Profiles Jem'Hadar ship NOT from Christie's

The Jem'Hadar model, lot # 1487, as offered by Profiles in History is not the screen used model that was sold by Christie's in the 2006 Star Trek sale. It is most likely not production made either. Here is what I can tell you for sure.

When I visited Profiles in History to view the Star Trek lots, I got to see the Jem Hadar model . Joe Madalena was there and said it was the one from Christie's. I inquired about that as I knew it was a model I had been offered in 2007, but he insisted. Now I knew the telltale was that the Profiles one has wires, and the real screen used version, sold at Christie's, didn't have wires. SFX models never do. That are mounted on poles or motion control rigs.

In the Profiles picture above, where you can see the wire in the front nose of the ship sticking up. In the photos below you can see the wires very clearly.

I can say positively that the Profiles version is it is not from Christie's. It is unclear if this was even production made, though it supposedly was made by the effects house that made the screen used one that Christie's sold. The owner got the model from the effects shop around 1999. It may have been made at the same time as the one delivered to Paramount, but never delivered to production.

How we know this is not the Christie's Model

First of all, the collector who offered it to me said it wasn't when I contacted him Saturday. He was just the broker at the time, but he is very solid and represented the seller.

Second, the Profiles version doesn't match the image from Christie's. There are a number of tells, most notably that the Profiles version has wires for hanging the model. The Christie's version had no such wires. Joe Madalena claimed that the wires were for hanging the model for effects shot, something stated in the description:

Star Trek never hung models like this, they were mounted on a pole for motion control and filming.

Here is an image of the real model that Christie's sold being filmed for DS9. (courtesy of Doug Drexler). Note the ship is mounted upside down so they could shoot the bottom of the ship, which is the angle we most often saw.


Not only does the real model not have wires, but there were a lot of white marks on the leading edges of the wings on the Profiles model (seen on the left wing in the Profile photo above, but very noticeable in person). The colors seem very different, but that might be the lighting in the photos.

Also, the Christie's version was lighted and this one is not. There is no question these are two different models.

Here is the real, screen used model, sold by Christie's:


The photos below are of the model in the Profiles auction, taken by the owner and sent to me when the owner was trying to sell the model in 2007. You can clearly see the wires.


What is this model?

This model was not found at Paramount they way every other Star Trek model was. While props and costumes went out from the studio (some through the front door, some through the back door), models were closely guarded and every major model was accounted for either in the Christies or IAW auctions, or are still property of CBS and on the Star Trek Tour. All were crated and put in storage. There is no way a model like this, if it was delivered to Paramount, wasn't kept there. And never were there two of the same size model made. They didn't make "Back-ups". Star Trek never ordered two of the same ship model. In fact, look back at the Christie's auction and all the other models and there were only one of each size made. (There were 3 Enterprise "D", all of different sizes for different shots.)

This model was bought by the owner directly from the effects shop around 1999, which is when Deep Space Nine finished filming. It is highly doubtful that if the model was made for the production, that they would have sold it. That is asking for a major lawsuit and would be theft. But, if the shop made it for their own use, then that would be no problem.

The photo below show the ship as it hung in the effects shop that built it.



Conclusion

This model is not a screen used piece. It most likely wasn't made for Paramount either, but instead made by the model shop for their own display purposes.

I assume Profiles claimed this was from Christie's because the consignor told them it was. That bothers me a great deal. Why would someone lie about this?

Well, if you answer that question, you will understand the inherent problem with this hobby.

Alec

I was thrown out of this church

By chance, I chance across a photo of Drimnagh, Dublin, taken in the 1940s. It was then a new suburb of Dublin and I spent the first three years of my life there, before we moved in 1946 to the northside of the city where I had been born. (The Northside/Southside distinction is very important for Dubliners!) The street where we lived is not in the photo but is to the right of the area shown. However, the newly-built church of Our Lady of Good Counsel, Mourne Road, is very clear, with the new parish school to its right. In Dublin people always refer to a Catholic church by its street name rather than by its patronal name.

On a Christmas weekday in 1945, or it could have been very early in January 1946, my mother, pregnant at the time, took me to Mass. I was a few months short of three. It seems I shouted 'Bah' at the Infant Jesus in the crib. The priest ordered my mother and myself out. It seems he was 'ably assisted' by an older woman who made sure my mother understood what the priest had said.

I'm sure the priest had got out of bed 'on the wrong side' that morning, as I sometimes do myself. My father went to see him some days later but the priest didn't apologise. It would have helped had he done so.

I have one memory of the incident, a 'photo' in my mind while walking home. As you can imagine, it was a shattering incident for my mother. My father went to see the priest but he never apologised. However, whenever my mother told this story she always mentioned that the same priest (not the priest in the inset above but a curate, as an assistant priest is known in Ireland), having moved to the parish where my mother had grown up, couldn't have been kinder to her younger sister Madge in her last illness. Auntie Madge died on 3 February 1950 at the age of 26. Hers was my first experience with the death of someone close to me. My mother brought me to the wake.

I was at home during Lent 1991 and Our Lady of Good Counsel parish asked for a Columban to preach at all the Masses one weekend in connection with a 24-hour fast by secondary school students to raise funds for Trócaire, the development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland. Fr Michael Scully, the Columban Vice Superior in Ireland at the time, who knew nothing about my connection with Drimnagh, asked me if I could respond to the request.

