Journey into Pony Paradise: Rare Memorabilia from Misty of Chincoteague

If you love Misty of Chincoteague and are a fan of Marguerite Henry, you will enjoy getting to know Amanda Geci, a passionate Misty of Chincoteague collector. Amanda’s interest in all things Misty isn’t just limited to the various Breyer version of the famous golden pinto. She has her very own Misty descendant mare–a real life link to the pony we all adore! And she actively preserves pony bloodline info. Hope you enjoy this pony-centric Q & A. All photos courtesy of Amanda.

Susan: What ignited an interest in Misty of Chincoteague for you. Was it the book first, then the Breyer model? Around what age did this occur?

Amanda: It was the book that was given to me by family friends when I was 11. They lived in Baltimore for a few years and had heard of Pony Penning and Misty of Chincoteague. My parents are always up for a trip so we then went to Pony Penning for the first time in 1995. I got my first Breyer model of Misty on that trip to Chincoteague at a Ben Franklin store on Main Street. I got Stormy shortly after at the Chincoteague Miniature Pony Farm where the real Stormy had spent most of her life. Incidentally that was the last year it was open.

How many Misty-themed items do you own in your collection? Share with us how you have your treasures displayed (where they are in your house, etc.).

Total Misty stuff, I’m not sure. I have well over 30 models of Misty from Breyer and others. And just about that many copies of Misty of Chincoteague. I have multiple copies of the other books, books that may mention Misty or descendants, postcards, tshirts, art, stickers, magnets, photos, newspaper clippings, brochures, advertisements, movie posters, and all kinds of souvenirs. I have a “Misty corner” at the end of my hallway with Misty and Stormy models and books. My home office is decorated with Misty and family prints, books, puzzles, and all other things. I painted the room with a palomino yellow and white window curtains to match the Misty prints.

What are some of the more unusual/rare Misty items you own?

I think the merch from Misty the Wonder Pony line is the more unusual and rare as it’s hard to find and not very well known. I find it pretty funny that the first model horses of Misty are the pair of rubber toys from that line. The coolest recent item I got was a little porcelain foal model that’s a Beebe Ranch souvenir. The model is a generic palomino pinto. But the sticker on the bottom says “Beebe Ranch, Home of Misty.” The weirdest is probably the Misty belt buckle!

What is one fun discovery story of locating a Misty item? For example, have you happened upon anything at an antique shop? Do people find you through your website and send you stuff, etc.?

Most of it comes from keeping an eye out online and waiting for things to pop up. I’ve found some good deals at Breyerfest vendor sales. I’ll snap up anything Misty related I can find shopping on Chincoteague, new or old. We get a lot of fantastic photos of Misty and descendants shared with us through Misty’s Heaven. Old photos are our absolute favorite thing as you get a glimpse of ponies long gone and may find a nugget of previously unknown information. My friend Lauren gifted me an audiobook vinyl record of Stormy. The sleeve is a beautiful print of the Stormy book cover.

Is there a “Holy Grail” in the Misty collecting world? One item you are on the hunt for–something hard to find?

For most folks it’s the four-eyed Misty Breyer model. I have two, a glossy and a matte. The matte being the rarer of the two. The Breyer Misty has been produced for so many years there’s a lot of paint variations so I keep an eye out for any interesting–ones I might not have. Breyer has released Misty on four different molds, some fairly rare. I’m always on the lookout for more Misty the Wonder Pony merch. Would love to get as much as possible of that.

Your first horse was/is a Misty descendant. That’s super cool. Share how that whole situation came about.

I’ve known her breeder Kendy Allen for years and first met Misty’s Hurricane Izzy when she was a long yearling. Izzy cuddled up to me that day and so I always had a soft spot for her. Izzy is a great great granddaughter of Misty and a granddaughter of Misty II. When it was time for Izzy to retire, Kendy offered her to me. I’d told Kendy I hoped my first Chincoteague would be one of her Misty descendants. She also turned out to be my first horse as well as I didn’t get my Quarter Horse until a couple years later. In a fun coincidence the last name of the family friends that gave me my first copy of Misty of Chincoteague is Izzi.

Why do you think Misty is still so popular, decades after she has passed away?

I think it’s because fans can experience many of the parts of the Misty story themselves. Misty was a real pony, even though her actual life was very different. You can still meet (or own!) her descendants today and that’s a breathing connection to the storybook pony. Chincoteague is a place you can visit with Pony Penning is essentially still the same event that Marguerite wrote about. While you can visit Brighty’s Grand Canyon or see the White Stallions of the Spanish Riding School or own a descendant of Born To Trot‘s Rosalind, I think you can insert yourself in the setting and the characters of the Misty stories more.

You’ve written books about Chincoteague Ponies. Can you tell us about them?

I’ve published one book so far and have a couple in the works. My covid project was finally finishing a book about the colors in the Chincoteague Pony. It’s essentially my website The Colorful Chincoteague in book form. I’m currently working on a photography book with my friend Linda Insley. It’s a book of ponies that have lived on Assateague past and present. And an identification book too as it has the ponies’ names and essential info. Matt and I have started a book on the Misty descendants we’ve met and photographed. We stop and start on it so it’s going to take a while!

Click here to see Amanda’s The Colorful Chincoteague book. (affilliate link)

Also, describe your involvement with the breed today.

I co-manage the Misty and descendants website Misty’s Heaven with my friend Matt DesJardins. The website is 25 years old this year. I run the website The Colorful Chincoteague that has been documenting the colors found in the breed. I’m the primary manager of the publicly available Chincoteague Pony Pedigree Database which my friend Gina Aguilar helped me start in 2015. We log pedigrees and assorted data about any Chincoteague Pony that we can find. In 2021 the CPPD partnered with the just started International Chincoteague Pony Association and Registry. I’m one of the founders of the ICPAR and serve as the Vice President. In the last couple years I’ve started working to preserve photos and information about Chincoteague Ponies of all kinds from all years. Too much has already been lost to time and I want to make sure what we have now is around in the future.

Thank you for reading. I hope you will peruse Amanda’s book as well as my Marguerite Henry biography Marguerite, Misty and Me! This Friday, May 10 is Buy a Horse Book Day, the brainchild of Trafalgar Square Books and Heels Down Media. What a perfect time to shop for horse books! Get involved with the action by tagging @horseandriderbooks (FB and Insta) and @HeelsDownMag (FB) and @HeelsDownHappyHour (Insta) with a photo of the horse books you love, or what you are currently reading. Long live horse books!

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