A No Show

Over the weekend, I was in the usual neighborhoods and decided to pop my head into the Forbes Galleries, where there is a most impressive collection of toys which belonged to moneymaker Malcolm Forbes.  For years, I have been going into this place whenever it struck my fancy, and of course it had to be on the rare occcasions that it was open (never keeping track of when, visits were based on whim and chance).  Upon entering, one was delighted to find an impeccably kept (and most likely, never played with) assortment of boats, planes, tin soldiers, a replica of Mr. Forbes' childhood room (although at a much smaller scale, I suspect) as well as examples of the earliest Monopoly board games (when they were created by hand).  The beauty (and sadness) of it was that everything looked brand new, although they were approaching a century.

Unfortunately, I found the galleries (or, at least that part of it) closed so wandered around to the other parts, which have rotating exhibitions.  In particular, one on the British illustrator Ronald Searle caught my fancy. Not entirely a loss, I vowed to return another day.  Before leaving, I struck up a conversation with the attendant and I asked when the toys would be on view again.  She said, "Never" and told me that they had all been put up for auction at Sotheby's last year.  Now, as a person who follows and tries to bid on auctions (most of the time unsuccessfully, I might add), I do keep up with auctions and remembered that there was indeed a Forbes auction, but I did not put one and one together at the time.  So, it was all packed up, exhibited one last time at the auction house and then dispersed to the four corners of the world.  Granted that I would probably not have bid on anything except some tin soldier or two, but, what a genuine loss for the city.  You see, it was free to view and it was a joyous respite from the noise of the city.  Of course, the sons of Forbes whoever they may be decided that it was time "for others to enjoy them" which means that they are strapped for cash and couldn't give a whit about the exhibition.  Thus, the end of one of New York's greatest secret places.

Sail away sail away sail away/The end of youth