MAX JACOB HUMBERT (1929-2024)

Tom writes:

"We have just scratched the surface of numismatics," said Max J. Humbert, Chairman of the Board and President of Paramount International Coin Corporation during a recent interview.

It is this conviction and dogged determination to seek out new ways of serving collectors and the hobby that have skyrocketed Max to the head of one of the largest numismatic companies in the world.

With no previous experience in numismatics, Max Humbert entered the coin field "through the back door," so to speak, when early in 1959 he started a small part-time business, Gradually, however, coin collecting worked its way into Max's everyday life and scarcely without realizing it, Max had found himself a hobby.

Somewhere along the way the idea of a Presidential Medal took seed, and in 1960 he and Frank Darner founded Presidential Art Medals, a company which developed and flourished into a successful venture of its own. During his tenure as Vice President of this company, Max had the privilege of meeting with four Presidents or ex-Presidents, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson, for purposes of developing these medals. It is a matter of history that each of these great men gave their support and approval to the medals and their interest in the series is believed to be unique in the annals of collecting. President Kennedy personally passed out his medals as mementoes and the Eisenhower medals were used as gifts for the guests at the party for "Ikes" 73rd birthday.

In 1963, ever aware of the collector and his needs, Max envisioned a publicly owned numismatic company which would provide a wide range of services for the collector. It would be a company that would offer an outstanding selection of rare coins as well as high quality auctions. Even more importantly, Max saw the need for a central place where collectors could order modern issue coins. This would save the average collector from the difficulties and expense associated with having to send to each country separately for the modern issue proof sets and commemorative coins he needed for his collection. This vision ultimately led to Paramount's highly successful World Proof Set Program wherein Paramount is the sole numismatic agent for numerous foreign governments.

Following up on his idea of a publicly owned "super company", Max collaborated with his two good friends, James Kelly, world famous numismatist, and Michael V. DiSalle, former Governor of Ohio. From this alliance, Paramount was born. Its securities were registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission in June, 1964, and thus Paramount became the first publicly owned numismatic firm. From this modest beginning, but with a wealth of vision behind it, Paramount has emerged as one of the leading firms in the world. It maintains a rare coin inventory in excess of 3 million dollars, and conducts several major auctions annually. Paramount has had the distinction of being awarded the prestigious American Numismatic Association Auction a record of eight times. And, Max's pet project, the World Proof Set Program, has developed into the most exciting and fastest growing segment of numismatics, attracting thousands of new collectors to the hobby each year. The program began in 1966 when Panama became the first country represented by Paramount. Since that time, nearly half a million proof sets from a dozen countries have been sold to enthusiastic collectors and the interest in modern issues has escalated by leaps and bounds.

Following the death of James Kelly in 1969, Max picked up the reins of the presidency, and under his tutelage Paramount has steadily grown to an efficient organization of nearly one hundred employees. Today a big part of that multi-million dollar operation is computerized, and the company continues to seek out new ways to serve the collectors that constitute the heart of an increasingly popular hobby. With the constantly expanding World Proof Set program, Max has become a real "world traveler," meeting with various heads of state in the furtherance of this program. As a result he has little leisure time, and the days spent in his office often stretch into ten and twelve hours. Golf, once a full-fledged hobby, is now a "sometime thing" and his trips to the greens grow farther and farther apart. However it takes more than work to pry Max from the TV set on fall Sunday afternoons when he relaxes and watches professional football games. Paramount's president firmly believes that the growth of the coin hobby is really just beginning and he recognizes at once that the greatest problems confronting it are grading and pricing standards, both of which, in reality, go hand-in-hand in numismatics.

He concedes that grading has come a long way toward standardization, but he also knows that wherever the human element is involved, there will be differences of opinion. But this he looks on as really part of the fun of the game. As for pricing, he is adamantly opposed to enforced regulations because he feels that they would eliminate some of the pleasure of the hobby itself. He noted that "one of the thrills of numismatics is obtaining an outstanding bargain or even just a good buy, and this is true for both dealers and collectors". This "thrill" would be lost with price regulations. Max puts great stock in Paramount's responsibility to the collector and the hobby, and believes this sense of responsibility is what sets Paramount apart from other companies. In his own words: "Paramount's position has been, and always will be, such that we will look upon the collector as our greatest permanent asset. We treasure our Paramount customers and view each transaction as a part of a permanent relationship. Also, in looking ahead, I see a broad opportunity for Paramount to serve collectors in other parts of the world. . . as well as in the United States."