I had the best opening line ever to a homily: 'I was thrown out of this church'. (In Dublin dialect that would be 'I was thrun ouhah this church'.) My mother died in 1970 and as I repeated my homily I felt a vicarious healing on her behalf. I also discovered that the parish was formally established eleven days before my birth. Now it's part of a cluster of three parishes working together as a unit

This incident has helped me more than once, though it's essentially a story rather than an experience for me. I have been very harsh with people on occasion in church. But whenever this has happened I've had the grace to ask the person later for forgiveness. And I'm usually very patient with small children making noise, though once or twice I've had to ask quietly if the parent or guardian could take care of a particular child.

One situation that does get to me here in the Philippines is children playing with coins on the floor of a church or chapel. However, I grin and bear it and it's a very long time since I've been in such a situation.

From the parish website

I found this photo on the parish website. Our Lady's Children's Hospital is in nearby Crumlin.. The words in Irish Gaelic mean 'Your two arms around them, O Christ'. A beautiful memorial.

Profiles in History Auction Preview Part 1

Yesterday I got the chance to visit Profiles in History to examine some of the Star Trek props myself and others have expressed an interest in. I had arranged this with Brian Chanes, Joe Madalena's right hand man, but sadly, Brian's father passed away on Monday and our prayers are with Brian and his family. In Brian's absence, Ryan Dohm and Fong Sam greeted my friends and I and showed us the goods. Joe himself came out and answered questions as well. So we were very well treated and got to see everything we wanted to see.

This is the biggest Star Trek live auction since Christies in 2006 and there is a huge selection of hand props. A lot of people on the Star Trek Prop, Costume & Auction Forum have been asking me where all these props came from, especially since much of this should have been in either the Christie's or It's a Wrap auctions. Well, there are multiple consignors, but the majority of the hand props are from a well known LA prop collector. He bought most of this from someone who worked at the Paramount warehouses and sold them out the back door to him over a period of years.

Because of this, a lot of collectors have been worried about buying these items. So I spoke to the people in charge at both Paramount and CBS to make sure there would be no repercussions if people won these items, and both basically said the same thing: that it happened a while ago and they have no intention of doing anything about it. So you need not worry about Paramount or CBS coming for their property!

Of course a lot of people don't want to talk about this, but it is the dirty little secret of the Hollywood memorabilia hobby: much of it walked out the back door! And the studios usually haven't worried about it, since previously they never really valued these items much. But now things are different. Because of the Christie's Star Trek auction or the Propworx BSG auction, studios now realize they have a real asset on their hands. The head of asset management at Paramount has made it very clear that if anything from the new movie gets out, they will go to whatever lengths to recover it (the items in Julien's auction were cleared for auction for charity by JJ himself). So this situation won't be happening with Star Trek again.

So back to Profiles. I examined over 50 lots and none failed to meet my expectations. This really is a good selection of items. There are so many great props that I think everyone will find something they like. Over the next two weeks I will be highlighting some of these items.



Let's start with the Tricorders! I mean there are TWELVE of them! You wonder why Christies or IAW had none? Well, here they are.

What I did was make a spreadsheet of them all.


So if you want a Tricorder, this is your best chance. There are so many that the prices are bound to be lower. Last Profiles auction a medical Tricorder went for a hefty $ 10,000. I think that is way too high. There have been two working Tricorder sales in the last year for $ 5,000 each, and I think $ 5-8,000 is about right depending on the version.

So keep checking back, and I will be posting more thoughts on all three Star Trek auctions.

Alec

Star Trek Summer Auction Preview

Well, now that all three summer Star Trek Auctions have their catalogs out, it is time for a brief review of the offerings. I will do this in chronological order. Full Disclosure: Propworx is my company so I might be a little biased! :-)

Auction: Profiles in History Hollywood Auction # 40

Where: Profiles in History Offices, Calabasas, CA

When: Saturday, June 12, 2010

Details: 292 lots, mostly hand props. Of this, 10 are TOS props & costumes with additional assorted ephemera. An excellent selection of props from TNG on up.

Highlights: Balock Puppet Head from TOS. 12 Tricorders in one auction!

Profiles is the biggest Hollywood memorabilia auction house. They have a 3 day auction and 1533 lots, of which 292 are Star Trek, which are auctioned on Day 3 of the sale. They have picked up the quality of their Star Trek research by using Jorg, so there are no mis-identifications and the descriptions are pretty accurate. Good photography with small screen shots of many items does most items justice. I would like to see bigger photos and less items per page; a difficult proposition with so many items though.

The auction will be trying for most collectors without big wallets in bad economic times. There are so many good items, and prices may be depressed with so much quality. I know I won't be able to afford all I want, but I hope prices will stay down and there will be some real bargains on the non-weaponry.


Auction: Julien's Summer Sale

Where: Planet Hollywood Hotel, Las Vegas, NV

When: Sunday, June 27, 2010

Details: Roddenberry Estate Sale, Shatner memorabilia, 17 JJ Movie props & costumes.

Highlights: The 17 items from the new Star Trek movie. Spock parka is the best piece.

The Roddenberry and Shatner stuff is mostly not of interest to prop & costume collectors. While Julien's does a great job with this catalog, I wonder how big the audience for these items are. The Roddenberry items are interesting, if only to give an insight to the Roddenberry's life. There are some great Majel Roddenberry Lwaxana Troi costumes that will go strong I think. Many of the Shatner items are incredibly BLAH! I mean toys?

