Thursday, March 09, 2000
Laurel Court contents, sadly, will be sold
BY JIM KNIPPENBERG
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Roger Loth is determined not to shed a tear, but he's skeptical because, after all, he's auctioning off nine years of his life.
Loth, an auctioneer by profession, is the former owner of Laurel Court, the College Hill mansion built in 1905 by industrialist Peter Thompson, later sold to the Archdiocese of Cincinnati for the Archbishop's home, later sold to Buddy LaRosa, finally to Loth, who auctioned it off for $1.95 million in November.
Now he's ready to auction off the innards and it's no small deal: The 30,000-square foot home has 27 rooms, all decorated to the hilt.
All to be auctioned, including one bedroom set from the Thompson era, dozens of items from the Archdiocese era and stuff Loth acquired by haunting antique shops and estate sales — more than 1,000 lots.
We're talking six bedroom sets; a row full of armoires, including one that's a converted confessional; dozens of tables; 50 rugs, mostly Persian; three gigantic tables full of crystal, china, silver and decorative items.
“This isn't going to be easy, but I don't have anywhere to go with all this. It doesn't have to do with loving it, it has to do with moving to a condo one-tenth the size of Laurel Court.”
Loth, one of the three auctioneers working the two-day event, is already worried about his voice cracking: “This stuff, I lived with it.”
The auction is 8 a.m. Saturday (furnishings) and 11 a.m. Sunday (lawn and garden equipment) at Fair Plaza on Patterson Road, Fairfield.
ON THE CIRCUIT: Taking a sec here to keep up with local souls in the news. Like Chip Chinery, the Channel 9 cameraman who turned to stand-up comedy in the '80s and moved to Los Angeles in '94.
Good move: Numerous Bud Light commercials, several Third Rock from the Sun guest spots and now Sabrina. He turned up last week in an episode as a newspaper boy from the Other Realm.
He also has an April 14 guest spot on Providence as a pet store salesman who has to find a white, Royal Asian hamster, and a Staples commercial where he sets up his office in a Staples store.
MORE MARDI GRAS: “Well no, honey, it was dangerous. He threatened to behead me.”
That would be Marge Schott, commenting Tuesday on her status as queen of the Northern Kentucky Restaurant Association's annual Mardi Gras. The one Covington didn't cancel.
Schott had just been paraded out with Bill Cunningham, WLW mouth and Mardi Gras king, “but it was scary, honey. He kept telling me what Henry VIII did to queens,” Schott said.
Elsewhere around Covington's convention center, a looooong line formed at the Southern Wine & Sprits of Kentucky booth.
The attraction? An ice sculpture with tubes running through the center and two nozzles at the bottom. Workers poured shots — rum, butterschotch schnapps, raspberry liqueur — in the top, letting it chill as it ran through tubes. Guests could either squat and suck — blowing shots they call it — or catch it in a shot glass.
“It's my fifth trip,” said one Mike Dollert. “But I try to look like I'm not having fun so they don't cancel this one too.”
Chip Smith, owner of Prime & Wine and one of the organizers, said it was the largest ever but didn't have figures yet.
Knip's Eye View appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Have an item to report? Call Jim Knippenberg at 768-8513; fax: 768-8330.
