In the mid-1990s, Peggy Gallagher, a teacher from suburban Chicago, teamed up with her sister to become one of the world's first collectors of Beanie Babies — helping to spark a collecting craze that made toy manufacturer Ty Warner a billionaire. Hear Peggy's tales of speculation, authentication, and riding the Beanie bubble!

Peggy's Beanie Babies authentication site • "The Great Beanie Baby Bubble" by Zac Bissonnette (source for Beanie Babies stats) • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Chad Crouch • www.forkeepspodcast.com

Working for years as a janitor at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection station in Ajo, Arizona, photographer Tom Kiefer collected the confiscated — and discarded — personal items of migrants who were detained at the station. Today, he reverentially documents those salvaged belongings in El Sueño Americano, his photography project that's getting a lot of notice these days.

Tom's website and Instagram feed • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Sun Belt, Mike Grigoni, and Gabriel Naïm Amor • www.forkeepspodcast.com

(All items photographed by Tom Kiefer; photo of Tom is a still from a video produced by the Saugatuck Center for the Arts.)

Since 1983, Dutch beachcomber Wim Kruiswijk has collected all sorts of things in the sand — including hundreds and hundreds of messages in bottles. In a special episode co-produced with the Citizen Reporter podcast, Amsterdam-based podcaster Mark Fonseca Rendeiro visits Wim to hear about his collection and some of the pen pals he's made over the years.

More photos from Mark's visit with Wim • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • www.forkeepspodcast.com

In 1979, Beatles fanatic Paul Goresh began hanging out at New York's Dakota apartment building, taking photos of ex-Beatle John Lennon — and developing an unlikely casual friendship with the musical icon. Two people who knew Goresh well, and two others who had key interactions with him, share stories and memories of the late collector, who died in 2018.

Paul Goresh's New York Daily News obituary • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Chad Crouch and Walty • www.forkeepspodcast.com

Before passing away in October 2018, pharmaceutical marketing executive William Helfand amassed a huge collection of medical-themed prints, posters, and memorabilia — with an emphasis on "quack" pills, potions, and snake oil cure-alls. On this episode, daughter Jessica Helfand pays tribute to her father's "quack" connoisseurship.

New York Times obituary of William Helfand • Jessica's design podcast, The Observatory • Images from the Helfand collection (Philadelphia Museum of Art) • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Aaron Kenny, E's Jammy Jams, Paul Tarle, and Jimmy Fontanez/Media Right Productions • www.forkeepspodcast.com 

Velvet Elvises, sad clowns, colorful unicorns, tasteful nudes — they're all under one roof at Carl Baldwin's Velveteria museum in Los Angeles, home to what must be the world's largest collection of velvet paintings. Hear Carl talk about his colorful trip down the "velvet trail" from casual fan to the art form's biggest booster.

The Velveteria website • The museum's GoFundMe page • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music provided by Fernando Perdomo • www.forkeepspodcast.com

The big salad, the marble rye, the black-and-white cookie — endless connections between the TV sitcom "Seinfeld" and food inspired restaurateur Tony Valadez to create Little Jerry's, a Tacoma, Washington, eatery that doubles as a showcase for his fun array of memorabilia celebrating the iconic "show about nothing." 

Little Jerry's Facebook page • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions • www.forkeepspodcast.com

Time to get happy! Husband and wife Jerry and Cat have found true joy in Bob Ross's timeless public-television series "The Joy of Painting," and their passion for the much-loved program has inspired the couple to collect several original Ross paintings (no small feat!) as well as a mind-boggling array of art and personal items once owned by the late TV icon himself. 

Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions • www.forkeepspodcast.com • "Nothing But A Bob Thang" Podcast

Guinness alert! Before passing away in 2007, Italian collector Amatore Bolzoni made it into the record books with his quirky collection of more than 2,000 condoms, gathered over decades of world travel. Today his son, Massimo, celebrates his father's memory (and humor) by preserving the collection — and even adding to it.

Amatore Bolzoni's Guinness Book entry • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Kevin MacLeod • www.forkeepspodcast.com

Swedish psychologist Dr. Samuel West's collection of 100 or so failed products isn't just meant to amuse us — he believes that we can learn from failures, too. He's the curator of the Museum of Failure, a traveling exhibition that showcases (and celebrates) some of the biggest busts in business history.

The Museum of Failure website • Dr. West's TED Talk • Opening theme: "Keepers" by Still Flyin' • Closing theme: "Slow Draw/Feeling In My Heart" by Eric Frisch • Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions • www.forkeepspodcast.com

(Website photos by Jake Ahles, Sofie Lindberg and Sandra H Gao)