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Man Tries to Get Rid of Million Pennies
LOS ANGELES (AP) - A man is trying to get rid of his pennies - all 1 million of them. Ron England bet his brother 30 years ago that he could save a million pennies in exchange for a dinner in Paris. And he did, eventually stacking up 20,000 rolls that fill 13 boxes in his garage.

Now that he's moving, England wants to cash in the $10,000 in coppers, which weigh 3.6 tons, but is having a tough time finding someone who will take them without a price.

"I've been working seriously for the past two weeks to get rid of these pennies," said England, 60, a Paramount Studios, Hollywood, projectionist who will soon retire with his wife to a home in Oregon. "It's kind of frustrating. Nobody will take them without charging me."

The Coinstar machine at his supermarket isn't exactly made to accept a million pennies.

A Santa Monica artist who welds couches out of pennies declined to call him back.

Coin collectors said to call a bank.

But his bank, Washington Mutual, is charging extra fees and won't take all the rolls at once. The best he's found is a branch that will take 200 rolls, or $100 per week. That's 20 months of deposits.

Tim McGarry, spokesman for Washington Mutual in Los Angeles, said that until recently, the bank charged 10 cents a roll for more than eight rolls. Now, each bank manager determines how many pennies it can accept and charges accordingly. Business rates differ.

"This is a very rare case," McGarry said. "Some of the practicalities are daunting - 3.6 tons is more than most vaults can handle."

Even the federal government isn't interested.

The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency doesn't want them, nor does the U.S. Engraving and Printing Bureau.

"We don't buy back currency," said Mike White, a spokesman for the U.S. Mint. "We like to have it in circulation."

England refuses to pay extra.

"I'm stubborn," he said. "If I have to haul all these pennies to Oregon, I will, 'cause I'm not gonna pay."

The bet was made in March 1974, England said. He and his brother, Russ wagered that If Ron could collect and roll a million pennies, Russ would buy him a dinner of fried sweetbreads in Paris.

So England began to roll. Friends and relatives fed him pennies. At one point he was buying about $250 a week in pennies.

About five years later, he was done. But he never got his Parisian meal.

"I don't remember making the wager," said Russ England, 55. "Am I still good for it? I'm not going to answer that question."

Now Ron England says he hopes to buy a John Deere tractor with his money.

"I did enjoy proving my brother wrong," England said. "If he'd pay off, I'd quit bitching. I should have saved dimes. I'd have a lot more money, and it would weigh a lot less."

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1. Anyone know how to apply for that projectionsit job?
2. I think that I'll start bring all my change to the bank every month. I have a couple hundred dollars just sitting here.
3. I like the fact that he is willing to drive to another state to deposit his money. I like people like that.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 07-06-2004, 08:19 AM:
 
Whether it be all in pennies or $100 bills, it's still legal tender. Go buy something with it.

Walk into a car dealer or some place like that and try to buy a car, etc. with it. If (when) they try to refuse you, call the news room at your local TV station and tell them what happend. Then see if you can get a news crew to follow you back onto the car lot with cameras rolling as you try to buy the car again.

Even if you can't get the place to sell you a car in exchange for 1,000,000 pennies you'll get some fun news mileage out of it!


 

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Posted by Bill Gabel (Member # 1105) on 07-06-2004, 09:18 AM:
 
Nate

That job is already filled.
 

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Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-06-2004, 09:38 AM:
 
At least in canada you would not have to accept it
The currency laws have limits on the amount of each denomination a business must accept for a specific value of a transaction and a bank has a right to charge a few for coin currency deposits
Last time I checked it was 50cents in pennies
I assume the US also has some currency regulations
 

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Posted by Ryan Luby (Member # 2520) on 07-06-2004, 01:01 PM:
 
He could hold someone hostage and, instead of demanding and recieving money he didn't earn, he could demand that they exchange his hard-earned pennies for a larger form of currency. While he's at it (if he was smart) he'd ask for a Venti Ice White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks to go along with the money.
 

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Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 07-06-2004, 06:05 PM:
 
He needs to walk into a new bank and say, "I'd like to open an account." What idiot bank would turn down a $10,000 new account?
 

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Posted by Clint Koch (Member # 1179) on 07-06-2004, 06:17 PM:
 
I bet that since he started collecting back in 1974 that there are quite a few wheat back pennies in that collection making the actual dollar more than face value. I am surprised some coin collector has not seen this and enquired about it.
 

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Posted by Phil Hill (Member # 371) on 07-06-2004, 06:20 PM:
 
I wonder how much he'd get if he sold it for scrap metal? I don't know the going rate is for copper, but it might be more than he'd get with the banks. Especially considering their deduction for "inconvenience" fees!

>>> Phil
 

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Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 07-06-2004, 06:46 PM:
 
I thought they stopped making pennies out of copper. Aren't they zinc now?
 

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Posted by Phil Hill (Member # 371) on 07-06-2004, 06:49 PM:
 
Dunno... But these are all from the 1970's...

quote:

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The bet was made in March 1974... About five years later, he was done.

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>>> Phil
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-06-2004, 06:55 PM:
 
"I wonder how much he'd get if he sold it for scrap metal? I don't know the going rate is for copper, but it might be more than he'd get with the banks."
_________________________________________________________________

The price today for scrap copper is as follows.....
"Scrap Copper Average (US $/lbs) : 1.02 1.02 0.00 "

It takes 160 pennies to equal one pound weight. Go figure from there....
I'd probably drive around to a bunch of those in store coin changing machines or find a bank that would open an acocunt with them.

