 |
|
HRCPCC News and
Information
The
Hard Rock Doc - Greg DeVor
HRCPCC
Calendar of Events - Tony Anzur
PinCatalog
Update - Neal Ekengren & Christine Ehring
Anna's
Passport Report - Anna Oyape
Kobe
HRC Pin Collectors' Party - "The Logoholic"
San
Diego Pinapalooza Report - Michael Candland
Pin
of the Quarter - Virgil LaFerney
Getting
Involved - Club Officers
"The Hard Rock Doc"
Article by Greg
DeVor
Many of the
people in the Hard Rock Cafe Pin Collectors Club know me as 泥r.
Darth・ 泥r. D and D・ 吐ormer Japan connection・ among others. But
there was one that preceded them all ・The Hard Rock
Doc・
"The Hard Rock
Doc"
My name is Dr. Greg DeVor and, yes, I am
a dentist. (Insert shiver here). While I was in the United
States Navy I had many opportunities to travel and see the
world. My naval dental career spanned nearly four years and
two continents. While I was stationed aboard Marine Corps Air
Station, Iwakuni, Japan I picked up yet another nickname: 典he
Hard Rock Doc・ (For those who don稚 know Japanese geography,
Iwakuni is about 35 miles south of Hiroshima in southern
Japan.) A co-worker affectionately gave it to me since my love
for the Hard Rock Caf・was quickly becoming widely known
throughout the small military base. In fact, many people while
on vacation would bring me back souvenirs from the caf・as a
thank you for the work that I did for them.
"Waiting room
information rack with Cleveland poster"
About
a year ago, I parted ways with the Navy and embarked on my
life, with my wife, as a civilian. With the help of an online
brokerage firm, I was able to secure funding for my very own
dental office. On April 13, 2002, my long-time dream came
true!! The office looked like every other dental office in the
country: dental chairs, reception area, hygiene room, waiting
room, etc. There was really no distinguishable character at
all. It stayed that way for about a month. Then one night, my
wife and I were sitting around with some friends just talking
the practice and throwing out ideas. I mentioned that I wish
that there were some way that I could combine my two favorite
things in the world. Those two things are the Hard Rock
Caf・and dentistry.
The dawning of an idea
・/i>
Shortly after that, the nickname came back to
me: 典he Hard Rock Doc・ That was it! The idea bag was opened
and just started to overflow! First thing that I did was to
田reate/borrow・a logo idea.
Pretty
cool, huh? Once that was done, I felt like I had an identity
and a sense of direction. We came up with the idea to decorate
the entire office with HRC gear. Since the middle of May, the
office has been transformed from an everyday looking dental
office to the hardest rockin・dental office in Cleveland! The
response to the new d馗or has been wonderful. Even the 登lder
patients・get a kick out of it.
"Wall of
Framed t-shirts"
Music is in everyone痴 life.
Music is eternal and timeless. Music can take you back to your
senior prom, your first kiss and your first slow dance. Music
defines a generation. From the swinging 40痴, Elvis and the
50痴, the psychedelic 60痴, guitar rock of the 70痴, Madonna and
the King of Pop of the 80痴, Nirvana and the 90痴, to the
musical artists of today. Music isn稚 just a part of everyone痴
life; music is life. All types of music: Rock and Roll,
country, big band, jazz, classical, gospel, 田lassic,・rock,
菟op・ etc. It makes no difference. Music is the essence of
life. My goal is to share my passion for music with all of my
patients.
"Case of Flag
pins from within inner office"
To be bold, I
want to be the 徹fficial Dentist of The Hard Rock Caf髞. My
office, as you can see, is becoming a shrine to music and the
HRC. (I am saving room on the walls for 登fficial・Hard Rock
Caf・memorabilia.) Right now, I consider myself nothing more
than a HUGE fan and a collecting maniac.
"Display table
with Kobe map and HRC picture"
My goal is to
provide quality dentistry in a fun and relaxing atmosphere.
Being 典he Hard Rock Doc・is really a lot of fun. Moreover it
puts my patients at ease. There is something magical about my
HRC d馗or, patients talk about it and they focus on it. It
keeps their minds off of the reason that they are there in the
first place.
