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Michael Jackson Signing Styles in Julien's Tompkins and Bush Sale

On December 2, Julien's Auctions is selling The Collection of Tompkins and Bush. The collection contains 465 lots of Michael Jackson memorabilia, 287 of them autographed.

Michael Bush and the late Dennis Tompkins were Michael Jackson's costume designers for 25 years, during Jackson's most successful period. They were the consignors of the signed Thriller jacket that Julien's sold for $1,800,000 in June 2011.

Almost all of the autographs in the Tompkins and Bush sale are a variation I'm not familiar with. I've only been looking at Jackson's autograph for a few years, though, and we have members here who have collected him for decades, so I'd appreciate your input and exemplars.

If you know Michael Jackson's autograph well, please look at a few images below from the auction and let me know what you think. Even better, browse the auction and upload any similar examples you have: http://www.julienslive.com/view-auctions/catalog/id/77/

Julien's is the world's premier auction house for Michael Jackson memorabilia, so they would know his autograph better than most of us. I'm just surprised I haven't seen this style before.

Thanks for your help.

Tags: 2012, Julien's, auction, michael jackson, tompkins and bush

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Michael Frost on December 5, 2012 at 2:54pm

Brandon, good point,

I have been away and thought I would have been killed by now on this jacket. The "n" loop is very rare. It is hard to find on any authentic Michael Jackson autograph. Michael Seem to use the "n" loop more frequent on in-person rushed items circa 1990-1994. Michael Jackson definitely has signed with the loop that is in question and is similar to the loops that were in the Michael Bush Collection.

Permalink Reply by Helen on December 5, 2012 at 4:23pm

Yeah, an N loop sometimes, maybe. Never a giant K loop like on some of the Bush/Tompkin items, though!

On the jacket it's mainly the "love" that doesn't look right and makes one question the loop. The general shape of the name looks ok and consistent with rushed MJ  signatures I've seen.

Which just goes to show again how atrocious the Juliens autographs are, everything about them is wrong, the overall shape and rhythm as well as the detail.

Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on December 5, 2012 at 8:37pm

So 300 "n" loops in a row would be a touch unusual?

Permalink Reply by Charlotte Stanley on December 6, 2012 at 8:00am

LOL just a little. he varied his handwriting somewhat over the years but not on any of the Bush ones.

Permalink Reply by Wendy Christine on December 6, 2012 at 2:31pm

Just a tad wee bit.

Permalink Reply by TeamMichael777 on December 6, 2012 at 5:25pm

Permalink Reply by JPC3342 on December 7, 2012 at 7:03pm

thats a real MJ autograph

Permalink Reply by Helen on December 8, 2012 at 12:03am

John Paul, we know that. These are posted here as examples of Michael's real signature.

The reason we keep this going is to show that we haven't given up on exposing the fraud. Every picture of an authentic MJ signature builds our case.

Permalink Reply by Michael Frost on December 6, 2012 at 9:54pm
Michael Jackson for a megastar was a great signer. He truly loved his fans and in many occasions would stop what he was doing just to sign autographs. I had the privilege of meeting him on 3 occasions and I was always shocked at the time he spent signing autographs and taking pictures with fans. I think some people may be looking to much into some of his signatures. Michael Jackson had several variations and style changes through the years but if you know his signature and his flow,it will not be that difficult to authenticate. The same case goes for Mickey Mantle and many other celebrities, some people have one exact perfect image of an autograph in their mind and have issues with the slightest of variation. I have found in most cases the good forgers are the ones that stick to one exact pattern that they are comfortable with and repeat it almost every single time. That is why a good autograph authenticator should also but together a good library of known good forgeries. Try to examine autographs with an open mind, think about the different situations that the signature may have been obtained in and what type of item the signature is on. I also consider the amount of room on the item to fit the autograph. You may see some major variations when there is a small area to fit a signature or on multi signed items.
I can show many different authentic Michael Jackson autographs examples but you should be able to say that's Michael.
He was one of the most sought-after and accommodating signers of all times. Michael Jackson was an autograph collector himself, Jackson always made an effort to interact with his fans and sign whenever it is possible. When Michael was in public, he literally got mobbed but always tried to get to all his fans. Even if he had to sit in the back of his car with the window open a pep and except items.
 
http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/54643692?profile=original
Permalink Reply by Helen on December 7, 2012 at 9:12am

Great collection, Michael.

The hat looks suspect. i'd buy the signature, but 'my love' looks wrong. Are there other examples where he formed an m to look like a w and did the y in one stroke?

You're right, Michael was very generous with autographs. And they've frequently been part of logos / on official merchandise etc. That's why it's so strange to me that any auctioneer, never mind any bidder, was fooled by this odd collection. Any fan should know what his signature looks like. I'm not saying I couldn't be fooled by a good forgery, but the Bush lot is so far off it's just ludicrous.

Permalink Reply by Charlotte Stanley on December 7, 2012 at 10:22am

I dont like the hat- not only the signature but the hat itself. Yes he does combine the my in "my" a lot but its smoother than this one. Also, to tell you the truth- The signature on The Will looks more like a secretarial and its not so smooth. I know the family thinks its forged and I kind of feel it is also. Some freat vintage ones here though.

Permalink Reply by Wendy Christine on December 7, 2012 at 11:27am

Thank you Michael for all of your learned tips and insights.  Appreciated much! 

And thank you for more info than I had known regarding the Sonnet's decision to sell the Beat It jacket.  As I worked on my edited version of Julien's original promo video (with their tacky graphics which I removed) I kept wondering how the jacket came to be for sale.  Financial constraints from David's ongoing medical care had been on the top of my guess list.

I'm so sorry the Sonnets were not the ones to receive the $100,000. :(

p.s. - Photo #6 that you posted here:  "Blankets" shirt  .... Made me SMILE :))

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