This is a review of Grindhouse: The Sleaze-filled Saga of an Exploitation Double Feature (published April 6, 2007). It is a great combination of equal parts photography/art/images and content. Highly recommended to fans of the film(s). [Read more…]
Auction House Buying Considerations, Part II: Chandelier Bid (“Sham Bidding”) Legislation
Rick Spector of Stairway to the Stars forwarded a link to an interesting article, given the discussion initiated in Part I of this series.
This is an interesting development in how it relates to certain auction house policies (see Odyssey Auctions Terms and Conditions in prior article). [Read more…]
Research & Dialogue About Importing Firearms to the UK
I’ve always been interested in the laws, rules, customs, and perspectives revolving around the importation and/or ownership of “live fire” (i.e. “real”) firearms into the UK.
Because this is a varied, multi-faceted topic with many different opinions and areas of expertise, I thought it would be interesting to open a dialogue of sorts, though a blog doesn’t lend itself to such. In any event, I’ve been corresponding with Adam Bosman (sharpsticks on the Movie Prop Forum) about these issues. As a UK citizen, he has done some research, which he has given me permission to share here: [Read more…]
Auction House Buying Considerations, Part I: Overview
I have had very limited experiences in buying direct from auction houses, but there are terms and conditions of sale, unique to each company/event, that can differ from other buying experiences. I would highly recommend that any collector, before participating in such an auction, carefully review the terms and conditions of the sale, typically outlined in the catalog. Even with the same company, these are prone to change catalog to catalog, sale to sale. [Read more…]
Navigating the Marketplace: Sellers Selling What They Don’t Own…
One caveat to original prop collectors, as if there aren’t enough considerations in regards to authenticity, is to research a prop to determine ownership. It may seem to be a silly concern or question to ask a seller, but “do you actually own this?” can, at times, be an appropriate question to ask. [Read more…]
Trends: Original Prop Pricing & Values, Selling Options
One interesting element of the Original Prop Hobby is that of “value”.
What determines the value of a prop?
How are prices determined?
What is the best place to sell original props?
For the purpose of this article, I will not go into issues of authenticity and provenance in any depth. [Read more…]
Instruments of Authenticity & The Chain of Provenance
As discussed in the prior article, Authenticity & Burden of Proof, I’ve found the notion that a piece is authentic, unless proven otherwise, to be faulty (as a buyer and collector, anyway). [Read more…]
Why We Collect
For me, one interesting diversion is trying to figure out what brings people to the hobby: why we collect. [Read more…]