From The Scoop: Jeff Thompson: All-Around Collector

From the May 5 issue of Gemstone Publishing's The Scoop:

We were first introduced to collector Jeff Thompson through writer-director Robert Tinnell when Thompson contributed a piece on the passing of producer Dan Curtis, the driving force behind Dark Shadows. A series of quick email conversations later, we were pleased to learn Thompson was not only a historian of such things, but that he was a serious collector in a wide array of niches. As much as he enjoys writing and talking about the subjects he collects, we wanted to find out more about how and what he collects.

Scoop: What was the first thing you remember deciding to collect?
Jeff Thompson: I have been collecting for almost all of my 47 years. In the mid-1960s, I loved The Munsters, and I had the Lily Munster hand puppet and the Herman Munster talking hand puppet. I was seven years old when Batman debuted, and then my collecting went into high gear.

Scoop: What were the circumstances?
JT: I remember asking my parents to buy me Batman comic books, trading cards (both the painting cards and the photograph cards), coloring books, and the hand puppet. In the 1960s, I also had a hard-plastic Batman head which fit over my head like a helmet. I had plastic Batman coins, the Corgi Batmobile, and the model kits of Batman, Superman, Superboy, the Munsters, John F. Kennedy, and others. (In the 1970s, I built all of the glow-in-the-dark Aurora monster models. I still have all of them on display, and I still have almost all of the Batman collectibles.)

Scoop: How long from that time until you considered yourself a serious collector?
JT: I read DC, Charlton, Gold Key, and Marvel comics from 1969 to 1979. Buying every issue of many different titles and maintaining "straight runs" turned me into a serious collector. In 1974, I began writing for several comic-book fanzines, including The Heroines Showcase. In 1975, I began writing for several Dark Shadows fanzines, including The World of Dark Shadows.

Scoop: What was the category you started collecting?
JT: I started my serious collecting with Batman memorabilia, model kits, and super-hero comic books. During the 1966-1971 run of Dark Shadows, I collected almost all of the widely available Dark Shadows memorabilia---all of which I still own today and display in my Dark Shadows guest bedroom.

Scoop: Has your family been supportive of your collecting? Were any of them collectors?
JT: My parents, Sonia and E.D. Thompson, always have been supportive of my collecting, my writing, and all of my creative efforts. My mother still has her Shirley Temple doll and clothes from the 1930s. My father still has all of the clarinets and saxophones that he played for many decades. Today, my mother collects books and spoons, and my father collects hymnals and Nashville-history materials. (My father is the author of three volumes of Nashville Nostalgia.) All of my friends and pen pals are very supportive of my fannish interests. In seventh grade, I met my lifelong friend Martin McGeachy when I spied him reading Barnabas, Quentin, and the Sea Ghost. These days, whenever my pen pals clean out their closets, they mail their old toys, videotapes, magazines, and Quentin post cards to me!

Scoop: How (and when) did you start branching out into other areas, specifically Dark Shadows?
JT: I saw my first DS episode when I was home sick from school in the fall of 1967. Soon, I was collecting the Barnabas Collins Halloween mask, the soundtrack LP, 45 RPM versions of "Quentin's Theme," the two sets of trading cards, the DS View-Master, the Gold Key comic books, the DS games, the model kits, the Paperback Library DS novels, and much, much more.

Scoop: How did you start collecting Planet of the Apes?
JT: I didn't see the POTA movies until the early 1970s (in re-releases), but from then on, I loved POTA. My favorite two movies are, of course, Planet of the Apes and Escape from the Planet of the Apes. In the mid-1970s, I began reading Marvel Comics' POTA magazine, watching the live-action TV series and the Saturday-morning cartoon series, and collecting Jerry Goldsmith soundtrack LPs and POTA trading cards. One corner of my upstairs popular-culture display room ("the playroom"), which adjoins my Psycho bathroom, is a POTA corner. Another corner displays Batman memorabilia. Highlander is represented, too, and the Aurora monster models sit on high shelves.

Scoop: You collector Highlander, too?
JT: TV's Highlander (1992-1998) and Highlander: The Raven (1998-1999) were off the air before I became a fan! In the fall/winter of 1999/2000, my friend Joshua Vance introduced me to his great interest, Highlander. He and I watched all of the episodes (and the theatrical movies) on VHS, and in March 2000 we went to a Highlander convention in Denver and met TV stars Adrian Paul and Elizabeth Gracen. While we were in Denver, we also met with my fellow Heroines Showcase writer and long-time pen pal Scott Gibson, who took Josh and me to Mile High Comics!

