Julien's Michael Jackson auction controversy

The story originally broke on Autograph Magazine Live, and it has now been picked up by the national media. Are the Michael Jackson signatures from The Collection of Tompkins and Bush forgeries?

View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com.

Note that Julien's Auctions filed a Copyright Infringement Claim against Autograph Magazine Live (AML) for images used from the Tompkins & Bush sale. AML contends they are allowed to use them under Fair Use laws for discussion and criticism, and AML is filing a counterclaim.

How to tell authentic autographs from fakes

Very often you'll see a collector ask something along the lines of, "How can I tell a real [fill-in-the-blank] autograph from fakes?" It seems as though the person expects to receive an answer such as, "If the third stroke of the M is more than 1.5 inches long, it's fake."

Of course, it is not that simple. There are no shortcuts or magic tells. Most anyone can identify grossly malformed fakes. But to be really good and identify the relatively deceptive fakes, you need to train your eyes to recognize the proper look and feel. And this is not something that can be accomplished overnight. In other words, it requires work and dedication.

So, how do you "train your eye"?

• Look at hundreds of authentic exemplars. Look at them every day for a long time. And make sure you are using verified authentic exemplars!
• Do side-by-side comparisons with known fakes.
• Don't focus solely on "shape." Look at speed and pressure and other subtle characteristics. Good forgers can closely replicate "shape," but it's much more difficult to replicate the subtle characteristics.
• Look for a loose, relaxed hand that intuitively and instinctively signed versus a tight hand "drawing" the signature with too much "thinking."
• Network with experienced collectors and dealers to compare notes and ask questions.

Follow these steps and eventually the signature will "click," and you will see the difference between authentic and good fakes.

The UACC's Pen & Quill Magazine, November 2012

The latest issue of the UACC Magazine Pen & Quill is arriving at member homes. A tip of the cap to the team and editor Tricia Eaton for the November issue, which rounds out a year of terrific issues.

It features articles on Godfather autographs, FDR, the Presidential candidates, and the Marx Brothers. Also a Neil Armstrong autograph article by yours truly.

For those who may not know, the Pen & Quill is the official publication of the Universal Autograph Collectors Club (UACC). It is available to members of the UACC. For more info on the UACC, go to www.uacc.org.

RR Fall 2012 Space Auction

A lot of great items in the upcoming RR Fall Space & Aviation Auction. It's a privilege and honor to review some of these historical artifacts. The flown and signed Apollo 11 Flag Presentation is probably my favorite.

Removed personalization on baseballs

Removing, or “washing,” a personalization from a photo has been a common occurrence for a long time.  If done correctly and pen and paper conditions are right, it is undetectable. Now it appears it is also possible to remove a personalization from a signed baseball.

I saw this Mariano Rivera signed ball on eBay for a very reasonable Buy-It-Now. I was seconds away from clicking the button to snap it up when I saw mention of a removed personalization in the auction description. It was near the bottom of the description, but to the seller’s credit they were disclosing there was a removed personalization. On closer inspection, you can see remnants of the previous ink in the bottom of the World Series logo. If you look really close, you can see the indentation from the previous writing.

It is my understanding that the previous writing is not really removed; rather it is airbrushed over with a near exact matching color. In hand, you’d think the painted area would have a different look and sheen, but unless I could get one real cheap, I’m not willing to invest in a ball with a washed personalization.

Neil Armstrong, 1930-2012. Patriot, pioneer, hero.

Words cannot express the admiration I had for Neil Armstrong. Patriot, pioneer and hero.

Farewell, Sally Ride - 1951-2012

Not only was she a great American and a pioneer, she was a very good friend to autograph collectors.

Rest in peace, Dr. Ride.

James Stewart - Suspected Forgery Style Alert

Over the past few months I have noted an explosion of this James Stewart signature style on eBay. It seems as if some sellers have an endless supply of these signatures and they all have the same unusual characteristics.

• A sharp, "jerky" appearance
• Letters smashed together with poor letter definition
• Odd spacing between letters
• Never personalized
• Many of them do not appear to be on glossy photos... they are on cardstock prints

I have consulted with other experienced collectors and autograph industry professionals -- the consensus is these signatures are highly suspect.

Note this suspect style also appears on Harvey sketches.

Pitiful Neil Armstrong / Apollo 11 Forgery

Finding a Neil Armstrong or Apollo 11 forgery is hardly a newsworthy event. They haunt the hobby like the ghost of phantom forensic document examiner Nicholas Burczyk.

However, every once-in-a-while I run across one so horrific it deserves honorable mention for inclusion in the Autograph Hall of Shame. Check out this train wreck, currently on eBay for a $5,999 Buy It Now...

World's least deceptive Apollo 11 forgery?

Of course, the item would not be complete without a certificate of authenticity from a forensic document examiner. In this case, the "expert" forensic document examiners at Academy of Manuscript and Autograph (AMA) deemed this gem "authentic." 

Operation Bullpen and the Marino Family Forgery Ring: Did anything change?

Ghastly Mariano Rivera forgery being sold today
 in mass quantities. Where is Operation Bullpen Part II?

Over the past few days I have been re-reading Operation Bullpen by Kevin Nelson, the story of the Marino Family Forgery Ring and how the FBI took them down. The last time I read it was several years ago.

Something that really struck me this time around was how self-conscious the ring was about their product being “high quality” and how nervous they got when “someone was onto them.” For instance, the book recounts an incident where a collector returned a Jackie Robinson signed ball and a Roberto Clemente signed ball because he discovered the date of the balls made it impossible for them to be signed by Robinson or Clemente.

The leader of the ring, Wayne Bray, went into a fury because of this sloppiness and was especially angry at James DiMaggio (J. DiMaggio COAs) for issuing certs for these provably fake items. They counted on DiMaggio to rubber stamp items, but he was also essentially quality control. If something was a poor quality forgery, DiMaggio was not supposed to cert it.

Further, they got really nervous when some of the sellers they distributed to were removed by eBay. Once their sellers started getting removed from eBay, they feared law enforcement would soon follow. (Which it did.)

What makes this so interesting is the contrast with many of the fakes we see today certed by the usual suspects on the eBay banned COA list. The usual suspects on the eBay banned list – as well as some others – cert items that are laughably bad and obvious forgeries. There is no “quality control.” They apparently thumb their noses at law enforcement with no fear of consequences.

Blogs and message board threads like this one would have sent Wayne Bray and the Marinos into cardiac arrest. Yet, today’s crop of forgers, sellers and their “authenticating” accomplices don’t seem to care if almost every educated collector and dealer in the world is “onto them.” As long as there is a “greater fool” willing to buy their product, they plow on… offering countless obviously bad items in scores of venues.

So, how is it a decade after the biggest forgery bust in the world, the autographed collectibles market is perhaps flooded with more fakes than ever?

RR Auction Spring 2012 Space Auction

In the interest of full disclosure, I am the space autograph consultant for RR Auction.

RR has put together an amazing array of signed items and artifacts in their spring auction. Check out this promo video for some cool eye candy.

Hitler learns his fake autographs have been banned from eBay