Mark
 

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Posted by Phil Hill (Member # 371) on 07-06-2004, 07:11 PM:
 
That would be about $7300.00. Probably more than he'd get with paying the Bank's penalty fees for the deposit EVEN IF they'd take it.

I would NOT take the time or expense of driving around looking for some "deal". I would just take my losses and move on. In the long run, it would probably be cheaper and I have much better things to do with my time.

>>> Phil
 

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Posted by Nate Lehrke (Member # 1460) on 07-06-2004, 08:04 PM:
 
So when my local grade school has a penny drive, they are losing a significant percentage to just deposit it? They should have dollar drives instead!
 

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Posted by Ryan Luby (Member # 2520) on 07-06-2004, 08:18 PM:
 
Why did he bet on 1,000,000 pennies in the first place? Someone forget to tell him that they are the lowest form of currency in our country? He should aim high, not low.

I didn't take the time to calculate the totals but one would think that 1,000,000 dollar bills would be a lot less heavy, and maybe even worth a bit more to boot!
 

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Posted by Brian Michael Weidemann (Member # 2243) on 07-07-2004, 04:38 AM:
 
Scrap metal?

I'm sure we've all written on bills and bent coins with pliers (hey, we DO these things as kids!), but isn't destroying currency technically a crime? I know that since they're all rolled, in boxes, the pennies are effectively out of circulation, but they are technically still IN circulation, right?
 

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Posted by Michael Cunningham (Member # 210) on 07-07-2004, 04:51 AM:
 
As to the legal tender bit, I believe money says "this currency shall serve as legal tender for all debts, public or private" or something to that effect. The key word there is DEBTS, in other words, after the fact payments. Utility bills, legal fines, etc. might fall into this area. This doesn't mean that a private company must accept your pennies for a new purchase though. They just refuse to serve you, which, as most businesses have clearly stated somewhere on their walls, they reserve the right to do.

- Mike
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 07-07-2004, 09:39 AM:
 
So, then, would you say that he should take out a loan on some big ticket item in order to go into debt and THEN immediately pay off the loan in pennies?

Technically, he would be in debt. If the pennies are, "Legal tender for all DEBTS public and private.", he would be in the clear if he paid off the debt in pennies. No?


 

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Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 07-07-2004, 09:55 PM:
 
If I'm not mistaken, I think pennies were solid copper until 1981 or 82. Then they were just copper coated. My parents have a whole jar of wheatback pennies. Aren't those worth a nickle or something? Speaking of nickles, how much are nickle nickles worth? Silver dollars? Why don't they make real money anymore?

=TMP=
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-08-2004, 02:17 AM:
 

quote: Thomas Procyk

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Why don't they make real money anymore?

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It's probably about some kind of downsizing. Maybe the Treasury Secretary gets a kick back on the savings by turning real money into fake-ass slug money. Someone is profiting somewhere. Maybe Kenneth Lay. Oh, he's getting indicted (finally). Maybe he has a 24K gold plated draw-string to close his stretched rectum once he gets thrown into the big house forever (we can only hope).

To be frank (don't call me Surely), I think this whole pennies fiasco sends a very harmful and potentially destructive message.

I know people who derive great pleasure from flinging Junior Mints from the top row of a stadium seated movie theater. Just think of how many knots customers will have on their heads from far flung unwanted pennies!

I have a gallon jar in my kitchen way beyond overflowing with pennies. Incidentally, I also have a large convenience store refillable drink cup (probably 44 ounces) overflowing with commemorative state quarters. I guess I should probably start rolling them now and spending them --otherwise some sorry people are going to have lots of knots on their heads from me throwing them. Because I will do it!!! Yaaarrrgh!

 

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Posted by Joshua Lott (Member # 240) on 07-11-2004, 07:21 PM:
 
Link to Fox News Website

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Grocery Chain Will Buy 1 Million Pennies

GRANADA HILLS, Calif. (AP) — As a follow-up to a story previously reported in Out There: A movie studio projectionist has found a buyer for the one million pennies he's amassed in his garage over 30 years.

The grocery chain Vons/Pavilions has agreed to buy the $10,000 in copper from 60-year-old Ron England of Granada Hills. He's retiring to Oregon and found the 3.6 tons in pennies too unwieldy to move.

The company plans to donate half the coins to charity.

England bet his brother he could collect the pennies in return for a dinner in Paris.

Next Thursday, Vons/Pavilions will send out armored cars for England's 20,000 rolls of coins.

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Posted by Ken Lackner (Member # 1002) on 07-12-2004, 01:15 AM:
 
Am I the only one who noticed this: His bank is Washington Mutual. Aren't they supposed to not have fees?
 

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Posted by Adam Wilbert (Member # 1184) on 07-12-2004, 01:34 AM:
 

quote: Ken Lackner

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Aren't they supposed to not have fees?

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Only if he had direct deposited the pennies. You can't honestly expect a bank to take more than their vault can hold without a fee. I'm not sure why this guy is suprised by this and didn't anticipate there being charges. England's comment that

quote: the guy in the article

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If I have to haul all these pennies to Oregon, I will, 'cause I'm not gonna pay.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Maybe the Treasury Secretary gets a kick back on the savings by turning real money into fake-ass slug money.

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