Bruce and Mopo
The computers and artificial intelligence keep pulling up my name is the
guy to see in Toledo for collectibles since I seem to be one of the
oldest companies in Toledo that sold memorabilia so it's a free public
service when people call me I'll try my best to help them because I
understand since being disabled myself and the stress of divorce and all
kinds of adversity how people can have a downfall in their finances or
if they are addicted to drugs or have had setbacks in their lives
My motivation to do this is because I truly care about people and I
understand well how caregivers and others can also be deeply stressed
and depressed when adversity befalls them
So up every day I get a phone call from a collector of various items
everything from beanie babies two baseball cards comic books toys
memorabilia records and musical gear you name it I've got a call from
them these people are heirs
of their parents or a brother or sister that passes away abruptly and
they simply don't know where to turn many trying to have garage sales
many offer donations to the church or other places and they try to get
it to the right people some just wanna give it away because they're so
emotionally stressed by the recent death of their family member
I point out to them that I am not an expert in any one area although I
have sold motion picture memorabilia since 1977 but by no means am I an
expert in anything however I know of a few experts that seem to
specialize in certain categories
I have sent countless people with motion picture items to Bruce
emovieposter and other memorabilia shops and also to heritage auction
and other companies that deal in memorabilia the problem is many people
might have low ticket items that are common and not of substantial value
so I told him this
Your options are selling yourself on eBay if you want to get a good
amount of money without a commission to an auctioneer however you have
to have the cloud of good reviews and feedback for people to trust you
on eBay word gets around fast if you're not honest and upfront
Number two you can donate to a museum or a charity for a tax write off
if you're in that kind of tax bracket I want structured a donation to
the Berea children's group for Sam Boltansky who gave Steve Gappi his
first job as Steve ran one of the most prestigious comic book
distribution companies in the country call diamond distributing in
Baltimore
The children's group got cool stuff to auction off themselves and raise
money for the children's group and Sam got a hefty $20,000 write off for
his taxes he saved me for years for that because he wasn't sure what to
do with the autographs and if I piecemealed them out it would've taken
ages as they were all top grade autographs
Also you can take your collection and try to give it to a museum that
will preserve it and share it with others which is kind of like the
quote from Raiders of the lost Ark were Indiana Jones says the stuff
belongs in a museum
I had some very rare nitrate film 35mm from the silent before the silent
era of movies it was very explosive and yet I donated it to the library
of Congress to preserve historic film I did not receive any money for
however it had to be shipped in a special way because it's so flammable
explosive in the Library of Congress paid for all and I felt I did my
part for historic film preservation could I have sold it maybe but just
like when the Oscar I attempted to sell in the 90s it wasn't just about
the money it was about doing the right thing for being a preservationist
an archivist of film history so that many thousands of people could
enjoy the Oscar and the Academy could preserve their history yes they
don't like to see Oscars being sold on the open market to collectors
matter fact in the new clause in contracts when people receive an Oscar
they have to say sell it back to the Academy for one dollar the one I
had was pre-50s before they instituted that law so it could be sold
however mine was missing the placard on it and it's Rudy fried she told
me that he had sold one or appraised one for $20-$30,000 that was just
like mine my son said well dad they're just trying to protect their
trademark just like you try to protect your trademark so I gave it back
and got a stipend payment of $3,000 of which I had to pay attorney fees
to Katie Holmes dad of I believe $600 so it was not a profitable thing
but I did the right thing in the big picture
Knowing what is the right thing is the magic question but nobody's going
to remember me by how much money I had in my wallet when I died and they
might not remember me at all which is fine but if I help one collector
who is obsessed with material things let go then I've done my mission
because I point out no one is leaving this place with a U-Haul trailer
behind the hearse so what's important is that we share is much love
friendship and forgiveness with others before we go
My own son was trying to keep many of my material things because he is
suffering from bipolar and schizophrenia and is now on medication
because the shock of me getting my foot amputated and going partially
blind who is more than his mind could handle I got the police involved
in adult protection services because he had taken some personal letters
I had from Adam West and I told him I said those are my memories and I
would like them back I don't know if he sold them or lost him but I had
a talk with God and the answer I got was Tom you're not gonna be able to
keep the stuff anyways what are you worried about if that's what he
wants let him keep them and I had told Adam that I would never sell them
while he was alive because they were hand written letters to be
discussing the Batman movie and all kinds of things it was a good friend
we had many deep conversations about him playing the Batman during the
80s I met him in 1985
So I got back some of my file file folders and I had some also on Jay
Leno who I almost booked while I was booking agency and also a doctor
Sukkini and a few other things to just help me remember what I did back
in the 70s and 80s and also my musical scrapbooks when I played with
Johnny and the hurricanes they're all just memories and eventually when
I croak my son would get the stuff anyways he just wanted early payment
I guess because he can say that I might not be around here too much
longer and people wanna keep part is your parents for memories for dumb
he's 36 now and on medication that helps corrupted dopamine which people
in bipolar suffer from what God told me was what's more important to you
some Adam West letters or your son???