This prediction seems already well underway, as Paramount now has subsidiary companies in Jamaica and the Bahamas, and plans are going forward for new marketing facilities in the United Kingdom and Europe. As a result of the rapid growth of the company, Paramount has outgrown its present physical facility and so under Max's guidance, Paramount is about to build a brand new home, a magnificent building with over 20,000 square feet of floor space. There will be an excellent over-the-counter facility, with conference rooms and private sales rooms. The building will have the most up-to-date security system available, complete with closed circuit TV. Shipping and storage facilities, and a huge 5,000 square foot vault will probably be the largest in numismatics. Max Humbert is a dedicated man who is determined to see that numismatics maintains it prestigious position in today's world of hobbies; and that every collector — novice or expert — will come to look to Paramount for complete honesty, integrity and the right answers to his coin needs, questions, and even his problems.

As an illustration of the rapid growth of interest among collectors, our mailing list was a modest 6,000 to 8,000 in 1967 and currently approaches 200,000! These are active customers that have purchased coins during the past 12 months. We have broken up approximately 30 roll sets of brilliant uncirculated Franklin halves and 50 roll sets of brilliant uncirculated silver war nickels and sold them as individual sets during the past year. It is virtually impossible to replace these and chances are practically nil that these coins will be placed back into the market as roll sets again. While these coins cannot be considered rare by current standards, this fact graphically points out how coins are being widely dispersed today and in getting into many different collectors' hands rather than into just the group of speculators.

True rarities are finally being recognized and no doubt we are in a new era in numismatics. Collectors are also recognizing that there is generally a huge difference in availability and rarity between the so called average uncirculated coin and the choice or gem coins. They are also willing to pay a correspondingly large difference in price. Therefore, coins that brought a mere $1,000 several years ago, are currently bringing $25,000 to $50,000. It seems like a phenomenal thing, but when you analyze current prices in comparison to the rarity of the coins, there is sufficient reason to believe they will continue to go higher. I believe the growth is just beginning and that during the next few years will broaden beyond what most people in the business could ever imagine.

Mark Auerbach writes:

Jim Halperin writes:

Lorne LaVertu writes:

 
Raymond N. Merena, David W. Akers and Max J. Humbert (photo courtesy Mark Auerbach)

Tom Mulvaney writes:

 

Groundbreaking ceremonies for the new Paramount 50,000 square foot corporate headquarters in August of 1973. Left to right: Carl Boltz, Mayor of Englewood, OH, Vincent Donise, Max Humbert. Photo by Tom Mulvaney

Tom adds:

 

A special limited edition postal cover commemorating the event which Max signed. Only 6 were made. Photo by Tom Mulvaney

Tom adds:

Mr. Max Jacob Humbert, age 95, a resident of Rockwood, Tennessee went home to be with the Lord and to be rejoined with his beloved wife, Shelia on Thursday, February 29, 2024, from his home in Rockwood with his family by his side. He was born January 25, 1929, in North Canton, Ohio. Mr. Humbert lived a very full, accomplished, and interesting life, but became a Christian in 1991, and it was this moment and his life since that he most cherished and wished to be remembered. According to himself, his success was in Jesus Christ. He leaves a legacy as a God loving, faithful Christian man, who loved Christ and was always giving to the work of the Lord and helping those in need. He was preceded in death by his parents, Jacob & Marjorie Humbert; his wife who was the Love of his life and his True Love Story, Shelia Humbert; daughter, Selena Marbarker; son, Jeff Humbert; and brothers, Jack Humbert, Don Humbert, and Bob Humbert.

To read the complete obituary, see:
Max Jacob Humbert (https://www.evansmortuary.biz/obituaries/max-humbert)

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