3 comments about Cheap Laffs: The Art of the Novelty Item.

1. I was a little disappointed with this book. I was expecting a scholarly history, biographies of the inventors, inside stories, tales of invention and rivalry, etc... But the book really belongs more on a coffee table. There is an interesting, not-too-in depth essay at the beginning talking about the history and origins of the "Novelty Movement", but the rest of the book is dedicated to a picture dictionary with explanations and blurbs that are sometimes interesting, but not horribly informative. Whats in the Mystery Bag?? They never tell you! Frustrating purchase...



2. The "TARGET:" lines on "The Laffs" pages alone are worth the price of the book!
   Oh, wait a minute, this book costs $19.95. The "TARGET:" lines and maybe the nice, firm cover together are worth the price.
   Maybe.



3. Everything that the editorial material above says is true: this handsomely photographed and crisply designed book is packed with oddball novelties from the preeceeding century. What the above does not convey is that Cheap Laffs is also laugh (or should I say "laff") out loud funny.
   Buy it.
   Now.

2 comments about Factsheet Five Zine Reader, The.

1. Zine writers tend to do best uncovering secret histories: hobo graffiti tales by freight-hopping filmmaker Bill Daniel, or writing about the street ear-cleaners of New Delhi, or where to find brand-new karaoke machines in Japan for free (and why this happens). 8-tracks and those insane Jack T. Chick pamphlets are also nicely covered. Some parts are not as interesting, but this reflects the huge range of interests covered in this anthology.



2. This is the best of the glut of zine anthologies that came out a couple years ago. Worth the price of the book is Sky Ryan's adventures as a gutter punk, roaming the west coast. This is what zines are really supposed to be like.

4 comments about Collector's Guide to 1990s Barbie Dolls: Identification & Values.

1. Ok, Let's get the negatives out of the way:
   1. This book is seriously incomplete. No Skipper, No Kelly, No Ken.
   2. Does not cover the 1990's decade. Only covers 1989 to part of 1997.
   3. The only description provided is year, name, Item # and an inflated price guide value
   
   BUT
   The reason you buy this book is for the pictures. This is THE best book for identifying Pink Box Barbies from 1989 to 1997. She provides two pictures for every doll, a full length picture from straight out of the box and a close-up of the face. And when you have a nude barbie found on the 50 cent table at a garage sale, the face is all you have to identify it. This is a valuable resource for Barbie resellers as an identification tool, but you may as well ignore the over-inflated price value. These are Pink Box Barbies, not Exclusives.



2. If your looking for a book that would have Barbie, Skipper, ken, stacey, Kelly and friends. This is not the book you want.
   It doesn't even have all the 1990's barbie dolls, it is only from 1980 to 1997. It Only has Barbie, Friends and no family.



3. The author of this book gives us exactly what she claims to offer. Concise illustrations of the regular "pink box" Barbie dolls of the 1990's. There are other wonderful books featuring the older Barbie dolls but the regular dolls from the 1990's are frequently left out. The full body and close up shots have been helpful in identifying my recent thrift store finds. The author provides us with issue dates and stock numbers and approximate values at date of publication. The specific head and body markings are unfortunately not included.



4. Maria Mmartinez-Esguerra has written a book about Barbie in the 1990's and that is fine for those who began collecting in that decade. However, to really learn about Barbie and her history, I don't see the purpose of this book. A reference for one decade will be lacking because Barbie was born in 1959. That is a lot of history and the years between have told the story much better than this book.

2 comments about The Barbie Doll Years 1959-1996: A Comprehensive Listing & Value Guide of Dolls & Accessories (Barbie Doll Years).

1. This book lists nearly EVERYTHING! And I'm assuming when the third edition comes out, it'll cover the few things missed here. The values are as accurate as any other price guide (i.e. to be taken with a grain of salt), but the best part is having such a completely comprehensive list of not only dolls, but also fashions, accessories, licensed items, even pogs and postcards!



2. This is THE one book you MUST have if you collect in the broad Barbie doll family. They are few photos, but there is the most comprehensive listing of every Barbie & Friends you could ever find. When I'm bidding in auctions, this is the book I look to for the REAL value of the item. Get it...or you could overpay on your Barbie items. Highly recommended!!

5 comments about Standard Price Guide to U.S. Scouting Collectibles (Standard Price Guide to Us Scouting Collectibles).

1. What a great resourse book. A must have for the avid collector or the novice. Besides collecting, it is a great companion piece to learn about the Boy Scouts and 20th Century Americana in general. I commend Mr. Cuhaj for all the work and time he put into creating this. I'm so glad some one thought enough of me to make this a perfect gift for the Scouter who has everything.



