Autograph Common Sense

Let's take some time to talk about autographs, sounds silly right? In the last few weeks a number of new & old collectors have popped in here on this site and elsewhere with items they want to know about...Is this real? What's the value? and so on.

Many of us collect different things, some only collect sports, some mostly music, astronauts or presidents, whatever you collect this topic will fit into any category, for my purposes, seeing as I collect celebrity autographs, these are the examples I will use.

There are so many things that should be looked at when you are deciding what you should collect and where the actual value can possibly end up.

Lets start with the item. Is it a photograph? Maybe a poster and is it original or a cheap copy? What size is it? Was it produced in a photo lab or printed out on your computer? All of this matters.

Maybe it's a size that the signer rarely autographs. As we saw recently with an oversized Armstrong photo selling for 10 times the normal price.

A photograph should be a good size to display with a strong autograph that you can see clearly ...even from across the room. If the celebrity signed in a dark area with a dark pen (as many do).....the value will be different..... far different.

Avoid magazine pages or flimsy paperstock lithographs, they will not last for the long term, and computer printed images will fade and look horrible in time, that is if the sharpie doesn't bleed into the image. Good lab produced photos have a lifespan of 100 years or more. Paper stock magazine pages will crumble to dust over time....think about old newspapers.

While we are on the subject of images.....is that image from the celebrity's most famous role? The one character which he or she is know for worldwide? This is also of huge importance but it is also a double edged sword on occasion. Certain celebrities are so well known for a specific role that nearly everything signed by them in their career is images of that role. Sean Connery will always be James Bond, and for 50+ years he has been singing James Bond images, posters and memorabilia. He has certainly signed far fewer pieces from Highlander or Indiana Jones, both of those franchises will always have a place in collections and will have collectors who want them.

Other examples of this would be Joe D on a Mr. Coffee ad photo or a shot swinging a bat in uniform, Armstrong in his NASA jumpsuit or a business suit. Roger Maris in pinstripes or in a Cards jersey. Which do you think will be more valuable to the average fan? Sure a shot of Joe D holding a Mr. Coffee coffee pot would be a fun piece for someone who owns a dozen Yankees shots of Joe, but what would the "normal" fan prefer?

There are rare celebrities whose career has given them multiple characters with far reaching long term recognition. Al Pacino will always be Michael Corleone and Tony Montana. Harrison Ford has both Han Solo and Indiana Jones. Other celebs aren't that lucky, but if they are recognized forever as one character ....that is nothing to sneeze at, and it is probably a good bet that if you want to add that person to your collection, it is probably wise to be sure you get the right item signed. Marlon Brando on a Godfather photo would likely sell for 20 times what a standard Brando image would bring. Heath Ledger photos as the Joker ( I only know of about a dozen) will sell for far more than any other Ledger graph.....no offense to the Brokeback fans.

Be smart about what you add to your collection and if you are in a position where you have to be buying a piece.....save up and holdout for the right piece

Posters, props and costumes are all options for signing, but again.....quality always matters, both in the item signed and the autograph ......choose wisely.

Of course sometimes you have no choice but to compromise, especially when you are in search of a celebrity that is no longer with us, just take your time and be patient, don't jump into anything without doing your homework.

I am sure there are dozens of other factors.....these were just the few that popped into my head in the last day or so. Please add to the list.

10 members like this

Comment by Paul on November 16, 2016 at 5:20pm: This bloke is shooting blanks!

Comment by Mike Shepherd on November 22, 2016 at 3:39am: Very thoughtful piece of writing Pete. Thank you again for being so helpful.

Comment by Pete Bendu on November 29, 2016 at 11:09am: One thing has come up repeatedly in the last couple of weeks, that I feel should be added to this "Common Sense" thread. If you are a serious autograph collector but you do not have direct access to any remote chance of getting your hero to sign something for you...be smart and make friends. If there is an autograph hound out there that you have dealt with over and over again, or a dealer who you work with to fill the holes in your collection, don't be "that guy."

The guy that emails day after day asking "Are we there yet?" or asking for a particular autograph or scans or prices .....only to disappear.

This had been brought up in discussions 5 or 6 times this week alone by at least 4 different graphers.

Twice this week alone, I have had people contact me about a deal they requested months or years ago and then dropped off the face of the planet. One guy asked for something in July 2015 and acted upset that the piece was now sold. Another requested an autograph, picked the one he wanted, arranged a payment schedule for 2 upcoming weeks, and vanished for 6 months. He wanted the item he chose half a year ago.

Here is a tip from your Uncle Pete......ask for something when you are ready to make your purchase, tell the dealer what you want and what you can afford, if the dealer meets your demands .....finish the transaction.

You will be amazed at how much great material gets offered your way, when your connection knows you are reliable and a man of your word, not just some window shopper wasting time.

I have amassed a collection that boggles the mind, and now for years.... I haven't had to step foot into a convention or freeze myself thru NYC winters or have to break a sweat waiting outside a downtown hotel in July. All by finding those right contacts and treating them the way they should be treated.

Comment by Greg on December 23, 2016 at 1:33pm: Great blog Pete! Just wondering what yours', and others' thoughts are on signed cards/autograph pages. For me, someone who likes to collect older Hollywood and history related items, most often from those who are no longer with us, I find that an old-school signed autograph album page is the best. For one, it tends to be generally cheaper than a signed photo, as photos were a lot rarer for some depending on how long ago it was, and two, it gives ME the choice of what favorite photo I want to put it with, all nicely mated together in a frame.

