Oh dear I've heard it all now, Well you were obviously never any good at it if
that's what you truely think Bruce lol ;-)
This kind of comment is exactly what I meant about egos.
Anyway, not trying to start an argument, just an opinion as most things are.
Kind Regards
Andy Neal
________________________
On 2010-03-21 15:54:03 +0000 Bruce Hershenson <brucehershen...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Andy
>
> I played poker for a living for 10 years, with no other income, and I assure
> you I know far more on this subject than you do!
>
> Way way more money has been won cheating at poker than has been won
> honestly, and many of the world's most famous poker players were major
> cheats, starting with Nick the Greek. Someday I might write a book on it.
>
> Bruce
>
> On Sun, Mar 21, 2010 at 8:23 AM, Andy Neal <andyan...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hmmm interesting to hear lots of mention about poker, bad analogy really
>> brucie, to win the most at poker or be excellent at poker you have to know
>> probabilities and be able to work them out in a heartbeat and you need to
>> understand what outs you have as your going along, also bluffing and
>> knowing
>> when to bluff is adventageous.
>>
>> Just my opinion on the poker comment, the other stuff I couldn't care less
>> about, mopo is getting FAR too egotistical these days, I can't wait for the
>> recession to end.
>>
>> Andy
>>
>> ________________________
>>
>> On 2010-03-21 13:07:01 +0000 Bruce Hershenson <brucehershen...@gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> Thanks much David. You wrote an eloquent and spirited reply!
>>>
>>> Here's a further reply. I used to think great movie posters were vastly
>>> undervalued, and I bought lots of them at then current prices. As prices
>>> rose, many of them no longer seemed undervalued to me, and I sold most of
>>> what I had bought, hanging onto my very favorites. Those three "This Gun
>> For
>>> Hires" were $2500 each, so my assessment was good on that example.
>>>
>>> Does a Metropolis insert seem undervalued to me at $47,000? No, but there
>>> are likely many who feel otherwise, and I am happy they got a bargain,
>> and I
>>> hope for their sake these kinds of posters go the way of million dollar
>>> comics, which I am sorry to say feels totally insane to me, a classic
>>> "bubble"..
>>>
>>> *WHY* I shifted my business model is the same reason i quit playing
>> poker.
>>> To win the most at poker, you must find the absolute worst players you
>> can,
>>> and cheaters are rewarded (and the house often looks the other way on
>>> cheating, because the cheaters "take care" of those running the game). I
>> was
>>> unwilling to continue playing on those terms, so I stopped playing
>> entirely.
>>>
>>> When I first started high dollar auctions, I was "the only game in town".
>> As
>>> many others came along, and when I slowly saw that the majority of high
>>> dollar auctions were much like high stakes poker (you do the best when
>> you
>>> find the absolute most uninformed buyers, and you use "clever" tricks to
>> get
>>> them to pay more, as with the 2001 re-release half-sheet), and cheaters
>> are
>>> rewarded (and I believe I have it made clear how this is) and since I
>> knew I
>>> was not willing to compete for consignments or bidders on those terms, I
>>> quit high dollar auctions and shifted to my present model.
>>>
>>> The result is that, in addition to my earning a living and providing a
>>> living for 25 employees, I feel that most of my 31,000 customers
>> certainly
>>> feel I have provided them with a very useful service, and I bet all of
>> them
>>> would say I treated them in an open and honest way, unusual for
>> collectible
>>> auctions. Most or all of my 500+ consignors would likely say I provided
>> them
>>> with a useful and valuable service, just as David did.
>>>
>>> There *ARE *those who keep stretching to find bad things to say about me,
>>> but oddly they neither buy from me or sell through me, and many people
>> have
>>> privately guessed at their motivation, which seems painfully obvious.
>>>
>>> I have nothing against high dollar auctions or high stakes poker, when
>> they
>>> are 100% honestly run, and there is no deception involved. If I felt I
>> could
>>> successfully run such an auction today, I would be willing to try, but I
>>> doubt I could get enough consignments on those terms, and I truly am
>> happier
>>> with my current business model.
>>>
>>> But as David said, I have "reinvented" myself several times over the
>> years,
>>> and there is no saying I won't do so one more time!
