Houston 24 Expo – Dinosaurs Banquet

Houston 24 Cocktail Mix & Mingle: Cocktails and mingling at the HMNS Morian Hall of Paleontology from 6:00 to 7:30 pm. Cash Bar.

FOHBC Dinosaurs Banquet: Prepaid banquet event with keynote speaker, presentations and awards at the HMNS Morian Hall of Paleontology from 7:30 to 10:00 pm. 

When we first issued the H24 “Event Info Packet” in December 2023, we noted, in general terms, that the banquet would be at Hotel ZaZa on Friday evening and that we would have a cocktail party, an honorary speaker, club and member awards, fellowship, and fun with bottle-collecting friends. Attendees could also choose between chicken, meat, or fish for dinner at $55 a plate. This is usually the process with a hotel’s food and beverage department. Things dramatically changed as the Museum offered its Morian Hall of Paleontology “free of charge” for the event, which sounded exciting.

The Museum directed us to their website for events, which listed their preferred caterers. I started making comparison calls, and when the folks on the opposite end of the line paused when I said our budget was $55 a person, I knew something was off. In short, when you engage a first-class caterer for an event with a kitchen to prepare food, the staff, and the setup, the cost starts at $120 a person! As nothing about H24 fit the norm, we pulled the trigger and hired Café Natalie to cater our event, hoping proceeds from our souvenir program, Drake’s sales, and the Sunset Auction would help offset the difference. We also had assurances from our underwriter, HMNS, that they would help with the expenses.

The FOHBC Dinosaurs Banquet was held on Friday at 7:30 pm in the HMNS Morian Hall of Paleontology with a “Mix & Mingle” cocktail party in the same Hall from 6:00 to 7:30 pm. What better way to start an evening than to experience history and dinosaurs? Two stories tall and the length of a football field, the dramatic Hall invited FOHBC guests to embark on a “Prehistoric Safari” through their monumental dinosaur displays. The lighting and staging of all the exhibits was breathtaking.

Following the cocktail reception, paid banquet attendees were seated for the program, which included brief introductions and announcements by FOHBC president Michael Seeliger, followed promptly by dinner. When coffee and dessert was served, H24 chair Ferdinand Meyer V introduced the keynote speaker, Joel A. Bartsch, who had our guests in stitches as he spoke about topics relevant to our great hobby and his Museum. Joel, an alumnus of Concordia University and Rice University with a BA and an MA, has been the president and CEO of the Houston Museum of Natural Science since 2004. Immediately before that, the Texas native served HMNS as its curator of the Cullen Hall of Gems and Minerals, its director of earth sciences, and a project manager. In his first year as the president and CEO, Joel restructured the organization and returned it to profitability. He subsequently spearheaded a period of significant growth that culminated in the construction of the Dan L. Duncan wing and an energy science education center. Joel collects many things, as you might imagine, and one of them is early American antique bottles and glass.

Next, the FOHBC honored Alan DeMaison, who was inducted into the prestigious FOHBC Hall of Fame. Alan’s leadership and commitment to the FOHBC is evident with his role as one of the three founding members of the Virtual Museum, where he serves as the Museum’s primary fund-raiser and treasurer. He also oversees all image photography for the Museum spins. Alan was awarded the FOHBC President’s Award in 2009 and is instrumental in the Ohio Bottle Club, where he was president for 15 years, newsletter editor for five years, and webmaster of the site he designed in 2014. Alan collects Meadville Rye Whiskey collectibles and history and has a Facebook page sharing related images and historical information.

The President’s Award was presented to Mike Craig for the Drake’s Commemorative Bitters bottle project. Board of Directors awards went to Peachridge Collections and the Meyer family for Outstanding Vision, Design & Leadership for Houston 24; and Michael and Alice Seeliger for Outstanding Leadership. Alice Seeliger, FOHBC secretary, then presented the FOHBC Club and Member Contest awards. Here is a list of all the winners. The FOHBC had over 75 entries in the seven categories to review so thanks to Alice and her selection committee!

Club Newsletter: First Place, Traveler’s Companion, published by the Greater Buffalo Bottle Collectors Association, Craig Maefs, editor. Second Place, Perfume Bottle Quarterly, published by International Perfume Bottle Association, Don Orban, editor, Third Place, The Ohio Swirl, published by the Ohio Bottle Club, Todd Knisley, editor.

Best Show Poster: First Place, Richmond Area Bottle Collectors Association, 52nd Richmond Antique Bottle & Collectibles Show, Phil Townsend, show chair; Ferdinand Meyer V, designer. Second Place, Columbia South Carolina Bottle Club, Marty Vollmer and Art Gose, show chairs; Dan Lakatos, photographer; Ferdinand Meyer V, designer. Third Place, Tennessee Bottle Collectors Club, Fifth Anniversary Show, Greg Eaton and Stanley Word, show chairs; Ferdinand Meyer V, designer.

Best Original Research Story: First Place, The History of Baraboo Pottery – Baraboo, Wisconsin, Henry Hecker and Peter Maas, authors; from the Milwaukee Antique Bottle & Advertising Club, published in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Second Place, Boy Have You Got Moxie! Dennis Sasseville and Merrill Lewis, authors, published in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Third Place, ACL #5 America the Beautiful, Mike Dickman, author, published in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector.

Best Original True Story: First Place, A Story I Like to Tell, Gary Beatty, author, published in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Second Place, A Puce Eagle Tale, Richard Weiner, author, published in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Third Place, Pike’s Peak or Bust, Jack Klotz, author, published in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector.

Best Original Fiction Story: First Place, A Line from the Past, Richard J. Weiner, author, published in Antique Bottle & Glass Collector. Second Place, A Privy Murder Mystery, Jack Klotz, author, published in Bottles and Extras. Third Place, He is Called by Different Names in Different Parts, Todd Knisley, author, published in The Ohio Swirl.

Best Website: First Place, Perfumebottles.org, International Perfume Bottle Association, Virginia Merrill, webmaster. Second Place, Ohiobottleclub.org, Alan DeMaison, webmaster. Third Place, Promisingcures.com, Andy Rapoza, webmaster.

Best Social Media: First Place, Tom Askjem Facebook page and YouTube channel, Tom Askjem, administrator. Second Place, Warner’s Safe Cure – H. H. Warner Facebook page and blog, Steve Jackson, administrator. Third Place, 1st Chicago Bottle Club Facebook page, Tory Crnovich, administrator.

The FOHBC concluded the evening’s festivities with a fun contest to win the table centerpiece dinosaur puzzle and a brief presentation remembering the past years and the making of the Drake’s Plantation Bitters. Unfortunately, technical difficulties prevented the presentations from being given (they will be posted on the FOHBC website soon). By all accounts, the evening was a grand success. We thank the Houston Museum of Natural Science and Café Natalie for our Dinosaurs Banquet and Bella Meyer for her work coordinating the banquet.

All photographs are by Gina Pellegrini-Ott unless otherwise noted.

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Houston 24 – Peachridge “Glass in the Grass” | Interior

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Houston 24 – American Antique Glass Masterpieces Exhibition Opening

Houston 24 – Wilber-Gugliotti Barber Bottle Collection Exhibition Opening

Houston 24 – Texas Hold ‘Em Antique Bottle & Glass Competition

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Houston 24 Expo – Early Admission

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