The 17 new Star Trek movie items are all very good and the first we have seen for the most part. However, I think these will all go way too high. Collectors need to remember that these pieces are part of a much larger inventory that at some point will get sold by Paramount. So if you are patient, you can get what you want a few years form now much cheaper. I mean, how many Red Cadet costumes did you see in that movie?

The props are different. Not many of those. They will all go high. The communicator will go over $ 10,000 for sure. There is one item I am after and I expect to pay WAY too much. As long as you accept that you are over-paying, and you know that means you will probably not get your investment back, you will be fine.


Auction: Propworx Star Trek Auction

Where: Las Vegas Hilton, Las Vegas, NV

When: August 8, 2010

Details: Doug Drexler, Mike & Denise Okuda and Rick Sternbach collections.

Highlights: TOS Translight, Kirk Spacesuit filming miniature, 5 dedication plaques.

Oh what can I say? Certainly the most fun of all the auctions since it will be at the Creation Star Trek Convention! 5 days of Star Trek with a few dozen of the Star Trek Prop, Costume & Auction Forum members, is always a blast. There will be a special dinner get-together for Forum members and blog readers so be prepared to make new friends and socialize with old ones. Oh, and the auction!

I am too close to the Propworx auction to give a fair evaluation of it. We had a blast working on this auction and we know our passion shows through in the catalog. You can download it here.

We think there are some pretty amazing pieces in the auction and we tried to make the catalog something every collector will want, even if you don't bid in the auction. The Sternbach art and Okuda crew gifts both have items that will go in a price range any person can afford. On the other side, the TOS translight and Kirk Space Suit model from TMP are both top of the line. So something for everyone.

What we are shooting for is the best auction experience, and between the catalog and the live auction event, we are pretty sure we will achieve that. After all, life is about experiences, not stuff.


Well, come back tomorrow when I start my review of the Profiles auction!

Alec

Funeral of Fr Pat McCaffrey in Lahore, Pakistan

Fr Pat McCaffrey, 1944-2010. Photo by Fr Gary Walker, April 2010

This account of the funeral of Fr Pat McCaffrey is by Fr Tomás King, ordained in Ireland in 1992 and the current Coordinator of the Columban Mission Unit, Pakistan.

The funeral Mass took place in Sacred Heart, Cathedral, Lahore, on Thursday, 20 May at 3.00pm. Concurrently, a Mass was being celebrated in his home parish of Tempo, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, his classmate Fr Pat Raleigh being the main celebrant. The body arrived in the cathedral from the morgue at 2.30 for viewing. The 'Last Look' is an important custom in Pakistani culture. While people were filing past the coffin the rosary was recited.

Sacred Heart Cathedral, Lahore

Archbishop Lawrence Saldana of Lahore was the main celebrant assisted by Auxiliary Bishop Sebastian Shah OFM and Bishop Joseph Coutts of Faisalabad, formerly of Hyderabad, and a friend of Father Pat and of the Columbans since their arrival in Pakistan in 1979. More than 50 priests from the diocese and beyond attended.

Interior of Sacred Heart Cathedral, Lahore

In the introduction to the Mass Aquif Shazad from the Columban JPIC (Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation) team gave a brief biography of Father Pat's life, after which symbols from the various countries that he had lived and worked in were placed on the coffin. The choir sang some of his favorite Urdu and Punjabi hymns. I gave the homily. The cathedral was packed. It was a moving liturgy and many tears were shed.

Bishop Joseph Coutts

Afterwards the body was taken to St Columban's Parish, Greentown, on the outskirts of Lahore city. Here he was welcomed by roughly 2,000 people from all corners of the parish who were unable to make it to the cathedral. The body was placed in the small church and people lined up and filed past for the 'Last Look.' Again, many tears were shed and prayers said. The graveyard is just at the back of the church and high school. The grave itself is literally a minute’s walk from the church through the church compound entrance. But the people preferred to carry the coffin the long route around to the main entrance, giving as many men as possible an opportunity to carry the coffin.

The grave chosen was under a mature 'people' tree. Prayers at the graveside were led by Fr Joe Joyce, a classmate from Ireland, and Fr Gabriel Rojas, a Columban from Peru. After it was laid in the grave, as is the custom, all present threw a fistful of clay over the coffin. As many women as men were present. While it is changing in Christian circles, it's still uncommon for women to go to cemeteries for burials. Darkness had fallen by the time the grave had been covered in, after which it was covered in rose petals and flowers. Incense sticks and candles were lit.

English Columban Father Denis Carter with friends in Pakistan

Father Pat had been laid to rest under the Lahore sky as the light from the many candles pushed back the darkness and the smoke from the incense sticks carried the prayers of those present, prayers that expressed a hope and belief that he continues to be among us. It was very difficult to walk away.

Rest in peace good and faithful servant.


All proceedings were recorded at the request of Father Pat's family. It was also recorded by a new Catholic TV station which broadcasts within certain parts of Lahore city.

+++

Father Patrick McCaffrey is the second Columban missionary to die in Pakistan. Pilar Tilos, a public school teacher from Hinoba-an, Negros Occidental, Philippines, on her second three-year term as a Columban lay missionary, died suddenly there on 4 January 1996 at the age of 55. She too is buried in Pakistan. We opened our mission there in 1979.

