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Permalink Reply by CJCollector on February 18, 2014 at 3:41am

Very appropriate, William.

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Permalink Reply by Rich on February 22, 2014 at 11:54am

That ball looks like it's about 10 - 15 years old.

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Permalink Reply by Tyler Merrifield on February 22, 2014 at 5:08pm

Yeah it definitely looks fake to me. The ball looks way too new for Babe Ruth to sign. It looks like it was signed in the last 20 years. I used to think Drew Max was good when he was on Pawn Stars, but I never understood why they changed from him to the guy from PSA/DNA. I trust the PSA DNA guy a lot more

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Permalink Reply by Carl Ryan on February 22, 2014 at 5:48pm

I think alot of people were misled by Pawn Stars' promotion of Drew Max. Max and Chris Morales are almost in the same ranking among FDE's. And most on the forum now wont even go near a Max authenticated item. 

On a side note, its interesting if you ever watch the vids on utube that show how reality shows are fake. In one video, the guy focused on pawn stars and told the tale of how he visited the shop and managed to take some photos of it. He said the shop was basically nothing but a tourist attraction. That there were hardly any workers there, none of the guys from TV, and that the actual pawnable items barely existed. He showed pics of what was in the display cases, and basically it was all just thrift store junk in every case. The polar oppostie from what you see on TV. But i guess most knew it was fake already. But he said it was just a tourist trap, and that half the store was devoted to there own tourist merchandise. On the other hand, he said the Hardcore Pawn shop was an actual runnign pawn shop, and was huge.  He said all the guys from TV were there, but it was very staged, as you couldnt get near the filming crew without permission. But he said he went back multiple times to each shop and each time the same guys were there at hardcore pawn, actually working the floors, etc. But the pawn stars place was hardly even manned, and none of the TV guys were there. And that the store was filled with junk in display cases. They should have put some Morales and Max authenticated pieces in those cases, they would have fit right in

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Permalink Reply by CJCollector on February 22, 2014 at 6:41pm

Exactly, Carl.

Pawn Stars legitimized Drew Max.  Freakin' disgusting!!!

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Permalink Reply by Carl Ryan on February 22, 2014 at 11:16pm

Yes they did legitimize him Chris. I remember when i first realized it was him on that show, i couldnt believe it. One thing i have always wondered about pawn stars and hardcore pawn and shows like it, are, do the pawn shop owners actually believe these authenticators are authentic?? Is it just that they have no clue about autographs and think that everything with a COA must be real? Or is it that they just dont care and know that they can sell the crap just b/c it ahs a COA? I suspect probably both. Anyone who regularly buys autographs, has to have researched autographs to some extent, and all it would take is a quick google search to find out that many of the items are fake.

What Pawn Stars did with Drew Max was disgusting. Totally disgusting. How many times do people come here saying "It is authentic, it has a COA from that guy on pawn stars". Its sad, but the pawn stars guys of course dont care. There whole portrayal of autographs and collectors was absurd. Remember the Dylan episode where they just stumbled upon Dylan willing to sign with a big camera and an annoying goon in his face? lol

What i often wonder as well, is for example: If the hardcore pawn guys buy autographs freely like they seem too, with no real knowledge on there authenticity, then surely forgers must work these places over like crazy. I mean if you could send a babe ruth, Dimaggio, Mantle, Wagner, Cobb, and anyone else signed balls to Max, get a COA, and then walk them into a place like hardcore pawn where they judge authenticity by the COA, and sell them. Think of the money forgers are making by knowingly ripping off everyone. I wonder if other regular pawn shops do the same. It has to be a huge scam in itself.

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Permalink Reply by Rich on February 23, 2014 at 12:02am

I'm starting to wonder how people like Max can get to where they are.  Was this guy legitimate at one point and decided there was more money to be made by becoming a scam artist?  I mean, anyone on the planet can do what he does, which is authenticate everything under the sun.  How do you get to that level where you're on TV doing it?  Is it because he's a convincing actor?

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Permalink Reply by CJCollector on February 23, 2014 at 7:03am

Well written, Carl.

I can only speculate that Pawn Stars "employed" Drew Max because of his being relatively close to them.

Unfortunately, by the time they got rid of him, they legitimized him.

That show (and I wrote about it) where Drew Max examined that FDR Letter To Clergy and stated "I wouldn't doubt if he signed every single one."

That "performance" by Drew Max sickened me!!! 

It was at that point I said to myself "They are making this guy look legitimate."

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Permalink Reply by Micko on February 28, 2014 at 10:15am

I work in the TV business and there is no such thing as 'real' in any reality TV. Once any situation is being filmed for TV, which is for entertainment, it is manipulated and choreographed to suit. It may start out seemingly real, but there are costs for filming etc, actors are brought in and situations created to meet schedules. You are right it's all fake once it's on TV!

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Permalink Reply by Kevin on February 22, 2014 at 5:50pm

I find Drew Max's signature pretty funny. Is he really that lazy to sign his initials instead of his full name on his "official document"? To me it shows how much he really cares. Just thought it was kind of funny.

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