Antiques Roadshow VT: Behind the Scenes at Shelburne Museum

I've got this nice porcelain no ceramic ram Italian made 1940s.

I assumed that when you learn you have a painting worth a half a million dollars, you sell it.

Here's what I know.

They don't.

And I wish I was a millionaire.

But I'm not.

Hi, I'm David Littlefield.

And I'm Kari Anderson.

Thanks for tuning into Vermont Public.

During this show, we're going to jump into a metaphorical time machine and take you back to the summer of 2022.

That's when Antiques Roadshow came to the Shelburne Museum to film three episodes.

Yeah, that's right.

Roadshow has been on the air since 1997, and this is the first time they've ever come to Vermont.

So you can imagine how excited we all were when they chose to come here.

For the next half hour, you'll see interviews with the people who make Roadshow and what the video production looks like.

Learn a little more about how it all works.

Yeah, absolutely.

We're also going to show you some of this awesome Vermont public merchandise we have available for you.

We've got mugs, bags, T-shirts, hats.

Maybe some future collector's items in here.

Well, only time will tell, Kari.

I think so.

Until then, this is member supported television.

And if you want to make a donation, you can call 800 639 8303 or go to Vermont Public dot org slash Gifts.

We're going to have a lot of fun with this show, so let's jump right in.

The first person you're going to hear from is Marsha Bemko.

She's been the executive producer of Antiques Roadshow for over two decades.

She's going to tell us a little bit about why they chose the Shelburne Museum as their filming location.

That's right.

And you're also going to hear from Jill Giles, who's been a road show producer since season three.

She's a veteran.

And then you'll get a quick word from Alasdair Nichol, the appraiser, about his first impressions of Vermont.

Well, you know, Roadshow hasn't been to Vermont, but we're from- were Bostonians, GBH in Boston produces it.

So most of us have been here many times because this is where you ski and do other fun things.

What prompted us to come here?

Some someone had told us about Shelburne Museum and that we should take a look at it and we really hadn't heard about it before.

We came up and took a look and it really was a perfect location for us.

It really has the space that we need, the outdoor space, the indoor space.

It's spread out.

First of all, we're conducting event tomorrow where we're going to see several thousand people and we need room to do appraisals.

Most of the people coming aren't going to be taped.

They need to have a good experience getting their items evaluated tomorrow.

So we need some land, some acreage to spread out over our over 20 categories that we have.

So that makes it a perfect venue.

Yes.

And we don't like ugly.

So we're not going to go to an ugly outdoor venue.

We want to go to pretty places and share with the nation the places that you're going to discover with us.

I haven't been to the Shelburne Museum before this visit and I'm going to guess there are others who are watching who won't have been here, who will come once they see what it has to offer.

My name is Alasdair Nichol.

I'm an appraiser on Antiques Roadshow.

I've been doing it for over 20 years.

And I was surprised to learn today this is the first time we've been in Vermont.

People could not have been more welcoming.

We're looking forward to coming back, really looking forward to tomorrow.

And this is the most beautiful setting you could ask for.

And here's hoping the weather stays good.

And thanks again to everyone in Vermont for supporting us.

I was out on Lake Champlain today and I'm hoping to see some landscapes featuring Lake Champlain.

I remember selling some before and they did very well.

There's obviously a big collecting community up here as well, so I'm excited to see how it turns out tomorrow.

It's never what you expect.

It really isnt.

The strangest things will turn up from all over the world.

But it's always some fabulous stories with it.

Getting to meet some of the iconic appraisers and seeing the actual production of road show was a huge draw for folks who were able to attend.

We're happy to share just a bit of that experience with you.

Right now, we are going to show you another clip in just a moment.

But before we do, we wanted to show you some of these great new gift items we have the shirt, the hat, the bag, the tumbler, the patches.

All of this is newly branded with our Vermont public logo.

And when you become a sustainer making a monthly contribution, we're going to send you one of these thank you gifts.

That's right.

We want you to look stylish as you show your support for public media.

If you're ready to donate and get one of these thank you gifts, you can go online to Vermont Public Mortgage Gifts or call 800 6398303.

