He also enjoyed writing freelance newspaper articles and in the wake of the 1990 controversy surrounding the publication of H.L. Mencken's diaries, reflected on the writer's anti-Semitism and bigotry.
In an article published in The Evening Sun, Mr. Levin wrote that the diaries "stirred powerful emotions in me. Anguish, outrage and sadness were replaced in turn by puzzlement. ... We were the Jews on Mencken's block."
He added: "I didn't think that my family being there annoyed him - he seemed to like us. And we revered him. We didn't suspect the hidden side so arrogantly revealed in the diaries. The duplicity hurts."
Mr. Levin was a noted collector of pre-World War II Lionel and Ives electric trains as well as Marklin mechanical toys.
He also had a layout in the basement of his Pikesville home, where he liked operating his collection for family and visiting enthusiasts.
"He had hundreds and hundreds of engines and cars," said a daughter, Denyse Lieber of Fountain Hills, Ariz. "He liked his Lionel and Ives trains and Marklin toys because of their beauty and quality of workmanship."
Mr. Levin was a well-known dealer and appraiser of antique toys and trains, and served two terms as national president of the Train Collectors Association of America, an organization that has more than 25,000 members.
He also had a second home in Phoenix, Ariz., where he was an active member of the Desert Division of the Train Collectors Association of America
Mr. Levin participated in the organization's biannual shows that are held in York, Pa.
"Al and his wife, Selma, were fixtures at York for years. He was a real gentleman," said James A. Genthner, a Timonium model rail enthusiast. "I bought a nice old tin Lionel City station from him back in the early 1990s, at a train show in the Reese fire hall out near Westminster. I still have it."
Mr. Levin also collected gold commemorative half-dollars, lead figures and slot machines.
He was a member for more than 50 years of Baltimore Hebrew Congregation. Services were held yesterday.
Also surviving are his wife of 65 years, the former Selma Cooper; two other daughters, Marlene Levin of Baltimore and Lisbeth Levin of Bethesda; a brother, Harry Levin of Woodland Hills, Calif.; a sister, Marsha Poliakoff of Spartanburg, S.C.; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Another daughter, Vicki Levin Miller, died in 1998.
