The collector
Seasonal Cape Coral resident Jeremiah Pasternak grew up within the antiques business.
“Before I could even walk, I was being pulled around antique fairs in a Radio Flyer wagon,” he said.
Pasternak’s father founded Pasternak Antiques, and at a young age, he started buying and selling vintage toys and sports memorabilia. In high school, his collection expanded to include sneakers and more. Pasternak later found a passion for 20th century design while attending college in Scotland.
“When I got out of school, that’s very much where I took the direction of the business,” he said.
Tonight, Pasternak will make an appearance on the new episode of the “Toy Hunter” on the Travel Channel. “Toys, Toys, Baby” features host Jordan Hembrough on the hunt for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles memorabilia for Rob Van Winkle – Vanilla Ice. The search leads to Pasternak’s Cape home.
Several months ago, Pasternak contacted the show to see if it had any interest in a collection.
“I’ve got a large collection of toys that sort of has just been sitting in my warehouse,” Pasternak said, adding that he invited the show’s host and producers to his family’s storefront in New Hampshire.
The visit in October or November led to Hembrough scooping up some superhero action figures in Pasternak’s collection, which Hembrough then turned around and sold at a well-known toy show. The purchases and sales were featured in a February episode of “Toy Hunter” and spotlighted Pasternak.
“Generally, they just go to people’s houses,” he said, referring to the show’s format.
While coming together on the February episode, it was decided that Hembrough would also visit Pasternak’s Cape home. The show would be working with Van Winkle to find him Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles items to acquire, and the celebrity was interested in starting a collection of sneakers.
Pasternak could accommodate in both categories with items stored at his Cape residence.
“They bought a pair of Air Jordan 1’s from 1985 – new in the box,” he said.
Pasternak received $1,500 for the shoes.
“They also bought a few Ninja Turtle play sets and vehicles,” he said.
Tonight’s episode will showcase the trip to Pasternak’s home and the transactions.
“It’s done at my house,” he said of the filming, noting that Van Winkle should appear in the episode.
“It’s kind of cool to actually know the final destination of what you’re selling,” Pasternak said.
“Toys, Toys, Baby” will air at 9 p.m. today, April 2, on the Travel Channel.
Pasternak explained that he usually spends the winter in Florida, buying items to take north to fill the family’s storefront and the warehouse, which is in Maine. Between he and his father’s combined tastes, the inventory is mid-century modern furniture, Americana, architectural antiques and man cave items.
The father-son team even had a television series based on their business, which aired on the Plant Green Channel in the United States and the Discovery Channel Canada. Called “Born Dealers” in the states and “Natural Born Dealers” in Canada, the shows aired six episodes before being canceled.
For the past year, Pasternak has been working on his own Web-based documentary series.
“It’s really a passion project,” he said.
Called “The Antique Show,” Pasternak and his team have created five 30-minute episodes. The series involves interviews with buyers and sellers and exams the cool and unique finds at large antique shows and flea markets. Pasternak expects that they will complete five to 10 episodes by the end of summer.
“We’re just sort of there to document it,” he said, adding that it is not drama-based like reality TV.
“The Antique Show” runs off of donations from the public to help cover production costs.
For more information or to donate, visit: www.kickstarter.com and search for “The Antique Show.”
For more information about Pasternak Antiques, visit: www.pasternakantiques.com.
Collectors in Southwest Florida who are interested in sharing their collections with Pasternak or who are interested in networking with local collectors can contact Pasternak through either Web site.
“It’s generally a small community wherever you go,” he said.
For additional information on “Toy Hunter,” visit: www.travelchannel.com/tv-shows/toy-hunter.