Antiques Roadshow · originally published

William "Richard" Wright Jr. (1947-2009)

William "Richard" Wright Jr. (1947-2009)
William "Richard" Wright Jr. (1947-2009)

2009_0302_richard-wright

The sad news of the passing of William "Richard" Wright on Sunday at the age of 62 made me pause for a moment and feel very upset that I won't get a chance to hear him unleash his seemingly endless depth of knowledge on the Antique's Roadshow viewers ever again. It doesn't matter that his expertise most often showcased on the program was not one that I cared much about - antique dolls. I still enjoyed watching his appraisals greatly. Until now, I was unaware that his shop was 20 miles from my home in Chester County, PA, where he apparently also specialized in Art Deco and Art Nouveau, two of my other favorites. He apparently led a rather full life. In his early years he was well-plugged into the London music scene. He was friends with Keith Moon of the band The Who and Mick Fleetwood's then wife, Jenny Boyd. Through the latter connection he became Fleetwood Mac's road manager in the late 1960s. His passing has made me pause to wonder, like our world's natural resources, are we losing all our "intellectual resources" in the antique industry at an irreplaceable rate? Who is in today's generation of emerging experts? More on Richard's life at Auction Central News. Watch Richard do an appraisal from 2004.

4 comments

  1. Mario
    A toast to the two great Richard Wrights we've lost recently: Antiques Roadshow's and Pink Floyd's
  2. RareVictorian
    Cheers!
  3. woodwright
    He always exibited at the Atlantique City antiques show (which is coming up March 28th & 29th). My wife bought a doll head from him - we still have the Richard Wright bag that it was in. Very personable, knowledgable guy, easy to talk to. Sorry to hear he's gone - he'll be missed.
  4. zeke
    Sad indeed, and when we die, all our memories and expertise die with us :( Why John, isn't that what you are doing right here on this website? More than anything, I think RV is a thriving database of knowledge run by someone who genuinely cares and populated by a host of unselfish people that contribute to a good cause!

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