‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ Fertility Idols In The Marketplace Update 2013

With their latest “Entertainment Memorabilia” sale event in Knightsbridge on July 3rd, Bonhams is offering for public sale a second fertility idol attributed to use in Raiders of the Lost Ark with paperwork from industry veteran Kit West.  Due to public interest in discussing iconic props from the Indiana Jones films, and confusion in the marketplace with regards to the provenance and authentication of such pieces, I thought it appropriate to update my ongoing series of articles on the topic with the new information and photos (see: Raiders of the Lost Ark Fertility Idols In The Marketplace). Read more

Bonhams ‘Entertainment Memorabilia’ Auction to be Held in Knightsbridge, London on July 3rd, Catalog Available Online

Bonhams will be holding their next “Entertainment Memorabilia” (auction 20771) sale event in Knightsbridge on July 3rd. This sale includes a mix of film/television as well as music related memorabilia, with a total of 399 lots. Read more

Yet Another Luke Skywalker “Screen Used” Return of the Jedi Lightsaber Movie Prop with Elstree Studios/Elstree Props/Danziger Collection Connections Surfaces on eBay

Continuing a long line of “screen used” Luke Skywalker prop lightsabers attributed to Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi with connections to Elstree Studios/Elstree Props/The Danziger Collection, yet another one has surfaced for sale on eBay.  Although there are photos of the prop and related documents and certificates of authenticity (COAs) from “Piece of the Stars Memorabilia” (a company I have never heard of before), of course the resolution of these images are limited to 500px × 375px (do cameras still exist today that shoot at such a low resolution?), rendering examination challenging, to say the least.  In the interests of public debate and discussion, Original Prop Blog has long documented the public sale offerings of other prop lightsabers attributed to Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker in Return of the Jedi that have similar origins and associations, which can be found HERE. Read more

Revisiting Ellis Props & Graphics – Certificates of Authenticity (COAs) Assigned to TV and Movie Props, Set Pieces, & Costumes Circulating in the Marketplace

For reasons unknown to me, I continue to receive communications from recent buyers of memorabilia attributed to film and television productions, who believe I have something to do with various eBay sellers and/or Ellis Props (see article from one month ago today, “NOTICE: Original Prop Blog Does Not/Will Not Supply Props to Dealers “jnsmcmahan”, “jsnent”, John Tarter, Billie Null, Mark Sullivan, L.A. Prop & Wardrobe, Hollywood Prop Supply, Studio West Prop, Ellis Props, et al“).  In any event, with one of these more recent contacts, I asked the buyer of one of these pieces to send me a photo of the Certificate of Authenticity (COA) supplied with the item purchased (in this case the COA provided was one that originally appears to be from Ellis Props).  A long time trusted collector in the field was kind enough to forward to me some images of confirmed legitimate examples of Ellis Props COAs obtained during the sales/liquidation circa ’99/’00, and that COA is very different from the one just obtained by a buyer from a piece purchased on eBay.  Read more

Cringeworthy Pawn Stars Authentication of “Star Trek: The Original Series” TV Props (Communicator, Phaser, Tribble)

I truly found “reality” series Pawn Stars enjoyable when it first came on the air on History back in 2009, but it has become more and more scripted, “character” oriented, and, well, flat out boring and at times unwatchable over the years.  So at this point I only watch an episode if someone tells me that something is brought onto the show to sell that I might find interesting to watch.  This past week was one of those times, with the episode “Beam Me Up” which features a woman bringing in a collection of Star Trek memorabilia associated with the television shows and movies featuring The Original Series cast.  Obviously the point of this show is to entertain more than educate (though if you have Internet access and can search Wikipedia, I’m not so sure you can’t find the exact same wisdom shared on the show quite easily with your own efforts, sans the self-indulgent presentation). Read more

Vintage Poster Scandal Update: 1931 Dracula Poster Lawsuits & Default Judgments – Profiles in History vs. Thomas Rega / Thomas Rega vs. Studio Conservation

One of the most significant scandals to hit Hollywood memorabilia collecting in the past decade was a series of discoveries in the poster community relating to purported fraudulent movie posters and one sheets.  A new update was published yesterday on the MoPo Mailing List at FilmFan.com by Dianne Jeffrey, President and CEO of Studio Conservation Inc.   Ms. Jeffrey was the professional who did some of the restoration work (in good faith) on the Dracula poster consigned to a Profiles in History auction in which it was featured on the cover of their “Hollywood Auction 37″ sale event in 2009. Ms. Jeffrey has stated on MoPo that she received notice of a default judgment against her from Thomas Rega “in the amount of $263,312.50, plus attorney fees of $18,134.80″; she is a resident of California and the lawsuit was filed against her in New Jersey and she did not represent herself and/or her business in court.  Interestingly, Profiles in History was previously awarded a default judgment against Thomas Rega in their own lawsuit filed against him in California. Read more

Profiles in History: Multiple Topic Housekeeping on “Peer Review”, Auction House Reserves, and Online Discussion Forums

This article is intended to serve as some general housekeeping on recent topics related to Profiles in History and their auction events held late last month.  As public debate and discussion spanned several websites, including this one, I thought I would make a note of where topics stand with regard to a variety of topics.  I’ve also received a number of private inquiries from those in this field asking if I’ve ever received any answers for questions raised in various past articles.  There has also been a side discussion about the subject of “auction house reserves” which has taken place on other sites.  Coincidentally, today Fong Sam (formerly of Profiles in History) published an update of his own on his Haxbee.com site (see “Community Forums & Message Boards: Problems With No Easy Answers“), with additional discussion and debate about online discussion forums. Read more

Profiles in History “Peer Review” on “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” Helmet – Previously Sold as a “Henry V” Helmet?

This past week, as part of their Hollywood Auction 49, Profiles in History offered a helmet attributed to Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), which sold on July 31, 2012 for $6,500 (for a total sales price of approximately $7,995 with Buyer’s Premium).  A matching item on eBay described as a helmet used in Henry V (1989) was sold on May 6, 2012 for approximately $48 (less then three months earlier).  Based on photos from the two auctions, there are a number of unique scratches and identifying marks that would suggest that the piece is one and the same.  As part of what Profiles in History calls “peer review”, this analysis will provide archives and information related to both auctions for analysis, and poses the question: was this piece used in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Henry V, both, or neither?  If anyone can contribute to this public analysis and discourse, please use the “Reader Comment” system below or contact me. Read more

Vintage Poster Scandal Update: Judge Sentences Kerry Haggard to over 6 years in Federal Prison and Orders to Pay $1,380,000 in Restitution to Victims

This is an update to the ongoing series of articles into various claims and charges of fraud in the posters, one sheets, and lobby cards art market that have rocked the collectibles industry over the past two and a half years. Today, per reports from Forbes, the Wall Street Journal, the Athens Banner-Herald, and other mainstream media sources, Kerry Haggard was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon to six years and six months in federal prison.  The court also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1.38 million dollars. Read more

The Original Prop Blog Celebrates Its Five Year Anniversary

Today – April 5th, 2012 – marks the five year anniversary of launching this website, the Original Prop Blog.  In Spring 2007, I published the first article, “The Hobby Without A Name…”, though I didn’t have any idea I would still be writing articles five years later, and I wouldn’t have imagined writing approximately 1,559 of them (currently a 5 year average of 0.87 articles per day since launch, which is quite a lot considering I am the sole contributor). Read more

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