Star Trek Christie’s Lawsuit – The Official Data’s Poker Visor Description Amendment

As previously reported (see “Star Trek Collector Sues Christie’s, CBS & Paramount Studios for $7 Million Dollars“, “Star Trek Christie’s Lawsuit Story, Fundamentals of Authenticity, & The Mainstream Media“), a collector is suing CBS and Paramount Studios and Christies for $7 million dollars, claiming that the pieces won at the 40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection auction event were “fake” or inauthentic. Read more

Star Trek Christie’s Lawsuit Story, Fundamentals of Authenticity, & The Mainstream Media

As reported here Friday (see “Star Trek Collector Sues Christie’s, CBS & Paramount Studios for $7 Million Dollars“), a collector is suing CBS and Paramount Studios and Christies for $7 million dollars, claiming that the pieces won at the 40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection auction event were “fake” or inauthentic. Read more

The Original BMX Bike from E.T. The Extra Terrestrial

There is an interesting story published in The Sun this week, about the lead singer of Kasabian acquiring (and unfortunately, riding) the original BMX bike used in the Steven Spielberg classic, E.T. The Extra Terrestrial. Read more

Star Trek Collector Sues Christies, CBS & Paramount Studios for $7 Million Dollars

There is a news story in the New York Post about a collector who bid on and won items at the Christie’s “40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection” event in New York held in October 2006.

This was one of the biggest live auction events in the history of the hobby, with extensive press coverage. Read more

Original Prop Related Articles in the L.A. Times by Ron Magid

Writer and original prop collector Ron Magid has authored a number of articles in the L.A. Times, which may be of interest to other hobbyists. These articles are under the “How’d They Do That?” and “Scene Stealer” headings. Read more

Internet Crime Complaint Center

I thought the Internet Crime Complaint Center would be a potentially important resource for any original prop collector that becomes a victim of fraud. Given that significant dollar amounts are typically at risk in hobby-related transactions, and communication and/or payment usually involve the Internet, this is a valuable resource to be aware of. Read more

P.S. I Love You Charity Auction

A new series of charity auctions has begun on eBay, for the Warner Brothers feature, “P.S. I Love You” staring Hillary Swank and Gerard Butler, in support of the Sudden Arrhythmia Death Syndromes Foundation (SADS.org). The auctions can be found HERE: Read more

In The News: Yesterday’s Hollywood Prop House Public Sale Event

As reported Friday (see “Hollywood Prop Houses To Hold Public Sale Event Tomorrow“), several prop houses held a public sale yesterday in order to generate revenue due to the fallout of the writer’s strike. Auction houses involved included: History for Hire, Global Effects, RC Vintage, Alley Cats, Lennie Marvin Enterprises, 20th Century Props, Jackson Shrub, and The Hand Prop Room. Read more

Hollywood Prop Houses To Hold Public Sale Event Tomorrow

According to The 411, several Hollywood prop houses will be holding a public sale tomorrow, December 22nd: Read more

eBay Auction: Greatest American Hero Costume

An eBay listing is scheduled to end tomorrow – “William Katt Greatest American Hero original costume” (eBay Item #220184242364) – which has raised concerns as to authenticity.

Because an original suit was copied many years ago, with replica suits introduced into the marketplace as real, it has made authentication of these suits highly problematic. Read more

Christies Film & Entertainment Memorabilia Auction – South Kensington, December 19, 2007 – Auction Results

The results are in for today’s Film & Entertainment Memorabilia Auction held by Christies at South Kensington.

While not many original props and wardrobe pieces were offered, there appear to be very few standouts from the sale, in terms of prices realized, and many lots appear to have gone unsold. The Pierce Brosnan Goldeneye suit realized an astounding price – over $38,000 U.S., as did the C3-P0 hand, at over $43,000 U.S. Both values on these items are very high for props of their type, and may reflect the somewhat lackluster grouping of pieces offered that would be of interest to hobbyists that collect props and costumes from more modern sci-fi and action films. Plus, coming less than a week after the much larger Profiles in History auction in the U.S. was probably to the detriment of Christies. Read more

Upcoming Hollywood Roadshow Live Auction in Los Angeles – June 21-22, 2008

The next Hollywood Roadshow event is scheduled for Saturday & Sunday, June 21-22, in Los Angeles. Read more

“Planet of the Apes” Statue of Liberty Prop – Update, SciFiNow Magazine

As discussed previously (see “Planet of the Apes Statue of Liberty Prop“), a Statue of Liberty prop head – attributed to use in Planet of the Apes (1968) – was consigned with Profiles in History (where it failed to sell) and, subsequently, Heritage Auction Galleries (where it was pulled prior to auction).

