Quote:
Originally Posted by BobC
Seem to remember seeing/hearing a story from somewhere about Rosen having a meltdown at the first National ever held at Cleveland's IX Center. It was patented Rosen behavior to always try to have the very first table/booth inside the entrance door at every show he set up at so he had the first crack at buying things from anyone walking in with something to potentially sell. I remember him literally calling out to all people walking in to the National, and haranguing them to come right over to see him, just like a carnival barker trying to get people to buy a ticket to the side show. At the IX Center though, I heard Rosen wasn't aware in advance of that year's National that there were actually two show entrances, at opposite ends of the building. So he was supposedly pissed that whatever he had to pay/do to get that first booth/table inside the entrance was really only going to get him a first shot at about half the people attending, and not all of them like he wanted. I believe as a result he never came back and set up at another National after that, at least not in Cleveland. Feel free to correct me for any inaccuracies.
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Can't vouch for the IX Center story, but sounds just like him. For years, at every major show in the Northeast, you had to get past the Rosen gauntlet at the entrance. At one of my first shows ever, in 1991, I walked over to him with that year's HOF pin and charm, which at that time were hot commodities, and put them on the table. When he saw what they were, he pushed them back across the table to me, and wheeled his chair 180 degrees away. He never looked at me the whole time and never said a word. I never spoke to him again for the following few decades we were at shows together. The HOF pin and charm, by the way, brought me $700 from one of the next dealers I talked to.