. :)