fear stalks tca-western 2020 newsletter.pdf · resume in the near future, following local health...
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Vol. 66, No. 5 September/October 2020 Western DRAFT Newsletter
Visit www.tcawestern.org or contact [email protected]
TCA Meetings in Sept. & October Bite the Dust
Red-Hot Convention Cars! The entire suite of 2021 Convention Cars is selling like hotcakes! View them all now on page 2. Order now: https://traincollectors.org/store/ HURRY! Place your order by Sept. 30, 2020. Special thanks to Western Division Vice President Bob Caplan., for heading up this project!
Bob Nord Collection
See page 3.
Train Collectors Association
Layout by Denyse & Jeff Meyer, with an assist from Steve Eastman. (Harold Shapiro photo.)
Fear Stalks TCA-Western
Kharis, from “The Mummy’s Tomb,” reaches for the disembodied head of the Old Fortune Teller, in this scene from TCA-Western Division’s Halloween Meet in 2019. (Trains built by Dorfan.)
FRANKENSTEIN and THE MUMMY will be laying low this season, as TCA-Western Division is forced to forego its September and October Meets. The persistent rumor is that
ALL-NEW monsters will rise at next year’s 2021 Halloween Party, to strike terror in the hearts of TCA Western Division members…
For Halloween 2021, Joseph E. Levine presents “Billy the Kid vs. Dracula” (1966) IN COLOR on the big screen, with a Universal/Castle Films short, “Doom of Dracula” (1944). Both films star John Carradine. Plus, Woody Woodpecker’s “Franken-stymied” (1961).
As we continue to fight COVID-19, TCA-Western will not be meeting until further notice, out of concern for the safety of our members. We hope to resume in the near future, following local health guidelines. For updates, visit www.tcawestern.org.
WITH SPECIAL ‘IN-PERSON’ APPEARANCES by the youthful gunslinger, Billy the Kid, and the decadent old vampire, Count Dracula, on the super-scary Shock-O-Rama stage.
In addition, we will be serving Halloween candy and snacks for the Trick-or-Treaters! Bring the kiddies! Operating train layout! Buy & sell trains! Mark your calendars for next year, October 2021!
Vol. 66, No. 5 September/October 2020
Train Collectors Association
Visit www.tcawestern.org or contact [email protected]
Western Division Newsletter
FRANKENSTEIN and THE MUMMY will be laying low this Fall season, as TCA-Western Division is forced to forego its September & October meets. However, plans are already underway for Halloween one year
from now! ALL-NEW monsters will rise to strike terror in the hearts of Western Division members…
In October, 2021, TCA presents “Billy the Kid vs. Dracula” (1966) on the big screen, double-billed with “Doom of Dracula” (1944), a Castle Films short-subject. Both movies star John Carradine as the Count. Bonus: “Franken-Stymied” (1961), with Woody Woodpecker. Featuring in-person appearances by youthful Billy the Kid and the aging Vampire, live on the Shock-o-rama stage. Don’t miss it!
In addition, we will be serving candy & snacks to Trick-or-Treaters young & old. Make plans now; that’s one year from this Halloween!
Once we annihilate “The Creature from COVID-19,” we plan to be back in Arcadia bigger and better than ever! Bring the kiddies; operating layout; buy & sell trains! Fun for All!
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A Remembrance of TCA Life Member Clyde Easterly
Clyde Easterly (67-1924) was a long-time member of TCA, who joined Western Division in 1967. He served as Secretary for our club and worked on the 1971 TCA National Convention, held in Anaheim.
I had the pleasure of being friends with Clyde Easterly and his wife Erma since 1976. Clyde was very close to TCA Nor-Cal train collectors Chuck Brasher and Chuck Stone. They were known in toy train circles as "Los Tres Vaqueros!” All three lived near to each other in Grass Valley, California.
Clyde was a very gracious person who always took the time to talk to everyone. I enjoyed chatting with Clyde and Erma at all the train meets. Some of my most memorable moments were visiting his home during TCA National Conventions. His train room was absolutely amazing! Those times will forever be in my heart.
Clyde Martin Easterly, Jr. passed away quietly on May 12, 2020 in Grass Valley, California at the age of 87. Clyde was born on September 5, 1932 in Portland, Oregon, where he was raised. He served in the United States Navy for four years and received an honorable discharge. He met and married his future wife, Erma, in Sparks, Nevada in 1957, and moved to Tempe, Arizona. In 1961 they moved again, this time to Los Angeles, where Clyde worked for the city for over 30 years as a civil engineer. Clyde retired in 1992 moving to Grass Valley, where he joined Nor-Cal Division.
Last Chance to Pre-Order 2021 Convention Cars!
The entire suite of 2021 TCA Convention Cars (shown above) is selling fast! Deadline for pre-orders is 9:00 pm (PDT), on Wednesday night, Sept. 30, 2020. Order now at: https://traincollectors.org/store/ Don’t miss out! Special thanks to Bob Caplan, Western Division V.P., for spearheading this project.
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Clyde Easterly & TCA-Western 1971 Nat’l Convention Car prototype by McCoy.
by Bob Caplan, Western Division Vice President & TCA National Past President
He will be missed so dearly. God Bless you Clyde. A part of you lives in us all.
