KITTEN COLLECTIBLES #14: Boldly Going to Boise

In addition to watching and writing about films, I’m something of a memorabilia collector. I ain’t out there bidding on Dorothy’s ruby slippers or anything, but certainly enjoy haunting local shops for a variety of movie-related stuff. Or when feeling particularly bold, I’ll occasionally overpay for some retro relic on eBay. More often than not, I leave stores empty-handed. But every now and then, I’ll find a small treasure that doesn’t completely empty my wallet and give it a new home in the Dave Cave.

A Treasure Hunt by D.M. ANDERSON💀

My niece recently got married, a cause for celebration, of course. While my family and I were privileged to attend, the downside was that they live in Boise, Idaho…a seven hour drive away. That’s a long fucking time in a car to visit a town I’ve never been remotely interested in even driving through, let alone staying for a few days. In the eyes of some of us Oregonians, Idaho is mostly populated by potato farmers, doomsday preppers and Proud Boys.

But I was reminded by my wife, Francie, that Boise itself is a college town, so maybe it’s the lone liberal island in a sea of pick-ups and MAGA hats…and since we were going there anyway, maybe it was worth exploring after the wedding. I fought the urge to counter with, “If Boise is so enlightened, then why does its stadium have a blue football field?” 

So here are my takeaways after experiencing a taste of Boise: It’s windy as fuck, the streets are a logistical nightmare, weed is illegal and their zoo is one of the most depressing tourist attractions I ever paid to visit (the few animals we actually saw looked like they were two opposable thumbs away from trying to hang themselves). On the plus side, I discovered chicken & waffles are pretty good, the freeway speed limit is 80 mph and, most importantly, there’s a huge overpriced antique store. Although this one had more than the usual quota of John Wayne commemorative china (comes with the territory, I guess), I generally love huge overpriced antique stores. 

Lunch...boldly boxed.

It was here, of all places, that I found a vintage Star Trek: The Motion Picture lunchbox. Considering what they were asking, it was a little beat-up, but hey…I’d never seen one before…or any other Star Trek: TMP stuff for that matter. Though not exactly the most revered film in the franchise, I’ve always carried a nostalgic torch for this one because my mom took me to see it back in ‘79, which was when I discovered she was always a closet Trekkie, bless her heart. Shortly after scoring that find, my family and I beamed the hell out of there, taking with us the only thing in Boise worth a seven hour drive…besides the wedding, of course. 

Here’s the weird part of The Voyage Home (see what I did there?). I talked Francie into swinging by another huge overpriced antique store located in the small town of Bingen, Washington. We’d been to that place a few times before when driving to visit my mother-in-law and I always manage to find something interesting. This time it was a second piece of Star Trek: The Motion Picture memorabilia I never knew existed.

With those feet, it looks like Annie Wilkes paid Kirk a little visit.

This is a 13-inch Captain Kirk “soft poseable figure” made by the Knickerbocker Toy Company, best known for manufacturing Raggedy Ann dolls. In other words, it’s a plushy with William Shatner’s head, not even an action figure (and certainly not poseable, despite what the box says). It’s kinda creepy looking and I’m pretty sure it ain’t something I’d want to sleep with (I’m not that big of a Shatner fan), so I’m kinda curious how many kids back in ‘79 would’ve been excited to find this under the Christmas tree. Perhaps none, which might explain why it was still in its original box (though pretty beat up, so I freed Kirk from his 47-year Man Trap (see what I did there, too?).

In the span of a single weekend boldly going where no Dave has gone before, I managed to snag two pieces of vintage Star Trek: The Motion Picture tie-in products, having previously never seen any. What are the odds of that? However, I think I might regret taking Shatner out of his box. Not because it reduces his value, but the way he’s staring at me from where he’s perched on the sofa is kind of unnerving.

Potential nightmare fuel.