Missing the Winter Carnival already?
Grab a little piece of it this spring.
Fans of the Coolest Celebration on Earth can crowd into the St. Paul carnival’s headquarters Wednesday afternoon to buy memorabilia going back half a century or more.
It’s the first time in recent memory that carnival officials are cleaning out their storage at the Landmark Center. They usually keep a copy or two of everything each year for posterity — mainly buttons, posters and prints — but each year, they store much more than they need.
“You can imagine what our closet looks like,” said Kate Kelly, president of the St. Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation, the nonprofit organization that runs the carnival.
Most of the 150 or so types of items will cost $10 or less, carnival officials say, though such items as a cape worn by King Boreas himself could command a much higher price.
Don’t rule out haggling. With so much stuff to get rid off, carnival officials might indulge in a little wheeling and dealing, said Howie Register, 1996 Fire King and a collector helping out with the sale.
“We’ve got some pretty good stuff,” he said, “and I might even end up buying stuff myself if the price is right.”
Curious how the 1992 ice palace was designed? Check out the architectural drawing for sale.
Fancy yourself a gearhead? Pick up a 1975 starter for the International 500 Winnipeg to St. Paul Snowmobile Race.
Want something a little more personal? Try on the King Boreas cape Kelly pegged from the 1950s, a Frogtown Club marching coat she dates from the 1940s or even a striped blanket coat she says comes from the 1930s.
“Anyone who got into a parade (years ago) had to have a marching coat,” she said.
Collectors can dive into dozens of types of buttons with cheesy slogans such as “Snow Flake Fantasy” (1978), “Snow Foolin’ ” (1971) or one for the 2003 Count Embrious: “Young and romantic — Oh, baby, he’s fantastic.”
Lonny Piche, a 1997 East Wind who was in charge of carnival button sales from 2000 to 2004, said, “Anyone wanting to collect buttons is going to find something there.”
Other items seen in storage: photos, pewter plates, bottles of the St. Paul Bouncing Team’s Winter Carnival beer and the posters Kelly said Norman Rockwell personally designed for the carnival in 1982.
“Collectors just go nuts over these,” Kelly said.
Then comes the true tackiness: blinking plastic beer mugs — a 2004 winner that even sold well this year — and a 2006 frosted bottle with images of King Boreas, the Queen of the Snows and Vulcanus Rex that light up when you plug it in.
Such gems should not decay in the storerooms of the Landmark Center, Kelly said. Private collectors could give them the care they deserve, and the money goes back to the foundation to support the carnival.
Register said collectors wishing to donate items to the sale are welcome to do so, and carnival officials will pick them up.
The sale begins at 4 p.m. in Suite 429 of the Landmark Center and is expected to last several hours.
For more information, call the office at 651-223-7411.
Copyright 2008 Pioneer press.