We're going to have more opportunities to see these gifts up close throughout the show.

So for now, let's get back to Road Show.

One of the things I found most interesting about how road show works is the relationship the appraisers have with the show.

So in this clip, you're going to hear Jill Giles talk about her job during filming and the pitching process that the appraisers go through.

You'll also hear from Marsha about what sets Antiques Roadshow apart from other antique reality shows.

Before I come, I do a lot of site visits and kind of help pick out the locations that we're going to be at, hire the crews, work on the logistics.

On the event day, I get to be one of the producers that selects the items that go on television.

So I will be busy running around all day listening to pitches from appraisers about why they think this item or that item should be featured on the show.

And then I'll talk to the guests and hear their story about where they got it and what they want to know about it, and then make a decision on how we're going to film it or not.

The appraisers, about 75 appraisers will be assigned here tomorrow.

They are also volunteers who are unpaid and pay their own expenses to be here.

It actually cost each of them money to be here.

I would say collectively in a season, the appraisers contribute over $1,000,000 to public television.

What sets PBS apart in my genre?

We're the first in the antique genre out there.

There's others now.

I think all of them I haven't double checked recently, have to fact check me here.

I think all of them deal with transactions.

Buying and selling this show is pure information.

It is unethical for anybody appraising your items to then make an offer to buy it.

It is considered against all code of ethics for an appraiser.

This show doesn't do it.

And even if you decide you wanted to sell something that was appraised here, most people don't.

No matter what, it's appraised for.

You have to contact our appraisers.

If you want one of them to do it.

After we've left town, it's clean.

There's none of that that happens anywhere else.

That's public television.

So there's a couple of things going on here.

The pitching process that Jill was just talking about, I think is really interesting.

When an appraiser finds an object and a story, they find compelling.

They actually call over a roadshow producer like Jill.

And the appraiser has to make a pitch to the roadshow producer as to why the story would be valuable to film.

And of course, the appraiser wants to end up on the show because they get that exposure on television.

And then the roadshow producer has to decide if it's going to make a good story for TV or not.

I also think what Marsha was talking about is really important.

I guess I hadn't thought about the fact that you never see transactions on Roadshow.

It's all about educating and sharing stories.

Yeah, I know.

I love that.

And like Marsha said, that's public television.

And of course, you're watching public television right now.

So if you want to be a part of the work we do here, we've got some really excellent thank you gifts that we'd love to send to you.

And when you're ready to make a donation, you can call or go online at Vermont Public dot org slash gifts.

So first we got our T-shirts.

I am wearing the Vermont public branded shirt.

David is wearing our brave little state t shirt.

And Brave Little State, if you don't know, is our people powered podcast where you get to ask the questions and our journalists will go find the answers.

Either the shirts can be yours when you become a sustaining member, giving it $12 a month.

It's a great gift.

Also for $12 a month are the tumblers.

This is a stainless steel 16 ounce tumbler.

It is triple insulated.

So that's going to keep your hot drinks hot for up to 3 hours and your cold drinks cold for up to 9 hours.

We also had the classic public media gift, a tote bag.

This bag is rugged, it's high quality, and it's made of cotton and recycled plastic water bottles.

Our logo was printed right here in Colchester, Vermont.

We will send you this tote bag when you become a sustaining member that's a monthly giver at $10 a month.

Theres some many great gifts to talk about here Kari.

It's great.

We also have this Vermont public hat.

This is 100% cotton.

It's got a leather back strap that's adjustable.

So if your head is getting smaller or bigger, it's going to continue to fit you for a long time.

That logo was also embroidered right here in Colchester, Vermont.

So if you want this hat, we're going to ask for a $10 a month donation.

And last but not least, you know, small and mighty, we have these fantastic little patches.

They can be yours as a gift of $5 a month.

As a sustaining member, you can so or iron them onto your backpack or jacket, whichever you like.

You can choose either Vermont Public Patch or the brave little state patch for just $5 a month as a sustaining member.

And you can make that donation by calling or visiting Vermont Public dot org slash Gifts.

