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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDixie Chicken Items Auctioned; newspaper article (03-18-2006)`We're not in trouble. We're just trying to get rid of some things.' Katy Jackson, Dixie Chicken Inc. vice president In the market for a moose head? Dixie Chicken offering items for auction LAURA HENSLEY ale Staff Writer he owners of the famous Dixie Chicken are giving patrons the opportunity ~ take home a piece of their Ivorite bar. Hundreds of items, including raffiti-carved domino tables, idder-back chairs, stuffed deer eads - even a walk-in cooler nd an old upright piano -will e on sale March 25 during a spring cleaning" auction. The sale is merely a chance ~ clean out what's been in stor- ge, not an indication that the Kcal collection of bars and estaurants run by Dixie Chick- n •Inc. is going out of business, wners said. "We're not in trouble. We're zst trying to get rid of some Zings," said Katy Jackson, ice president of Dixie Chicken zc. "People put a lot of time nd effort into The Chicken. We re just trying to give a little it of that back." Founder Don Ganter died in D04. The company has since een run by his two daughters, ackson and Jennifer Ganter. Many of the items on sale ame from Shadow Canyon and Ze Hole in the Wall Saloon. 'he two Northgate bars closed Est year and since have ecome Midnight Rodeo and I'Bannon's Pub, respectively, .nder new management. Other auction items once ung on the walls of the Dixie Y ,My: ~ Auctioneer Craig Conlee digs through some of the items from the Dixie Chicken that will be up for auc- Chicken, the iconic Northgate beer joint. Some pieces were used as a surface to shake a hand of dominos or eat a ham- burger. The Dixie Chicken Inc. estab- lishments have been known for more than 30 years for their rustic decor that includes old signs and taxidermy accenting the barn-wood interiors. "If you've ever been in one of those establishments, you look ting rid of stuff. We are she and her sister have been left with several storage barns packed full. of stuff ranging from rusty bear traps ri ~: \ s2 ~t r::.p ,nail, ~,~, ~` attached to some of the things, but really, it's all just stuff. We know it's not going to bring him back." . Conlee said Ganter was an avid collector who was con- stantly on the lookout for interesting items to decorate his bars and restaurants. Eagle photo/Paul Zoeller tion. Bidding on taxidermy items, domino tables and an assortment of chairs will take place March 25. around and think, `Where in the world did all of this stuff come from?"' said Craig Conlee of Conlee Auctions, which is presenting the sale. "Really, this is aonce-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own a piece of history." Jackson said her father never sold anything or threw any- thing out over the years, and See CHICKEN, Page A8 looking in someone's closet. These are some things that. maybe [Ganter] wouldn't sell, but it's been tough for the girls, and they need some clo- sure to come out of this." Conlee said the auction has sparked widespread attention from former Texas A&M Uni- versity students who hold fond rF You Go WHAT: Dixie Chicken Inc. auction WHEN: ('larch 25, 10:fl7 a.m. WHERE: Conlee-Garnett Movirig an Storage Warehouse, 6D1 S. Bryan St, i ..Bryan DETAILS: Viewing will be from 1 to p.m. Friday and the following day from a.rn. to thestart of the. auction. Bid also will be taken at www.ebayliv auctioris.com. tables -the trademark fur- • nishings of Dixie Chicken Inc. establishments. Conlee thinks the tables could fetch several hundred dollars apiece. "But that's the fun of the auction," he said. "You never know how much something will go for."