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Inside The ShoeZeum – Part 10: Grand Finale

Inside The ShoeZeum – Part 10: Grand Finale

Shoezeum Top 30

Now that you’ve seen pretty much all that The ShoeZeum has to offer in the first nine parts of our inside look, what’s left to say? You’ve just had a look at perhaps the most impressive sneaker collection on earth. Are there better concentrated collections of Air Jordans or Air Force 1’s or SB Dunks out there? Maybe, but you’d have a tough time finding a single one possessing such a thorough cross-section of just about every collectible Nike genre and category. With The ShoeZeum, Jordan Geller has created a warehouse-size museum-caliber exhibit featuring the best of Nike’s almost 40 year span, and while there may be a handful of notables missing, it does a pretty staggering job of covering ground, especially when you consider that over 99% of the shoes are deadstock and a size 11-12. Since our trip out to San Diego last month, The ShoeZeum was honored by a VIP visit from Mark Parker, Tinker Hatfield and a collection of Nike executives who were just as floored by Jordan Geller’s creation as we were.

You’ve had a chance to see some of the highlights in our Inside The ShoeZeum galleries, but we thought we’d finish strong with two final treats. The first is a video below and over on Sneaker News that will give you

perhaps the best representation of what it’s actually like to make your way through the entire ShoeZeum. Filmed in one take, the video follows the first person path of a visitor entering the building and making their way through every aisle, rack, shelf and shoe. In real time, it took almost an hour and a half to cover both floors of The ShoeZeum, but we sped up the video for you so you can check out the whole thing in 17 minutes. Grab a drink and a snack and take some time to check out a fast-paced stroll through all the wonders found inside.

Here on Sneaker News HD, you can check out Jordan Geller’s Top 30 Sneakers in The ShoeZeum. With the overwhelming magnitude of the 2000-plus shoes found within, it’s easy to overlook some of the gems that get lost in the mix among all those shoes. We asked Jordan to pull his favorite thirty for a better focus on the best of the best. Check out Jordan’s choices along with his commentary on each selection. Thanks for joining us on our trip Inside The ShoeZeum. We sincerely hope you enjoyed it. Love it or hate it, you certainly can’t knock the love, dedication and execution in putting together the ultimate Nike showcase. A big thanks to Jordan for his hospitality and eagerness to share his ShoeZeum and love for sneakers with the world.

Shoezeum Top 30 29

30- OG McEnroe Air Trainer

“Excellent condition, OG box.  The first cross trainer ever.  Tinker thought it was silly to carry multiple shoes to the gym, so he created one that could be used for all sorts of activities.”

Shoezeum Top 30 30

29- Vintage Blazer Roller Skates

“These are worn, but still in good shape.  They are originals from the 70’s.  I bought them at a vintage clothing/sneaker shop in San Diego known as Score Footwear.  Thanks Dmitri!”

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28- Air Bakin

“Recalled because the Air looks like the Arabic symbol for Allah.  Super rare!  I rocked these in college and friends said that they looked like Ronald McDonald’s shoes.  I corrected them that they were actual Tim Hardaway’s.”

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27- Zoom Force 1 – Danny Kass Snowboarding Boot

“Only 200 pairs made.  Bought at a Nike Outlet for $59.99 with matching windbreakers!  Peep the commercial for these double-tongued beauties here.”

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26- Eminem Air Max 97

“Very rare. 18 pairs made.”

Shoezeum Top 30 12

25- Playstation Air Force 1

“I bought these from DJ AM’s sister after the auctions ended because they were never paid for by the high bidder.  Only 150 pairs made.”

Shoezeum Top 30 7

24- Eminem Air Jordan II

“Only 312 pairs made because that is the area code in Detroit.”

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23- Nike Air Force 2 AM

“From DJ AM’s collection and the first shoe he fell in love with as a kid.  These are worn and are featured alongside the matching Dame Dash Air Force 2 Lows.”

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22- Silver Air Max 97

“My all-time favorite shoe to rock!  I generally prefer my nikes in size 11.5, but for AM 97’s, I always rock a 12.”

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21- Supa Dunk

“Tough find in size 12.  Thanks Kixclusive.  This is the first ever Dunk SB.  Props to Sandy Bodecker for everything that his team has done with skateboarding shoes.  They are some of my favorite shoes to collect.  These shoes are part of an exhibit that showcases the evolution of the Dunk from a basketball shoe into a skate shoe.  The exhibit was inspired by the following Nike web page seen here.”

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20- Meg Whitman Signed Cali Dunk

“One of a kind.  Meg ran for governor of Cali in 2010 and did a campaign rally stop at my warehouse so I had her sign my Calis (on the shrink wrap of course)  It is so special to me that I had a visit from Meg Whitman (former CEO of eBay) and Mark Parker (CEO of Nike).  I put my heart and soul into Sneak’s Kicks and The ShoeZeum and it means so much to me that I was able to share it with the people that made it all possible.  Check out a news clip from when Meg visited my warehouse in october 2010 here.”

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19- Ugly Dunkling (Viotech, Nori, Joker)

“I wore a pair of jokers in my law school graduation with jeans and a black t-shirt while my classmates wore suits and ties.”

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18- Homegrown Air Max 90

“Only 200 pairs made.  Love the Euro commercial for these beauties.  Thanks to a heads up from SneakerNews, the orange Un-Homegrowns have recently been added to the ShoeZeum.”