And we should also say, if you don't want any of these gifts, that's fine.

You can still make a donation to support the shows you love like Antiques Roadshow.

That's right.

And while you're making your donation and thinking about which gift you might like to receive, we're going to jump back to behind the scenes of Antiques Roadshow this next segment is great.

We're going to hear from Marsha about one of her favorite stories from Antiques Roadshow.

And while you are watching, be sure to make your donation by visiting us at Vermont public dot org slash gifts.

It's so funny.

Every time somebody asks me like, what's your favorite appraisal?

What's your favorite category?

And having done the show for so long, there's just so many favorites.

It's like I would say, it's like picking a favorite child, but who has like millions of children, you know, so many stories that I've collected over the years.

And I think that if you asked me on the day, like, what was your favorite story of today, I could answer that.

We were in Boise.

And because antiques Roadshow works with a lot of communications, we bring two IT people from GBH in Boston with us.

So this particular IT staffer who was assigned to Boise, one of two, decided to bring his partner with him.

Now we have 100 volunteers stationed over the vastness of the Boise set, which was at the Boise Botanical Gardens.

His partner was stationed over at Militaria.

So then I'm over at Militaria to hear a story about a woman has brought in some special forces patches from her ancestor, who was a sniper shooter who shot at a man who was trying to kill General Gavin, who was in charge of the 62nd Airborne and the volunteer, the one from Boston who's at Militaria, are over a hundred volunteers.

They're standing there and says, hears 62nd.

What?

Oh, no.

Wow.

General Gavin, that's his grandfather.

So he starts to pay attention and he realizes, in fact, what she says is true because her ancestor saved his grandfather.

Small world that that happened.

And for me, that was an amazing and amazing story that gave me goosebumps because.

Yeah, yeah.

Wow, wow.

That's really cool.

Yeah.

No, I was sitting there and I just couldn't believe it.

It's like, is this really happening?

All kinds of fun things happen at a roadshow when they will tomorrow.

I don't know what will happen.

That's the fun part about being a producer here.

You don't know what's going to happen.

This is a reality show and whatever happens tomorrow, we're going to share it with you.

I brought this elephant that I purchased for my elephant loving friend, I paid 30 for it and he said it was worth a lot more than I had.

So I found out it's about $650.

So it was a pretty good investment.

In fact, I came today, love the show, love PBS.

To me its TV worth watching.

It has great programs.

It's got great programs.

My child watched it growing up and the PBS passport at my house and it's my daughter and I watch it all the time.

It's usually every night watching a different series.

So yeah, big fans.

Wow, what a crazy story about that.

Volunteer from Boston.

Antiques Roadshow is always full of such interesting stories, but that one really took the cake.

And make sure you watch the Shelburne Museum episodes of Roadshow to hear stories about Vermont.

Yeah, we're just going to jump right back into another segment and we're going to hear from some of the well-known appraisers from Roadshow.

Some of them are a little difficult to hear over the crowd, but it actually kind of gives you a sense of the hundreds of visitors moving through at any one time.

And there actually was like 3000 people there total over the course of the day.

Yeah.

What a scene.

Yeah.

While you're watching this next segment, you can still donate to Vermont Public by calling or going to Vermont public dot org gifts.

You can choose from this wide array of thank you gifts when you become a sustaining member and thanks for your donation.

Im Lark Mason.

And we have a gallery in Manhattan and also in Texas.

So I love coming to Vermont.

Weve seen some terrific items.

One of the things I saw today was an 18th century Chinese cloisonné enamel and gilt bronze, personal altar, now an altar set issomething you would use for religious ceremonies.

But what was unusual about this one is the scale was very small scale, which in turn it wasn't from public use, but for private.

That was absolutely terrific, and that's the best thing I've seen today so far.

But there's likely to be more.

Hi Im Arlie Sulka from Lillian Nassau, LLC in New York City and the most exciting thing I see so far today is a wonderful Tiffany Studios Lamp.

Way back when I first started producing this show.

I assumed, like we all would, that when you learn you have a painting worth a half a million dollars, you sell it.

