Latham man's playing card collection deals in creativity

LATHAM Al Reiterman began collecting decks of playing cards in 1970. He never stopped.

It started like this, he said: "I saw a display of playing cards. They were priced at $3. I bought a deck."

Nearly 45 years later, he has a roomful of decks, displayed on floor to ceiling shelves. As of May 30, the total was 14,117.

Many of the decks are unopened, and if he wants to play poker, he grabs an everyday deck from the drawer.

A retired custodian at Mount Pulaski Grade School, Reiterman is a once-a-week barber who is a dedicated card counter. Each deck he finds, usually in a flea market, is catalogued in a notebook.

Any duplication? "No, never," Reiterman said. "I remember them all."

And he has lots of company in the card collectors field, although none locally he knows of, he said.

"I'm a member of the Chicago Playing Cards Collecters Club," Reiterman said. "There are more than 300 collectors in 38 states. An annual convention is held. This time, the convention is in Champaign Sept. 12 and 13.

"I have a young friend in colorado, he's a college student now. "I met him at a convention and gave him 200 decks to get started."

Take in the multitude of decks and variety.

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Latham man's playing card collection deals in creativity