Since today is “Black Friday”, I thought it would be appropriate to republish an editorial that I posted last year as the holiday season approached, warning consumers against the purchase of television and movie props, costumes, and other assets as gifts for loved ones. [Read more…]
Milestone: Original Prop Blog’s 1,000th Article
This article marks a milestone for the Original Prop Blog – the 1,000th article. When I started the site back in April 2007, I honestly did not ever imagine that I would produce this much content. So the occasion provides an opportunity to reflect back, look forward, and thank those that have supported this endeavor. [Read more…]
Building on the Original Prop Lexicon: “Anti-Provenance”
I’ve found that there are many concepts in the original prop hobby for which words do not exist. Having words to use with specific and unique meaning are powerful tools, and when there are none available that fit the need, putting together a new word with hopes it may be adopted can be productive. In this case, a term is needed to describe an instance in which the source or an entity in the chain of ownership of a prop, costume, or other artifact has a distinctive and negative impact on the authentication of such a piece. The word I plan to use to describe such a circumstance is “anti-provenance”. [Read more…]
Problematic Words in the Hobby: “Production Made”
Going back to the very first articles of the Original Prop Blog – The Hobby Without a Name & What is “Original”? – there are always words that are frequently used that are problematic. This will be the first in a series of articles which discusses some of these terms in some detail. The term for this article: “Production Made”.
Original Prop Blog: Two Year Anniversary
Today marks the two year anniversary of the Original Prop Blog. So it was two years ago today that I published its first article, “The Hobby Without A Name…” [Read more…]
eBay’s Feedback System: Why It’s Broken
Back when I first joined eBay (over 10 years ago), I remember that member feedback seemed to have real meaning. I believe the original intent behind the system was to quantify how people do business, which would create some semblance of an “online reputation”. [Read more…]
The “Billboardization” of eBay: Auction Site or Advertising Machine?
All of the recent, and mostly detrimental policy changes and other developments aside (see Related Articles), I’ve found that there seems to be a significant shift with eBay in placing more and more advertising in front of its customers. [Read more…]
Original Prop Hobby – 2008 Year in Review
As was the case last year (see 2007 Year in Review), what follows is an editorial review of my personal views with regards to the hobby, looking back at the top trends and news stories of 2008. As always, there were a lot of interesting developments and events, and quite a bit to review and consider. [Read more…]