After most of a morning of garage sailing with my father my Eurovan blew it’s ignition coil coming down Bear Mountain. I had the van towed to my Victoria mechanic and my wife picked me and my father up. We dropped my wife off home and then I drove my father back out to Metchosin in my wife’s Honda. Although late in the garage sale day, as avid “saler’s”, we decided to check out two more garage sales on the way to dropping my father home.
The first was a non-event, the second advertised as the widow of a collector and car & boat restorer sounded promising. We arrived as they were closing down sale for the day but they un-tarped a table of old books and magazines and told us to look in the two garages onsite.
In one garage, there was the hull of a large antique wooden boat being restored. The garage was clean and appeared to be kept in great organised care by its previous owner: Barrie McClung who passed away October of the previous year. Barrie was known for his passion for B.C History, Steam boats, and horseless carriages and had the respect in his circles as a guy who would always offer a knowledgeable and helping hand.
At the far end of this garage is where this story starts, a story I hope will be a very interesting one dating back for many years.
Window panes overlooking a beautiful garden and the Pacific Ocean stood an old man leaning up against the window appearing to be appreciating the view. Balding, in a naval officers cap wearing a silk white shirt and suspenders. I realised he wasn’t moving. …A mannequin? Interested in a mannequin for costume tests and such, I moved along the boat and at about 10 feet saw how the sun was being reflected by the skin of his right cheek …wax?
I turned to my left to see Linda McClung, Barrie’s widow helping another customer interested in some wood hanging on the wall, I said is it really? She said yes and we said in unison “…a wax figure”. “From the wax museum” she said “who is it?” I enquired. “Humphrey Bogart” “No way!” I couldn’t get any closer due to the stored items and boat to get a closer look but I identified myself as an independent filmmaker and asked if he was for sale. No, he was a family heirloom. They had had him for 20-30 years, the kids had grown up with “Uncle Bogie”. I expressed my sadness and hinted that I would have loved to provide him with a suitable home; a cool environment in a theatre room and had him restored and cared for as necessary.
I asked more questions as I perused the garage sale and determined that her husband had reportedly been given Humphrey, possibly for free, by a friend at the Royal Victoria Wax Museum some 20-30 years prior (1981-1991). He was missing two fingers on his right hand but they had them somewhere.
I went back to the Honda, leaning against the trunk waiting for my father to finish haggling over some gardening twine and heard them chatting in the other garage. I’m unsure if he was pleading my case, but I heard laughter and Linda emerged saying if you really want him you can have him for $40 …uh yeah! I said dumbfounded, are you serious?? It seems Linda felt it was what Barrie would have wanted and though she would miss Bogie, knew he would be in good hands under my guardianship.
I’ve always advocated you can find anything at a garage sale …how the hell am I going to explain this particular garage sale “treasure” to my wife???
I asked if I could see him from the backyard window where he was overlooking. Seen through the old hazy window, at first glance he didn’t look much like Bogie to me, but maybe the sun had damaged him in some way. Either way, this was an exciting find.
Hopefully he won’t mind being moved after all these years from his view of the ocean.
I was unable to consider transporting him in the little Honda, so I asked if I could get him the next day and got Linda’s phone number.
Driving my father home, my father explained his hair may be accurate, as Humphrey was apparently bald in real life and wore toupees.
I told my wife that night in the end – surprisingly she seemed pretty cool with the whole idea!
In one garage, there was the hull of a large antique wooden boat being restored. The garage was clean and appeared to be kept in great organised care by its previous owner: Barrie McClung who passed away October of the previous year. Barrie was known for his passion for B.C History, Steam boats, and horseless carriages and had the respect in his circles as a guy who would always offer a knowledgeable and helping hand.
At the far end of this garage is where this story starts, a story I hope will be a very interesting one dating back for many years.
Window panes overlooking a beautiful garden and the Pacific Ocean stood an old man leaning up against the window appearing to be appreciating the view. Balding, in a naval officers cap wearing a silk white shirt and suspenders. I realised he wasn’t moving. …A mannequin? Interested in a mannequin for costume tests and such, I moved along the boat and at about 10 feet saw how the sun was being reflected by the skin of his right cheek …wax?I turned to my left to see Linda McClung, Barrie’s widow helping another customer interested in some wood hanging on the wall, I said is it really? She said yes and we said in unison “…a wax figure”. “From the wax museum” she said “who is it?” I enquired. “Humphrey Bogart” “No way!” I couldn’t get any closer due to the stored items and boat to get a closer look but I identified myself as an independent filmmaker and asked if he was for sale. No, he was a family heirloom. They had had him for 20-30 years, the kids had grown up with “Uncle Bogie”. I expressed my sadness and hinted that I would have loved to provide him with a suitable home; a cool environment in a theatre room and had him restored and cared for as necessary.
I asked more questions as I perused the garage sale and determined that her husband had reportedly been given Humphrey, possibly for free, by a friend at the Royal Victoria Wax Museum some 20-30 years prior (1981-1991). He was missing two fingers on his right hand but they had them somewhere.
I went back to the Honda, leaning against the trunk waiting for my father to finish haggling over some gardening twine and heard them chatting in the other garage. I’m unsure if he was pleading my case, but I heard laughter and Linda emerged saying if you really want him you can have him for $40 …uh yeah! I said dumbfounded, are you serious?? It seems Linda felt it was what Barrie would have wanted and though she would miss Bogie, knew he would be in good hands under my guardianship.
I’ve always advocated you can find anything at a garage sale …how the hell am I going to explain this particular garage sale “treasure” to my wife???
Hopefully he won’t mind being moved after all these years from his view of the ocean.
I was unable to consider transporting him in the little Honda, so I asked if I could get him the next day and got Linda’s phone number.
Driving my father home, my father explained his hair may be accurate, as Humphrey was apparently bald in real life and wore toupees.
I told my wife that night in the end – surprisingly she seemed pretty cool with the whole idea!
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