This piece has generated much discussion in the hobby, yet many questions remain unanswered.

Les Hemstock purportedly consigned the Statue of Liberty piece to Profiles in History for their Hollywood Auction 28, held August 2-3, 2007.

In the last article, I posted a series of files (images and text) that were circulating among collectors, which illustrated an extensive restoration and reconstruction of the piece. Even assuming the piece is original and was from the production (which has not been publicly proven), those elements which would have been seen on screen (the back of the head and the spikes), per these files, they appear to be replicas (the spikes) or not exist (the back of the head).

This update is to provide additional facts and information. Read more

Art Institute of Chicago & Sculpture Forgery

Though not a story about an original prop from film or television, recent reporting about a sculpture identified as fraud by the Art Institute of Chicago is most definitely a story of interest for fellow hobbyists.

As reported by the Chicago Tribune (below), “The Faun” ceramic sculpture has been on display at the Art Institute of Chicago for the last ten years, believed to be an original 19th Century work of Paul Gauguin. This past week, the museum announced the work is a forgery. The museum bought the piece in 1997 from a dealer in London, who, in turn, purchased the piece from Sotheby’s in 1994.

A family (father, mother, son) named Greenhalgh are believed to have run a very advanced forgery operation for the last 17 years, and were the consignors to Sotheby’s. The son, Shaun, has already been sentenced to over four years in prison following his confession.

I believe stories such as this (as well as the recent “Fraud Trial Features Famous Firearms“) have direct correlations with our own hobby, in which fraud (not to mention theft) is prevalent with much less oversight. Also of interest, in this article, is the reference to Sotheby’s indemnification clause: Read more

Profiles in History 30 Held Yesterday, Today

Profiles in History 30 was held yesterday and today, with the majority props being auctioned today at Profiles in Calabasas Hills, over the Internet via eBay Live Auctions, and by phone.

It appears that the key pieces originating from Stan Winston Studios performed well beyond expectations. Read more

The Last Samurai? UK to Ban “Imitation” Swords…

According to recent news reports, there is a plan to outlaw replica and imitation Samurai swords in England beginning April 2008. Under this plan, those in violation of this proposed law will face stiff fines and up to six months in jail. It appears that exemptions will include genuine Japanese swords owned by collectors and enthusiasts.

This is an interesting development, following the October 1, 2007 implementation of new laws in the UK restricting the manufacture, import, and sale of imitation firearms under the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 (see “Research & Dialogue About Importing Firearms to the UK“).

Obviously, this trend of banning replica/imitation firearms and now certain bladed weapons does have an impact on the collection of original props for hobbyists in the UK. Read more

Bloomberg “Arnold-Centric” Story on Profiles in History

Bloomberg published a story yesterday covering today and tomorrow’s Profiles in History Hollywood Auction 30 with a short interview with Joe Maddalena. It is interested to see ways in which the mainstream press cover the original prop hobby, such as framing the story around and seeking a reaction from Mr. Schwarzenegger on the offering of props from the Terminator films.

The full story can be read at Bloomberg.com: Read more

HBO’s The Wire: Behind The Scenes With Mike Sabo

As I’ve already noted elsewhere (“Celebrating Media: My 10 Favorite Television Shows (Since I Was Born)“), HBO’s The Wire is my all time favorite TV show.

There is a nice little feature on the official HBO website focused on Prop Master Mike Sabo in their Behind the Scenes section: On The Set Part 7 Read more

View Askew & Profiles in History

I was not aware of this from reading the catalog, but it seems that all of the Kevin Smith-related props in this weeks Profiles in History Hollywood Auction 30 are consigned by View Askew: Read more

Star Trek Blog: Profiles in History Preview and Analysis

Alec Peters of the Star Trek Prop, Costume, and Auction Blog has posted a three part report and analysis of the Star Trek pieces offered in this week’s Profiles in History Hollywood Auction 30.

