Movie Prop Collecting with Jason DeBord's Original Prop Blog Film & TV Prop, Costume, Hollywood Memorablia Pop Culture Resource

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

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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…]

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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

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I am in receipt of a phone call today from a gentleman from Missouri, calling me claiming that he was told by an eBay dealer that the “vintage Listerine bottle from The Waltons” that he purchased was sold by the Original Prop Blog to the eBay dealer.  A simple search brought up such a listing on eBay – VINTAGE LISTERINE BOTTLE FROM TV’S THE WALTONS+ – sold five days ago by eBay dealer jnsmcmahan.  Long time readers of the Original Prop Blog will know that I personally do not find “jnsmcmahan” to be a credible dealer of authentic Hollywood memorabilia.  None the less, this notice is being published to make it perfectly clear that I have not sold anything to and will never in the future conduct any business with those behind eBay accounts “jnsmcmahan”, “jsnent”, nor anyone directly or loosely associated with such dealers or material or type/kind of material, including John Tarter, Billie Null, Mark Sullivan, L.A. Prop & Wardrobe, Hollywood Prop Supply, Studio West Prop, Ellis Props, and others.  In fact, the Original Prop Blog does not supply props or costumes to anyone.   [Read more…]

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

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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…]

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Southern California’s NBC-4 “I-Team” Investigation into Julien’s Auctions Michael Jackson Autographs from Costume Designer Michael Bush

NBC-4 in Southern California have broadcast a report on their news program and published an accompanying story on their official site looking into claims made by third parties that items offered for sale by Julien’s Auctions, sourced from Michael Jackson’s costume designer Michael Bush, feature Michael Jackson autographs that are not authentic.  [Read more…]

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‘Comic Book Men’ AMC TV Series Features Laughable Star Wars Luke Skywalker Lightsaber Movie Prop Authentication & Valuation

Filmmaker Kevin Smith’s new television series on AMC, Comic Book Men, recently featured in its second episode (“Life After Clerks”) an individual bringing a prop into the comic book store, claiming it was an original lightsaber used in Star Wars: A New Hope.  The shop brought in a third party “expert” to authenticate and value the piece, though no information was provided as to who the authenticator was, or what his qualifications were in being cited as an expert.  Having reviewed the segment, in my personal opinion and subjective reaction, the entire affair was quite laughable, from the positive authentication to the assessed value of $7,000 for an original Luke Skywalker lightsaber from The Empire Strikes Back. [Read more…]

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Original Prop Blog: Three Year Anniversary

Today marks the three year anniversary of the Original Prop Blog.  Three years ago today I published its first article, “The Hobby Without A Name…“ [Read more…]

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Editorial: Reaction To “What’s Hot In Hollywood Collectibles” Article By The Seattle Times

The Seattle Times published an article this week about collecting original movie props and costumes, presented as a Q&A interview with Antiques Roadshow appraiser Philip Weiss of Philip Weiss Auctions.  As is typical with mainstream media coverage of the hobby, much of it is preoccupied with discussion of high prices realized at auction.  However, there is also a focus on questions about authenticity and fraud (which I applaud), though some of the responses – particularly those about eBay – have prompted me to share some of my own personal opinions and reactions. [Read more…]

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Superman Costume Collection Pulled From Upcoming ‘Morphy Auctions’ Sale Event

Earlier this month, Morphy Auctions listed a large collection of more than a dozen Superman-related principal costume and wardrobe pieces in their online catalog for their late February 2010 sale event.  As was the case with an unrelated auction last year (see Philip Weiss Auctions Cancels “Special Superhero Weekend”), it would appear that all items have been pulled from their upcoming sale. [Read more…]