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17- Hemp Pack

“Only 420 pairs of these in the world.  Green Hemps from DJ AM, others from Flight Club.  These shoes are smokin, literally!”

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16-  Supreme x Nike SB Dunks

“All five!  These were tough to find.  Love the lows inspired by the Air Jordan III.  Those and the orange highs were bought from Flight Club.  Red from Kixclusive.”

Shoezeum Top 30 10

15- Air Jordan V – 2000 Retros

“The black pair is the oldest DS shoe in my collection. I bought them in college and kept em brand new.  I remember when i was growing up, these were on Sports Illustrated because people were being murdered for them.  I found two copies of this Sports Illustrated at the swap meet, as well as a copy of the very first Sports Illustrated ever.  There are more than 35 pairs of assorted Air Jordan V’s in The ShoeZeum.”

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14- What the Dunks

“Two pairs… I also have every pair that makes them up except three that I can not seem to find no matter where I look. (Medicom 2 black denim, Reese Forbes blue denim and blue patent leather (pl) Avenger are missing)  IF ANYONE OUT THERE HAS THESE THREE SHOES IN SIZE 11-12 DEADSTOCK, PLEASE HIT ME UP.  The What The Dunk exhibit is my favorite one in The ShoeZeum.  It took so much determination to find all of the shoes that make them up.”

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13- Air Jordan III – 2001 Retros

“Two pairs bought at Flight Club. Nike Air on the heel!  There are more than 30 pairs of assorted Air Jordan III’s in The ShoeZeum.”

Shoezeum Top 30 24

12- OG Air Foamposite One

“I was at U of A when Bibby broke these out in 97.  This OG pair is flawless.  Bought at Flight Club.  There are more than 60 pairs of assorted Foamposites/Flightposites/Clogposite in The ShoeZeum.”

Shoezeum Top 30 9

11- Air Jordan IV – 1999 Retros

“I remember passing on these at a Nike outlet for 69.99 when I was in college because I was too broke to afford em.  Nike Air on the heel!
There are more than 25 pairs of assorted Air Jordan IV’s in The ShoeZeum.”

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10- Entourage Air Force 1 AM

“These were the actual shoes on the episode.  I bought them from AM’s collection for $3050.  They are truly one of a kind.  Check out a clip of the episode here.”

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9-  Undefeated Air Jordan IV

“From DJ AM’s collection… Not a part of the auction. These are worn… only 72 pairs made worldwide”

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8- OG Air Jordan XI

“First Jordans ever for me in 1996… also the first shoe I ever sold on eBay.  I bought these shoes with money that my parents were giving me for food and living expenses in college.  I bought them for $125, wore them for 4 years, and sold them on eBay for $167.50.  I used the money to buy a brand new pair of retros.  There are more than 30 pairs of assorted Jordan XI’s in The ShoeZeum.”

Shoezeum Top 30 3

7- Eminem Air Jordan IV

“From DJ AM’s private collection.  Not a part of the auction.  Got hooked up by AM’s mom and sister.  These are worn and are the only shoes in The ShoeZeum that are not between 11 and 12 (they are a 13).  Only 50 pairs made worldwide.”

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6- OG Air Jordan 1’s

“11 pairs… Metallic black sample, Black Toes, 2 Bred, 4 white/black/red, neutral grey, black royal, AJKO… I bought all of these on eBay.”

Shoezeum Top 30 5

5- Command Force/Air Force 180 Pump

“White Men Can’t Jump… One of my favorite shoes and one of my most expensive purchases.  I bought the Command Forces on eBay for $3150.  They are completely DS/flawless.

I bought the 180 Pumps on eBay from someone in France for $1200.  They are completely DS/flawless as well.  I was actually searching completed items and I stumbled upon this beautiful pair of shoes that sold for just $1000.  I was able to convince the seller to back out of the transaction and sell them to me for more money.”

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4- City Pack

“10 G’s, bought from Hong Kong based eBay seller Mental Therapy.  When I bought these I thought that I needed mental therapy for spending so much money on four pairs of shoes.  These shoes were featured in the Tokyo Evolution of the White Dunk Show and came with a poster from the actual event.  All four pairs are so fresh and so clean, clean!  100 percent deadstock, laces attached, perfect boxes.  Only 202 city packs were released in the world and the shoes were only released in NY, Tokyo, London and Paris.”

Shoezeum Top 30 4

3- Air Pressure

“2 pairs… Sick translucent cases and pumps included.  Best shape ever.  Minimal cracking/deterioration.  I bought one on eBay, other came from the Rose Bowl swap meet.  This was one of the first basketball shoes that I fell in love with as a kid.  I was 12 years old when they came out.  I remember begging my parents to buy them for me, but at $180, their answer was NO!”

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2- Staple Pigeon

“Number 2!  A fitting choice for my number 2 favorite shoe in the collection.  I wonder who has number 1…  People literally rioted over these shoes.  Click here for footage of the riots.”

Shoezeum Top 30 1

1- Pre Montreal

“My favorite shoe in the collection.  Made for Steve Prefontaine for the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.  These shoes feature one of Nike’s earliest innovations-a one-piece toe.  They are also a very early Nike shoe that was made specifically for a certain athlete (Pre) to be worn at a specific sporting event (76 Montreal Olympics). Tragically, Steve passed away before the games and never got to wear these shoes in the 1976 games.  I bought these from someone who found them in an abandoned storage locker. Comes with box, spikes, and key. To me, these shoes are priceless. I bought them on eBay for $3383.”

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