"Wall of
photos"
Kobe - TJ - Newport Beach - Myrtle
Beach
I want to extend an open invitation to
any and all Hard Rockers out there to stop by and visit the
office and take a look for your self. The address is: 1440
Snow Road #212, Parma, Ohio 44134. The phone number is
216-749-1242. If you plan on visiting, please email me at
wgni01@yahoo.com indicating that you will be stopping by. Then
start getting you trader bags ready ・pin trading is always
welcome.
"Ft.
Lauderdale Grand Opening poster looking into
office"
When was the last time that you were
at your dentist痴 office? If you can稚 remember or has been more
than 6 months ・please call and make that appointment. Your
teeth will thank you!
Remember ・釘e true to your teeth
or they will be false to you!・
Greg DeVor
Hard Rock
Doc
HRCPCC - Club
Member
Return
to the top of this page
"HRCPCC Calendar of
Events"
Update from Tony
Anzur
Hi,
As
we look forward to 2003, the 2002 Fall Event season has
finally come to an end. We had some great events in the fall
of 2002, starting with "Pinapalooza". We had over 1200 people
attend the event in 16 cafes including our first franchise
cafe Melbourne. Melbourne had 55 collectors attend thus a
great start for our first event in Melbourne.
The
Washington D.C. "Pin Summit" was our October Event. For those
of you who missed this event, it was one of the best of the
year. The staff was enthusiastic, the cafe was excited to host
the event, and the attendee's were in great spirit. The Friday
night pre-event party was amazing with martini drink specials
and a Friday night party pin. The party lasted well into the
night and everyone had a really great time. Event day
(Saturday) was great!!! The day kicked off with breakfast up
on the cafes second floor which we had for the whole day just
for the event. In the afternoon the cafe gave away door prizes
and we had a cool silent auction. The day concluded with a
group tour of the newest DC Museum, the Spy
Museum.
Finally came the 3 day LA area "Pindemonium"
event. Kicking off on Friday night at the Newport Beach HRC we
had a cool dinner buffet/pin trading evening. The cafe staff
was great and the cafe pre-released their 10th anniversary pin
for the event.
Hollywood was the second leg of the 3
day event with a full day of trading on Saturday. The event
was held to benefit the animals at the LA Zoo. We also had a
special surprise as the full "Star Wars" crew showed up out in
the courtyard in front of the cafe.
The Los Angeles
cafe held their portion of the event the next morning
(Sunday). The cafe served a super breakfast buffet. The cafe
also introduced the "Day of the Dead" guitar at the event. For
those of you who missed "Pindemonium 2002", it was a great
weekend event.
In the upcoming year we are going to
have some cool events at some cafe locations where we've never
had an event before. We will be kicking off the year in
Orlando (Jan 17-18) at our HRCPCC "Winter Carnival" bash. We
will also be holding and expanded 2nd "Pinaversary" with 20
locations receiving invitations to join this worldwide day of
trading. Also, later in the year cafes such as Edinburgh, New
Orleans, and our first event in Europe are in the works for
2003. Check the HRCPCC calendar often for info and updates on
upcoming events.
Below is a list of HRCPCC events
scheduled for early 2003. Hopefully we will see you
there...
"Winter
Carnival"
Orlando HRC
January 17-18,
2003
"Pinaversary"
HRCPCC 2nd Birthday
Party
Coming to a nearby HRC
March 1, 2003
Host
cafes to be announced soon
"Boston Pin
Party"
Boston HRC
March 15, 2003
7th Annual Texas Pin
Shootout
Austin HRC
April 12,
2003
For a complete list of local, regional and
major events, please check the HRCPCC Calendar of Events area
located on the main start page when you first logon to the
site. If you know of any events we may have missed, please let
us know.
Have an idea for a future HRCPCC event? Have a
suggestion for how to improve events? Interested in helping to
organize a pin-trading event at your local HRC? If so then
send me a note and let me know what痴 on your mind. Your
feedback is always welcome, and we are always looking for ways
to make events even more successful and enjoyable. Get
involved!