Pilar Tilos (right) with Emma Pabera from Candoni, Negros Occidental (in blue) and Gloria Canama from Tangub City, Misamis Occidental (in white) in Pakistan in the early 1990s. These three were the first group of Filipino Columban Lay Missionaries to be assigned overseas and were known as 'RP1', 'RP' meaning 'Republic of the Philippines'. Gloria is still in Pakistan while Emma was a staff member of the formation team for our lay missionaries in the Philippines for many years after leaving Pakistan.

Fr Pat McCaffrey's Last Hours

Fr Pat McCaffrey Last Hours

This account of Father Patrick McCaffrey’s last few hours were written by Srs Patricia, Eilish and Gretta Gill, Presentation Sisters, Murree, Pakistan. Murree, which could be called 'The Baguio of Pakistan' is at an elevation of  2,291 metres (7,517 feet) while Baguio, in the northern Philippines, is at 1,500 metres (5,100 feet). Wikipedia says 'The name Murree is derived from "marhi", "high place" although there is a popular belief it is named after the Virgin Mary'. Father Pat was my classmate. We entered St Columban's, Dalgan Park, Navan, Ireland, together in September 1961 and were ordained on 21 December 1967, he in St Eugene's Cathedral, Derry, and I in St Mary's Pro-Cathedral, Dublin.

Murree, Pakistan

The reading of the day on which our good friend Fr Pat McCaffrey unexpectedly left us for his eternal abode was very apt indeed. With St Paul, Father Pat could truly address those very words to us all: ‘You know what my way of life has been ever since the first day I set foot among you in Asia. How I have served the Lord in all humility, with all the sorrows and trials that came to me.’ Fr Pat McCaffrey arrived in Presentation Convent Murree on the 17 May in the afternoon. He was visiting three Columban lay missionaries, Paula Matakiviwa, Pita Qolikivikivi, two men recently arrived from Fiji, and Carmela Capistrano, a Filipina on her second term, studying Urdu there. After school at 2:00pm he joined us for a bowl of soup.

Presentation Convent School, Murree

Then he went out for lunch with the students but offered to celebrate Holy Mass for us in the evening at 6.30. We were delighted because, not having a resident priest here in Murree, we have Mass only on Sundays. We informed the Jesus and Mary Sisters too and they joined us for Holy Mass. Father Pat was in the chapel praying away on his own long before Mass time. When the Sisters arrived he came to the front where they were seated and shook hands with each one, welcoming the Jesus and Mary Sisters and asking if they wouldn’t mind waiting for the lay missionaries who would soon be there. During the Mass he spoke beautifully about the coming of the Holy Spirit, Jesus being with us always and the importance of the oft repeated words of Jesus, ‘Be not afraid’. He pointed out that we were eleven people present from five different nationalities. Wasn’t that wonderful? At the end of his sermon he wished us all a happy feast of the Holy Spirit and said he wouldn’t be with us to celebrate but encouraged us to enjoy this great feast of the Church.

The Mall, Murree

After Mass we all stood outside the chapel chatting. He was the last to come out and we teased him saying we were all waiting for the Spirit to come. He started breathing on us saying ‘Here comes the spirit’. He was in great form. Early the following morning, 18 May, at 5:45 we heard a big bang at our small school gate and the man cleaning the road, named Latief, told our watchman that Father Pat had fallen on the road. Sister Eilish and two of our workers rushed out to see what had happened to him and Sister Patricia ran to call Sister Gretta. The other workers brought out the charpai (bed) to put him on it. All our workers and Sister Eilish and Gretta were out in no time. As Sister Gretta blessed him there with holy water and a very special Irish cross handed to her by Sister Patricia. The workers and Sister Gretta rushed him to the Combine Military Hospital (CMH), which is just beside us, on the same charpai. He was attended by Dr Kamran and the staff of CMH without any delay but it was too late to do anything for him. He had already reached his heavenly Father for his reward. At the same time Sisters Eilish and Patricia, who were in the convent, had contacted some people on the phone and three Sisters of Jesus and Mary had also joined Sister Gretta at the hospital. By then we were in the process of getting the doctor to make his death certificate and were calling a few friends to make the arrangements to bring his body down to Pindi and from there to Lahore ,where Father Pat had been working.

Father Pat was brought to the same Chapel where he had celebrated Holy Mass only a few hours before and was now laid out to rest. Prayers were offered by both Christian and Muslim staff members, while all the teaching staff and students of Presentation Convent were stunned, sadly wondering what had happened as they turned the students’ vehicles homewards.

The ambulance was taking time to come so we decided to remove the seats of the big wagon of the Jesus and Mary Convent and take his body down to Pindi in it as soon as possible. Sisters Eilish and Gretta, some workers from the Presentation Convent and some from the Joseph and Mary Convent, as well as Mr Zaffar, Mr Ayub and the Columban lay missionaries travelled down with the body, praying on the way for the soul of this great priest. On our arrival at St Catherine’s Convent, Pindi, we were met by many Sisters from different congregations and Bishop Rufin Anthony of Islamabad-Rawalpindi. The prayers were led by Bishop Rufin in the compound. After the prayers we transferred the body to the ambulance to be taken to Lahore in the company of the three lay missionaries and Mr Zaffar. We very sadly said good bye to him in tears but it was so symbolic to see two Pakistani men, two men from Fiji and a woman from the Philippines travelling with him on his last journey to Lahore. This was to acknowledge him as a great missionary in the true sense. May his soul rest in peace and may the love he had for God and His people continue in many parts of the world. Amen.