2. This is the 2nd, updated edition of the popular volume. Its 400 pages feature more than 750 nice black and white photos and a 16 page full color section. There is adequate text to accompany the photos, and it is fully indexed to aid in item location. All major levels of scouting are featured, along with collectibles, council listings, glossary of terms, memorabilia dealers, collector organizations, museums and reference works. It's an essential guide for scout collectible enthusiasts.



3. This is an excellent book for anyone who collects Boy Scouts of America memorabilia such as insignia, pins, books, Order Of The Arrow, just about anything that has been involved in Scouting. It details many items extensively, and provides price ranges based on condition. The first edition did not have an index, and it was rather difficult to find certain items, but Cuhaj corrected that in this second edition. The magnitude of this book is tremendous, providing over 11,000 listings, most with values for buying, selling, or just trading. There are a few pages in color, while the rest is in black and white. I would have preferred all items in color, and would have been willing to pay more for the book. If Scouting memorabilia is your forte, I highly recommend this book with a 5-Star rating.



4. The first edition was the answer to a new collector's prayers and the release of the greatly expanded second edition was timed perfectly to take me to the next level in this increasingly popular field of collecting. This book brings together a broad range of information that earlier had only been available to collectors willing to seek out a daunting number of specialty publications, usually at considerable cost. I would highly recommend this new edition not only for beginning collectors, but also for the more advanced collector who needs a broad reference to the panoply of Scouting collectibles. Finally, I think most readers will enjoy the author's personal touch, including images from his boyhood Scouting experience. They certainly evoked fond memories of my own early Scouting days.



5. Greetings, well, it is back, bigger and with lots more photos. What has become the identification and price guide for scouting collectibles has been doubled in listing size as well as photographs for ease of identification. While weekly auctions may be skewing the price system, it is a great starting point. The Merit Badge section, and the book sections have been completely revised.

5 comments about Bettie Page: The Life of a Pin-Up Legend.

1. This is an outstanding summary of Bettie's life and her impact on modeling, art, pin-up, photography, and those needing encouragement in overcoming obstacles. The book is a nice way to learn about Bettie Page and those individuals she worked with during her career and growing up. It stops short of telling about recent events, but gives one a good understanding of the lady. The information is factual and well written. Much speculation has been made about the time she walked away through the present, but this is a nice account with the facts that we know to be true without the speculation. The pictures within this book are amazing and many won't be seen anywhere else. The information about those individuals she touched, encountered was interesting as well. Good read.



2. I bought this book for my husband's birthday last year; he has always thought Bettie Page was great, and he is the one who enlightened me about her. As an artist, I was drawn to her style and unpretentiousness, and have drawn her twice so far.
   
   This book is well-written and leads the reader through Bettie's life; from her start and to her present day in a respectful and fascinating manner. I came away from this book understnanding the appeal she had to men, and wanting to draw her portraits over and over.



3. There was one another 50's icon who rivals Marilyn in popularity today--Bettie Page. True, she didn't make any A-movies, but like Marilyn, embodied that woman who drew a fine line between good girl/bad girl and crossed the lines as easily as one drank Coca-Cola. Unlike Marilyn, Bettie survived, but like Marilyn, her legend lives on for one simple reason: she dropped out of sight in 1957 following the fall of Irvin and Paula Klaw by the Kefauver Committee on indecency and pornography and refused to have herself be photographed as she is now. Thus, she is remembered as she was back then. And as her life has become simpler, she values her privacy. She says so as much in the hand-written foreword, at the same time surprised and honoured that so many people are interested in her.Karen Essex and James L. Swanson book is a great place to start for those curious about Bettie Page. Basically, it's a biography accompanied by lots and lots of colour and b&w photos, many of them topless. There are two of them which has her completely nude. She also posed for countless magazine covers and photographers. Art Amsie's photos are the best of the lot here. Bunny Yeager is touched on briefly, but that woman has a book on herself so... Looking at the early Bettie, before she became a pin-up from 1947, is also quite a revelation. She is still beautiful, but in an ordinary way, like a typical girl growing up in 1940's America.There is clearly a dualism going on here. There's the pretty wholesome girl in the bathing suit or maybe not, and then there's the darker leatherbound fetish girl, be she receiver or giver. That latter half led to her downfall. The point also was that she enjoyed her work, mainly the lighter beach stuff. You can see it in those twinkling eyes and smile of hers.The last section of the book features models who have been influenced by her, be they in clothes or just looking like her. Of the lookalikes, Eva Herzigova, Debi Mazar, and Janice Dickinson have got it down to the bangs, (it's the bangs that did it for Bettie, after all), long black hair, and prominent eyebrows.Apart from being one of fantasy artist Olivia's favourite subjects, Bettie's images appear on album covers by My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult and the David Lee Roth Band. Her three videos, Teaserama, where she acts opposite stripper legend Tempest Storm, Varietease, and Strip-O-Rama have come out. She'll live on, no doubt about it.Anyone interested in Bettie Page-start with this book. You won't be disappointed.