Tony
Anzur
HRCPCC Events
Coordinator
Return
to the top of this page
"PinCatalog
Update"
Update from Neal
Ekengren and Christine Ehring
The
PinCatalog has nearly 14,000 pins and almost 50% have
pictures. Last report we were only at 30%. I still can't
believe it. You guys are awesome. As always, we added a few
features/changes over the last few months.
The amount
of work that PinMasters are putting into this is awesome.
What's really nice is that we have been able to "upgrade" and
our PinMaster ranks are getting ever more professional and
just plain good.
That Pinatic Profile page sure is
getting big. Hopefully, I'll be forced to break it into
multiple pages after many more fine pictures are uploaded. I
see we are getting very inventive with our photos. Hmmm. I
would have to say Jim Lange holding the little Virgil baby is
my favorite! Just very sweet and touching.
I'm sure
most of you have noticed our new Auction feature. Although
this is available for the general public, I know many of the
first listings are very specialized pins which should be of
interest to our HRCPCC members. I believe that those high bids
you are seeing are really promoting higher values for your
entire pin collections!!
PinCatalog
Statistics Report
PinBack
and PinPaint Variations
PinMaster's
PinCatalog
Discussions
Hope to see some of you in Orlando for
Winter Carnival.....
Neal
Ekengren
Christine
Ehring
HRCPCC
PinMasters
HardRock.com Web
Team
Return
to the top of this page
"Anna's Passport
Report"
Aloha,
Contratulations to Fred Rebhun for
being our first HRCPCC member to visit 100 cafes. A major
accomplisment. Fred made the historic visit on August 22 at
the Pittsburgh HRC. Several HRCPCC members were on hand along
with the staff of the Pittsburgh cafe. Way to go Fred.
David Rodriguez is hanging in there with an amazing 88
visits and Mark Cormane and Ricky Sorzi recently reached the
75 visit plateau. Both Mark and Riccardo seem to be eager to
hit that magical 100 mark as they continue to add new cafes to
their list on a very regular basis.
At the same time
it's hard to not mention all of those who have visited so many
cafes. When you look at the Top 100 it is just amazing to
think that so many people are out visiting so many cafes.
Every person in the Top 100 now have at least 32 visits.
Congratulations to everyone.
Please remember when
sending me your receipts and pictures that you should include
your name, e-mail address, club membership number and a list
of locations. I will not accept visits unless you send me the
receipts and pictures so no sob stories. Please note, send me
copies of your receipts as they and the photographs will not
be returned. Also, in case you are wondering, all proof of
visit info must be mailed to me, as I will not accept them via
e-mail or fax.
For those who have franchise visits
you'd like to have recorded, here is my address.
Anna Oyape
3174 Bridges
PL.
Honolulu,
HI
96818-3654
For you new
members, below is a scan of the entire Passport Program pin
series displayed inside a great looking frame. The 75th visit
pin includes a ruby and the 100th visit pin finishes off the
set with a great looking diamond. For those who reach the
century mark, you will also receive a special engraved
commemorative plaque to celebrate this monumental
milestone.
Good
luck to everyone. Have fun in your quest for the next Hard
Rock visit.
Anna Oyape
HRCPCC Pin Passport Program
Coordinator
Return
to the top of this page
"Kobe Hard Rock Cafe Pin
Collectors' Party"
Article by
"The Logoholic"
Kobe
Hard Rock Cafe held an official pin collector's party for the
first time in Japan on Sunday, July 14th. 2002. The event
information was not advertised so widely and was informed only
through mailing list from Kobe Hard Rock. But this interesting
rumor spread all over Japan on the grapevine (by word of
mouth) and a lot of fans got together to enjoy the
party.
The event started at 12 noon with the Kobe GM
saying a few words of welcome. The event fee was 3,000 yen
(US$25). The fee included lunch and a special event guitar pin.
Showing up at the event was so many pin collectors as well as Hard Rock bear fans, T shirts and Zippo
collectors.
