Philadelphia Antiques Show 2022

106 THROUGH THE LOOK I NG GLAS S details as changing the lighting for a softer look, lowering the large lights on the ceiling of the Armory and other physical challenges. Members of various Show committees themselves also were ironing out the details of that first, nerve- wracking Show. Food and parties were an issue. This being a social event there was much discussion about both. According to Mrs. Brown, most shows offer a cocktail party on the preview night. She knew, in order to set this Show apart, a mere cocktail party would not do. Instead, the ladies planned a preview party dinner. “If you don’t feed a Philadelphian, he goes away quietly,” Mrs. Brown joked in 1966. Of course, she added, the other consideration for feeding the party-goers was that the West Philadelphia site was nowhere near a restaurant or hotel. The timing was important as well, they decided. They scheduled the party early on preview night, so that the men could come directly from work and meet their wives. To cap off the evening, a valet parking service was hired, ensuring that patrons could deliver themselves directly to the front door. Nailing down a price for the whole thing was another decision new to the Board. According to Mrs. Brown, there was quite a bit of “hassling around” over it. Eventually, the decision was made to charge a little more than the New York and Boston shows charged, since those two events only offered cocktails. Said Mrs. Brown, “Philadelphia does not like to pay very much for anything; but finally, we took a deep breath and raised the price by $5 that first year, to $20 a ticket. That included having your car parked and getting into the preview and having a very nice dinner.” With the specifics pretty much taken care of Mrs. Brown and her compatriots watched the Show take shape. Quickly, the walls of the booths went up, the wallpaper went up, and the furniture began to arrive. Meanwhile, the Decorating Committee set to work arranging flowers and polishing the ambiance. “It’s the greatest fun in the world to see a Show go up.” gushed Mrs. Brown. “I really couldn’t believe it.” The vision was becoming a reality. And the success, or failure, was about to be realized. The stars of that first Show were the antiques themselves. The conscious effort to make the Show purely American had been a good one, and the patrons fawned over the dealers’ wares. Mrs. Brown Dealer booths at the Armory