Over 1500 downloads! & Propworx Auction FAQ

As of today we passed 1500 downloads of the Star Trek Auction catalog! Thank you all for sharing your comments about how much you love this catalog!

So, some questions that keep being asked:

When: Sunday, August 8th

Where: Las Vegas Hilton at the Creation Star Trek Convention


Will there be a print version of the catalog?

Yes. The print version will be shipped the week of the San Diego Comic Con and available there at our booth as well.

How do I order the catalog?

We will have an order page up soon. Make sure you check out the Star Trek page on propworx that will launch this week. The Catalog will be $ 30 or 2 for $ 40. We are doing this because a lot of people buy one catalog to mark up their wants and use it at the auction, but they want one for their collection. So we are discounting your second copy!

Can I bid online?

Yes! We will most likely be using the same system we used for the Iron Man auction. You will be able to bid in advance, like on eBay, or bid from anywhere in the world!

Do I need a ticket to the Creation Star Trek Convention to attend the auction?

Yes! Sorry, but you have to buy a ticket, which are readily available. And why wouldn't you want to? The convention is great!


So there you go! We will be launching the Star Trek portion of our web site this week and will be updating it every few days. So stay tuned to www.propworx.com!

Alec

Father Cyril Hally's missionary journey

Last Wednesday, 18 May, we Columbans lost two great priests. Fr Cryil Hally died peacefully in Melbourne, Australia, at the age of 90 while my classmate, Fr Pat McCaffrey, dropped dead in the street in Pakistan. I wrote about him here.

Fr Cyril Hally (1920-2010)

Father Cyril came to St Columban's College, Dalgan Park, Navan, Ireland, in 1963 and taught there for three years, as I recall. It was during Vatican II and he kept us informed about what was going on and its significance. He also put us in the picture about world affairs and also how our faith related to what was going on a around us.

He spoke to us of the morality involved in urban planning, that it wasn't just a matter of putting a roof over people's heads but enabling a community to grow. At that time there was a scheme in Dublin whereby many were removed from slum areas in the city centre to a place called Ballymun which, at the time, was considered to be way outside the city. for those who were moved there it was. Those who had jobs had to travel long distances to work. Such things as stores and schools were considered almost an afterthought, leaving people vulnerable. This was not by evil design but came from a purely utilitarian approach: people need a roof over their heads and a reasonably decent place to stay. The project produced many social problems and the high-rise buildings have since been demolished. It was only through Father Cyril's eyes that I saw the wider picture.

He gave me a deep appreciation of the centrality of the liturgy. Once a week he met with most of the students for a chant class, preparing for the Sunday High Mass and for Vespers. For one month each year our High Mass was broadcast nationally. he would never hold extra classes to prepare as he insisted on a high standard every Sunday.

I last met Father Cyril last September-October when I did some mission appeals for the Columbans in Melbourne. He was then in a nursing home, because of a fall, but was still interested in everything. he even asked me about the current economic situation in Negros. He also came to the annual meeting of the Columbans in Australia and New Zealand.

Though his mind was constantly active he took a perverse pleasure in the fact that he couldn't - or wouldn't! - use anything more complicated than a typewriter.

Another memory I have of him is that he was the referree for many rugby games in our seminary. He even sent off a player at a time when that was unheard of in the seminary and even in rugby circles in general. I reacll him as a man who looked 'beyond the box' but who had a deep appreciation of the importance of authority.

May Father Cyril rest in peace.
 

 

St Columban's Essendon, Victoria, formerly known as North Park Mansion, Columban HQ in Australia where Father Cyril spent his latter years.

This tribute appeared in the Columban website for Australia and New Zealand:

19.05.2010

A priest with vision who read the ‘signs of the times’.

Fr Cyril Hally was born on 9th February 1920 at Temuka, South island, New Zealand. He did his primary and secondary schooling at Oamaru. In 1939 he left New Zealand to go to St Columban Missionary Society seminary in Essendon Melbourne. At an early age he decided he wanted to be a missionary in China and followed his dream. After his seminary studies he was ordained in St Patrick’s Cathedral by Archbishop Daniel Mannix on July 2nd, 1945.

Archbishop Daniel Mannix of Melbourne

His life revolved around centres of higher learning. He was chaplain to Asian students in Lower Hutt, New Zealand while he studied for an arts degree but was sent to Rome in 1948 to study Canon Law before he finished his course. After gaining a licentiate in Canon Law, Cyril was appointed to Japan in 1951. But he was only there for just over a year before he was recalled to the staff of the Columban seminary at Wahroonga, New South Wales. He became a part-time chaplain to Asian students in Sydney.

In 1961 he was appointed to Lower Hutt again and resumed his BA studies at Victoria University but in 1963 left New Zealand to study linguistics at Georgetown University in Washington DC. His superiors had a change of mind and sent him to Ireland to be a member of staff at St Columban’s seminary at Dalgan Park, Co Meath. Here he started to lecture students during Gregorian Chant class on the social context of mission and the rapidly changing world they were heading out to challenge or be challenged by. Some priests recall these lectures as most stimulating and exciting but Gregorian Chant was not forgotten though not given pride of place.

In 1966 Cyril was appointed to a church ‘think tank’ in Brussels, ‘Pro Mundi Vitae’ which specialised in in- depth studies on topics and issues of the Church that needed researching. In 1971 he was appointed to the Australian/New Zealand Region and in 1972 was made First Secretary to the National Catholic Missionary Council, Sydney set up by the Australian bishops.

