A MoPo pal privately (and jokingly) asked me last night, "so
who's the ugly guy having dinner with Liza in the 4th picture?"
With a straight face, I admitted it was me. Those pictures were
taken about 2 years ago.
However, in my defense, I noted that with the mastery of CGI, I
can be cleaned up -- as is sometimes necessary in the field of
news and public relations; thus, for those "just getting to know
me," who've never met me in person (despite being a MoPo member
for years) -- I submit a "reasonable facsimilie" of yours truly,
an older pix taken for professional reasons -- (but stripped of
the "kidding on the square" caption beneath it). Hey man,
anything to reduce my "ass***e score" among my detractors. I'm
aware most will still mutter, "now that stuck-up clown is
torturing us with a picture of himself." Trust me when I say I
do not look like the imposter below; vaguely similar, but with a
lot less hair, a lot more gray and a lot more pickled; after all,
I was born in occupied Tokyo during the Eisenhower years, so lay
off. :-(
P.S. -- I will admit, though, that I did have a hilarious bit
role in film that people keep bugging me about. Remember that
goofy Japanese guy who tries to hit on Frances McDormand in the
restaurant scene in "Fargo?" Yeah, that was me. So there.
http://tinyurl.com/d6g7t3
-----Original Message-----
Date: Mon, 16 Mar 2009 00:45:35 -0700
From: [email protected]
Subject: OT: Speaking of Stephen Fishler...
To: [email protected]
Freeman:
OK, I'm busted. Liza felt sorry for me going alone, so after 30-
minutes of begging and groveling, making a total Asian spectacle
of myself -- Liza agreed to stand-in as my "wife" -- at Bruce's
poster sale back in 1998. Below are more recent pictures of Liza
taken during our last visit to New York. The woman below is not
only Liza Minnelli -- she's also, when the need arises -- my
"wife." I have a receipt to prove it. Keeping up appearances is
expensive, man. But I don't mess around. -d.
http://tinyurl.com/c7olph
From: [email protected]
Date: Mon, 16 Mar 2009 03:12:40 -0400
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Speaking of Stephen Fishler...
To: [email protected]; [email protected]
What was Liza Minnelli doing there?
In a message dated 3/15/2009 11:59:38 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,
[email protected] writes:
David I have always meant to apologize for hassling your wife
back then at that Comic-Con in the 1970s!
Bruce -- it couldn't have been you in the 1970s at Comic-Con who
hit on my girlfriend-who-later-became-my-wife. She remembers the
creep being definitely fair-haired and geeky. And though you're
obviously no George Clooney -- my wife doesn't consider you a
geek, as is evident in the two pics she prodded me to share (see
below) that were taken with you both at your L.A. sale.
Meanwhile, I have to say that while showroom auctions are
prohibitively expensive -- (which explains the high buyer and
seller premiums other auctions charge) -- there's a wistfulness I
feel about those sales of the past. That sale of yours in L.A.
in that massive building was something, with all the lots
displayed in floor-to-ceiling rows around the room -- and what
was a "first" for an "auction house" at the time -- you had lots
of food stored in big coolers in the back for everyone to help
themselves. My recollection of the news story I wrote -- was you
had several hundred lots and only about 4-5 passes. And the
happiest guy in the room (besides the winning bidders) -- was a
fellow in his late 30s named Marty Saltzman, who agreed to be
interviewed and proudly revealed he was the consignor of more
than half of the lots. That kind of openness among consignors
and bidders -- with media present -- will likely never happen
again. I think the only reason why normally hide-bound people
would reveal themselves in this way -- was because they were not
only happy, they were ecstatic -- and the noisy party-type
atmosphere in the showroom helped -- (a big contrast to more
stoic affairs held elsewhere). Whatta day that was... -d.
http://tinyurl.com/cjsft3
-----Original Message-----
Date: Sun, 15 Mar 2009 22:26:22 -0500
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Speaking of Stephen Fishler...
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
CC: [email protected]
David
I have always meant to apologize for hassling your wife back then
at that Comic-Con in the 1970s!
Seriously though, I really have to admire Steve Fishler. Back at
the time of that auction, Steve and around a dozen other guys
were advertising hot and heavy that each one of them paid the
"most" for top quality posters.
Well, I knew when I got these two incredible posters (never
before auctioned, excellent unrestored condition, and straight
from a man who had owned them for 50 years) that THIS would be
the ultimate test of who was the real deal, and who was "all talk".