Scoop: Somewhere in Time isn't one of the most common areas to collect. How did you start with that?
JT: I saw this magnificent romantic-fantasy film (with exquisite music by John Barry) in the theatre twice in October of 1980. Somewhere in Time, along with Psycho, Chinatown, and Matinee, is one of my all-time favorite films. Just as Planet of the Apes made me a Jerry Goldsmith collector (I have hundreds of Goldsmith LPs and CDs), John Barry's music for King Kong and Somewhere in Time inspired me to collect almost one thousand Barry LPs and CDs. In 1990, I joined INSITE, the International Network of Somewhere in Time Enthusiasts, and I wrote several articles for the INSITE journal. In 1996, I began showing Somewhere in Time (and Chinatown) every semester to my students at TennesseeStateUniversity, where I am an assistant professor of English and Learning Strategies. My wish is that everyone would watch Somewhere in Time and fall under its romantic spell.

Scoop: You also collect comic books, right?
JT: I read comic books regularly from 1969 to 1979. I still buy a few comic books each year, and I enjoy buying anthologies of Silver Age stories. In the mid-1980s, I sold most of my comic books, but I, of course, kept my complete runs of Dark Shadows, Tomb of Dracula, and Planet of the Apes. In recent years, I have reacquired all of Jack Kirby's issues of Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen, as well as various issues of Superman's Girlfriend Lois Lane, Master of Kung Fu, Omega the Unknown, The Sandman (Simon/Kirby), and other favorites.

Scoop: When did you add monster models to your collecting mix?
JT: In the 1960s, I built all of the super-hero models, many of the TV-character models, and a few hot rods, with the help of my parents and my aunt Elva Griffin. In the early 1970s, I myself built the Aurora monster models, the Barnabas Collins model, and the DS Werewolf model. I still have the Aurora and DS models---as well as virtually everything I've ever had since the late 1960s---with the exception of the 1960s models, most of my comic books, and my GI Joes and Captain Actions (all of which I sold).

Forty years ago, I loved collecting Captain Action, Action Boy, all of their costumes, their DC comic books, and their headquarters/suitcase. Fifteen years ago, I began collecting super-hero action figures, especially Batman-related figures. Many of my figures are loose---my nephews and nieces Katy, Kevin, Kameron, Kelly, and Kimberly have played with them over the years---but many more of my action figures are still unopened and hang in their packages on nails in my two attic rooms.

Scoop: We noticed a lot of books in your collection, too.
JT: As a reader and a teacher, my house is brimming with hardback books and paperback books. I collect all kinds of fiction and non-fiction books. One of the greatest books I've ever read is A Cast of Killers, by Sydney Kirkpatrick (about the unsolved 1922 murder of director William Desmond Taylor). I specialize in collecting Gothic and historical novels written by "Marilyn Ross" or "Clarissa Ross," actually the Canadian author Dan Ross (1912-1995). I wrote my master's thesis about the historical novels of Dan Ross (who also wrote Paperback Library's Dark Shadows novels). I knew Dan Ross for the last eleven years of his life, and I am still friends with his widow Marilyn Ross. Many of my Ross novels are autographed. I knew Robert Bloch (1917-1994), author of Psycho and The Kidnapper, for the last four years of his life. Bob Bloch signed quite a few of his books for me. I also own books autographed by Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury, Curt Siodmak, Anne Rice, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Harlan Ellison, Clive Barker, Patricia N. Elrod, Katherine Ramsland, and R.L. Stine, all of whom I have met at fan conventions (as well as other authors).

Scoop: From books, the progression to magazines would seem natural. Do you have many in your collection?
JT: I have every issue of TV Guide from summer 1979 to fall 2005. I have every single issue of Starlog, Video Watchdog, Filmfax, Outre, Scarlet Street, Baby Boomer Collectibles, The Legion Outpost, The Heroines Showcase, The World of Dark Shadows, and many other magazines and fanzines.

Scoop: We also saw a lot of CDs on your shelves. How did you get started in that niche?
JT: I have been collecting film-music LPs (later CDs) since the 1960s (seriously since the 1970s). I have thousands of movie-music recordings, including dozens by Bernard Herrmann, hundreds by Jerry Goldsmith, and almost one thousand by John Barry (and other artists performing John Barry songs). I also enjoy the film music of Max Steiner, David Raksin, Alex North, Henry Mancini, Robert Cobert, Dave Grusin, Elmer Bernstein, John Williams, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, and many others. As the weekend announcer on Nashville's WAMB-AM 1200 from 1981 to 2006, I often presented radio programs spotlighting one songwriter (e.g. Gershwin, Porter), one film composer (e.g. Mancini, Barry), many TV theme songs, or all 69+Academy Award-winning songs, in order (1934-2000s).

In addition to getting books autographed, I like to get my soundtrack LP record-album covers autographed by directors, writers, or actors in those movies. Robert Wise signed a half-dozen soundtracks to his movies for me. Richard Matheson signed my Somewhere in Time LP, and Matheson and Joe Dante signed my Twilight Zone The Movie LP. Joan Bennett signed my Scarlet Street LP, and Charlton Heston signed my album covers for The Ten Commandments and Planet of the Apes. "These are both great scores," Heston observed. Finally, almost all of the "Dark Shadows" stars have signed 8 X 10 stills and lobby cards for me. I have received celebrity autographs through the mail, too.