In 1979 he moved to St Columban’s seminary at North Turramurra and became a member of the seminary staff. He was Director of the Pacific Mission Institute for many years and lectured hundreds of participants who were heading for cross-cultural mission in Australia or other parts of the world. Fr Cyril had lectured in missiology, missionary anthropology, mission history and later peace and ecology.

He was awarded the inaugural Philia Prize for vision and initiative in religious work in Australia.

He was indefatigable in attending meetings concerned with justice and peace issues. Over the years he built an extraordinary network of people in many areas of life. He touched the lives of hundreds if not thousands of people with his vision and understanding of what was happening to the Church and the world. He kept an interest in the China desk of the Columban Mission Institute.

In 2006 he transferred from Sydney to St Columban’s Mission in Essendon where he had come as a young man to become a missionary so that he could receive better care. The last months of his life were spent in Mercy Place, Parkville where he continued to read and talk and be visited by Columbans, friends and admirers. He died suddenly but peacefully on Tuesday morning, May 18th2010.

Though he never became a missionary in China, he helped prepare missionaries who now work in many parts of the world to read what Pope John XXIII called ‘the signs of the times’.

Read Catholic Mission: A Mentor to Australian Missionaries - a Tribute to Fr Cyril Hally SSC

St Cadoc's: a parish-based blog

 St Cadoc's Church, Halfway

St Cadoc was a Welsh saint but finds himself in Scotland in a place with an intriguing name: Halfway, near Cambuslang and southeast of Glasgow, in the Diocese of Motherwell, Scotland. James Hannaway is a parishioner there and has initiated what he calls 'a fledgling blog' with the simple name of St Cadoc's.

St Cadoc

James is hoping that the parish will see the possibilities in having a blog or its own website. Pope Benedict has, on different occasions, challenged both young people and priests to use the internet to evangelise 'this digital continent'. I have no doubt whatever that St Paul, St Francis de Sales, the patron of journalists, and St Maximilian Kolbe would all be bloggers. St Maximilian is honoured by the Church primarily as a martyr but what is not so well known is that he used the press and radio, the latter still in its 'childhood', very effectively, both in his native Poland and in Japan in the 1930s to bring the Good News to as many as possible.

S

St Maximilian Kolbe

Sometimes I wonder if anyone reads this blog. I know there are regular readers and it is always encouraging to get feedback or a response. I firmly believe that those of us who have some ability in using the internet should harness its possibilities, not necessarily to be constantly 'preaching' but with the sense that all things can give glory to God. As St Paul says: Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (Col 3:17).

While on home leave in Dublin in 1994 I took a short course in computers for missionaries. The missionary Sister who taught us wasn't great in terms of the 'how' but she truly inspired me with stories of how the then fledgling - I've never used that word even once in a post and here I've used it twice! - internet had helped save lives, as she saw in the African country where she had served. I have experienced that reality in my own use of the net.

Check out St Cadoc's and post a comment there.

A 'Pilgrim for Christ' in Fiji, England and Pakistan

Fr Patrick McCaffrey (3rd from right) 18 March 1944 - 18 May 2010

Yesterday afternoon the Columban superior in Manila, Fr Patrick O’Donoghue, very thoughtfully phoned me to tell me of the sudden death of a classmate in Pakistan, Fr Patrick McCaffrey, before he sent the news by email to all of us. Fr McCaffrey, who was from County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland, was only 66.

We Columbans have as our patron a man driven by the Latin motto 'Peregrinari pro Christo', 'To be a pilgrim for Christ', St Columban (also known as 'Columbanus'). Father Pat McCaffrey pilgrimage took him from the lakes of County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, to Fiji, Pakistan, England, back to Fiji and, finally, to Pakistan.

River Erne, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland

Father Pat’s first assignment was to Fiji and he spent all of his ten years there in Labasa, which has many Indian-Fijians. In 1978 he was assigned to Pakistan as one of our pioneering group there. From 1998 till 2005 he worked in Britain, based in Bradford which has a very large population of people with their origins in Pakistan. He was involved in inter-faith work and also celebrated Mass regularly with Pakistani Catholics in the area. Between 2000 and 2002 I sometimes celebrated Mass in the parish where he lived with the Filipinos in the Bradford.

In 2008 Father Pat returned to Fiji but was moved once again back to Pakistan early last year. He had just been visiting two newly-arrived Fijian Columban lay missionaries when he had what seems to have been a heart attack. He always felt close to those who were poor and the first person to go to his aid was a streetsweeper.

Catholic church, Hyderabad, Pakistan

Here is something he wrote in 2006 after his return to Fiji telling the extraordinary story of the baptism of five siblings at the request of their parents, both of them Hindus. One of those children is based now in General Santos City, Mindanao, Sr Sr Pushpa Wati Arjun SMSM.

Return to Fiji after 26 Years


Fr Pat McCaffrey ('67). Fiji


When I left Fiji in 1978 to go to Pakistan I did not think that I would ever be reassigned back to Fiji. I had the unique record of having had only one assignment during my 10 years in Fiji, viz. Holy Family Parish, Labasa. That was my first and only love in Fiji. It is where I cut my teeth in the pastoral field. While in Pakistan and later in Britain I used to look back in nostalgia to the good old days in the seventies in Labasa.

