[fsjonsey]

What Happened to Mark? Did he decide to get out of the hobby?
EDIT: He posted this over at the Antique Radio Forums.

Hi Guys,
Just thought I'd respond to some of the questions about the upcoming auction of my collection by Estes. Contrary to speculation, the auction is not the result of economic pressure in any real sense. Nor is it due to illness. I'm selling the collection in order to liquidate my assests in preparation for divorce. Yeah, in the end it takes a chick to separate a guy from his radios. Honestly though, most of my collection has been sitting in storage for years and I had planned to sell most for college tuition for my daughters. But, with circumstances as they are, the sale has come early. And, while I have sold a few lesser radios on eBay in the last year, the process takes much too long for me to liquidate my entire collection that way. Plus, I am hesitant to ship larger items. Just about every noteworthy radio from my collection is in the auction including the 1934 Majestic Park Avenue on the cover of my console book and the other three petite consoles in the "Smart Set" series. Although the list I gave Estes is only 185 radios, there are many more in the auction in addition to accumulated parts, knobs, etc. I may put some paper in the auction but will likely sell most on eBay. I have hundreds of original brochures, complete sets of pre-war Radio Retailing, Radio Today, Lafayette, Allied, Radolek, etc. that I've accumulated over the years as resources for the books I've published.
You should also know that I have closed the Radiomania Books publishing company, not so much for personal reasons as the state of the collectibles industry and the slowing sales of my titles. All of my books are now officially out of print. I have signed a deal with Sonoran for my new book "Cathedral & Tombstone Radios" and they will be publishing and distributing that title. Depending on how the arrangement goes, they may be reprinting some of my older titles in the future.

It's been a fun ride for me these past twenty some years and my favorite part has been the conversations I've had with other collectors. I plan on attending meets here and there just to keep in touch. I will also try to do a couple book signings for the new title this spring.

Take care all and have a great new year!
Best regards,
Mark