Psst! Wanna buy an organ? Dentist chair? Cheap?

The organ sat there against a wall in the auction house like a grand dame – big, bulky with a little dust caked on the keys. It drew the attention of many of us as we passed by. Stumped.

It’s not often that we see an organ at auction. I’ve seen grand pianos (including a huge black one a couple years ago that the auctioneer had to beg someone to take. It finally sold for $100), and lots of musical instruments and keyboards that you could carry home under your arm.

But an organ? It must’ve been a bear just getting it into the auction house.

I thought it was a church organ, but I learned that it was actually a theater organ (which were also found in churches, stadiums and other places). Theater organs were used during the silent-film era of the early 20^th century to add background music and sound effects to movies. They aren’t as popular any more (movies come with their own sound and effects), but the American Theater Organ Society tries to keep their memory alive.

When I think of a theater organ, the image that comes to mind is that of actor Vincent Price pounding the keys like a maniac (which he played) on a gigantic organ as he and it rose from the floor below in the 1971 movie “The Abominable Dr. Phibes.” If you’d like to hear what a theater organ sounds like, click here to this YouTube video.

I’m not sure if the organ at the auction worked, or if there were pipes (the auctioneer didn’t mention any). Cosmetically, it appeared to be in good condition. I was intrigued about how much it would sell for. So, I waited and watched as the auctioneer and a handful of bidders waded their way through the rest of the furniture auction before arriving at it. 

The auctioneer as usual started high – a couple hundred dollars high, but no one was biting – and then dropped low. It was excruciating to watch as he practically pleaded for bids. People who had bidded cheap on other furniture pieces weren’t moved; likely, they like me, couldn’t figure out what the heck they would do with something that weighed a ton. Finally, two people started the bidding, and by the time it was over, the organ sold for a whopping – $85.

I didn’t see who bought it but I’m sure the auctioneer – in this case, the owner – was glad to get it off his hands. I’m sure it was a good buy, if you needed an organ, knew someone who wanted one or decided to donate it for a tax writeoff.

The organ wasn’t the only unusual item sold cheap that day. How about taking home an antique dentist’s chair as a conversation piece? This one had been put to good use: the leather was cracked in some places and a message glued on paper to the back had practically worn off. I could only make out the word “Teeth.”

There was a lever on the side to adjust the chair (as one site mentioned, to allow the dentist to sit while fixing a tooth).

Bidders seemed no more interested in it than they were in the organ. The chair sold for $10.

Dental chairs in much better condition were being offered on eBay for $420 and $499 (shipping was $350). One seller suggested that it could be used as a tattoo chair. I found another one selling on a retail site for $550, with the horsehair stuffing jutting from its seat. And this one for $550 makes my back hurt from just looking at it.

The dentist chair was among a lot from a lighting store whose owner had retired and whose stock of lamps, chandeliers, fireplace screens and more had been auctioned a week or so before. How a dentist’s chair ended up in the lighting store is indeed a mystery.