Flooded street, Labasa, Fiji

I vividly recall the day in 1971 when Aijun said to me in Naleba, ‘I want you to baptise all my children.’ ‘And what about you and your wife’ I asked him. They were both Hindus. ‘No’ he said, ‘we will not be baptised. We were born Hindus and we will die Hindus. But I want my children to become Christian and I am asking you now to baptise them and teach them how to be good people’.
I was reluctant to baptise the children when the parents were not willing to be baptised. However, the children, Victor William (12), Lingam (10), Sog Lingam (8), Pushpa (6) and Sakuntula (5) were coming to church every week and were the brightest in our CCD class. I finally baptised all five of them in 1972 and hoped for the best for them.

Fifteen years later I was delighted to hear that both Pushpa and Sakuntula had joined the SMSM Sisters. Pushpa has now completed ten years as a missionary in the Phillipines. Sakuntula is now a missionary in Bangladesh. At present Pushpa is back in Fiji. Next month she will go to C.T.U. for studies.

Rural scene in Vanua Levu, the island where Labasa is situated

After twenty eight years I am back in Fiji. My present assignment is working among the Hindi-speaking community in the eight parishes in Suva. This assignment has two aspects; pastoral work among the 150 Catholic Indian families scattered over these eight parishes and interfaith work among the large Hindu and Muslim population.

Names of first Indian Catholic families in the area where the parish of Labasa was formed in 1965

Both these aspects are of course intertwined. Both also demand that I keep in close contact with the parish communities in all of these parishes to ensure that work among the Hindi-speaking community be not seen as being in any way separate from the work of each parish community. Over the past three months Sister Pushpa and I have been working together as she awaits her visa to travel to the USA.


The main programme that we use for instructing people who want to become Christians is the RCIA course. This course was pioneered in the eighties by Fr Frank Hoare and Sr Frances Hardiman SMSM. Later Miss Rosema Dass and Miss Elizabeth Krishna built on these solid foundations. It is an excellent course. During the eighties and nineties over 300 people participated in these courses and were baptised. Those taking part were mostly Indians from a Hindu background who wished to become disciples of Jesus.


The courses were conducted for the most part in Hindi. The ongoing challenge was how to involve the indigenous Fijian community in this work and how to ensure that the parish communities were involved in this work.


This year Mika, Lusi, Sisi and James have undertaken to conduct the course in the parish of Nadera. Sister Pushpa and I have been assisting them. Mika, Lusi and Sisi are ethnic Fijians. They do not speak or understand Hindi. James is Indian. He does. not understand or speak Fijian. We all speak and understand English. We are now conducting the course in English, Fijian and Hindi, trying to cross boundaries of language, culture and faith. It is a challenging task.


We meet every Friday evening to prepare the class for the following Sunday. We were a little late in getting the course started this year and we wondered if the candidates would be ready for baptism next Easter. When we asked them last Sunday whether they wished to be baptised at Easter 2006 or Easter 2007, there was a unanimous request for Easter 2006. We acceded to their request and hopefully they will be baptised next Easter.


A similar RCIA programme is underway in the parish of Raiwaqa where Columban, Frs Gerry McNicholas, and Kieran Moloney and Lay Missionary Rowena Cuanico (from the Philippines) are working. At present Rowena is working with her parish team of two Fijians in conducting the course for six Indian catechumens. They too will be baptised next Easter.


That is a snapshot of missionary life in Fiji. The missionary task continues. It is good to be back here in Fiji to see the progress of the past thirty years. It is inspiring to see people like Sister Pushpa who have answered the missionary call to leave Fiji. It is inspiring to see people like Lusi, Mika and Sisi now taking up the challenge of sharing their faith with people of a different language and culture here in Fiji. It is inspiring to see Rowena, a Filipina lay missionary at work here in Fiji - all crossing boundaries of language, culture and faith.


We journey in faith, knowing that it is one who sows, another waters, but it is God who gives the increase.

+++

The Fermanagh Herald carried a story on 20 January 2009 about Father Pat, A Missionary with a fresh appeal.

The Propworx Star Trek Catalog Is Now Available For Download!

Well, the best Star Trek auction catalog yet is on its way to the printer in China for the full Propworx treatment and you can download the PDF now!

If you liked the Iron man auction catalog, you will love this one! 296 pages and 450 lots of beautiful Star Trek props, costumes & set pieces from Star Trek art directors Doug Drexler, Mike & Denise Okuda and Rick Sternbach.

You can download the catalog HERE.

Note two changes:

1) Lot # 11, the Kirk Space Suit Model estimate should be $ 8-10,000

2) Lot 212, The Zephram Cochrane Statue is the HERO.

Corrections will be made in the next version of the catalog PDF and in the print catalog. The Catalog is broken into sections by show, with the Rick Sternbach original concept art and the Mike and Denise Okuda Crew Gift sections separate, but divided the same way. Each section is themed to the show.

The TOS Section uses the Enterprise as its theme.


The Movie section is based on the Klingons (extra points for translating the Klingon)

The TNG section is based on the famous Okudagram!


The DS9 section has a Cardassian theme.


The Voyager section is themed after their nemesis the Borg!


The Enterprise section has an Andorian theme.



Remember, the live auction is August 8th at the Las Vegas Creation Star Trek convention!

We all hope you enjoy this catalog!

Alec

Julien's and Profiles Star Trek Catalogs out

Well, it is Star Trek auction season! After almost a year of no significant Star Trek auction since IAW sold off everything they had left in a fire sale to Martin Netter from Germany, We now have not one, but three big Star Trek auctions!