Sales of Bob Nord Collection Continue
Photos by Roger Hill
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TCA-Western Division is offering many items for sale from the late Bob Nord’s train, toy & book collection. If you are interested in purchasing any of these pieces, please send an email to [email protected], or call Harold Shapiro at 818-986-9975. (All items subject to prior sale.)
This is just a sampling of the collection! Even more photos can be viewed at http://www.tcawestern.org/nord.htm. Special thanks goes to the Nord Family.
Extras Available- Must see!
LIONEL VW 150 wattsLIONEL
1612 Many more books available!
Be sure to check the website for the large selection of books and many more trains! http://www.tcawestern.org/nord.htm
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TCA-Western Division Volunteers: John Abbe - Sergeant-At-ArmsJoseph Caplan - Kid’s Club ChairmanRoger Hill - Club PhotographerJeff & Denyse Meyer - Operating LayoutBob Spellmire - Election Supervisor (Past President)
TCA-Western Division Directors: Steve Eastman - Immediate Past President Harold Shapiro - Past President/WebmasterKen Chan Rudy Felix Jon Lang Bill Shepard Harvey Tafel
TCA-Western Division Officers: Steve Waller, President & Newsletter Editor Bob Caplan, Vice-President/Convention Cars & Auctions (Past National President) Wayne Sheriff, Membership Secretary/Mailings/ Treasurer (Past National President) Colette Shepard, Recording Secretary
TCA 2021 Nat’l Convention Co-Chairmen: -Harold Shapiro & Wayne Sheriff
TCA National Sets Locales for Upcoming Conventions Thru 2025
Southern Division recently had to postpone the 2020 TCA National Convention in Jacksonville, Florida. The contract is
has been successfully re-negotiated to book the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel for 2025.
Upcoming TCA National Conventions:
2021 - Irvine, CA (Western Division) 2022 - Nashville, TN (Dixie Division)
2023 - Burlington, VT (New England Division)2024 - Lancaster, PA (Eastern Division & Keystone Division)
2025 - Jacksonville, FL (Southern Division)
To volunteer for our 2021 Convention in Irvine, CA, email [email protected]. You may also contact co-chairmen
Wayne Sheriff or Harold Shapiro. For more information on TCA National Conventions, visit http://tcaconvention.org.
The Mummy Wants YOU!
… to Volunteer for the 2021 TCA National Convention! Email: [email protected]
TCA-Western Division Newsletter is published bi-monthly (in the odd numbered months) by TCA-Western Division, a non-profit California 501(c)3 organization. Submissions deadline is the 5th day of any month of publication, sent via email to [email protected]. ©2020 TCA-Western.
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Sydney J. Mason, age 86, passed away at home on August 13, 2020, of natural causes. Syd was an enthusiastic train collector and a TCA-Western Division member, specializing in “O” gauge Milwaukee Road equipment. When asked why he chose that particular railroad, Syd simply replied that he liked the colors. Plus, orange & black were great for Halloween!
Syd Mason came from a show business family. His father and grandfather, both of whom were billed as “Sydney Mason,” were longtime motion picture actors. Syd’s father, an accomplished horseman, appeared in Westerns, with stars like Gene Autry and Roy Rogers.
As for Syd himself, the acting bug never quite bit him, except, perhaps, when he portrayed Santa at the gala Grand Opening of the 2018 Muzeo Holiday Train exhibit in Anaheim, CA, which was a joint project of TCA-Western and TTOS-SP. During his working career, Mr. Mason was a beloved biology teacher at the Bellflower Unified School District.
Syd was also a well-known member at T.T.O.S. Southwestern Division in Arcadia and at MTA (the Model Train Association) in Bellflower, CA, where he held several offices over the years, including President in 1982. In the final months of his life, Syd thought of Western Division and donated a deluxe TCA 40th Anniversary train set to support our 67th National Convention, coming to Irvine, CA, in June, 2021.
All of us who knew Syd at the train clubs will miss his good humor and broad knowledge of toy trains. He is survived by his wife Kathy and his son Martin, who is a professor of Physics and Engineering at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, California.
Syd Mason 1934 - 2020
Sydney Mason pictured with his custom Marx loco.
(Roger Hill photo)
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W estern Division continues to plan for the 67th TCA National Convention, to be held in Irvine, CA from June 19 to 27, 2021. While we can’t predict what course COVID-19 will take, we must keep pressing forward!
One special display we are hoping to put together to have at the Convention, for all attendees to see, is a tribute to those toy train manufacturers who produced their products here on the west coast.
We are asking all members if they have in their collections toy trains from any of the following manufacturers, that they would be willing to loan the division during the convention week: Varney/Sirus, Rich-Art, McCoy, Model Engineering Works, Lobaugh, John A. Daniel, Thorley Hoople, U.S.T.T.C., JAD, Jerry Brown, Kemtron, and early 'O' gauge kits from Athearn.
The focus is on west coast-based manufacturers to tie-in with our convention theme: “Go West.” If you have trains by these makers, and are willing to loan them out for display, please contact Harold Shapiro via e-mail at [email protected]. All loaned trains will be kept in secure cabinets while on display. We look forward to hearing from those that have collected these manufacturers and are willing to share these rarities with your fellow collectors.
—Harold Shapiro, TCA National Convention Co-Chairman