Here's what I know.

They don't.

People do not sell the items that they get appraised at Roadshow.

As a rule, people go home and they ensure their item.

They may protect it in a different way, but much of what we see of inherited objects and the day you sell it, you can't afford to buy it back.

Hey, everybody.

Travis here for the collectibles table.

We are at the Shelburne Museum.

This place is awesome.

I mean, we had a slight little scare with some lightning.

Thunder, but that did allow us to get to check out an unbelievable collection of carnival horses like the carousel horses to see that many great examples in one setting is totally mind blowing.

But now suns out.

It's absolutely beautiful.

And I started off the day strong saw really great collection of Pokémon cards, so I'm pumped now.

We just got to see what happens for the rest of the day.

But I am very happy to be in Vermont.

His first stop this year.

I got to drive being on New Englander myself from Mass.

Couldn't be happier to be in Vermont.

It's been a very exciting morning here at the Shelburne Museum so far for Antiques Roadshow, not necessarily for the reasons you might think, we've already had one lightning storm and everybody had to take shelter here in the circus museum.

So it had a very much a real circus atmosphere.

The material that's coming in, though, in between the rain bursts is great.

And one of the posters, we've seen some awesome maps and historical documents, so it's looking like it should be a great day.

I mean, we're only just getting started.

Yes, you did hear that correctly.

At the end, there was a rain and lightning storm in the middle of filming.

It was something the roadshow crew had actually been nervous about the day before because they only have one day to film everything for three episodes.

But the rain and lightning was really intense, but it only lasted for an hour or so, and all the guests either sheltered in buildings or back in their cars, nobody brought their antique lightning rods.

Once the storm ended, the roadshow crew had to work double time to get back on schedule.

Tickets for the event, have a designate time slot so the venue doesn't get overwhelmed all at once.

But this wasn't their first rodeo and they soon got everything sorted out.

Yeah, they sure did.

We've got another segment coming right up where we're going to hear from Marsha and Jill again.

But before we get to that, let's just take another quick look at the thank you gifts we have here on offer today.

And I'll just remind you that if you're not interested in a thank you gift, that is completely fine.

Every donation made right now goes to fund your favorite shows like Antiques Roadshow.

When you're ready to make that donation, you can either call 800 6398303, or you can visit Vermont Public dot org slash Gifts.

Yeah, let's start with these two patches.

We have the brave little state patch and the Vermont public patch.

They're both die cut, which is a nice, high quality way to cut them so they don't fray at the end.

They can either be ironed on or sewn on, whatever your preferences, and you can put them on your backpack or your coat wherever you like.

If you become a sustaining member or just $5 a month, we're going to be really happy to send you one of those patches.

Now, for $12 a month, we have stainless steel, 16 ounce tumbler.

It is triple insulated.

It is perfect for hot or cold drinks.

If you like that tumbler please visit Vermont public dot org slash gifts at the $12 monthly sustaining level.

We also have these t shirts.

You can see I'm wearing the brave little state t shirt and I am wearing the Vermont public shirt.

Looks great.

Both these shirts are 100% cotton.

They've been printed right here in Colchester and they're super comfortable.

They show the world you care about public media.

It's a great gift and it wouldn't be public media if we didn't have a tote bag for you.

These are tote bags that are printed right here in Colchester.

They're made of cotton and recycled plastic bottles.

We get a great feel, super strong, durable.

And if you'd like one of these bags, then please become a sustaining member at $10 a month.

The easiest way to do that is by visiting Vermont Public dot org slash Gifts.

Yep.

And our final gift on offer today is the Vermont public hat.

This hat is 100% cotton.

It's got an adjustable leather back strap.

And again, that logo was embroidered right here in Colchester.

Very proud to be supporting local businesses here.

When you become a sustaining member at $10 a month, we'd be really happy to send you that hat.

Wow.

What a great collection of gifts.

If you've got your eye on one of these gifts, then now is the time to go online or make that call.

Yeah.

While you're making your donation, let's get back to the show.

