29.4.02

GW: Can you say a word or two about how the trade is organized?

WS: Pretty much along the same lines as most other collectibles, though each dealer may have his own reference system. I organize my offerings first by physical category - fingers, skulls, brain matter, blood samples, eyes, whatever - and then by historical or cultural category - American Presidents, Movie Stars, Nazis, Outlaws and so on. As in any market, the quality material pretty much sells itself. And the rest, as we say, is best left to the birds.

GW: I wasn't aware that eyes were part of the trade....

WS: Oh yes. Eyes are a very substantial market. In the case over here, for example, I have a number of outstanding eyes bought from the estate of a deceased client: along the top shelf, up there, there are single eyes from Charlie Chaplin, Charles Dickens, and Charles Lindberg, I call them the three Charlies, and an unauthenticated but highly possible complete set from Edgar Allan Poe. Worth a fortune and a half, if the tests come back positive.