>>>
>>> Bruce
>>>
>>> On Sat, Mar 20, 2010 at 5:21 PM, David Kusumoto
>>> <davidmkusum...@hotmail.com>wrote:
>>>
>>>> ** Speaking ONLY for myself, a contemplative confessional from Bruce
>>>> about the shifts in his selling ideologies over the span of 20 years
>> would
>>>> only matter to dealers who compete against Bruce -- and would be of
>> little
>>>> interest to us collectors. It appears like an attempt to catch him in a
>>>> contradiction when in fact we all undergo transformations and re-tooling
>> to
>>>> ensure self-preservation. I've written thousands of words about Bruce
>> and
>>>> his consignment model -- and each transformation or attempt at
>>>> self-re-invention has been a success. The quantity vs. quality question
>>>> seems a back-handed way of saying Bruce no longer sells quality and only
>>>> sells mid-range-to-cruddy stuff at high volumes. This is not true from
>>>> where I sit as a consumer. No, he might not have a Frankenstein
>> one-sheet
>>>> come his way very soon -- nor would he care to go back to the "showroom"
>>>> model with high overheads -- but he has sold things like the "camel"
>>>> poster from "Lawrence of Arabia" for more than $11K during the nadir of
>> the
>>>> recession, still a record for that title. There is no venue or business
>>>> model he has not tried before settling into his current model, hence to
>> me
>>>> he speaks with experience and some authority. Of course he's not the
>>>> FINAL authority, but he's credible. Bruce's churning methods and fast
>> pace
>>>> have conditioned thousands of collectors AND dealers throughout this
>> small
>>>> hobby -- many who continue to both BUY and CONSIGN to him -- to
>> reflexively
>>>> check his listings anyway, as regularly as one would brush their teeth.
>>>> Any
>>>> collector or dealer who chooses to ignore his listings makes a conscious
>>>> choice to pass up a potential bargain.
>>>>
>>>> ** The most important issue to most of us is still full disclosure and
>>>> quality service -- and not questions about why competing dealer "x"
>> thought
>>>> one way in 1990 and became "y" in 2000 and is now "z" in 2010, e.g.,
>> which
>>>> to me, as it pertains to Bruce -- is an efficiently run factory
>> operation
>>>> moving a wide swath of material that's honestly graded for thousands of
>>>> customers. If I ever want something akin to the Hope Diamond, I can
>> always
>>>> consult the Greys, the Seans, the Todds, the Freemans and the Walters
>> and
>>>> Kirbys and Sams, -- and even the Bruces, etc., etc., of the world.
>> (Sorry
>>>> if I left anyone out, I've bought from most everyone so it's hard to
>>>> remember.) If I was a dealer, I wouldn't be surprised if all of the
>>>> aforementioned names -- have shifted their ideologies about poster
>> selling
>>>> in conjunction with the universal acceptance of the Internet, and have
>>>> subsequently found their niches or comfort zones -- and adjusted
>>>> accordingly. Some of us still know where to go for certain things. -d.
>>>>
>>>> =====================
>>>> From: Sean Linkenback
>>>> To: MOPO-L@listserv.american.edu
>>>>
>>>> Re: [MOPO] Any bets on METROPOLIS?
>>>> Sat, 20 Mar 2010 14:22:52 -0700
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Bruce,
>>>> Could you share the story with us that led to your decision to change
>>>> directions as it were in your poster selling philosophy?
>>>>
>>>> Certainly in the early days of your business you concentrated on
>> catering
>>>> to "investors" and/or "advanced collectors". Yes, you published your
>> sales
>>>> list, but your convention appearances and focus of course was on quality
>>>> over quantity and in getting those high-dollar pieces for the early
>>>> Christie's auctions and working to attract high-end collectors. I even
>>>> remember reading a profile on poster investing with you in a Delta
>> Skymiles
>>>> Magazine, and you related a story where you met with Jose and wanted to
>> buy
>>>> all 3 copies of the one-sheet he had on "This Gun For Hire".
>>>>
>>>> What happened that made you do a change and decide to focus on quantity
>>>> instead?
>>>> Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
>>>> ___________________________________________________________________ How
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>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
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>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>
>> Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
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>>
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>
>
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