From the Editor's Desk

Reprinted from "Crown Jewels of the Wire", August 1993, page 3

In conversations with Jim Bergman of Anchorage, Alaska, over the past two years, I was encouraged to contact Forbes magazine about the insulator hobby. Jim felt our hobby was deserving of a story in the collectibles column. His suggestion was on the "around tuit" pile for many months, and not wanting to face Jim again at the Denver National in July without having followed through on his suggestion, I wrote the following letter:

May 29, 1993

Forbes, Inc.
60 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10011

Attention: Christie Brown

Dear Ms. Brown:

I have read with interest many of your featured Collectors: Personal Affairs columns in Forbes magazine and have been encouraged by several of my subscribers to provide you with information about our hobby.

The use of an insulator began with the development of the telegraph in 1844 and provided sustained use with the advent of electric and phone service. The insulator, both glass and porcelain, literally built the communication industry. Without an insulator, electric current associated with telephone, telegraph. railway service and electricity would have experienced leakage or a break in current and a loss of service.

Collecting of insulators has shown a tremendous growth in popularity in recent years. As co-author of the enclosed two-volume reference book, Insulators: A History and Guide to North American Glass Pintype Insulators, my primary interest and expertise has dealt with the most popular collectible of the hobby -- the glass pin type insulator. However, porcelain pintypes (for low voltage and high voltage power applications) as well as both glass and porcelain insulators from outside the United States, Mexico and Canada have grown in popularity.

As editor of the hobby's widely-circulated monthly magazine, Crown Jewels of the Wire, I feel I have had the privilege of being at the heartbeat of the hobby on a regular basis. It would be my pleasure to assist in any way should you wish to develop a feature column on the insulator hobby.

I am enclosing additional information to assist you: a Current Price Guide; five color insert pages from Crown Jewels of the Wire magazine; a copy of the Insulator chapter from The Encyclopedia of Collectibles, Time-Life books, 1979; Insulator Silhouettes brochure; Understanding Your Insulator brochure, a review of the hobby by Harry Rinker, editor of Warman's Americana & Collectibles; a National Insulator Association information guide and five of the most recent back issues of Crown Jewels of the Wire magazine.

I am sure that your readers would find an article on insulators a most colorful one as well as being of historical interest since enhancements to their everyday lives have been made possible by the insulator. Insulators are still an affordable collectible, with the majority of specimens ranging from $1.00 to $50.00 each. Of course, premium pieces have commanded prices in excess of $10,000 which is attractive to those more serious about investing in a piece of communication history.

Should you have any further questions, both my husband John and I will be happy to be of assistance. We can be reached at (708) 513-1544 or FAX (708) 513-8278 and would be glad to have you visit us in our suburban Chicago home to see insulators in person.

Sincerely,

Carol M. McDougald, Editor
Crown Jewels of the Wire

The phone rang at my work.....it was husband John calling to say that Christie Brown had called. She wanted to talk with me. Talk about excitement. I flew into the back room (where I could escape the roar of the printing presses) with a portable phone in hand. I dialed. Christie answered and really seemed interested in doing a story. She had many questions and wanted the names of individuals she might contact. Her primary interest was in the collectors themselves -- not the dealers -- but those who have invested money and those who have invested time and little money to amass a collection. Both ends of the collecting spectrum. I would be happy to supply her with names with the permission of the individual collector. She would be hearing from me.

I contacted Jim Bergman, Butch and Eloise Haltman (Cathedral City, CA) and Rob Lloyd (Windsor, Ontario) to obtain their permission to have Ms. Brown contact them and faxed Christie a list of names. She did make contact with the Haltmans and with Rob Lloyd (a real "bloodhound" of a collector who has dug, scraped, scrounged, scratched, climbed and traded for some very valuable porcelain and glass insulators for many years) while he was visiting at the home of fellow collector Ken Willick. Ms. Brown also contacted a lot of other individuals whose names appeared in advertising in the most current issue of Crown Jewels of the Wire. She also contacted Art Kottman (featured in the Time-Life 1979 article).

Another call to us by Ms. Brown's assistant to verify our names and phone number, and the rest...as they say is history. A phone call from the Haltmans verified that Forbes magazine had sent photographers to their home and that there would be color photographs to accompany the article.

So we encourage you to make a quick trip to the local library or newsstand to locate a copy of the July 19, 1993 issue of Forbes. Turn to page 222....
		....and enjoy!

And to those of you who represented the hobby by answering questions of the inquiring minds at Forbes, thank you.

And to Christie Brown, our gratitude for inquiring.

Now, where is that shipping box? I have a "paperweight" to send to a magazine editor in New York City!!