{"id":17093,"date":"2025-10-26T10:03:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-26T10:03:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/17093\/"},"modified":"2025-10-26T10:03:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-26T10:03:10","slug":"staten-island-collector-turns-passion-for-antiques-into-tv-appearances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/17093\/","title":{"rendered":"Staten Island collector turns passion for antiques into TV appearances"},"content":{"rendered":"

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Mike Pacello describes himself as \u201ca forever 10-year-old boy.\u201d <\/p>\n

Step into his collection space \u2014 which he refers to as his \u201clair\u201d \u2014 and the nickname makes a little more sense. <\/p>\n

The 59-year-old Great Kills resident has spent over two decades amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities \u2014 items that might make the average person scratch their head, but for Pacello, each piece tells a story.<\/p>\n

\u201cI go into a place and it\u2019s exhilarating,\u201d Pacello said. \u201cIt\u2019s like my Spidey sense starts tingling.\u201d <\/p>\n

His enthusiasm for collecting began to take shape alongside his career as the owner of Mike\u2019s Landscaping of Staten Island, a business he\u2019s run for 34 years. About 20 years ago, after binging episodes of \u201cPawn Stars\u201d and \u201cAmerican Pickers\u201d \u2014 reality shows centered on antique hunting and the business of buying and selling historically significant or unique items \u2014 Pacello found a new passion taking root.<\/p>\n

\"MikeMike Pacello, 59, of Great Kills, has spent years amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

That passion also led to an unexpected friendship through a routine eBay transaction, as an exchange of emails between strangers blossomed into a 13-year friendship with Frank Fritz of \u201cAmerican Pickers,\u201d who passed away in 2024 at the age of 60.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrank and I were cut from the same cloth,\u201d Pacello recalled fondly. \u201cHe was like the everyman collector. He collected what he liked, and it wasn\u2019t always about valuable stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

What started as casual weekend treasure hunts soon became a full-blown obsession \u2014 one that\u2019s taken Pacello across the country and landed him on television. <\/p>\n

\"MikeMike Pacello, 59, of Great Kills, has spent years amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can say I\u2019m a frugal buyer,\u201d he noted. \u201cA lot of this stuff doesn\u2019t have tremendous value, but it\u2019s stuff that I like.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pacello\u2019s collecting philosophy is simple and sincere: \u201cThe collection will never be complete, because I don\u2019t even know what I\u2019m looking for sometimes.\u201d <\/p>\n

That open-ended curiosity has led him to discover everything from 1920s cast iron toys and quirky advertising pieces to a taxidermied turtle cigar ashtray from the Victorian era. <\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes I don\u2019t even know what I\u2019m looking for until I see it,\u201d he explained. \u201cAnd then I\u2019m like, holy s—, what\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MikeMike Pacello, 59, of Great Kills, has spent years amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

His dedication means weekends are often packed with early mornings at the Chelsea Flea Market in Manhattan before moving on to other flea markets and collector shows in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Between stops, his phone buzzes with fellow collectors and dealers calling with invitations to private viewings and estate sales throughout the region.<\/p>\n

Pacello\u2019s network extends far beyond the tri-state area thanks to his management of a Facebook group called \u201cI Love Old Junk<\/a>,\u201d which boasts more than 20,000 active members. Established around 2019, the group serves as a space where members can buy, sell, trade and share photos of their most unique weekly finds that at a minimum, are pre-1980. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s mostly people showing off their hauls,\u201d he said. \u201cLike, \u2018Hey, check out this devil thing I found today,\u2019 or \u2018Look at this army helmet.\u2019 It could be anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pacello\u2019s expertise and reputation in the collecting community eventually caught the attention of TV producers, resulting in appearances on \u201cComic Book Men,\u201d produced by filmmaker Kevin Smith, and nine episodes of the Las Vegas-based \u201cPawn Stars\u201d between 2013 and 2024. During these segments, he sold some early comic strip character toys and salesman samples but turned down offers for pieces he decided were too sentimental to part with. <\/p>\n

