A Reagan Expert Weighs In...

Autograph collector extraordinaire, Dr. Stephen Beck, has told me that Reagan did sign books (on the book itself, not on a bookplate) for a short period in 1993. That said, books signed on the book are still very uncommon, but they do exist.

Another Reagan Book

Continuing with the Reagan signed books, this is the second book I had signed through his office in late 1997 or early 1998.



As you can see from the bookplate below, this is most likely a later signature as the rounded Rs start to take on a squarish shape. It is my understanding that his later signatures evolved into a square block like script.



Next: Signed photos

Bats 222: Mind Boggling

A few days ago I featured a Batman 222 (Beatles Cover) that I picked up at my local comics shop. My copy is in the 9.0 range... give or take a half grade.

Well, here's a CGC 9.4 that closed at $587 on ebay. My God... I'm speechless.

Caveat Emptor!

Browsing through ebay, Reagan forgeries outnumber the real deal about 10 to 1. Now is a very bad time to purchase a Reagan signed item... the market is flooded with fakes, and you will overpay for authentic material. Be patient, there is plenty of authentic material out there, and in several months the prices will go to normal levels.

A few pointers... stay away from:

* Unusual signed items - baseballs, flags, etc. 99.9% of them are fake.
* Items of opportunity - these are items that someone finds at a garage sale for 25 cents and is a "cheap investment" as forgery fodder. Examples include, postal covers, signed buttons, signed pamphlets, signed postcards, signed books that are not the books he would sign through his office, etc.
* Items with "too good to be true" inscriptions such as "Tear Down the Wall", "I Forgot to Duck", etc. Almost all of these are fake, and beware of signed typed quotes. There is a guy on ebay that has been selling these for years... I think they are all fakes.
* Unpersonalized signed photos in the perfect pose (flag in background, etc.) These are almost always fake.
* Books that are signed (not on a bookplate). Reagan never did any booksignings and books sent to his office were affixed with a bookplate. Authentically signed books are very rare.

If you have any items you'd like me to take a look at, please leave a link in a comment and I'll look into it.

Speaking My Mind

As my previous post indicated, Ronald Reagan would sign books, if you sent the right one (or two). Speaking My Mind is the first of the two that I sent to his office in 1997.



It returned several weeks later with this authentically signed bookplate, my first Reagan success. It's very close to the classic Reagan signature and my guess is that this bookplate was probably signed prior to 1997 because it shows a little weakness, but no substantive deterioration.



More to come...

Reagan Signed Books

As late as 1998, one could get an authentic signature from Ronald Reagan's office. With the proper request, his office would affix an authentically signed bookplate into a book - if you sent the right book. Here is a letter on how to do it from his office:



It has been theorized that they gave President Reagan stacks of bookplates to sign... almost as form of therapy as the illness took hold. As you will see in later examples, someone from his office added the recipient's name in calligraphic form, but the Reagan signature itself was authentic through 1998. Requests after 1998 were answered with an Autopen signature. Perhaps the supply ran out and he was no longer able to sign at this point? Signed book examples will follow tomorrow.

A Great American Rides Into The Sunset

Unless you've been under a rock for the past 30 hours, by now you know that Ronald Reagan has died.

I'm really too sad other than to say that he was a hero of mine. I mourn his loss, but I am relieved his suffering is over.

In the next few days I will display some of my Ronald Reagan autographs.

CGC Bound?

Picked up a few nice books at the local comic shop. After I give 'em a thorough reading, I'm debating if I will send them to CGC.

The Bats 222 sports a classic Neal Adams cover and is very desirable in high grade. This copy has a few hairline ticks along the spine, but CGC can be very forgiving when it comes to certain books. There is a small horizontal bend above the top staple... I fear that CGC would knock it down more for the bend than the small spine stresses. My guess on this one would be CGC 9.0... but I would not be surprised to see it swing between 8.5 or 9.2.



This Captain America Annual #3 is real nice, a sure 9.2 and probably a 9.4. I just love this Kirby cover... I still have the beat-up copy I bought from the newsstand way back when.

Photos from Air & Space Show

Hey, I finally figured out how to put photos in the blog! So, here are some pictures from the Air & Space Show in Titusville,Florida this past weekend.

This is me with Apollo 15 moonwalker Dave Scott:



And here I am with ISS Cosmonaut Yuri Usachev:



More to come...

First Annual Air & Space Show

The Air & Space show I helped to produce went off this past weekend with great success. To see photos and what some of the attendees had to say, go to

I was lucky enough to get a bunch of photos signed, including my wooden Saturn V model which I added Dave Scott, Paul Weitz and Jack Lousma. I'm running out of real estate on the model, so I'm not sure I can add many more signatures. If Neil Armstrong wanted to sign, I might have to find room by whiting out a previous signature. ;-)

Once I figure out how to put photos in this Blog, I'd be happy to post some of my own pictures.

Stay tuned for the Second Annual Air & Space show.

Dealer List Updated

I've removed a few listings from my Dealer List page, most notably Eagle Sports. I've received reports that they were selling items with "J. DiMaggio" COAs, and at least one of the items was submitted to PSA/DNA and came back as a forgery. As you may know, "J. DiMaggio" COAs (no relation to the baseball player) were among those exposed by the FBI a few years ago in Operation Bullpen.

Come To The Air And Space Show in May

Air And Space Show - Florida

I am assisting my buddy Al with organizing the first annual Air & Space Show. Check out the website and make your travel plans!