My auctions have always been cash only, with no trades, no 6
months zero interest, no pretend sales, etc. I made it clear
before the auction that the high bidder on either of these two
posters would have to pay in full within 30 days of the auction
date (and only in the world of collectibles where almost all the
top players for the most expensive posters are "collectibles
rich, but cash broke" could these be considered onerous terms).
Well the auction came, and not only did Fishler buy BOTH of
these, but none of the other "we pay most" guys even bid!
And of course I would have gone to my grave without revealing who
bought these except that Steve himself revealed that he was the
buyer.
The collectibles world is filled with lots of big talkers, and
huge sales that never really happened, but these were two sales
that did.
Bruce
On Sun, Mar 15, 2009 at 5:29 PM, David Kusumoto
<[email protected]> wrote:
** I confess when my good-looking girlfriend (who's now my wife)
and I first walked into Comic-Con in the 1970s (which was then
held in the smallish El Cortez Hotel and later the Civic Center
here in San Diego) -- we were taken aback by the geek factor,
people dressed up in costumes and reciting every line in Star
Trek, going over plot lines and Trek-ideology, all that jazz. I
have never been a Star Trek fan or a collector of sports cards,
but I did have an interest in old comics and movies. Other than
my aversion to Star Trek and sports cards -- I confess I was
still a little rattled that my interests were otherwise very much
aligned with others at Comic-Con -- who seemed geeky in
appearance and manner, very intellectual and socially awkward if
they had to talk about unrelated subjects like their jobs or what
was in the news. I seemed to need reassurance because I asked my
girlfriend (who went only because of my interest, not hers) --
"do I seem that way to you?" And she said no. More than 30
years later, she remains above my standing, not what people
expect; I obviously got lucky because I'm not an attractive match
for her and I'm not rich.
** But what was funny, I'll never forget this -- one year we went
to Comic-Con to buy more comics and folded one-sheets -- and this
guy, he looked like the square dude who plays the NBC page on "30
Rock" -- kept following my then girlfriend around whenver I
strayed into another direction in the dealer's room, peppering
her with questions -- and I overheard this Boy Scout trying to
pick her up, asking for her phone number. I guess he was
surprised to see a girl like her at Comic-Con. (She worked at JC
Penney at the time and eventually became a department manager at
Nordstrom.) My then girlfriend politely declined to give out her
personal information and then she swiveled and gave me a glare
that said, "get me outta of this place, NOW."
** Today, Comic-Con is gigantic, with crowds of around 100,000 or
more held at the huge San Diego Convention Center on the harbor
-- and though the event still retains its geek factor -- it's far
more inclusive, with tons of stuff for children and movie-related
material and events going constantly. When Comic-Con started,
its only attendees were young adults and grumpy old men. The
trouble today is few can afford to attend Comic-Con. And I
understand that this year's bash is already sold out. In terms
of its impact on traffic and people crowding our streets -- Comic-
Con is bigger than the Super Bowls our city has hosted. Every
Comic-Con, locals avoid downtown. But now that we have a major
league baseball stadium downtown, it's a nightmare.
-d.
-----Original Message-----
Date: Sun, 15 Mar 2009 09:13:34 -0700
From: [email protected]
Subject: Re: Speaking of Stephen Fishler...
To: [email protected]
Guilty on all counts (btw ... I finally got the beautiful woman,
but she was born waaaay after ST left the airwaves).
ad
--- On Sun, 3/15/09, David Kusumoto <[email protected]>
wrote:
From: David Kusumoto <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Speaking of Stephen Fishler...
To: [email protected]
Date: Sunday, March 15, 2009, 2:46 AM
(truncated)
And we used to laugh because at lunch he would tell us off and on
that any woman he might marry in the future -- MUST first know
all about Star Trek and understand it. And oh, of course, that
woman would have to be gorgeous. He didn't collect movie
posters, but he DID collect comics and action figures. I bet if
I drew a line connecting all of MoPo's members -- that I would
find (besides a shared interest in posters) -- a past or present
interest in comics, sports cards and sci-fi/sorcery stuff.
-d.
-----Original Message-----
Date: Sat, 14 Mar 2009 23:46:19 -0700
From: [email protected]
Subject: Re: Speaking of Stephen Fishler...
