
DATE: Tuesday, April 15, 1997               TAG: 9704150042

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY NIA NGINA MEEKS 

        STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  115 lines

MEET GARY KOELLING, COKE ADDICT

PLUNK A DIME in the rounded Coke machine in Gary S. Koelling's garage and pull the lever. A wheel inside the machine rotates and drops a green glass bottle filled with caramel coolness.

The vintage machine is part of Koelling's 20-plus-year Coca-Cola collection, a minimuseum that one sign proclaims as the space for ``Gary's ice cold Coca-Cola, beer & warm pretty women.''

Pretty women do lounge throughout the attic of his Virginia Beach home, though they may not be all that warm. Most grip the icy, curvy bottle that has become an icon. Their lips match the color of the bottle caps on the drinks they hold.

They sit propped against coolers, cars, boats or various other items, looking summery, apple-cheeked, long-haired and short of skirt - or shorts. Some are cardboard cut-outs decked in military garb - part of a World War II pick-me-up campaign. Others hang above slightly fading calendars or grace tin trays, shy smiles frozen in time from the '20s, '30s and '40s.

There's no way to collect every Coke item, said the 42-year-old Koelling. That's not the point of his collection.

``It's the variety that people find so interesting,'' he said. ``I like to have a good representation.''

That Koelling does, from the dancing Coke cans of a few years ago to gold-dipped anniversary bottles to tip trays from the turn of the century. Memorabilia lines the hallway leading to the attic and engulfs the attic itself, on shelves, in cases, on the walls.

Koelling's fascination with all things Coke started when he was a kid, out exploring the woods with some buddies. He had run across a green glass Coke bottle, the kind with the thick bottom and hourglass shape. He stored it along with other boyhood treasures.

When he was in his early 20s, the Beach native rediscovered the bottle and suddenly a fire lit.

``I was amazed about the different things that were out there,'' he said.

Walking among his collection, Koelling rattles off factoids about the behemoth Atlanta-based soft-drink company, from the evolution of the bottle to its presence in South Hampton Roads and more. In his years of collecting, he has picked up a lot of knowledge about Coke and its by-products.

He found much of it in flea markets and antique shops a decade or so ago. Then there were the trade shows and swaps with fellow collectors.

Koelling has stumbled across a few gems, like a thin Coke-emblazoned shot glass that dates back about 80 years. He almost didn't get it because it was chipped.

``Rarity can outweigh condition of some items,'' he said. That glass he bought for $15 would now command about $600 on the market.

Koelling didn't collect as an investment, ``but it's turned into one.'' For security reasons, he declined to estimate the value of his collection for the record. But he will point to posters he bought for a few dollars a decade or so ago that go for hundreds of dollars, if not thousands, today.

``It's getting tough to find the good stuff,'' Koelling said. ``You fight through the baby clothes and broken toasters. It takes time.''

Much of what turns up nowadays are nouveau collectibles, a re-issued version of the original thing, collectors say.

Marveling at memorabilia is not a new thing, says collector and dealer Jane Ross. She has a shop in northern California and has been dealing with Coke products for about 30 years. Organized collecting, complete with swaps, conventions and auctions, started around 1970.

Credit not so much Coke's creator, John S. Pemberton, but the company's marketers for the wide-ranging appeal, said Allan Petretti, author of ``Petretti's Coca-Cola Collectables Price Guide.'' The 10th edition hits stores this summer.

``Coca-Cola is the number one trademark product of all time,'' Petretti said. ``If you scan this memorabilia from when it started, it's the history of the United States after the Civil War.

``Their advertising runs the full range of history, from the greatest of times to the worst of times. How their advertising just fell in line with what was going on in the country was just amazing,'' he added.

Those warm and fuzzy Coke moments grab collectors by the thousands. For people from Australia to Denmark, Coke is it.

The Old Dominion chapter of the International Coca-Cola Collectors Club has about 35 members, said president Gregory Dail. Members visit each other's collections, go to conventions and share information. The Old Dominion club includes people from across Virginia. The next closest clubs are in Washington, D.C., Tennessee and North Carolina, Dail said.

The appeal of Coke collecting reaches to young and old, novice and pro, he said.

``I think it's because Coca-Cola is the king of advertising,'' Dail said. ``It's just a symbol seen around the world. The Coca-Cola logo has just been a part of our heritage for such a long time. It's kind of like baseball and apple pie.''

Some people's lives revolve around the world of Coca-Cola. For Koelling, who manages the warehouse for Virginia Beach city schools, collecting is far from a career. In his younger days, he would scrimp money from odd jobs to buy a new piece for his collection.

Now, he spends more time refining and maintaining his collection. His hobby had to make room for married life and its financial and time constraints. Still, he gets a kick out of all the quirky things he has picked up through the years.

``I do it for my personal enjoyment. I'll give it up if it just gets too much to handle,'' Koelling said. ``As it is, I have to clean all this stuff.''

As he surveyed his collection, his wife, Alexis, joined him. She looked around and shook her head. The attic was supposed to be a sitting area/study.

``It could be a real junk hole,'' she admitted. ``At least he's organized.''

They plan to transfer everything into a country store Koelling hopes to build. One day.

``I'm still playing the lottery,'' he said, laughing.

MEMO: The Old Dominion chapter of the International Coca-Cola Collectors

Club will meet Thursday. For details, call 547-4918, evenings and

weekends. ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]

CHARLIE MEADS / The Virginian-Pilot

Gary S. Koelling...

CHARLIE MEADS / The Virginian-Pilot

Gary S. Koelling's fascination with all things Coke started when he

was a boy. KEYWORDS: HOBBY COLLECTORS COCA COLA COKE