Chapter 1: My Ambition and Acquiring Stinky Pete

My name is Al McWhiggin and I own Al's Toy Barn. Many years ago, I embarked on a mission to collect all the toys made for the Woody's Roundup show. As a child, I had already acquired many of the toys, such as the Woody toy that blew out bubbles when you pushed his hat, the snake in the boot toy, and the kit for learning the guitar with Woody. In fact, the only toys missing from my almost complete collection were the pull-string dolls Jessie the Yodeling Cowgirl, Stinky Pete the Prospector, and the elusive Sherriff Woody. I also had not come across Woody's horse Bullseye.

As a child, Woody's Roundup was my favorite show. Every Christmas and birthday, my mother and father would get me something related to the show. It was very hard for me to pick a favorite character. I enjoyed seeing Woody and Bullseye ride off into the sunset, Stinky Pete's silly antics, and Jessie's yodeling. Unfortunately, as I got older, the show was canceled in favor of more Sci-Fi related projects. Personally, I always found Westerns to be more appealing.

One final thing you must understand about me is I was not always hungry for money. I collected memorabilia from Woody's Roundup first out of pure passion. Again, I was a huge fan. I made it a point to watch the show every Saturday morning. I always ate Cowboy Crunchies when watching the show. I even went to prom wearing a Woody's Roundup tie.

Remember how I said mom and dad would always buy me memorabilia from Woody's Roundup for my birthday and Christmas. They bought everything from the show, except for those four toys I just described. They were extremely hard to come across. That changed one day when I went to an antique store shortly after finishing high school.

I was window shopping, looking at old toys. At first, I didn't notice, but a split second later, one toy caught my eye. I couldn't believe it. It was a Stinky Pete the Prospector doll, and he was still in the box! I quickly scooped him up and paid the lady who owned the antique store. It was a bargain for sure. Stinky Pete only costed me $30. I remember him being much more expensive when I was a kid. After I paid for him, I got into my car and drove to my apartment.

I had just recently moved in. I had all the memorabilia from Woody's Roundup on display. I sat down the box and studied the doll. I was tempted to open the box and pull his string to hear his nine sayings. However, I knew he would be worth more if I kept him in the box. My inner child gave in, and I opened the box. His pickaxe had a sharp point. I did not remove that from the box. His hat and boots were a firm plastic and his overalls felt like actual denim. His head was also plastic, and his hat was removable. I pulled his string and heard his nine sayings.

The sayings were as follows: "Aww Shucks-A-Roo." "Oh boy! Beans for dinner." "There's gold in them ther hills." "Help! I think I'm stuck!" "Yow! My biscuits are burnin'." "Has anyone seen my pickax?" "Holy tarnation!" "I'll light me a camp." "Let's gather 'round the campfire."

I grinned and laughed, and then I put Stinky Pete back in his box. It was literally one toy down and three to go. I had a feeling that finding the other three were going to get harder. After all, finding the Prospector was dumb luck, especially in mint condition. When I had acquired Stinky Pete the Prospector, I was still intent on just personal satisfaction of collecting the toys. The money deal with the Konishi Toy Museum came later.