Alec and Brett Jones of Federation Surplus visited the Profiles in History offices in Calabasas, CA, and Alec spent some time talking with Michael Moore of HMS and shares his insights and opinions on these Trek pieces in this articles:

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3

Jason De Bord

Raiders of the Lost Ark “God of Light” Prop Wall Plaque – Update 2

As noted in the first two articles (see “Raiders of the Lost Ark “God of Light” Prop Wall Plaque” and “Update“), there was confusion over a Raiders of the Lost Ark wall plaque offered in Profiles in History that matches one seen on YourProps.com listed as a replica casting attributed to Elstree Props, and subsequently these have been found to have been sold openly and in quantity by Elstree Props on eBay and SpecialistAuctions. Since the posting of the original article, it seems those replica auctions have stopped. Read more

“Planet of the Apes” Statue of Liberty Prop – Restoration Information, Outstanding Questions

As discussed in prior articles (see Profiles in History Auction 28 Catalog Available Online, Profiles in History 28 Held Yesterday, Today, Heritage Music & Entertainment Memorabilia Auction – October 6-7, 2007, October’s Heritage Auction Addendum: “Planet of the Apes” Statue of Liberty Prop Removed from Catalog), a Statue of Liberty prop head – attributed to use in Planet of the Apes (1968) – was consigned with Profiles in History (where it failed to sell) and, subsequently, Heritage Auction Galleries (where it was pulled prior to auction).

This piece has generated much discussion in the hobby, yet many questions remain unanswered. Read more

Beijing Charity Auction Features Movie Props & Wardrobe

Per a news report posted on China.Org.Cn (LINK), movie stars donated props and wardrobe to a charity auction to raise over four million dollars in support of a foundation sponsored by the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation and the movie channel of China Central Television (CCTV). Read more

eBay’s puttieface & Entertainment Movie Props

For years, I have received countless unsolicited e-mail messages, private messages on other websites, reader comments on this forum, etc., from an individual/individuals connected to the website EntertainmentMovieProps.com and/or eBay’s puttieface.

A variety of names, usernames, and e-mail addresses have been used, but many are easily connected to one another by IP address, writing style (all caps, all lowercase, non standard word fragments, unusual punctuation, etc.), unique word usage (“cheers”, “mate”, “int”, etc.), and content (consistent comments about specific props, experiences, etc.).

I’ve never transacted with either prop dealer, and have generally completed ignored him/them, but given my experiences, hopefully making note of it here in summary will be informative to other hobbyists. Read more

“Original” Millennium Falcon Model on eBay

An item was listed on eBay this week marketed as an original Millennium Falcon model used in Star Wars. This auction, ended early (eBay Item #140184695886), was titled: Read more

Star Trek: The Tour Starts in January

Per StarTrekTheTour.com, “an interactive, action-packed experience will feature exhibits from all five TV shows and each of the 10 movies” during a 40 city tour. Read more

“Off The Shelf” and “Found” Props & Wardrobe

One of the most inherently problematic props, in terms of issues with authenticity, are of the “off the shelf” or “found” variety.

What are “off the shelf” props?

Props, wardrobe pieces, set pieces, and any other artifacts used in a production that are:

1) Mass produced (past or present),
2) for non-production purposes (i.e. not specifically manufactured for use in the production), and
3) are or were available for purchase from those not associated with the production. Read more

First Wave of NBC Auctions: Results (11/19-12/3)

As noted previously (see “Reported Plans for NBC Studio Auction Event“, “NBC Universal Auctions Live“), these auctions from NBC Universal are now live: Read more

AP: Fraud Trial Features Famous Firearms

While this news story from the Associated Press (LINK) does not directly involve original props or original prop collecting, it is of interest and the dynamics in play could have implications for the hobby, as related to market value appraisals, specialist authorities, brokering, and fraud. I plan to follow this story to report on the proceedings and outcome. Read more

NASA’s Space Center Houston Star Wars Prop Exhibit – Update

As reported previously (see “NASA’s Space Center Houston to Host Star Wars Prop Exhibit“), the Luke Skywalker lightsaber from Return of the Jedi, along with other Star Wars props, including a 1:1 scale X-Wing fighter, will be on display at NASA’s Space Center Houston through the end of the year. Read more