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Advice and Appraisal on historically significant Michael Jackson item

An auction house has recently been consigned an incredibly significant (yet potentially controversial) piece of memorabilia from the life of Michael Jackson.

In 1984 there was a well known and well documented event in Michal Jacksons life. While shooting a commercial for Pepsi in front of thousands of fans, Jackson's hair caught on fire and he suffered significant burns to his scalp. This event is said to be the event in Jackson's life that caused him to spiral downhill with addictions to multiple medications. The auction house has the complete original set of paperwork from the medical facility that treated Jackson's injuries. The paperwork includes a hand-signed release form from Michael Jackson, the original polaroid pictures taken in the ER, and all of the doctors notes including the release forms and notes regarding the perscribed medications.

These items have never been released or seen by the public. The consignor has been in possession of this paperwork for about 10 years after finding the items in a trash can.

I know that there are a lot of well respected dealers who frequent these boards. Please post your opinions on the legalities of bringing this piece to auction as well as an opinion on the price that it could reach at auction.

This is the very first place where this piece will have been discussed.

Tags: Michael, jackson

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Mike Shepherd on September 1, 2012 at 6:28pm

And he never said an unkind word about anyone.  A remarkable trait in this day and age.

Permalink Reply by JLee on September 1, 2012 at 9:48pm
Do you know what the hairs sold for? Reznikoff would be a great dealer to weigh in on this discussion. I think the value is going to be determined by the media attention that the piece brings. I personally think the $5-10,000 estimate is extremely low but I hope it stats in that ballpark because I would buy it in that range without thinking twice. Rumor has it that the owner turned down a 6 figure offer from a well known dealer before making the decision to bring it to auction. Only time will tell I guess. Thanks for weighing in.
Permalink Reply by Mike Shepherd on September 1, 2012 at 6:24pm

Have you seen the Polaroid photos J. Lee?

Permalink Reply by JLee on September 1, 2012 at 9:44pm
Yes I have. There are 5 or 6 of them with Doctors notes on the borders. The images are of the top of Jackson's head and they are taped to the charts.
Permalink Reply by Travis Christenberry on September 1, 2012 at 10:02pm

If this item does exist and is original and authentic, I would expect it to sell for over $50K. This was easily one of the most significant moments in Michael's life.

Permalink Reply by Rick Meyer on September 1, 2012 at 10:19pm

Wow Travis really. You think $50K even though there is only 1 potential MJ signature on a medical release form? Just sounds like a lot.

Permalink Reply by JLee on September 1, 2012 at 10:37pm
I personally think you are on track. It is an extremely significant piece of memorabilia from his life. I think the sky could be the limit especially of the media gets ahold of the story. I did a little google search and read that the syringe that ended up taking Jackson's life is estimated to sell for $5million - kind of morbid if you ask me but it shows that there is a big market for this type of memorabilia.
Permalink Reply by Rick Meyer on September 2, 2012 at 12:18am

Bet the documents are illegal stolen documents and would be confiscated if attempted to sale. No doubt his family would contest how they were obtained. With the money in his estate they would surely beat a guy who's only claim or proof is his own statement that he just magically found the documents in the trash. Especially since it is already known that his medical records had been accessed without authorization by hospital employees just after his death. Staffers had also accessed his death certificate more then 300 times without authorization. Interesting read.

Wont let me copy the link but google "michael jackson medical records" was reported by the LA Times on 10 June 2010.

Permalink Reply by Travis Christenberry on September 2, 2012 at 12:30am

Wow, very interesting. After reading that, I wouldn't touch that auction lot.  A $95K fine, holy crap. And a $437K fine. The whole trash can thing is starting to seem more than unlikely, just seems too easy.

Permalink Reply by JLee on September 2, 2012 at 2:13am
These fines were assessed to the hospital. These documents were already authorized to be released from the hospital. Far different situation. Nobody would be at risk here except the original owner of the documents (if they were stolen).
Permalink Reply by JLee on September 2, 2012 at 12:33am
I would think that the auction house would need to at some point assume the story that the consignor is giving and lean on the signed agreement that they have with the consignor. Do you think it is possible for paperwork of this caliber to be missing without mention or a police report? Doesn't seem possible in my mind. I wouldn't be surprised if Michael Jackson's estate tried going after the document when it hits the market, but I can't see them having a strong case without a previous report of the 20+ year old document going missing. Without that, I think the current owner may hold more credibility.
Permalink Reply by Rick Meyer on September 2, 2012 at 12:41am

US Customs had no idea the Neil Armstrong customs declaration was stolen until it went up for sale. There was no police report on that either. Document was confiscated as a stolen government document. Dont remember the punishment involved but there was.

I remember years ago reading about medical documents similiar to this before being stolen. Trying to remember who it was. Medical documents were stolen by a hospital employee but recovered almost immediately. Not sure who the celebrity was now. For some reason Howard Hughes or J Paul Getty come to mind but dont quote me on that. I'm still researching it and will let you know who it was when I remember.

Very common for known documents like this being stolen by collectors after a death. Wouldnt be the first time and wont be the last.

 

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