However, you bring up some great points when it comes to more modern graphs done on high quality photos. My only issue seems to be with the choices of the image a lot of the graphers out there seem to be selling. A lot of the times I'm thinking to myself when looking through some sellers' collections is 'why on earth would they select THAT pose/scene/movie etc', when it would seem to me that most people would prefer to buy one of the more recognizable images of that particular actor. The only thing I can think of, and please help me out if you're a professional grapher, would be that even if you get an actor to sign mutliple graphs for you at one time, if he/she sees that all you have is a whole stack of the same well-known image, then they'll probably consider you a dealer for sure and be reluctant to do more than one or two? But if you had more of a variety, then they'd be more interested and willing to do more?

Regardless, thank goodness for those graphers out there willing to get the job done that most of us wouldn't/couldn't, as outlined by Pete above! ;)

Comment by Pete Bendu on December 23, 2016 at 3:54pm: I started collecting signed index cards. I still do, but I have certainly expanded beyond them as well. For people starting out collecting autographs today, it is certainly one way to go. If I use Star Wars as an example, you can't get Alec Guinness or Peter Cushing to sign a poster for you, after this brutal 2016, you can't get Kenny Baker either. (My love and best wishes to Carrie Fisher at this moment.)

You can however usually find album pages or index cards signed by these celebrities to mat together with the remainder of the cast along with your favorite image or poster. It will make a fantastic display.

As someone who goes a bit overboard studying the habits of any signer that I seriously collect, a clean album page or index card also gives you a beautiful version of the autograph to really look at, with no overly busy image with lights and darks contrasting behind the signature.

Some people love signed index cards, I am one of them, others really don't go for them at all, I found that when out and collecting you can't carry a bus load of photos wherever you go, and in reality you just don't know who you may run into if you are out in LA or NYC. Having a package of white index cards and a sharpie in your pocket, never hurts.

Comment by Pete Bendu on December 25, 2016 at 5:55pm: The Power of an Autograph!

If you have ever been out there collecting autographs in-person, you know what I am talking about. That feeling when a celebrity, that you already admire (Why else would you be there?), stops and takes a few seconds of their time to sign an item for you. That celebrity has earned your respect as well as admiration, and you as a fan will likely support that celebrity no matter what they choose to do. On the flip side of that same coin, the celebrity walks right past you or refuses to sign, chances are you will not be there for opening day of their next venture, next show, book signing, event ...whatever.

Again using celebrities because that is what I know best.

Not knocking the acting ability of Tom Cruise or Johnny Depp, but they are both among the celebrities with "slightly different" beliefs, and Johnny has gone so far as to move out of the country we all love. In this day of intolerance, even something as keeping a different faith, one that average Americans don't understand, can cause plenty of problems when advertised harshly in public. These things could certainly cause a firestorm for similar celebs.

However, they have earned the love of their fans, signing up a storm at every event. Do you think they would still be breaking records with their film openings if they ignored their fans?

The theory that good things happen to good people in the autograph world is proven by people like Sam Jackson, Matt Damon, Rosario Dawson, Stephen King, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Diego Luna, Emma Stone, Jeff Bridges, Tom Hanks, etc.

Some celebrities know that the fans are the reason they are famous. It's a true pleasure for me to be a fan of some of these people, and yes I do my best to support their work.

On the other hand you have some of the celebrities that rarely or just don't sign. Tobey Maguire, Cameron Diaz, Joaquin Phoenix, Teri Hatcher, Renée Zellweger, even one of my favorites Bruce Willis. How have their recent films done?

Sure there are also celebs that rarely sign that seem bulletproof at the box office, Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman come to mind.

It's certainly not a fool-proof rule that non-signing celebrities won't be involved in a hit film, but the fans I know who aren't treated right, do tend to skip the works of celebrities that have ignored them or cussed them out for asking for a simple autograph.

Comment by Ian Baldock on December 25, 2016 at 6:24pm: I would second beware of signed blanks (when a celeb signs a white blank paper and THEN a picture is printed over it). I consider it altered and the signatures/photos can become junk. There was a big discussion on the RAAC about it with several guys (probably blanks sellers) vigorously defending the practice. If you are going to buy a major piece for your collection (already expensive,a Ford,McCartney etc.) save even more money and get a really nice one with iron clad provenance. People always trust Official Pix and Coolwaters with Ford, guaranteed good! Buy that fuller name McCartney with a good COA. They will be better investments over time.Though I don't really collect thinking I'm gonna make a fortune one day. Sig placements and what its signed on are covered.Im not big on 8x10s. I like things that display nicely. But its what makes you happy is whats most important.And use this website for information!

Comment by Eric Keith Longo on December 27, 2016 at 2:23am: This is one of the most useful threads here - thank you Pete.

Eric

Comment by DP on January 20, 2017 at 6:47am: For photos I prefer 8x10s as they are easier to store but the occasional larger size is nice but its just more awkward to store.

Comment by Bradford on January 24, 2017 at 8:49pm: I noticed that that the authentication of an item really didn't come into play when it comes to value or maybe it doesn't apply to the "common sense" aspect of the conversation.
My question, however, is does authentication come into play for those of you who hope to leave your family behind something to sell in your absence and that it could possibly this make their job easier?
I understand that placement and texture and other aspects can influence the value of your autograph, but do any of you feel the need validate your item by way authentication in order to secure its resale value?