(Published in Antiques and Collectibles Magazine)
Is it really the golden age of autograph collecting? Or have forgeries, printed signatures and heightened celebrity security made it a hobby that’s just too much of a hassle?
We live in the golden age of autograph collecting. At least that’s what Michael Hecht, president of the Universal Autograph Collectors Club (UACC) believes.
Why? One reason is book signings.
“So many celebrities do book signings. Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Hilary Clinton. Almost anyone you can think of does book signings. And these are situations where they are saying “If you buy my book I’ll be happy to give you my autograph,” says Hecht, who is also a stock broker at Smith Barney.
Then there are the bustling online auctions where thousands of autographs are available to anyone with an Internet connection.
But all is not so rosy on the autograph front.
Hecht, who lives in San Dimas, California, cautions that eBay, a popular place to buy and sell autographs, is rampant with fakes.
“EBay will sell thousands of autographs every day. Fifty to 80 percent of those are forgeries,” he says.
However, Hecht is quick to point out that for the experienced collector, eBay can be an excellent source.
“There are many treasures on eBay. The best dealers will buy on eBay, they just won’t buy 80 percent of the stuff,” he says, adding that there are dozens of reputable dealers represented on eBay.
Ebay is not the only venue teeming with fakes.
“The FBI has documents that 50-80 percent of sports autographs are not authentically signed,” he says. “When you go into that mall shop and see that signed jersey, maybe it’s authentic, but the odds are against you.”
Hecht says one of the primary goals of the UACC, a non-profit organization with 1,000 members, is to educate collectors about autograph forgery.
In an effort to combat forgery, the organization has created a voluntary ethics board, which fields complaints about autograph dealers. If a complaint is legitimate the company is listed on the UACC’s ‘Hall of Shame’, which appears on its website, www.uacc.org.
Along with shady sellers, the site also has a list of 200 registered dealers that are considered reputable.
Hecht says it’s important for collectors to educate themselves and learn as much as they can about autograph forgery before they buy. Websites such as www.isitreal.com offer a plethora of information about autograph collecting.
Fan Mail
What if you don’t want to take the chance of buying online or you don’t have the money to buy from a reputable dealer? Can you still build an autograph collection?
Absolutely, says Hecht.
Although a printed signature is a common response from many celebrities, some celebrities still personally respond to fan mail. The trick is to capture a celebrity’s interest.
“If you write an excellent content letter your chances go way up,” says Hecht. “If you want to get an interesting person’s autograph, you have to be interesting.”
But no matter how interesting you are, there are some people that are just out of the question.
“If you are popular, you are going to get 1,000 requests a month for your autograph. No one can sign that much. The trick is to get someone who you really respect, but who is no longer in favor,” he says.
Obviously, this approach only works for living celebrities. If a famous person has passed away there’s usually no other option than to purchase from a dealer or auction house.
If you are looking for autographs that will be sure to impress your friends, you can scan the online catalogue of R & R Autograph Auctions (www.rrauction.com).
Owner and founder, Bob Eaton, says the company, which originated 30 years ago, auctions 1,500 crème-de-la crème autographs every month.
Among them are autographs from Marilyn Monroe, the Beatles, James Dean and Humphrey Bogart to name just a few.
“Clients don’t want to be selling their Thomas Jefferson when there is a Bo Derek in the catalogue,” he says.
Eaton says the exclusive nature of the catalogue means that most individuals who want to auction an autograph are met with rejection.
“I’ll get an email, letter or phone call from 100 people before we accept a single item,” he says.
Aside from the many forgeries that land on his desk (Eaton says more than half are fakes), many autographs are simply not rare enough, or the quality is not up to par.
If an autograph is accepted and it sells, the company will take a 10-20 percent cut of the final bid.
According to Eaton, the company has sold 300,000 pieces in the past 11 years. What’s garnered the highest price? A letter written by William Travis, the Texas commander of Battle of the Alamo.
“It was a letter that was written during the siege of the Alamo about buying food for soldiers,” says Eaton.
The highest bidder paid $174,000.
What makes an autograph valuable?
There are several factors that determine the value of an autograph. One of them is content.
“What commands money is the content of the letters,” says Eaton, adding that this is especially true of historical figures.
For Hollywood stars, it’s all about the photographs. For instance, an autographed photo of Judy Garland as herself might fetch $1,000, whereas a photo of Judy Garland as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz will be worth $25,000 – $30,000.
A signed photo of Clark Gable as himself will land $800, while an autographed portrait of him as Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind will fetch $5,000.
Tragedy also adds value to an autograph.
“Just because a person is really famous doesn’t mean it’s worth a lot of money. Unfortunately what really determines that is how they die,” says Eaton, who points out that a recent signed photo of Sharon Tate, who was brutally murdered by the infamous Manson family in 1969, sold for $6,500.
What’s Eaton’s best advice for collectors who are just starting out?
“Collect what you enjoy and hang it on your walls,” he says. “A lot of people collect what they think is going to go up in price… I’ve been to people’s houses who have been buying for 15-20 years and they never take anything out of the box.”
Tim Beck, a Kentucky realtor whose sideline is appraising and authenticating autographs, displays his collection not only for family and friends, but for anyone with an Internet connection.
Many of Beck’s most prized autographs are scanned and placed on his website, www.theautographcollector.net. Among his collection (he’s collected more than 10,000) are autographs from Muhammad Ali, John Lennon, Albert Einstein and Charlie Chaplin.
Beck, who started collecting in the early 1970’s, says he’s never been in it for the money. For him, autograph collecting is simply a passion.
“You are connecting with that person and that moment is frozen in time,” he says, pointing out that many of his autographs were collected in person.
“I was fortunate enough as a kid to travel across the U.S and saw lots of Broadway shows. Famous people used to be quite a bit more approachable back then than they are now,” he says.
Letter writing was another way that Beck built his collection. In fact, he established a correspondence with numerous well-known figures including Jimmy Stewart and Butterfly McQueen, who played the role of Prissy in Gone with the Wind.
Beck’s advice to novice collectors is to go after celebrities who are no longer in the height of their fame.
For instance, he says, numerous television stars from the seventies, such as All in the Family’s Rob Reiner and Laverne and Shirley’s Penny Marshall, are now directors.
“You are more apt to get a personal response from them than trying to write a hot star,” he says.
According to Beck, the real golden era of autograph collecting was in the seventies.
“People answered their fan mail,” he says. “Nowadays, do you think a star that makes 20 million dollars for two weeks work, is going to devote a couple of hours a day to sign autographs?”
But maybe if you write her a letter, a really interesting letter …