To: [email protected]
** I saw Fishler in person that one and only time -- and he
struck me then as a very quiet but intense young man, almost
trying to hide from any attention. When I tried to interview
him, he was visibly uncomfortable and gave me only a few one-
breath quotes. But everyone in the huge room was curious about
him. "Who's the kid with all the money who looks like he just
got out of high school?," was the general buzz. Instead of
letting someone else bid on his behalf, Stephen flew from NY to
L.A. to bid in person. That was a helluva sale -- and it was
striking in that you got the feeling that Stephen himself knew he
was not going to lose those two Universal horror posters; he had
no limit. It happened at Bruce's first stand-alone showroom sale
(Dec. 1998) -- after directing Christie's previous poster sales
in New York. Fishler struck me as a very mysterious figure.
Since then, I've seen him quoted many times and have learned that
he has ALWAYS been a big name in the comic book world.
** My wife and I have always found it intriguing that so many
movie poster collectors are hyper-intellectual guys who used to
collect sports cards or comic books, who love sci-fi and Star
Trek -- who have a high-geek factor that people (esp. women) can
instantly spot in a crowd. For example, the character "Dwight"
in NBC's "The Office" -- played by the hilarious Rainn Wilson --
is the sort of guy you'd expect to collect comics and posters, a
guy who treats the Lord of the Rings or Star Trek-type universes
like a religion. And so he does.
** There used to be this quiet, portly guy in his 30s who was a
graphic designer in our office in San Diego. And we used to
laugh because at lunch he would tell us that any woman he might
marry in the future -- MUST first know all about Star Trek and
understand it.. And oh, of course, that woman would have to be
gorgeous. He didn't collect movie posters, but he DID collect
comics and action figures. I bet if I drew a line connecting all
of MoPo's members -- that I would find (besides a shared interest
in posters) -- a past or present interest in comics, sports cards
and sci-fi/sorcery stuff. Speaking for myself, I was real INTO
comic books during the first 5-6 years of Comic-Con before moving
on to books and movies big-time.
-d.
-----Original Message-----
Date: Sat, 14 Mar 2009 16:36:24 -0700
To: [email protected]; [email protected]
From: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Speaking of Stephen Fishler...
David
first time I met Steve he was 12 years old looking for Fantastic
Four #1 and had the cash with him and much more.
a year later he was a dealer too.
Always a good friend, I know he won't be bothered by mentioning
that his father was a liquor distributor and that should tell you
everything. His mother is a sweet lady and Steve is a very smart
businessman
Rich
At 04:28 PM 3/14/2009, David Kusumoto wrote:
On the AP wires today, see below.
[BTW, Fishler was/is a big buyer of movie posters and is loaded
with $$$. I saw him at Bruce's huge auction held in L.A.'s
cavernous Pacific Design Center that I covered 10 years ago for
Movie Collector's World. At the time he was only 31 -- and he
walked away with the biggest prizes of the day -- two unbacked
one-sheets for "Dracula" ($74,750) and "The Invisible
Man" ($55,200).] -d.
----------------------
Rare Superman comic sells for $317,200
Mar 14, 5:44 PM (ET)
By DAVID B. CARUSO
NEW YORK (AP) - A rare copy of the first comic book featuring
Superman has sold for $317,200 in an Internet auction. The
previous owner had bought it for less than a buck.
It's one of the highest prices ever paid for a comic book, a
likely testament to the volume's rarity and its excellent
condition, said Stephen Fishler, co-owner of the auction site
ComicConnect.com and its sister dealership, Metropolis Collectibles.
The winning bid for the 1938 edition of Action Comics No. 1,
which features Superman lifting a car on its cover, was submitted
Friday evening by John Dolmayan, drummer for the rock band System
of a Down, according to managers at ComicConnect.com.
Dolmayan, who is also a dealer of rare comic books, said he
acquired the Superman comic on behalf of a client he declined to
identify.
"This is one of the premier books you could collect," he said
in a telephone interview. "It's considered the Holy Grail of
comic books. I talked to my client, and we made the move."
Dolmayan said the client has "a small collection, but
everything he has is incredible."
Only about 100 copies of Action Comics No. 1 are known to
exist and they seldom come up for sale.
"Maybe in a booming economy, it would have done a hundred
grand more, but in this economy, I think the price is great,"
Fishler said.
The man who had previously owned the book purchased it in a
secondhand store in the early 1950s when he was nine years old.
He paid 35 cents.
---
Associated Press writer Adam Goldman in New York contributed to
this report.
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