If I were the person who had consigned the poster, I would definitely feel comfortable with the description, as there is a complete disclosure concerning the restoration/recreation ... If I had been present at the auction; (and satisfied with the artwork), and subsequently purchased the poster, I may have been elated to have acquired such a rare and distinguished specimen ... If the poster would have been available to me in a private sale, most likely a pass. Why? Auction interest (fever) is real, even to the most experienced, seasoned players. (I have been attending auctions for 45+ years, and the fever can grow like fungi spores; I know, I still catch it despite my best efforts.) Remove the provenance, the restoration expert, delete the subjective descriptors, the apparent 1 and only (until next week), and distill the auction description to basic wording ... what's left? ... pieces of paper (that was a poster) and ink To recap, the poster was truthfully described with full disclosure, Heritage Auction is to be congratulated for marketing the poster at auction BTW ... do you think it would have gone this cheap just 2-3 years ago? ad --- On Sun, 8/30/09, Kirby McDaniel <ki...@movieart.net> wrote:
From: Kirby McDaniel <ki...@movieart.net> Subject: Re: [MOPO] Frankenstein HS To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Date: Sunday, August 30, 2009, 4:01 PM I don't think so. This is a rather candid explanation of the poster's - to use their word - EXTENSIVE restoration. That's not a silk purse descriptor. Heritage grades it as FAIR, below the grade they even usually accept, then note, accurately, that it's the only one known to exist. Then, a note of provenance that it belonged to Johnny Ramone. Your assertion, James, is that they are somehow saying the poster is something that it isn't. Personally, I don't see that. Kirby McDanielwww.movieart.net On Aug 30, 2009, at 2:16 PM, James Richard wrote: A classic example of what virtually all auctioneers/sellers engage in -- and not just with movie posters -- the fine art of making a sow's ear sound like a silk purse. Phil Edwards wrote:From Heritage's description of this poster: This poster has had extensive restoration. The original portion of the poster includes the image of the monster, the "FR" in Frankenstein and the portrait of Dwight Frye. The rest of the poster has been painted in. This does constitute a large section of the poster, however, it is interesting to observe that the majority of the poster is a white background. The restoration was expertly done by Carol Tincup. Now, that being pointed out, one has to keep in mind that this is the only half sheet that has ever turned up on this title so if you're in the market for that format, this is the only one that is known to exist. As is we grade the poster in fair condition but has an "apparent" grade of Fine on paper. This was one of the cornerstone pieces in the Collection of Johnny Ramone. Johnny had always wanted an original poster from the 1931 release of Frankenstein and, with the addition of this half sheet to his collection, he achieved that goal. Fair on Paper. Estimate: $25,000 - $35,000. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com___________________________________________________________________How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing ListSend a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.eduin the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-LThe author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.