ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, May 20, 1996 TAG: 9605200112
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER
A PAC-MAN GAME, condom dispenser, and Bo Diddley's autographed photo were just a few of the items auctioned Sunday.
Bo Diddley's autographed photo went for $27.50, while Vern Gosdin's autograph raised only two bucks. But the condom dispenser sold for $20.
Shirley Thomas put on the auction block Sunday much of the memorabilia, equipment and odds and ends she has collected during the 15 years she has run the Iroquois Club on Salem Avenue in downtown Roanoke.
Although Thomas has had offers to sell the nightclub, the point of Sunday's auction was more to clean out the club's basement and raise money for her and her husband, Ronald, to restore a house on Day Avenue in Old Southwest.
Some of the items Thomas had invested a lot of money in, like an American Heritage concert projections system they had only used in the club once. It sold for $140. Other things, such as autographed photos and T-shirts, she had collected from many musicians and groups who had performed at the club.
The club has held bluegrass and blues jams and all-night raves. That mix of music lured quite an eclectic group of buyers Sunday.
Local bluegrass musicians went for extra microphones and guitar stands. Antiques collectors went for a Pac-Man arcade game and a Pepsi-Cola hanging lamp. And Generation X'ers with green-dyed hair waited for the boxes of CDs and tapes.
In all, 60 people registered to bid in the auction. Others just watched and maybe grabbed a beer and a burger at the bar.
Several bidders knew what they wanted after seeing advertisements and newspaper articles.
Linda Bear of Roanoke knew exactly what she wanted - the Pac-Man machine. And so did others, it seemed. She outbid several people and bought it for $240.
Bear said her house is full of 1950s collectibles and quirky antiques.
The next item on her list was the condom dispenser.
"I have an older one at home," she said.
Bear said the dispensers make good practical jokes and conversational pieces. She had to outbid only one person for it.
Chris Eakin came to the auction with a group of friends who attend raves at the Iroquois Club. They bid $2 and bought a box of tapes.
Greg Reed and other members of the bluegrass band Mountain Memories bought extra sound equipment for their band.
Reed, who also has a catering business, bought a couple of coffee makers and cooking pots.
Other items that were sold included a neon Iroquois Club sign that the Thomases used when they first opened. It went for $75.
Auctioneer Tim Hash sold most of the T-shirts in handfuls of four or five. The better T-shirts he sold individually.
Black Elvis proved to be the most popular shirt. It sold for $12.50.
As Thomas watched all her stuff go out the club's doors, more than $2,600 had been raised.
"I'm glad someone else is enjoying them," she said. "It's stuff I'm not going to use."
LENGTH: Medium: 61 linesby CNB