War Eagle Supper Club auctions famed memorabilia at final hurrah and toast to the Auburn institution
Meagan Hurley | Opelika-Auburn News
Auburn, AL
Auburn fans old and young packed into the War Eagle Supper Club Saturday evening for the 78-year-old establishment’s final hurrah: a live auction featuring the bar’s most prized memorabilia.
Hundreds gathered around the stage to place their bids on the Supper Club’s finest merchandise, including autographed band posters and framed photos, neon bar lights, beer tins, commemorative Auburn athletics signs and more. More than 100 items were sold throughout the night, ranging in price from as little as $10 to $1,000-plus.
One of the most valuable items was an Auburn Hockey Club sign from 1980, which sold for $1,050. Bidding began at $600.
The sign was purchased by Auburn alumnus Bob Cowles, who played on the hockey team throughout the early 1980s.
“I bought it together with another player on the team. I played on the team from 1982, 1983 to 1984. I went in on it with another player from the same years, Bruce Cox,” he said, adding, “The other guy who drove the price up was also on the team in 2010.”
Other notable items sold included a framed O-A News article regarding Kenny Chesney’s 2004 performance at the Supper Club for $150, a 1987 Playboy Top College Bars sign for $250 and two glass ‘War Eagle’ bar lights, which sold for $575 and $550 each.
For one patron, the Supper Club’s most prized possession couldn’t be bought.
Brandy Edwards attended the auction with the intention of purchasing a 1980s-era framed newspaper clipping about her uncle, bassist Bill “Catfish Willie” Austin, who played at the venue before his tragic passing. She was pleasantly surprised when owners Mark Cadenhead and John Brandt ended up refusing to put the item up for auction, and instead gave it to her for free.
“My uncle was Bill Austin. He was originally from Opelika. He moved to Nashville to become a musician and he ended up dying in a fire in 1988. So we did his tribute here, as well. So when I was 8, I got to come here with my family to do his tribute,” said Edwards. “They gave it to me. They didn’t even put it up for auction, and I didn’t even know that until I got here. They saved it for me. That was really sweet of them.”
As the Supper Club’s last night of operation came to a close, long-time patron Bill “Brother Man” Beckwith proposed a toast to the Auburn institution, and the men responsible for keeping it in business for so long.
“I’ve got something I want to say. These are good friends of mine, and I’ve been coming out here since 1955 when it was just a pizza joint. I hope everybody’s enjoyed it, and I just want everybody to raise a glass. This goes to John Brandt, Mark Cadenhead…We love you, we’re going to miss you and War Damn Eagle!”