The question really becomes, then, if no individual has a forged poster that
came out of the auctions, what has become of them? Are they back in the hands
of the consigner? Of the mastermind who put them together in the first place?
In the hands of competent authorities? One of the most scarred victims of the
fake Universal pieces said last night on this forum that Heritage has made good
on the bogus material that was sold (as well as Profiles). This really is to
th credit of both Heritage and Profiles. I again express my hope (and I think
others) that some kind of a comprehensive "master list" could be made of the
bogus horror material of what was sold, by whom, when it was discovered as
bogus and how restitution was made. Finally (and mayb the most important
question) Where are they now? I would hate to think that they are....."
Coming soon, to an auction near you".
Again, I am not denegrating any auction house or individual dealer or
collector by asking this. I have but a smattering of classic horror material
myself. All of the uncertanties in this market at this time are making me
very wary of adding to what I currently have. I don't feel as though I have
the ability to positively identify a fake since they apparently are so well
done.
Steve
----- Original Message -----
From: Bruce Hershenson
To: [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, October 07, 2009 9:49 PM
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Where to send Universal material to authenticate?
"I am very certain that no individual has in their possession a forged poster
that came from Heritage."
It is really, really good, almost on a par with "in having a 20% buyers
premium, we let the buyer and seller share the expense of selling an item,
instead of having one or the other bear all the burden" (or words to that
effect).
There is an incredible art in being a politician, and I too see a great new
career should this current gig not work out for any reason.
If a politician says "I am flat-out against abortion" (or insert any other
important issue), he/she alienates around half the electorate. The same happens
if he/she says "I am flat-out for abortion".
But let the politician straddle the fence and say, "One must consider all
sides of this important issue and realise there are many valuable points on
both sides" then he/she alienates no one.
And let's not forget there's a sucker born every minute, and there will
always be another one coming down the pike to buy that rare collectible
"investment" at an ever-higher price.
Bruce
On Wed, Oct 7, 2009 at 5:24 PM, Richard Evans <[email protected]>
wrote:
Grey, I'd like to compliment you on yet another example of the exemplary
quality of your writing.
As the area becomes ever narrower you continue to navigate it with
remarkable precision.
Should you ever tire of movie posters, I'm sure an extremely successful
career in politics awaits you.
I am very certain that no individual has in their possession a forged
poster that came from Heritage.
Brilliant!
I can honestly say I received excellent service from Heritage, and found
you extremely professional and personable.
But, while mistakes are understandable and forgivable, I feel by continuing
to take this position, Heritage and other auction houses are doing themselves a
disservice.
That said, it's a hoot to read.
On 7 Oct 2009, at 22:25, Smith, Grey - 1367 wrote:
Sean and all MOPOers
I am very certain that no individual has in their possession a forged
poster that came from Heritage. As a matter of fact, I did first discover the
fact of these fakes when an attempt was made to consign a "forged" Dracula
title card from a respected horror collector and I promptly not only called the
consignor but began speaking with horror buyers throughout the country that I
know, to let them know what was found. I certainly know Sean and Jim Gresham
will attest to that. I know that Jim G. then sent me cards to look over, in
which my belief was, they were forgeries.
I believe I was the first to suggest to certain collectors in Columbus
that the Frankenstein Title card in another auction may not be authentic,
though I had not seen it, but knowing that some cards were showing up that were
forged.
I have sent clients to John Davis as he began to look into this and I
thought he was doing a good job, I believe, in verifying the cards.
Do I wish I had thrown up a red flare to the hobby earlier? Perhaps, but
the extent of this was not known nor was there much on who may have been behind
it. I think it was when Jim G. sent me his cards that some of us were very
surprised. No, I was not sworn to secrecy, as some claim, but have worked to
warn and help collectors with questions concerning these since first
discovering.
This is a warning to us to look closely in the future. A grading and
perhaps authentification service would be of help but I believe up to this time
the fakes are not difficult to detect. Please be assured that Heritage is
perhaps overly cautious at this stage in dealing primarily with horror and a
few examples of science fiction titles.
Grey
On Oct 7, 2009, at 1:45 PM, "Sean Linkenback"
<[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:
Hi Bruce,
While I am a little busy today, if you have a list of all these items
Heritage sold that were fake, I will be happy to comb through the archives for
you.
I believe that the 3-sheet of Ghost of Frankenstein mentioned in the
complaint by Jim Gresham was from Heritage, and I see it has been removed from
their archives.
I also know Heritage's policy is to not report any sales which fell
through, and while I would imagine this would include the inadvertent selling
of fakes perhaps you should address this question to Grey Smith rather than me,
as I am still not on their (or anyone else's) payroll.
Sean
----- Original Message -----
From: Bruce Hershenson<mailto:[email protected]>
To: Sean Linkenback<mailto:[email protected]>
Cc: <mailto:[email protected]>
[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, October 07, 2009 7:51 AM
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Where to send Universal material to authenticate?
I went to the LAMP site and of course you are correct, and I apologize
for the error, to LAMP and anyone else who was offended by it.
I think I was thinking of LAMP not appearing to have anything on their
site about the Dracula fake being "authenticated" and then withdrawn, or is
there a link to that as well?
Sean, since you seem to be an expert on this, can you tell me if the
Hertiage archives on their site still includes items that proved to be fake,
and if so, why? Doesn't this distort the apparent rarity of those items?
Bruce
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