Re: Natalie Portman signature study

I found this thread recently and just signed up for Autograph Live, so as my first post, please bear with me.

I want to post my Anne Frank playbill with Natalie's signature. I got Austin Pendleton's (Anne Frank cast) autograph from him directly, standing by the entrance door. It was a bright sunny day, he was gracious and patient. I think I asked if Natalie was inside already and he said he'd check.

A minute later an assistant came out and asked me if I was the one waiting for Natalie's autograph. I handed her my second playbill and said I was. She said hold on. A few minutes later she returned with this autographed playbill. I never saw Ms Portman in person, except for her onstage as Anne Frank.

I've heard many stories of assistants taking these requests and ghost signing for her, so I've always wanted to professionally authenticate this. On the same trip, I saw Wait Until Dark and got Marisa Tomei and Quentin Tarantino to sign the same playbill in front of me, so I know those are real. I even have one pre-cell phone selfie from a 35mm box camera w me and QT.

Tags: #NataliePortman, #hollywood

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jason H on October 17, 2022 at 11:37pm

I received the same playbill signed by her TTM in the 90s. I gave it away 10 years later to a friend who wanted it badly. Its been years since I seen it but from memory, That's pretty much exactly what I received as well. I remember reading stories from others at the time I received mine, how she was pretty easy to obtain while she was on Broadway. Its a very nice item.

Permalink Reply by Benjamin on October 17, 2022 at 11:52pm

Cheers! What is TTM? I definitely hit that show bc she had just been cast for Star Wars, so other than the amazing The Professional and Beautiful Girls (I think it was) she was still pretty damn young and new, but balling! It's a fun memory

Permalink Reply by Jason H on October 18, 2022 at 12:27am

Sorry, Its such a common term for me I feel everyone knows it now.. TTM means through the mail. I wrote her with a letter of request and added a self addressed stamped envelope. She provided the playbill herself.

Permalink Reply by Benjamin on October 18, 2022 at 1:11am

Right on! I went to the afternoon show and hung out by the door where I met other cast going in. But I know now that doesn't mean anything for proof. In my own mind this is 65/35 actually NP, or else it was an assistant that many of us had sigs from as well, somewhat before her wider fame! I think it was just before the point she started refusing sigs (it was pre SW) or having ghost signers, like TTM maybe

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on October 18, 2022 at 1:19am

You never know. Send playbills back to Richard Burton and you get a secretarial back (his manservant). It makes learning the sig that much more important. Knowing more than your seller or fellow collector is KEY! :-)

Permalink Reply by Jason H on October 18, 2022 at 1:36am

I was a huge TTM collector in the 90s, especially from 1995 to 1998, during that time id send out around 50 requests a month, or as much as I could with my lunch money. Id go without eating in High School just to send out as many requests as I could. The websites collectors had were pretty generic by today's standards but they listed successes for the week, some even updated their sites daily.. There were also a few ways you could communicate with other collectors. I never heard of a secretarial portman playbill. The signature in the picture you posted looks authentic to me but you can wait for others to confirm. Its always great to have multiple opinions because even the best authenticators can never be 100% perfect.

As for proof, I used to be a videographer / photographer, my wife was also a photographer / graphic designer before we moved on to better things. We are proficient with editing software. Honestly, today, I wouldnt trust any photos as proof. Photos can be edited and manipulated extremely well these days. Its always best to authenticate the autograph based on the graph itself 1st. Supporting documents, pictures and stories are nice to accompany the item but only necessary for people who are not able to rely on their own authenticating skills.

Overall, it is late and ill check again in the morning but for now, I think your portman is authentic

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on October 18, 2022 at 2:59am

Absolutely re proof photographs. The only time they are really useful is when they are bogus and can be flipped on the "seller". The bad and the good still stick out, especially older material. And then especially with negatives and/or original contact sheets that can be code dated etc..

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on October 17, 2022 at 11:07pm

I think we are all happy to have you here.