Making a star out of the $2 bill

My topic this morning is the $2 bill.

Did you know there is a movie about it?

No?

I didn’t either.

I was contacted by the producer/director by email.

He wrote: “My continuing mission is to spread the word about this wonderful piece of currency, and with the assumption that you’re always looking for new content to write about, I would welcome the opportunity to contribute to your blog in any way you thought interesting.”

I like Monday morning surprises.

This qualifies this week.

Bennardo’s movie is called “The 2 Dollar Bill Documentary.”

Naturally, I followed the link to his website.

I followed another to a Palm Beach International Film Festival interview of 10 months ago when I googled the topic.

I also followed a link to the Jefferson Space Museum and its page about $2 bills on space missions.

There are 12 mission patches on the page.

This is not a movie that was created for just the collector point of view.

Thank goodness.

There is one thing we collectors have proven over and over again is we can turn a topic that fascinates us into something that bores the pants off ordinary people.

The movie trailer looks like it will engage the sense of wonder of the wider public.

The collector point of view is not excluded either.

A clip I watched shows the producer was filming some at a Florida United Numismatists convention.

You can buy a copy of the hour and 40 minute film from the website for $17.99, or a T-shirt for $13.99.

A movie like this provides another reason I am optimistic about numismatics generally.

It comes as a complete surprise.

It proves what we collectors all instinctively know.

Numismatic topics are fascinating.

We know this because we wouldn’t be active collectors if this were not the case.

However, what we don’t know is the precise mixture of information, experience, entertainment and current events that will set any individual person down the collecting road.

A movie like this is not going to motivate millions to become collectors.

But it will probably motivate some.

That’s all we need.

We are a huge hobby.

There are many ways to look at our area of interest.

This movie proves it.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper has twice won the Numismatic Literary Guild Award for Best Blog and is editor of the weekly newspaper "Numismatic News."

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