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BEATLES BAND SIGNED 1964 ALBUM

Hello to the Autograph Live members. My name is Mike Caranna and I have been asked to help a close friend determine if her Beatles record album has authentic signatures and determine its value. We live in a suburb of Cleveland.
Here is some background on this album. My friend Bonnie was 17 years old in 1964 and like most teenage girls was a Beatles fan. The attached photos show the album is a “Meet the Beatles” from 1964. It is signed by all 4 Beatles. I am not a collector of this type of memorabilia and only wish to help my friend determine authenticity and value.

Tags: "Meet, Beatles, Beatles”, the

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Permalink Reply by BallroomDays67 on June 20, 2020 at 2:24pm

These are stamped signatures, unfortunately.

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Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on June 20, 2020 at 2:28pm

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Permalink Reply by Mike Caranna on June 20, 2020 at 2:31pm

Radio station KYW 1100 in Cleveland back in 1964, had a promotional contest and the winner would receive a signed Beatles record album, along with a sweatshirt with the Beatles picture and KYW radio station on the front.

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Permalink Reply by Mike Caranna on June 20, 2020 at 3:15pm

Radio station KYW 1100 in Cleveland back in 1964 had a promotional contest and the winner would receive a signed Beatles record album along with a sweatshirt with the Beatles picture and KYW radio station on the front. KYW was owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting at that time. The contest was to mail into the radio station a postcard with your name, address and phone number and Bonnie submitted a postcard and KYW pulled her entry and she won both prizes.

Bonnie received the Meet the Beatles album and a sweatshirt on March 21, 1964 as noted in the date signed by one of her parents in the top left hand corner of the album. The album has been in her possession since March 21, 1964. The sweatshirt was worn at that time and is gone.

The signed autographs appear to be clear and not faded. Ringo’s autograph appears to be light but complete. Paul, John, and George’s Autograph’s are more bold and solid.
The condition of the album is shown in the photographs. The top and bottom edges show some wear. The vinyl record is missing.
The Beatles were in the US from Feb 7 thru Feb 22. Someone at the KYW radio station was able to get this signed album at that time to be used for their promotional contest,
Radio station WINS 1010 was also owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting. One of their disc jockeys, Murray the K Kaufman developed a close relationship with the Beatles. KYW in Cleveland and WINS in New York were not competitors but rather both worked for the same parent company. Both radio stations had Beatles Sweatshirt giveaways. See photos.
I can say 100% that Bonnie has had this “Beet the Beatles” album in her possession since March 21, 1964; and that it was signed when she received it from KYW radio station.

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Permalink Reply by Bruce Juice on June 20, 2020 at 3:39pm

Too bad -- so many people have had these in their possession all these years thinking they were the real deal. Sorry for your friend's loss.

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Permalink Reply by Paul on June 20, 2020 at 4:35pm

Stampers

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Permalink Reply by fab432 on June 20, 2020 at 4:48pm

Great story - it’s too bad the signatures have been stamped on the cover. Usually Neil Aspinall would have signed the Lp’s for the give always.

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Permalink Reply by Jim Cushman on June 20, 2020 at 5:03pm

It's stamped....

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Permalink Reply by Jim McFiver on June 20, 2020 at 8:14pm

To be very clear: these signatures are not genuine or authentic; they were rubber stamped on the back, at the time of the 1964 promotional contest, most likely by the radio station or Capitol Records.

There's no doubt the album has been in the possession of the original owner and is indeed vintage. But it was never signed by The Beatles.

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Permalink Reply by Mike Caranna on June 21, 2020 at 4:09am

To Jim and Others:

Thanks to all who took the time to read and comment on this Beatles album. It is clear based on the feedback these signatures were rubber stamped. So, is there any value at all with the rubber stamped signatures?

Thanks, Mike

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Permalink Reply by fab432 on June 21, 2020 at 4:36am

Mike, There are many similar stories where people thought they had a genuine signed Beatles Lp or photo etc that turned out to be done by Neil Aspinall, fan club secretaries etc. Not to mention the countless forgeries out there. Your sister’s item has a great story and is linked to a specific event and point in time. So I’d say it does have value over and above the value of just the record. So a Meet The Beatles Lp in VG+ condition (not taking the various issues into consideration) is worth around $100 some pressings more depending on label credits and jacket credits. I would think that your sister’s Lp would be worth maybe $400 or $500 if someone really liked the story.