Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 24, 2017)
‘Antiques Roadshow’ rolls into Portland AUGUST 24, 2017 // 9 ‘ANTIQUES ROADSHOW’ ROLLS INTO PORTLAND Three episodes filmed at Oregon Convention Center will air during 2018 season By JANAE EASLON FOR COAST WEEKEND leather pelt found in Hitler’s bunker. A rocking chair originating from 19th century Venice, Italy. An Alaskan totem pole worth $4,000. These rare treasures came together in Portland earlier this month for the filming of PBS’s longest running program, “Antiques Roadshow.” The reality series made its fifth pit stop Saturday, Aug. 12, in the City of Roses for the 22nd season’s six-city tour. Of 23,000 applications for tickets, roughly 3,000 people were randomly selected to attend. The last stop on the tour is Newport, Rhode Island, on Friday, Sept. 22. Previous locations: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Green Bay, Wisconsin; St. Louis, Missouri; and New Orleans, Louisiana. Three Portland episodes will premiere during the 2018 season of “Antiques Road- show,” which airs 8 p.m. Mondays on OPB and PBS affiliate stations. A PHOTOS BY JANAE EASLON Heather wheeled in a 6-foot Jesus statue from her home to the “Antiques Roadshow” pit stop in Portland. a friend in New York City when she saw a church being renovated. Jesus was sitting on the sidewalk, and she asked the construction workers if she could take him home with her. Heather doesn’t plan on selling the sculpture; it wouldn’t feel right in her home without him, she said. Mystery pelt ‘Jesus is here!’ Everyone at the Roadshow shares the same excitement, eager to learn the answer to their question: What is the story behind my items? At the Oregon Convention Center on Aug. 12, people on set know they are in the pres- ence of history. Strangers talk with each other about what they brought. They have come to meet appraisers and experts from across the country. From the entrance, two women wheel a Katy shows her great grandmother Edna’s leather pelt she recovered from Hitler’s bunker in 1945. Edna served as General George S. Patton’s nurse during World War II. 6-foot Jesus sculpture to the “metalwork and sculpture” appraisal table. “Jesus is here!” Heather, the sculpture’s owner, announces. Jason Preston, from Jason Art Advisory & Appraisals in Los Angeles, inspects the sculp- ture and finds it is made of plaster and wood. With its aged appearance and use of materi- als, Preston said it could sell for about $1,500. “I watch TV with Jesus everyday,” Heath- er said. “As soon as you come in the door, you see him right in front of you.” The sculpture has been in Heather’s family for several years, she said. Her sister visited After meeting appraisers, guests can stop at the Roadshow feedback booth to share their experiences. A one-of-a-kind item belonging to a wom- an named Katy stumped the appraisers. The leather pelt found by her Grandma Edna in Adolf Hitler’s bunker in 1945 has a Hungarian stamp on the back, and without someone on staff who knows Hungarian, Katy was told to continue researching the pelt after leaving the roadshow. Grandma Edna worked as General George S. Patton’s nurse, Katy said, clasping newspa- per clippings about her grandma’s story. After Hitler’s death and bunker invasion, Edna found the pelt and took it back home to the United States following the war. Continued on Page 16