Historical Hockey and Sports Memorabilia Auction November 2024
A Motor City landmark for over half a century and featuring a seating capacity upon it’s opening matched by few venues, the hallowed Olympia Stadium presented the city of Detroit with big league hockey, with countless superstars regularly gracing it’s ice surface including timeless legends Gordie Howe and Terry Sawchuk. Closing for good in February of 1980 and demolished six (6) years later, offered here is this press box chair that hails from "The Old Red Barn". A wood construction offering with a circular seat, the chair measures roughly 34 1/2" in height at its tallest point and nearly 16" wide at its widest. Painted red throughout its entirety but showing numerous paint chips throughout its entirety, cracking is also observed in the paint while the screws holding sections together have rusted. Still structurally sound but a bit wobbly, don't miss out on this piece of Detroit hockey history for your all-important collection.
A prolific behind the scenes historian of all things related to the City of Detroit, James Mackey would begin his professional career as a graphic designer after graduating from Wayne State University with a BA at 20 years of age. Soon finding himself at Channel 2 News in Motown by 1960, where his career spanned a tumultuous 42+ years, ending in 2002 with him retiring as Graphic Manager. Throughout that wonderfully rich career with Channel 2, he was fortunate enough to have won 4 Emmy Awards for set design. Beginning to photograph the Detroit Tigers and Lions as a correspondent for Channel 2 News around 1960 as well, he was hired as a freelance photographer by Olympia Entertainment in 1962, where he would spend the next 34 years procuring some of the greatest hockey moments to have been caught on film in Detroit Red Wings history and in the mid-1960s he would become the graphic artist & cartoonist for the Detroit Red Wings Magazine with multiple sections in each program including "In The Click Of It", "Red Wing Magazine" and "Sticks and Yuks by Mackey". Building many life long relationships with numerous Hockey Hall of Fame greats. Most notably, Gordie Howe, who even went as far to invite Jim to Pittsburgh for the opportunity to capture Gordie scoring his 700th goal, their relationship spanned their entire lives. Described by his son Eric with "He loved sports period", whether it was boat racing, lacrosse, baseball, football, hockey, Jim was there covering the event and capturing moments that will live on forever. As part of its current auction, Classic Auctions is proud to present some of the premier items from the collection of James A. Mackey.
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