Authenticity is Everything
Billie Holiday Autograph
I purchased this 78 vinyl record purportedly signed by Billie Holiday from an RACC trusted seller. I recently submitted the item to JSA for authentication, and unfortunately it did not pass.
I originally submitted it in person at a show here in CA a few weeks ago, and I was disappointed by how carelessly the item was handled during intake. When I received it back, there were fingerprints all over it. I contacted JSA immediately to report the condition, and they did expedite the review process.
Yesterday I received their letter confirming that the autograph did not pass authentication. I’m extremely disappointed and unsure what my next step should be, or if anyone here might be able to offer advice.
Prior to purchasing the item, I did my research and examined the signature characteristics—such as the looping of “Billie” and the shape of the “H” in “Holiday.” However, upon further inspection, the signature appears to have been written in ballpoint pen. Additionally, the Blue Ace label is known to be a bootleg label, and this particular pressing seems to have been released slightly before the time of her passing.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by a pug called eva
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Thanks Eric, I was thinking that the small blob of ink on the left side of the "o" (at ca. 11.55) was the start of the up-sweep to form the "l". This would mean that the writer would have gone down the left of the "o" (that you have in blue) and got up the right side (that you have in green). The writer would then have lifted the pen and started the "I" where the ink blob is. I may be completely misinterpreting this. Obviously it would be much easier to tell with the item in hand.
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Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo
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Is this better?
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I see a pen lift where the red ends and the green starts. Where else would it come from? The green then turns to blue to finished the "o" and head into "l." - here is the clean version. You can see a tiny "tick" where the red ends on this clean version.
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OK. You see the ink blob as being at the end of a stroke and not the beginning of one. Is that normal?
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Here is what I see. I see the stroke ending where the red dot is - that little tick. I do not believe that she made a sharp turn where the green dot is to go down the right side of the "o" - and then the rest makes no sense. What is that above it then? I think the pen lifted and was put down again just after where the green dot is - as shown above, to form the right side of the "o.".
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I was thinking the writer went down the left side of the "o" and came up on the right, as Billie seems to have done in the other exemplars. Normally she would make a small circle at the top of the "o" to get to the "I". In this case the writer hasn't made this circular movement but has lifted the pen before starting the "l". Both sides of the "o" look a bit hesitant/wobbly and not free-flowing.
Whichever theory is correct there wouldn't normally be a pen lift.
Hopefully all this minute analysis is helping to keep our brains healthy for longer!
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Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin
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It might not be real from what you pointed out. But I still think there's a decent chance it is.
UPDATE: I spent more time on it and I feel strongly that it is real.
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Permalink Reply by Ryan Wolfson
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Same can be said about this …
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What are you referring to with this image (with 1:22 at the top)?
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Not sure I see any difference between how Eric described the pen being put down and what’s shown in this image. The same can be said.
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I can only see the "Billie" part of the name in the image.
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Even Billie is not her typical way of signing
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