Now, everyone pretty much knows I run Propworx, and we have a Star Trek auction in August. Ours is officially licensed by CBS, of which I am very proud. It is also our first multiple-consignor auction, which presented some interesting challenges and was a lot of fun (We just put the catalog to bed and off to the printer!).

So despite this, I am going to, as always, be fair and honest when talking about other auctions because that is what the over 8,000 unique visitors a month I get expect. When it comes to Star Trek, this is the source for info in the hobby and if I get like another prop blogger, and start playing favorites, then I lose credibility with you, the reader.

More importantly, you all rely on my expertise in deciding what to bid on sometimes. And I will have more information on the items in the auctions as I go and inspect everything.


Julien's Auctions released their Star Trek catalog in PDF form this week and you can see it here. The interface is slick, but many have complained (including me) that the "zoom" feature doesn't work.

Overall, the catalog is nice, though the designer seemed to like overusing bright colors. The descriptions are good, but Julien's shows its lack of Star Trek expertise by how it devotes entire pages to sub standard costumes (like the Jem H'adar that isn't even complete and is worth maybe $ 300 as is.) The photographs are excellent and the layout refreshing. Julien's does a nice job here and I suggest you all buy the catalog, which is $ 50.

As I reported previously here, the auction has the William Shatner memorabilia collection and the Roddenberry estate sale in addition to a few costumes from Majel Roddenberry and the 17 JJ movie items.

After talking amongst other collectors, the first impression of this catalog remains: a lot of memorabilia that is not very interesting to serious prop & costume collectors. And the JJ items will certainly sell very high because of their temporary rarity. So overall, not a lot to get terribly excited about.

For a complete review of the JJ movie items, check out my previous blog entries here.

I will say I think Julien's is a first rate operation and doesn't suffer from many of the problems that Profiles does (more on that later). I think they take their sales very seriously, and quality is very important to them. Everything they do is top notch I think.

For full disclosure, there is one item I want in the JJ collection, and I am willing to overpay for it. I rarely do that, but sometimes you think like a nut.....

A few days later Profiles in History came out with their Star Trek catalog, which is basically the third day of their June Hollywood auction, and it is chock full of goodies. The entire catalog has great stuff, which is typical from Profiles.

Their catalog however, continues to be sub-standard. It amazes me that despite Profiles being the # 1 entertainment memorabilia auction house in the industry by volume (followed by Julien's, Heritage and Propworx), their presentation ranks last. Propworx, Julien's and Heritage ALL have better catalogs than Profiles. It is sad because they have such great stuff, but choose not to put in the work to highlight those items in a dynamic and interesting way.

Now, while Profiles in History is the king of props (With all due respect to the PropKing Jason White!), they have been known to be sloppy in their authentication process. Heck, two of the items on the cover of their catalogs have proven to be fakes in the last two years, and I have had many problems with their Star Trek items.

In the past I have brought to light items that were either misidentified (see here) and Profiles refused to make any correction to the description, or just VERY suspect (see here and here). Everyone should read this article about how Profiles lets consignors write descriptions, and how Profiles doesn't necessarily check everything out in depth.

Now do I think Profiles is trying to defraud anyone? No. I just think they are sloppy at times, and in the most fraud ridden hobby out there, you need to be extra vigilant.


OK, so on to their Hollywood Auction # 40, of which there are almost THREE HUNDRED Star Trek lots! The vast majority of these items are from one collector who had a connection inside Paramount. So that is why you didn't see any hero Tricorders in Christie's or IAW's auctions.

This is the biggest Star Trek collection of goodies to hit the auction block since Christie's (though the Propworx sale will be twice as large) and there is almost nothing but high quality hand props. Start making your list and planning your budget now, because you will go broke if you are not careful.

The good news is that there are SO many good items, that I think prices will be depressed. Early on in the auction, people will be careful and saving their money for later on when other items hit. And later in the auction people will have spent their budgets!

I will be writing more about the Profiles auction and go and check everything out in the next two weeks. So stay tuned and join the conversation on the Star Trek Prop, Costume & Auction Forum.

Alec

Star Trek at the Smithsonian

Doug Drexler, who writes his own fantastic blog, wrote this blog article that is a must read for Star Trek prop fans. It is reprinted here with his blessing!

Way back in the dim dark days of fandom, we created Trek’s first mainstream magazine: The Star Trek Giant Poster Book. We published 12 issues of this little gem before moving on.

It was the first publication of it’s type, predating Starlog. All of the content came from our personal collections. We were running the Federation Trading Post on 57th Street in midtown Manhattan, and Fiona Press was right across the street. Somehow they ended up with Trek publishing rights. What did they know about Star Trek? Nothing! In those days if you wanted Trek info we were the only game in town and they fell right into our gravity well. The next thing we knew, we had our own magazine!

My single favorite issue is this one…” The Smithsonian Report – A Pictorial Inspection of Star Trek’s Miniatures Today”. The Air & Space Museum in Washington D.C. let us in before the doors opened, and even gave us a ladder to get up close and personal with the TOS Enterprise filming miniature. I was in heaven. I climbed the ladder with anticipation, and planted one on the leading edge of the saucer.

So here it is, Poster Book issue 10 – ” The Smithsonian Report”. I’ve scanned it at extra hi rez, give it a click and enjoy the slingshot!

Note that you can click on these images and see close ups so you can read them. Also, this issue of the Poster Book is readily available on eBay with a BIN of about $ 15. I just bought one myself.

Alec