We'll hear from Marsha and Jill one more time.

I think one of the reasons Antiques Roadshow is so popular is that it really appeals to every person that if you're if you're somebody who's into collecting pottery, if you're somebody who's into, you know, paintings and, you know, sculpture or whatever or you're just somebody who likes interesting stories.

There's these because these segments take place in 3 to 5 minutes.

If a story can be so compelling to you and or if not, then wait 3 minutes and the next story will be.

So I think people love it because they can like drop in at any moment and say, Oh, this is great.

I think it's important to support Vermont public because there aren't a lot of outlets for this type of television.

I mean, Antiques Roadshow is really the true reality television program that's really based in in educating, inspiring folks about our collective history.

So when you're looking for something that you can really believe in, I think that Antiques Roadshow is one of the truest forms of that reality style television.

So really tells all of our stories.

And that's what we're all here to talk about.

You know, public television is supported by your tax dollars.

It's supported by donors and it's supported by- you hear this on every Antiques Roadshow.

Viewers like you, we need viewers like you to contribute antiques Roadshow would not be here today if we didn't have support from viewers like you.

We really put the public in public television and the appraisers are volunteers.

So many of the staff working tomorrow will be from Vermont public recruited, but we still need cash and so does every other production.

People who work need to be paid those kinds of very realistic things.

And your contributions, contributions that the public makes, makes a difference, makes a real difference.

What Marsha and Jill are talking about, it's true.

PBS occupies a really special place on television, whether it's kids programing like Sesame Street or Daniel Tiger or the Unbiased News of PBS NewsHour or that information entertainment combination of Antiques Roadshow, PBS is a trusted channel.

For decades, viewers like you have kept PBS thriving with your financial contribution.

And we're asking you today to continue your support of Vermont public.

And of course, today it's a perfect day to make that show of support, because when you do, you will receive one of these amazing thank you gifts before the end of our show.

Let's go through those.

Thank you gifts one more time.

And if you haven't donated yet, please take a moment to do that.

Now you can call or you can visit Vermont Public dot org slash gifts.

David, what's your favorite thank you gift we have here?

Oh, whats my favorite?

I guess my favorite is probably the tote bag.

I also have one of these tote bags myself.

It's a classic public media gift.

I use it all the time and mine's a little dirty.

I got to run it through the wash, but luckily it's really strong.

It's made of cotton and recycled materials.

It's going to hold up great.

And it's yours for a donation of $10 a month.

I should probably ask you about your favorite as well.

Thank you for asking, David.

My favorite is actually these cute little patches.

Yeah.

The great to keep for yourself like I did.

Or you can make an easy gift of it and help share the love of public media and Vermont public with your friends, neighbors, kids, anyone special in your life.

If you'd like one of those patches, please become a sustaining member at just $5 a month.

Yeah, and we've also got the t shirts.

I've got the brave little state shirt, you've got the Vermont public shirt.

You know, they look great because you can see us in them and either shirt is going to be yours when you donate $12 a month as a monthly sustainer.

And you can do that by calling.

You can also visit Vermont public dot org slash gifts.

We've got the tumbler option for those of you who commute to work or just like to keep your beverage in something very cool and very public media maybe you listen to Morning Edition on your way into work and this tumbler will keep your favorite beverage hot or cold for hours, and that is yours when you donate $12 a month.

And the final gift we have to offer today is the hat that's very comfortable, it's very durable.

It's got an adjustable leather strap which always comes in handy.

You never know what your head's going to do on any given day.

So just make that adjustment real quick and that's going to be yours when you donate just $10 a month.

And again, you can make your donation by calling or by visiting Vermont Public dot org slash Gifts.

Every donation that comes in today is going to fund the shows you love shows like Antiques Roadshow that rely on viewers like you on making a financial contribution.

This is the model that makes public media so special.

It's funded directly by you.

We want to thank you so much for choosing to watch Vermont Public today.

We've had a lot of fun showing you some of what happens during the Antiques Roadshow event.

Behind the scenes.

And we just want to thank you for being a member of Vermont public.

Take care.

Bye bye.