KOVELS' AMERICAN COLLECTIBLES, 1900–2000

CLEVELAND – July 24,2007 – From Ralph and Terry Kovel, America’s best-known and most trusted experts on antiques and collectibles, comes the definitive guide to American collectibles of the twentieth century. In their new book, KOVELS’ AMERICAN COLLECTIBLES 1900–2000, Ralph and Terry Kovel shed light on these fascinating objects and how they help tell the story of the 20th century.

Covering everything from furnishings and jewelry to decorative and useful objects found in the American home from 1900 to 2000, KOVELS’ AMERICAN COLLECTIBLES tells the story of the twentieth century through the lens of the objects created during that time.

Illustrated with hundreds of full-color photos, the book explains how things were made, why they were different from earlier examples, what technology did to change construction methods, and how wars, radio, television, and the Internet made the arts international.

Essential for beginner and experienced collectors, the book is a guide to collecting and appreciating twentieth-century treasures, including those items of great value that might be hiding in one’s own home. Especially significant is the book’s emphasis on the decorative arts of the last twenty years of the twentieth century; many examples are still in stores but will soon become scarce and rise in value.

Among the noteworthy facts and findings in KOVELS’ AMERICAN COLLECTIBLES:

• In the 1920s, dinner dishes were sold in smaller sets than before, eight instead of twelve place settings, because dining rooms and dining tables were smaller.
• After World War II smaller homes were built with combination living-dining areas, leading to buffet dinners that called for new kinds of serving ware. Rimless plates that could be stacked on a buffet table and easy-to-hold cups became popular.
• The name Stickley, synonymous with solid, unadorned Arts and Crafts furniture, is also synonymous with confusion, because the five Stickley brothers worked as partners and competitors in different business ventures.
• A line of all the Tonka trucks made in the last fifty years would stretch from Los Angeles to Pawtucket, Rhode Island. When Mr. Potato Head was introduced, some parents were upset with a toy that wasted food, but kids loved it. Mr. Potato Head was the first toy ever advertised on television.
• Some odd combination appliances were invented during the twentieth century. Armstrong came out with a Perc-O-Toaster in 1918 that made coffee while it also toasted bread or waffles.

Packed with information, charts, definitions, factory and artist marks, and photos, KOVELS’ AMERICAN COLLECTIBLES is a window into our last century and an indispensable resource for collectors..

Ralph and Terry Kovel are the authors of more than 95 books on antiques and collectibles, including the companion title to this one, KOVELS’ AMERICAN ANTIQUES 1750 – 1900. Hailed by Parade magazine as “the duke and duchess of the antiques world,” the Kovels also publish Kovels on Antiques and Collectibles, an award-winning antiques newsletter, and write a syndicated weekly newspaper column distributed to more than 150 newspapers by King Features Syndicate. They appeared weekly on the HGTV program, Flea Market Finds with the Kovels. Their website is www.kovels.com.

by Ralph and Terry Kovel

Random House Reference

On sale July 2007

Trade Paperback

ISBN: 9780609808917

Price: $27.95