4. This is the ultimate book on Bettie Page. This book is for every true Bettie fan. Even contains an introduction from Bettie herself.

   If you really want to follow the history of legend, this is the ultimate book on Betty Mae Page!




5. So said one of her photographers. What a marvelous book. If you're like me, and have been a Bettie fan for years, you've been waiting for this book. For years one could find stuff on her only in comic shops and the like, dealing in old memorabilia from the Fifties, or in various "alternative" shops that sold her image on T shirts. As a teen that's where I learned about her, thanks to "The Rocketeer," the comic "The Bettie Pages," and psychobilly trash-punk band the Cramps, who for a short time had a bass player the spittin' image of our fair maiden. Now that we've finally opened our eyes, we can buy several books on her, this being by far the best. It is the ne plus ultra of Bettiebooks, of pin-up books in general. What a trend-setter; a humble, troubled, open and honest woman who was not exploited, who has not turned herself into a PC victim--she's idolized by smart, hip young women who see in her freedom, sexuality, playfullness, life itself. This book had better be reprinted--it's an absolute crime to be unavailable. Get this book by any means necessary!

3 comments about Barbershop: History and Antiques (Schiffer Book for Collectors).

1. If you have any interest in the barber shops of your youth this is the book for you.I thoughly enjoyed reading this book.It covers everything you ever thought you wanted to know about the barber shops of old.At the end of the read I could almost smell the hair tonic and Bay rum.I loved this book.



2. I know this author personally, his book is a terific example of what classical barber practices. He has proven his dedication and love for the trade. If you have a interst on this subject, this book will surely satisfy your curiosity. It might even make you want to pick a pair of clippers and start cutting.



3. barber shop in the Philippine

2 comments about Barbie the First 30 Years 1959 Through 1989: An Identification and Value Guide.

1. I've had this book for years and look at it often. the European dolls pictured are not seen in most other guides . I wish some of the photos were better and that the color was more true to life in them but I can't fault her research or her doll knowledge. I don't know this author like I do Jim or Michael or Joe so this is a legit review and not done out of kindness but the guys i mentioned are top notch too and don't need friendship reviews either



2. There's not a lot of printed information in this book, it's mostly pictures, but I absolutely LOVE this book. The pictures are great, & they come in handy if you need something to refer to, say for auction information (buying or selling). I highly recommend this book if it's pictures of vintage items you're after, you won't be disappointed!

5 comments about White Trash in a Trailer Park.

1. The writing style was super and the characters believable. You can't help but be involved with them. It's funny and sad all at the same time.



2. I knew people like this growing up. And I grew up in South Dakota. It's a story of poor people who could be anywhere. Characters are great -- I like a book where I don't necessarily like the characters -- they're just real. This is a "must read" just for the exposure to the Trailer Trash side of life.



3. I had my doubts about this book at first, but I was pleasantly surprised. Coming from a small rual town in Arkansas, some of the characters actions are things I've witnessed from local residents. I think anyone would enjoy this book regardless of your background.



4. A surprisingly intriguing story line brings forth a select grouping of trailer park residents and their emotional stews. Humorous, sensitive and a quick read, this is delightful fiction for those craving diversion.



5. A surprisingly intriguing story line brings forth a select grouping of trailer park residents and their emotional stews. Humorous, sensitive and a quick read, this is delightful fiction for those craving diversion.

1 comments about Toy Shop's Action Figure Price Guide: Price Guide.

1. Action figure enthusiasts will love this new year 2000 book with its 256 pages of more than 500 very large, sharp, full color photos of every type of action figure. Following the nice introduction to the topic, you'll find information and listings, along with super photos of figures ranging from Action Jackson, Batman, Bruce Lee, Buck Rogers and Charlie's Angels, to Spider-Man, Star Wars, Starsky and Hutch, to Wonder Woman, WWF, Xena and Zorro. All of your favorites are here along with current values. You'll love the photos. They're just super. Add it to your library, and enjoy.