Scoop: Surveying some of the specialties you've listed, it's pretty clear that you don't limit yourself to one category or even one genre. As a collector, what has to appeal to you to start collecting a category?
JT: I have to love the particular movie, TV show, writer, subject, celebrity, etc. Whenever I come upon something I love---be it Batman, Dark Shadows, The Edge of Night, As the World Turns, Psycho, Chinatown, Tony Bennett, Shirley Bassey, Michael Feinstein, The Incredibles, Lost, the Alan Parsons Project, etc.---I want to read, learn, know, collect, and have everything about it! One of my slogans is “F.I.A.W.O.L. (Fandom Is A Way Of Life)!”

Scoop: How has your collecting evolved over time?
JT: As I have grown older and earned more money, I have been able to afford more and more collectibles, as well as trips to great fan conventions such as the Dark Shadows Festival, Fanex, World Horror Convention, Dragon Con, Friends of Old-Time Radio, Famous Monsters of Filmland '93, Dracula 97: A Centennial Celebration, Monster Rally '99, Classic Film Fest 2000, and others. For a decade, I emceed the Dark Shadows Festival, and I have spoken on panel discussions at almost all of the others. I often travel to fan conventions and popular-culture conferences with my TennesseeStateUniversity colleague Jonathan Malcolm Lampley, co-author of The Amazing, Colossal Book of Horror Trivia. (Some of Jonathan's big interests are DC Comics, Hammer horror movies, the Rolling Stones, and Tennessee history.)

Scoop: What are some of the prizes in your collection?
JT: I own an authentic Buck Rogers Atomic Pistol, the Barnabas Collins Halloween mask, the book Graven Images autographed by one hundred classic-movie celebrities, many rare record albums, the Showboat toy, several classic board games, my typewriter, and my Aurora monster models.

Scoop: Is there one area you would drift to first and say “I'm a [fill in the blank] collector” before you mentioned everything else?
JT: The obvious answer is, "I'm a Dark Shadows collector." Almost every Halloween, my house, my collections, and I appear in Nashville newspapers or on Nashville TV newscasts. I am considered an expert on Dark Shadows, vampires, and horror. However, the correct answer is, "I'm a popular-culture collector." In my twenty-one-year teaching career and my graduate-degree programs, my area of expertise has been twentieth-century literature, film, TV, and popular culture. In my TennesseeStateUniversity classes, I use movies, TV shows, music, newspapers, magazines, pictures, paintings, websites, and other multimedia to enliven my students' study of grammar and writing. They enjoy seeing such great films as A Patch of Blue, Bonnie and Clyde, Chinatown, Somewhere in Time, The Piano Lesson, and Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned.

Scoop: What advice would you give to someone just starting out in collecting?
JT: Collect whatever interests you, whether that is dolls, paintings, costumes, Bibles, trading cards, sports memorabilia, TV Guides, mugs, Justice League of America comic books, figurines, spoons, plates, or Frank Sinatra LPs. Don't try to collect everything all at once; you have your whole life to seek and find treasures related to your various fannish interests. Go to every garage sale, flea market, close-out store, and dollar store that you see! You'll be amazed by what old and new treasures you'll find there!

Scoop: Many of the collectors we've talked with have suggested that while they really do enjoy the thrill of the chase, tracking down items, they in the end see themselves as custodians or caretakers of popular-culture history. What's your own view of that?
JT: I agree that we collectors are preserving the artifacts of (often) mid-twentieth-century life, a glorious era which is receding farther and farther into the past. Everyone who visits my home says that my house is "like a museum," but what's important is that people are visiting the museum and seeing books, LPs, movie posters, toys, and other treasures from decades ago. Share your collections with other people---especially much younger people who may never have seen The Incredible Shrinking Man or My Three Sons, who may never have heard a Count Basie or Carpenters record, or who may never have read an Edgar Rice Burroughs or Ray Bradbury book. Even better than sharing is to give vintage movies, music, games, and books to friends and family. My nieces and nephews (ages 6-16) have seen The Day the Earth Stood Still, they've listened to the Carpenters, they've played Operation, and they've read The Chronicles of Narnia.

Scoop: Anything else you'd like to add?
JT: I love collecting, and I love fandom. I have met many great friends, pen pals, and celebrities through my fannish activities. There's almost no greater thrill than acquiring something that's been on your "want list" for years or decades; meeting someone like Christopher Lee, Richard Matheson, Coleen Gray, or Jonathan Frid; or sharing your fannish enthusiasm with family and friends. I have much, much more to find, collect, save, and share.

To view all of the pictures from this article, read it at The Scoop’s website at http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/scoop_article.asp?ai=12012&si=124.

• Produced for the benefit of all who enjoy the hobby of collecting, Gemstone Publishing's The Scoop is available free of charge to anyone who wishes to receive it. To view the latest edition, or to sign up, visit The Scoop online by at http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com.