Honestly speaking, I personally never
thought that a pin collector's party would be held in Japan,
but we finally were able to have a meeting in a cafe and it
appears we are able to get along with the cafe staff. As many
of you know, even today there are very few Japanese who attend
pin events overseas, so this is a major step forward. I'll
keep trying to invite as many Japanese as possible to attend
pin events not only my friends but also staff or managers as I
believe that would be a good opportunity for them as they
would see what pin collecting is all about. Now I'm so happy
that at least some improvement in the relationship between the
cafes and collectors is beginning. We can only hope that it
continues.
"Kobe 1st
Collector's Party guitar"
The attached scan is
of the event guitar pin, only 200 made. 29 pieces were handed
out to attendees as a gift (we were 29), GM and merchandise
manager bought 1 each for their collection. The event was over
at 15:00 pm, then they let us to buy 5 pieces per person for
everybody to be able to have some extras, almost 150 of 200
had gone as of this moment. After confirming that every
attendees got enough amount, then the rest of 50 went to be
available. Several of us bought 5 pieces more and the guitar
pin was sold out very quickly within 15
minutes.
"The
Logoholic"
The
Logoholic
HRCPCC - Club
Member
www.logoholic.com
Return
to the top of this page
"San Diego Pinapalooza Report"
Article by Michael Candland
After
days of planning the big day finally arrived. With help from
the staff members we have the goodie bags ready with a
laminate and memorabilia scavenger hunt sheets. I arrive at
7:30am and Andy Sageman arrive about 8 am to start setting up.
After getting the sign in table ready and putting an extra
'goodie' in the goodie bags we set out all the stuff for the
silent auction and the Grand prize give away. The Grand Prize
is a framed I 5 set. There were some really cool items for the
silent auction. Specially from the Staff at the Honolulu cafe
they donate a Honolulu city Tee shirt with 57 pins. Just to
name a few - Key West 2nd Anniversary fish guitar, 3 other
fish guitars, Maui 2002 4th of July and many more. 1 Framed
Timeline set 148/500 that was the give away at the London 30th
Anniversary party - Thanks to Corporate. Several hats covered
with pins from the Kona and London Cafes. And many others.
Collectors
started arriving around 9 am with Steve Thesing and Jo Ann
Thesing being the first. By 10 am things were in full swing.
More collectors kept arriving when the first silent auction
started at 11 am. We had 4 groups of auction items ending at
12noon 1pm 2pm and 3pm. Pins were flying all around the cafe.
With servers asking trivia questions with a pin as the prize
for correctly answering the question. Attendees were checking
out all the memorabilia on the walls to answer the questions.
They signed and turned in the sheets as these are used for the
3:30pm drawings. It looked like everyone was having a
wonderful time. Event pins and bears went on sale at 11 am.
And with the attendees having 2 tickets in their goodie bags -
red for the bear and orange for the pins. There was no need
for anyone to have to stand in line.
Traders
were coming in all day. So at 3:30pm I made some closing
comments and thank you's. Then the traders that were still
here were asked to look under their chairs. There were 4
chairs with numbers under them. The lucky ones with a number
won a bag of 5 pins. See it always pays to stay until the end.
Then the drawing. The I 5 set was given away along with a few
other items. All silent auction items were paid for and the
final tally was - $1350.00. All the funds went to the local
Ambassador Club to help Adam Collins. He is a server who was
in a surfing accident a couple of months ago and broke his
neck. Adam is doing just fine. He was able to attend the event
and was very grateful for all the help from the attendees.
We had the stage area of the cafe until 4:30pm so
everyone was gone except a few hard core traders by then. So
after the dust cleared everyone had a wonderful time with
friends both new and old. We even had a couple of traders from
the east coast and 2 from Japan attend.
We
would like to thank everyone who attended and especially thank
these people and groups for their donations to help make the
2002 Pinapalooza event at San Diego a total success.
San Diego Cafe GM ( Eric ) and Staff
Bunny Gonzales
Manager at San Diego Cafe
Bill Roth
The Staff at the
Honolulu Cafe
The Staff at the Kona Cafe
The London
Cafe
The Toronto Cafe
The Nashville Cafe
Corporate
for their donations
Everyone who purchased items at the
silent auction........ Thanks
So until next time
bye for now and 'Keep Rockin'.
