CBS Sportscaster Icon John Derr and Margaret Garabrant Derr Estate

Please join A Sweet Transition Estate Sales and Gay Gasper Estate Sales on Saturday, October 3 at the Weymouth Center in Southern Pines, North Carolina, as we offer choice and rare items from the estate of John Derr of Pinehurst.

WE HAVE RECEIVED CALLS ASKING WHAT THE LINEUP PROCEDURE WILL BE...   as we expect lots of early arrivals for this sale, just wanted to go over the procedure for getting organized.  

The first person to arrive at the sale with the intention of staying will start a list at the door.  That person is #1.  The next person to arrive intending to wait is #2.  and so on.  You don't have to stand at the door - you can wait in the are in your car - but no putting your name on the list and leaving.  Also,  in fairness to those who have come early and waited, put only your name on the list - your friends can put their names on the list when they arrive.

There will be an armed police officer on site - we will let him know that earlybirds will be creating a list and lining up early.

We WILL be handing out numbers at 6:30 a.m. to anyone whose name is on the list.  Once you have a number, you can go get coffee, bathroom break, etc., but return no later than 7:45, and line up in the order of your number.  The sale will start at 8 a.m. .

(Scroll down to see hundreds of great photos)

John Derr was a veteran CBS sportscaster who covered the Masters golf tournament a record 62 times, broadcasting from the 15th green when it was televised for the very first time. He also covered baseball's World Series, the Olympics, and national news.

During WWII Derr was enlisted, and wrote for The CBI Roundup covering the China -Burma - India Theater.

Derr and his wife Margaret forged lifelong relationships with some of golf's giants, such as Bill Hogan, Sam Snead, and Byron Nelson.  His career also made it possible to meet many luminaries of the time, such as Mahatma Ghandi, Albert Einstein and Henry Ford. He wrote about his encounters in his third book, "My Place at the Table."

Margaret (Derr's wife) was an avid historian and kept 40 years of detailed scrapbooks, including handwritten letters from Sam Snead, Vin Scully, Red Barber, President Eisenhower, Bing Crosby, and many other sports and celebrity notables. The scrapbooks contain 40 years of ticket stubs, correspondence, programs, sport cards, and photographs.

Each scrapbook is unique.

1953 contains The CBS Coronation Souvenir Booklet (created by Feliks Topolski), English & Belgian currency, stamps, and in-depth letters written from England referring to time spent with golfers Mangrum, Hogan, and Stranahan.

There's a 1951 Ryder Cup official Program signed by 10 professional golfers, including, Sam Snead, Lloyd Mangrum,  Ed "Porky" Oliver, Jack Burke, Skippy Alexander, Henry Ransom, Dutch Harrison, and two others. There's a handwritten card from tennis player Gussy Moran talking about a party for Bobby Riggs.

1954-1955's scrapbook reveals friction within CBS radio,  with Senator McCarthy continuing to put pressure on CBS as a suspected leftist news source.  There are letters from Ed Murrow, Red Barber, William Bill Kaiser, Frank Stanton, Paul Zimmerman of the LA Times, Vin Scully, Jim McCay and more.  Eventually there are letters specific to the firing of Derr and the breakdown of CBS. Red Barber has left and Murrow is on his way out.

**We have found a typewritten personal letter from Jean Harlow (under a nickname) to Ted Husing.   The letter is typewritten on Harlow's letterhead, and addressed to Husing.**

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Derr's wife Margaret also was an antique collector with a good eye for majolica, art, ceramics, and art nouveau and art deco jewelry.   There's sterling silver, a wonderful "mixed metal" picture frame with insects and leaves, nice slag glass lamps, antique Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls, you name it. 

Margaret's mother Marguerite Gephart was an opera singer for RCA and sang at the New York Metropolitan Opera House. Included in the sale is a fan signed by all the Met Opera Singers in 1919.

Lovely antique mesh handbags (one Peacock bag by Whiting is in the original box), vintage/antique silk kimonos, vintage dresses and hats, and all sorts of fun vintage costume jewelry will be in the sale. 

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Derr was good friends with author Robert May Rudolph the Rednose Reindeer. He has early Rudolph books, toys, and a book May published specifically for friends that had encouraged him. The small leather gold embossed booked inscribed by May is one of ten that were printed. May credited Derr as being instrumental in his writing of Rudolph.
 

Some examples of the great board games, comic books and books in the sale:

Board Games

Antique Books & Games

Comic Books