Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on November 1, 2023 at 12:24pm

Herman Darvick is the Presidential guy here - perhaps message him.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on November 1, 2023 at 12:28pm

Apparently there was a very good secretary named Von Damme.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on November 1, 2023 at 12:33pm

I don't think this is authentic.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on November 1, 2023 at 12:35pm

It is a Helen Von Damme. The "o" looks like an "a", the "d"is open...

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on November 1, 2023 at 12:54pm

Helen:

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on November 1, 2023 at 12:30pm

That's not real IMO.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Dobby Doberson on November 1, 2023 at 3:04pm

Thanks! I appreciate everyone’s time! I agree, it didn’t look good to me either. It was from a buddy’s Aunt (who worked in the West Wing!)

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on November 1, 2023 at 3:34pm

Most welcome.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Steve Zarelli on November 2, 2023 at 6:56am

I would not trash this; the jury is still out on my opinion.

Helene von Damme was Reagan's secretary for many years and was skilled at imitating his writing and signature. Bill White from RR Auction and Paul Carr from the UACC wrote great studies years ago. Based on these, the questioned item is a bit of a tweener... it has some secretarial traits but it has several subtle Reagan traits, so I would not rule it out.

A few things...

• von Damme typically connected the B and e in "Best wishes" whereas Reagan would lift the pen between the letters. This example leans toward Reagan.
• For Reagan the "ld" would be about the same height while with von Damme the l was significantly shorter than the d. This leans toward Reagan.
• Reagan's e would lean to the left or be perfectly vertical, while van Damme's e would pitch to the right. This leans toward Reagan.
• The closed d is not a reliable indicator.

This may very well be von Damme, but it's close enough that I recommend getting an opinion from someone expert in Reagan.

• ▶ Reply