Back in the \u201clair,\u201d Pacello proudly displays one of his most cherished finds \u2014 an 1878 mechanical bulldog savings bank, discovered in pieces inside a dust-covered box while antiquing in Florida with his son, Michael. After extensive restoration, the clockwork mechanism came back to life: a bulldog leaps up, \u201ceats\u201d a coin, and drops it into the bank. <\/p>\n

Interestingly, dog-themed items are sprinkled throughout his collection \u2014 a nod to his 2-year-old Boston terrier, Hubley, named after the historic Hubley toy company that operated from the late 1800s through the 1950s.<\/p>\n

\"MikeA display of “Popeye the Sailor Man.”(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

A particular draw for Pacello is cast iron collectibles. \u201cThat old cast iron patina just grabs me \u2014 there\u2019s something special about it,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing like it, man; it\u2019s just phenomenal.\u201d <\/p>\n

His appreciation partly stems from frustration with modern throwaway culture. \u201cThis is a disposable society now. You buy something, and it lasts five, maybe 10 years. They make appliances like that these days.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many pieces in his collection also carry personal memories. A blue section of a Coca-Cola sign reminds him of the paint in his grandmother\u2019s Brooklyn kitchen. A poster for the 1963 B-movie \u201cThe Day of the Triffids\u201d transports him back to childhood, when he and his grandfather watched the invasion of carnivorous plants that both thrilled and freaked him out. Even his first soda-bottle find \u2014 a rare \u201cSweetie\u201d from Philadelphia \u2014 sparked a lifelong fascination with advertising collectibles.<\/p>\n

\"MikeOne of Mike Pacello’s most cherished finds \u2014 an 1878 mechanical bulldog savings bank featuring a bulldog that leaps up, \u201ceats\u201d a coin, and drops it into the bank.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

While Pacello stores his most valuable pieces safely off-site, he surrounds himself at home with items he enjoys looking at and that simply make him happy. <\/p>\n

Beyond collecting, he and a close circle of friends regularly explore abandoned areas across Staten Island, from the old Sea View Hospital to Annadale\u2019s Spanish Camp to Clay Pit Ponds State Park Preserve in Charleston to parts of Fort Wadsworth. <\/p>\n

These urban adventures occasionally yield rare finds, though they come with risks \u2014 he said a fall suffered in early 2024 at Sea View left him with a souvenir scar from a severe facial laceration requiring 38 stitches.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t even know what I landed on, but I had a hole in my face,\u201d he said. \u201cI was weirdly calm though and went straight to the ER.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"MikeMike Pacello, 59, of Great Kills, has spent years amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

When he\u2019s not out treasure hunting or exploring, Pacello can usually be found researching his latest acquisitions. \u201cI say it all the time \u2014 I\u2019m like an encyclopedia of useless information. But it\u2019s not useless, because knowledge is extremely powerful in this hobby.\u201d<\/p>\n

For newcomers eager to start collecting, Pacello offers straightforward advice: \u201cKnowledge is power. Do your research. Know what you\u2019re looking at. Get familiar with your prices. Be patient \u2014 slow your roll, because you\u2019ll find another one for a better price or something else you like even better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MikeMike Pacello, 59, of Great Kills, has spent years amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

His wife Anna, who has been married to him for 38 years and only occasionally joins him on hunts, said, \u201cIt\u2019s something he got into a long time ago, and I\u2019m happy that it turned into a passion that brings him a lot of joy.\u201d <\/p>\n

After decades of collecting \u2014 and the endless search for a spare spot in the lair to display new acquisitions \u2014 Pacello shows no sign of slowing down. The thrill of the hunt keeps him going. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always something to look forward to,\u201d he said. \u201cI work my a– off all week, and I can\u2019t wait for the weekend to get back out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you are or know a Staten Islander with a unique hobby or profession, please email Scott R. Axelrod at saxelrod@siadvance.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"MikeDog-themed items are sprinkled throughout Mike Pacello’s collecton \u2014 a nod to his 2-year-old Boston Terrier, Hubley, named after the historic Hubley toy company that operated from the late 1800s through the 1950s.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)\"MikeMike Pacello, 59, of Great Kills, has spent years amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)\"MikeMike Pacello, 59, of Great Kills, has spent years amassing an eclectic collection of cast iron toys, vintage advertising, Americana, pop culture memorabilia and curious oddities.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

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