The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents

[PalJoey]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#1

Posted: 5/15/12 at 1:52pm

...are being auctioned on June 2nd.

517 items, some starting at $20, including this "Nick & Nora" paperweight.

http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/11519957_nick-and-nora-crystal-paperweight








'The Way He Was': Estate of Arthur Laurents Will Be Auctioned

Updated On: 5/15/12 at 01:52 PM

[Kad]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#2

Posted: 5/15/12 at 2:15pm

I'm not sure I want to own one of his horcruxes.

"...everyone finally shut up, and the audience could enjoy the beginning of the Anatevka Pogram in peace."

[Reginald Tresilian]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#2

Posted: 5/15/12 at 2:18pm

^ THAT was funny.

[bobs3]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#3

Posted: 5/15/12 at 2:19pm

Horcruxes! Love that comment!

[Taryn]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#4

Posted: 5/15/12 at 2:29pm

Kad, you just won the whole year with that comment. The whole year. I decided.

[PalJoey]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#5

Posted: 5/15/12 at 2:34pm

Bravo, Kad.

[broadway_show_fan]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#6

Posted: 5/15/12 at 2:54pm

I too salute you, Kad.

He certainly had an impressive collection.

Three questions:

• Were/are paperweights really fashionable or "in" collectibles? I don't really get it. They seem like a waste, but I remember that when worked at a stationery store they sold fancy paperweights, so are they just decorative things for rich people? Frankly, I'd rather have the $200-$400 in a bundle instead of a paperweight!

• Did Laurents needlepoint or was he very close to someone who did? There are several samplers in the collection and several little needlepoints representing characters/shows (a red heard saying "Tony + Maria," for example) and it seemed like an interesting but off-the-beaten-path sort of hobby or interest.

• Where is the money from the sales going?

[bobs3]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#7

Posted: 5/15/12 at 3:30pm

I use my dead iPod 3 as a paperweight and it works just fine. (Horcruxes, I am still laughing.)



Updated On: 5/15/12 at 03:30 PM

[justoldbill]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#8

Posted: 5/15/12 at 8:07pm

If the needlepoints are from shows he did with Stephen Sondheim, they might have been done by Sondheim's mother. Sondheim once had some logo-themed couch pillows she made. Evidently, she did that kind of thing. Of course, we're talking forty years ago.

Well-well-well-what-do-you-think-of-that-I-have-nothing-here-to-pay-my-train-fare-with-only-large-bills-fives-and-sevens....

Updated On: 5/15/12 at 08:07 PM

[Playbilly]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#9

Posted: 5/15/12 at 8:14pm

Somebody got the good stuff, and left the masses with this junk.

Why did he have so many earrings?

"Through The Sacrifice You Made, We Can't Believe The Price You Paid..For Love!"

[justoldbill]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#10

Posted: 5/15/12 at 8:21pm

No doubt rememberances of the ears he tore them off of.

Well-well-well-what-do-you-think-of-that-I-have-nothing-here-to-pay-my-train-fare-with-only-large-bills-fives-and-sevens....

[CurtainPullDowner]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#11

Posted: 5/15/12 at 10:06pm

Paperweights are a writer's favorite weapon.

[jv92]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#12

Posted: 5/15/12 at 10:11pm

I rather like paperweights, but he has/had way too many.

[bobs3]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#13

Posted: 5/15/12 at 10:54pm

Long before there was a Voldemort there was an Arthur Laurents.

[PalJoey]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#14

Posted: 5/15/12 at 11:12pm

But would Voldemort have collected Steuben, Lalique and Balinese Rosewood?

[Kad]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#15

Posted: 5/15/12 at 11:14pm

I don't know, can they be used for wands?

"...everyone finally shut up, and the audience could enjoy the beginning of the Anatevka Pogram in peace."

[Eris0303]

The Tschotchkes of Arthur Laurents#16

Posted: 5/15/12 at 11:32pm

It seems to me that paperweights are not uncommon as producer gifts. I've seen them at Flea Market and actually have a Tale of Two Cities one

And the Horcruxes comment made me laugh :)

"All our dreams can come true -- if we have the courage to pursue them." -- Walt Disney We must have different Gods. My God said "do to others what you would have them do to you". Your God seems to have said "My Way or the Highway".