Today we’re looking at two classic American magazines: TIME and LIFE. Published weekly for most of the 20th century, these sister periodicals offer complementary perspectives on the biggest stories of the era, with LIFE’s vivid photojournalism bringing immediacy and emotional resonance to TIME’s in-depth reporting. They’ve always been popular items at the shop, but while past collectors sought out issues that commemorated special events or milestone dates from their own lives, a younger generation of readers are embracing these magazines for the design language they helped define—as archives of iconic mid-century modern fashion, architecture, typography, and consumer goods. Explore the way that objects slip from personal nostalgia into cultural history as time and life march irrevocably forward on this new-for-now #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #215 - What's in a Picture?
This week, we’re talking about a new way of looking at old photos: looking beyond their primary subjects and bringing the background details into focus. Under close observation, almost every vintage postcard or photo album that comes into the shop inadvertently reveals a wealth of information about the texture of daily life at the time that it was taken. From the fashions and hairstyles of passersby to the style of cars and the prices in shop windows, these images act as a fascinating window into the past. We’ll also discuss the worrying lack of these valuable artifacts from the present and the more recent past—as more and more photographs remain online only and as AI introduces an element of doubt into everything we see—on this snappy new #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #180 - LIFE Magazine Trends
They say that in life, change is the only constant, and this is true of LIFE Magazine collecting as well. While older readers collected specific issues for personal nostalgia reasons, their children and grandchildren find the magazines to be fascinating time capsules of mid-century American design, fashion, and culture. We’ll talk about the decline and unexpected resurgence of the LIFE secondhand market, part of the same wave of interest in vintage styles that re-popularized the vinyl record and the Eames lounge chair—both of which you might find stylish, copy-heavy advertisements for in an old LIFE Magazine.
Brattlecast #105 - Book of Friends
Today we’re talking about two autograph albums from the shop, and about autograph collecting in general. Autograph albums used to be a popular way to collect signatures, not only from celebrities and public figures, but from friends and family members as well. Sometimes these snippets were accompanied by brief messages or bits of poetry. The value and desirability of specific autographs can fluctuate over time; recently Alexander Hamilton’s has skyrocketed, while Robert E. Lee’s has plummeted. We’ll also talk about the best way to care for and preserve these albums.
Speaking of messages from friends—we want to hear from you! Feel free to submit questions, topic ideas, or photographs of items you’d like appraised to info@brattlebookshop.com.
Brattlecast #55 - Casey at the Bat
From baseball tragedy to book shop treasure, we’re taking a look at the journey of Casey at the Bat. The poem, first printed in the San Francisco Examiner in 1888, was popularized in vaudeville, and, in 1901, published in the very valuable first edition here in the studio with us today. It has since been reprinted hundreds of times, and remains enduringly popular with collectors of both literature and baseball memorabilia. Ken talks about this and a variety of other home-run hits of baseball literature.
