Pat Bartevian, owner of Bartevian Inc on Boylston turns 100-years-old on Saturday
BOSTON - A bit of old Hollywood is hidden in a small, downtown antique shop. And on September 23, the store owner there is turning 100-years-old.
Patricia "Pat" Bartevian has been running her family's consignment shop, Bartevian Inc on Boylston Street for decades.
You can usually find her at the store, opened in 1910, Monday through Saturday and Pat has stories to tell.
From quoting Edgar Allan Poe to sitting in the Oval Office to rolling Easter eggs on the White House lawn, Pat has done it all.
In the 1940's, Pat and her sister Priscilla were known as the "Hickory Sisters" in Hollywood. Making her own costumes and meeting with some of the greats like Fred Astaire and Ernest Hemingway.
And some of those interactions, were interesting.
"They'd book us out to different cities," says Pat. "And we were in Jackson, Wyoming when Hemingway and Cooper had just finished making a movie of his book "For Whom the Bell Tolls." So, we're at the hotel going table from table doing requests and in comes Hemingway and Cooper," Pat goes on.
"When we get to Hemingway's table he says to Gary Cooper, 'I think the boobs are fake.' And Cooper says 'Well, they look real.' He says, 'If they're real, I'll pay the bill.' We went to the next table, they were padded. He paid the bill I didn't tell him!"
Behind the counter, Pat loves talking with customers new and old.
"One thing, people come in and say 'same as it was 20 years ago when I came as a kid', I said well a few things have been sold!"
Nestled among the dozens of pictures of herself and her sister, you'll find all kinds of vintage jewelry, records, artwork, VHS tapes and more.
"All these are special," says Pat. "They all belong to people. They belong to their parents and their grandparents. And a lot of the things have history. I find it like working in a museum."
And her advice for a long life?
"If you physically take care of your body, it will work for you. But you have to feed it right, you have to exercise it, you have to rest it and you can't stress it."
As for her centennial celebration plans, Pat was not throwing any parties.
"No. But, I know my friends will all come in to wish me well. Wish me another hundred."
If you plan to visit Pat on Saturday, the store is handing out pins to celebrate that read, "I had a chat with Pat."