Michael Candland - "Gomer"
HRCPCC - Club Member
Return
to the top of this page
"Pin of the Quarter"
Article by Virgil
LaFerney
Over time I think we
all run across special pins that we either hear about, see in
someone elses collection, or even better we make the big score
and add it to our own collections. I suppose all of us have a
few pins that we consider really special and really enjoy
showing off when at all possible and that's really what this
hobby is all about in some respects.
Recently as I was
going through my collection, taking pictures of all of my pins
for the Pin Locker, I again gazed at a few special pins that
I'm very proud of. I'd like to tell you about one or them as
the story behind the pin is really what makes it stand out
from all of the rest.
________________________________________
Over
the years people have tried to determine what was the first
pin created at the London HRC. Kind of a tricky one to figure
out as we always want to think the beautiful pins produced by
FC Parry were first. What we have determined is that the first
pins created and sold were actually done so by a company named
Morton Culver. These pins were sold back in the '73-'74
timeframe. The "Culver" pins appeared very rough and
unfinished thus most collectors today who see them will think
it is a fake or a fantasy pin. Even the various pin guides
will show the value of this pin as being much lower than some
of the early FC Parry Les Pauls. To the contrary, the early
Culver pins were created in much smaller numbers thus in all
reality, should probably be some of the more valuable pins to
have in your collection.
While we don't know the exact
date, FC Parry of England purchased or bought out Morton
Culver and began producing pins for the HRC London. Part of
the carry-over from Culver that could be seen on the Parry
pins is the spring/loop back assemblies. That clasp assembly
and idea was first started by Culver.
Below is a front
and back picture of the original Culver Les Paul. You will
notice the front is not polished, and appears rough around the
edges. Missing is the "clear resin epoxy" coating that many of
the later pins FC Parry pins included. One of the items to be
on the lookout for is the grave accent over the "E" in CAFE.
All of the Culver Les Paul guitar pins had that accent which
you'll never find on any of the Parry pins. Also, notice the
plain back. Many of the guides, not knowing what this pin is
will mention "FC Parry type clasp". There are no special marks
or writing on the back of this pin.
"Morton
Culver original HRC Les Paul"
Also,
produced and sold at the same time was the first HRC logo pin.
No special markings on the back and again, a rough,
non-polished pin. The pin appears to be a bit convex and this
can be noticed more when viewed from the back
side.
"Morton
Culver original HRC
Logo"
Virgil LaFerney
Return
to the top of this page
"Getting
Involved"
Hey, if you take a
cool trip and visit some cafes and think your travel would be
interesting to share with the rest of the membership, please
consider writing an article for the newsletter. We're always
looking for new articles or information to pass along. Also,
consider contacting Tony to help organize or help with an
event. Events don't just happen but it takes time and a lot of
effort to make them successful. Tony is always in need of
local contacts for event planning. Check out the "Calendar of
Events" section above and if an event is going to be staged in
your "home" city, let Tony know you are there to help make a
difference. Also, we update the HRCPCC calendar weekly adding
and updating local, regional and major pin collectors meetings
and events. Those events are planned and scheduled to help you
become more active in this hobby.
Contact Virgil LaFerney to
submit newsletter articles or events for the
Calendar.
Contact Tony
Anzur for info on events or to help with
events.
Contact Anna Oyape for
help with the Pin Passport Program.
Contact Neal Ekengren to
volunteer to help with keeping the Pin Catalog up to
date.
Contact HRCPCC Officers
for club related issues.
Contact HRC Customer
Support for help with your account or on-line
orders.
A HUGE thanks to Michael Candland, Greg DeVor,
and "The Logoholic" for
getting involved and for taking the time to provide us with
these great member articles.
Also, major kudo's to the
guys and gals who work so hard each month to keep our Pin
Catalog updated. Thanks to our PinMaster's for all of their
hard work and determination. Our Pin Catalog is looking
awesome and it's because of them we all have such a great tool
to help this growing hobby. Thanx PinMaster's...
Return
to the top of this page |
|
|
