Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo

(Long Beach, CA) - The 39th Annual Winter Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo will be held in the Long Beach, California Convention Center, 100 S. Pine Ave., February 21 - 24, 2002. A free gold coin door prize will be given away each day during the four-day Expo.

"The Long Beach show will mark the first West Coast appearance in the year-long, 50th anniversary speaking tour of well-known hobbies and collectibles publisher, Chester Krause, founder of Krause Publications in Iola, Wisconsin," said Ronald J. Gillio, Expo General Chairman.

Marking a half-century of publishing Numismatic News and now 45 other periodicals, Krause will speak on the topic, "50 Years of Collecting & Communicating." His presentation is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 23. Assisted by his longtime publishing associate, Clifford Mishler, Krause will present an educational program exploring the formative influences that caused the coin collecting hobby to prosper from the 1930s into the 21st century.

"Audience members will have an opportunity to win door prizes including a proof 1952 Franklin half dollar and three silver medals in honor of the 50th anniversary of Krause's first issue of Numismatic News," said Gillio. "The medals were designed by former U.S. Mint sculptor and engraver Thomas D. Rogers, Sr."

The Long Beach Expo features more than 2,000 dealers buying and selling rare coins, paper money, postage stamps, postcards, autographs, historical documents, antiques and jewelry. There will be more than a dozen educational meetings during the show, including seminars conducted by eBay and Yahoo! Auctions.

Heritage Numismatic Auctions of Dallas, Texas, and Ponterio & Associates of San Diego, California will conduct public auctions of rare coins and paper money during the four-day Long Beach Expo.

Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS); Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC); Heritage Numismatic Auctions; H.E. Harris & Co.; eBay; UBS Numismatics/Art Banking; Yahoo! Auctions; British Royal Mint; CoinFacts.com; H.E. Harris & Co.; Coin Link; and the World Money Fair of Basel, Switzerland are official corporate sponsors of the Expo. The Long Beach Stamp and Coin Clubs are co-sponsors of the show.

Admission is $5 (for a four-day pass); only $2 for collectors displaying a valid membership card in any numismatic or philatelic organization. Show hours are Thursday to Saturday, February 21 - 23, from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and Sunday, February 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For additional information, contact the Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo before February 19 at (805) 962-9939, or from February 19 - 24, at the Convention Center, (562) 436-3636. The Web site address is www.LongBeachShow.com.

Schedule of Events

Various Educational Meetings and Seminars will be held in conjunction with the Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo. The Public is cordially invited to attend all these events unless otherwise indicated.

The Expo offers FREE MEETING ROOMS for coin, stamp and other collectors' clubs to conduct meetings and seminars during each show. More than a dozen collectors' organizations will hold public meetings and seminars during the show.