Museum of [
Miscellanea j
Lincoln home boasts
kitschy bric-a-brac I
By Sean McCarthy
Assignment Reporter
In Charles Johnson’s Museum of the
Odd, precious heirlooms are plastic, the
literature is campy and horror stories and
the Beta format reign supreme.
Johnson’s lifelong collection of bric-a
brac, albums and comic books (graphic
novels for the elitist) have given his
Lincoln home the look of a museum.
Since 1956, Johnson has accumulated,
sold and displayed the stuff of modern
Americana. It has been happening since he
first cut out “Dennis the Menace” comic
strips as an 8-year-old.
I sort of identified ‘Dennis the
Menace’ as a role model,” Johnson said.
He continued in grade school collect
ing stamps and moved on to horror novels
in high school. Be it the graphic horror
magazines of the 1950s or the campy ele
ments in stories such as “The Creature of
the Black Lagoon,” horror is a predomi
nant theme in Johnson’s museum..
On the main floor, visitors can admire
Johnson’s collection of more than 200
Beta videocassette tapes, his extensive
album collection and squeaky, rubber ani
mals - although some have lost their
squeak, Johnson said.
A wall-sized plastic jack-o-lantern
monument also stands on the main floor.
More than two dozen plastic pails stare
down patrons. Halloween lights shine over
some of the pails for added effect.
“It’s always Halloween here,” Johnson
said.
As you ascend the stairs, severed doll
heads - getting bigger with every step -
look on from the left side. For some, the
climatic scene of I
“Apocalypse Now” may |
come to mind: “The hor
ror ... the horror ...”
Upstairs, the tacky
trinkets and ornaments
on display would drop
Martha Stewart like a
four-vessel cerebral
hemorrhage. Thousands
of detective novels, a
Rock ’em Sock ’em
ivODois Doxing ring ana a
small army of Godzillas
await curious attendees.
The crown jewel for
Johnson is his 1956
lopps baseball card set.
The Mickey Mantle card alone sells for
about $1,500, he said.
Comics of “The Beverly Hillbillies”
and the original “Mad” - before it became
“Mad Magazine” - rest shrink-wrapped in
Johnson’s upstairs domain.
While the collection is mind-boggling,
its meticulous organization is even more
bizarre. Each crevice of Johnson’s house is
filled with his various collections.
Monday, Johnson displayed a somber look
of concern looking over the boxes of stuff
still packed in his car from a recent auc
tion.
“There aren’t that many empty spaces
in here,” Johnson said, “I’m trying to fig
ure out where the heck I’m going to put it.”
Luckily for Johnson, he’s been able to
make his love for acquiring stuff a full
time occupation. This past year, Johnson
quit his regular job insulating pipes to
become a full-time collector and dealer.
Johnson says he mostly liked his former
job.
“It was kind of fun in a way,
but really itchy,” he said.
Johnson now travels to thrift
stores and auctions across the
nation. Though he’s been as far
as New York, Johnson said he
could acquire most of the mate
rials he needs through local auc-,.
tiottS. '
The Museum of the Odd has,
amassed some celebrity visitors
over the years. Porn star turned
blues woman Candye Kane and
Zoo Bar favorite Magic Slim are
among Johnson’s esteemed
patrons.
rT 1__11_A :_ . .. . _ , t
i nv vuuvt uuu auiaucu
national attention in June when
the F/X channel telecast from
Johnson’s house.
“I was a little nervous, but I
came through well,” he said. “It
was a lot of fun.”
Johnson said some of
” 1 his influences included
^ 4 director David Lynch, car
S£j! toonist Robert Crumb and
| .the king of camp, John
I Waters. Johnson said he
I admired Waters’ kitschy,
WM bad taste.
9 “If I’d met him, we’d
3ll have had a lot to talk
about,” Johnson said.
, :m Those interested in
touring Johnson’s Museum
^ll of the Odd should call
(402) 476-6735 for
fljjjfl appointments and direc
I tions. The cost for visiting
I is free, but bringing a pre
I sent for Johnson would be
I nice, he said.
•*' ■'iii-* s. ■ '■ ■” - St1
CHARLES JOHNSON shows that his eclectic collection of pop culture paraphernalia flows over into his bathroom.
Johnson is a self-proclaimed purveyor of popular culture ephemera. “I kind of like stuff that's maybe a little tacky
or in bad taste,” he said.
Sandy Summers/DN I
Old broken dolls lie 1
in a row on the porch |
of the Museum of
the Odd.
Sandy Summers/DN
A RAG DOLL hangs draped over the top of an old reading
lamp.
Athens’ Funkomatic fuses funk, rock, blues
By Sean McCarthy
Assignment Reporter
It’s hydromatic. It’s systematic.
It’s Funkomatic.
Formed in 1994, Funkomatic
blends elements of funk, soul, R&B
and rock, for starters, in its energetic
live shows.
The band puts it in overdrive for
Duffy’s Tavern patrons tonight at 10.
Bassist Ted Pecchio said the band
formed in Athens, Ga., to perform old
funk tunes. Sly and the Family Stone,
James Brown and George Clinton
were among the initial covers.
“In two months, we felt like we
really had something going on,”
Pecchio said.
Other members fit the band
include alto saxophonist and lead
vocalist Terry Weaver, guitarist
Jason Salzman and
keyboardist/organist Chris
Queen.
Funkomatic played more than 200
high-energy shows last year alone,
Pecchio said. One thing that has been
consistent for all of them: The
Hammond Organ goes to all the clubs
and bars.
In a Philadeiphia club, band
members hoisted the 500-pound
organ above their heads, up a
flight of stairs and up and down
fire escapes, Pecchio said.
The band is touring to support its
latest album, “Living on One,” on
Arch Records. Pecchio said he
planned on recording a funk opera
within the next couple of months.
Bernie Worrell, a keyboardist in
George Clinton’s band, is set to pro
duce the record, Pecchio said. The
opera involves stealing and returning
the soul of Earth.
Some of Pecchio’s influences
include Sly and the Family Stone,
Jimi Hendrix and James Brown, he
said.
“Any time I hear James
Brown, it puts my heart in a
tizzy,” Pecchio said.
Two of his favorite albums
are The Beatles’ “Sergeant
■ .w
Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club
Band” and “Stand” from Sly
and the Family Stone.
Funkomatic has played
Duffy’s Tavern twice this year.
Pecchio said he was anxious to
play the venue again, if only to
see Brad, a bartender there.
“Brad’s this gruff, disgruntled,
wiry-bearded bartender,” Pecchio5
said. “He hated everybody, but he
somehow took a liking to us.”
For those wishing to give up the
funk tonight, the cost is $4.