I'll be 67 August 11 and all I can tell you is I have no idea if the
planet will even be here next week I have never seen anything so crazy
in my entire life is what is happened since prior to Covid I have spoke
to people all over the world because I speak to customer service and
places like El Salvador the Philippines because my banks in places like
Walmart use offshore customer service to service the customers I have
taken a poll of how people from other countries are feeling and they
seem to agree with me it's about forgiveness love and helping all people
of all nationalities all religions and we are all brothers and sisters
if we if we put down the anger and the resentment and division basically
people just want to have overhead shelter and food and unconditional
love
It's been really sad seeing both sides of the aisle disagreeing and
fighting and humiliating each other and downgrading each other this is
no example for children and I wrote a song called Armageddon that is on
YouTube is a protest to both of the political sides and is a tribute to
John Lennon and the Parkland shooting massacre kids in Parkland Florida
Record I did not record the song for commercial reasons to make money
matter fact my recording studio offered to record me for free because
they said I should put the song out it's like a about four or 500 people
listen to it it's not a contemporary niece dance tune it's a protest
song so it might not make too many people happy because I am commenting
on the world events political events and ecological events we are
currently suffering from
It definitely is not a Grammy contender :) if it makes you upset or
angry then I accomplished my job
If it makes you cry then I hit the target with a bull's-eye
So the guy that called me today had German tobacco cards with Babe Ruth
and Max shell the boxer from Germany considering buying them from a
auction house or something and I said well Germany has good pruning and
those are both very historic sports people so I recommended he contact
heritage auction and also the price guide beckett.com
The man said he was 77 years old and I thought well I guess it's never
too late to start collecting even if you're almost 80 however I said
make sure you leave documentation notes to your heirs on what you paid
for it and where they could sell it once you pass most families are not
interested in what their relatives were collecting on and so they fight
over it and argue over it one family had a film collection and each took
one part of the film of a four part film so it was not complete it would
be like taking one of the Intrachol lobby cards out of a set and holding
onto it
For me that's insanity but yet family members argue over the most my new
details while we're alive and while we're dead
Christ tells us in the Bible sell it all and follow me which if you were
a collector to give up your treasured Momentos is a tough mental one
I like reflecting on my memories and I like looking at old memorabilia
because I always learn new things and it refreshes my mind however I am
also an advocate of minimalist
As we get older there is a pleasure in having less the house is more
organized it will be less of a mess to clean up when you die and it's
cost-effective because the less you have the lest cost it is to maintain
It will be a sugar miracle if I get through all the adversity I have
been experiencing however I am totally running on the fact that I appeal
to God to direct me in all my ways
I have been emailing Yoko Ono John Lennon's widow who now lives in
upstate New York on a farm and the woman who wrote her biography book
just contacted me and I have been telling Yoko that I believe she will
be united with John yes I believe we all will be reunited with our loved
ones after this short life
Yoko is 90 years old now so she's at the end of her journey and I'm
amazed with how she's been a big part of the art world and that her and
John thought the same kind of way I do which is end to war and that love
and peace were the answer for everything
Yes John said yeah song imagine you may say I'm a dreamer but I'm not
the only one I hope someday you'll join us so the world can be one and I
think we all would agree that we need your unity and brothers and
sisters everywhere understand us and science proves it by the fact we
are all connected by DNA
The rest is up to God and I think his plan will be fulfilled because the
Jews and the Muslims and Christians all believe the Abraham who is the
beginning of their beliefs so we are getting very close to all agreeing
on God's plan
Peace and Love
Amen\
Tom
Hollywood dream factory®
since 1977
On 2023-08-05 09:57, Bruce Hershenson wrote:
I have been in collectibles 56 years, full-time auctioneer for 33 (and
years before that I was a major comic book dealer and publisher for 10
years).
Over and over people who have bought from me for DECADES call up and
say "I bet you never thought you would hear this from ME, but I am
ready to sell my collection!"
I reply, "EVERYONE gets to this point eventually, except for the few
who pass away first, and then their heirs call me, usually with no
knowledge or preparation from the collector, who could not face their
own mortality."
And the ones who left their heirs my number are the lucky ones,
because I treat everyone the same, 100% honestly. I have heard a
thousand horror stories over the years from heirs who got taken to the
cleaners from unscrupulous dealers or auctions, who brag after about
the "great deal" they got.
Everyone with a major collection needs to have a good talk with their
heirs about what should happen to their collection if they pass on, or
better yet write it out.
And if are someone who thinks that an "honest auction company" is an
oxymoron, you really need to ask around about MY business, because I
have has so very many people consign truckloads of items without even
a list, and I have never cheated anyone out of even one item!
And if I sound like I am bragging about my honest business, I am, and
after a lifetime at it, I know have earned a right to!
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