Celebrity

By now, you know that the King of Pop has passed on. One’s fame is directly proportional to how fast people will learn the intimate details of your life, or death, as the case may be, so the news traveled quickly. The folder of Michael Jackson songs on my hard drive is once again seeing use, and people have been coming into the library looking for something, anything, about MJ. It’s strange how a person who, in life, was reduced to little more than a punch line is suddenly revered in death.

Where celebrity meets mortality, there is eBay.

When Steve Irwin died, the gulf between his collectability before and after death was cavernous. A doll that didn’t sell for $18 on Monday was selling for over $350 on Wednesday. Sellers immediately pulled their Irwin auctions so that they could relist them at inflated prices.

While Irwin’s fame was perhaps C-level at best, MJ’s ascent towards collectability has always existed, and has been on a fairly constant climb since his self-imposed isolation began years ago, soon after his unconventional relationships with children were explored. When you offer less of yourself to your adoring public, the demand increases. You become a modern deity. Your signature becomes evidence of the hand of god.

Why people grieve with money is another issue entirely, but it happens. We all express ourselves differently, and I’m not here to question that. It’s the vultures, those resellers whose businesses are predicated on death and injury, who make their appearance now. Yes, we’re in a bad economy and people need to make a living, but it’s endlessly profitable to pinpoint which celebrities are in failing health, scoop up as much of them as you can on eBay, and wait for the inevitable. After losing two different sources of income over the past 2 months, don’t be surprised if you see me stalking Hollywood with a pen and a baseball bat soon.

Of course, there are also those people who buy stuff immediately after a celebrity’s death in the hopes that the value will Increase – much like the people who went out and bought comics when they read that Captain America died. Too late, fellas. Things tend to peak in the few days immediately following a tragedy. By the time your signed 8 x 10 arrives in the mail, it’ll be worth less than what you paid for it. Mourning does not age like wine.

Most telling is this MJ coin. Manufactured by a no-name company in China, and not even licensed, it failed to sell for a mere $7 on June 23rd, and multiple times before that. On June 26th, the closing bid hit over $117. This seller definitely doesn’t fall under the ‘vulture’ category, as it’s an item that was already listed on eBay before MJ’s death, they certainly lucked into a killer sale.

While general memorabilia are selling strong, it’s signed items that remain the truly powerful sellers after a death strikes. People can always print up another poster, but the quantity of celebrity X’s signatures has just become finite.

Amazon’s top 16 albums, as of this writing, are all Michael Jackson albums, pushing Regina Spektor and Wilco into the high teens, with more MJ albums peppering the rest of the countdown also. I’d presume that illegal downloads also skyrocketed during these past 24 hours.

Interestingly, this spells interesting things for Beatles collectors also. Upon MJ’s death, the rights to every Beatles song that he owned reverted back to Paul McCartney. As a Rock Band fanatic, I have to wonder if this sudden change in song rights will affect the release date of Rock Band : Beatles, currently scheduled for September. Death doesn’t need to be more complicated.

An strange man with a stranger life – but what artist isn’t? Thanks for everything.

This past week, a big scam was been brought to my attention. This one is older than Nigerian princes to adopt.

In this particular case, it’s a matter of fraudulently selling items, claiming they have been owned and/or worn by celebrities — usually dead celebrities. Dead celebrities are selected for their popularity, the now limited number of available items, their inability to deny owning items, and because bidders are more likely to be sentimental or emotional about such items.

I’m not going to get into the particulars of this specific case, but it’s a good time to point out some tips in evaluating the authenticity of items — not just in celebrity items, but in any category.

COAs or Certificates Of Authenticity

Most COAs are not worth the paper they are printed on. Anyone with a pen and/or a printer (the printer isn’t even a requirement) can make a COA — and there are no laws, governing bodies or agencies which approve or regulate COAs. So I could make you a COA about this blog post — no matter how ridiculous the claims. (If you’d like one, let me know.)

COAs are not legal contracts; so no matter what the guarantee presented on the COA, good luck getting it carried out to any satisfaction. Should you even be able to get a legal hold on the seller, your case is as legally worth bupkiss. Even if you can prove the seller is guilty of selling more than $1,000 in fakes &/or forgeries, are involved in a successful class action suit, or, if you were duped on the Internet, get the FBI to assist you with a case of Internet Fraud, the most you’re going to get back for all your work is your purchase price. (If you’re just seeking your purchase price refunded, don’t ignore sales venue and method of payment avenues; there are often buyer protection programs available to you.)

I’m not saying you should ignore your rights and these avenues, but it’s best to avoid being duped in the first place.

Rule #1 Unless a certificate of authenticity originates from and is signed by the celebrity, author/artist (or in the case of limited editions, the publisher of the work), a confirmed dealer or agent (not a third party or reseller), or an acknowledged expert, that certificate is pretty much meaningless.

In order to verify the information is accurate, your first step is to see the certificate. Online or in person you need to see the certificate — all of it, front and back.

Despite the ease with which COAs are made, it’s amazing the lengths sellers will go through not to show them — even when they mention them. Shifty online sellers will tell you that they don’t show them because they “don’t want others to download the images and use them” — which is a laugh because 1) COAs take about as much work to make as downloading and uploading images does & 2) the seller can upload them to the Internet with a watermark or text identifying their company name/seller ID to protect the image.

In any case, clear, legible, digital copies of the COA should be sent to you for your review via FAX or email. And review it you will.

Verify that the COA originates from and is signed by the celebrity, author/artist (or in the case of limited editions, the publisher of the work), a confirmed dealer or agent (not a third party or reseller), or an acknowledged, respected expert.

A valid COA will state that the art is unquestionably from/by the celebrity/artist/etc. who has signed it & should contain provenance — a documented chain of custody, proving it is genuine. Any conditional statements like “we believe” or “it’s our considered opinion” or “we feel satisfied in saying” or “to the best of our knowledge” are warning signs.

Provenance

Any provenance listed or claims made, in the COA or item listing, should also be seen. Anyone can drop names, such as it came from such-and-such’s hairdresser or whatever; typing that takes even less work than making a COA.

If the seller mentions any “proof”, such as letters from the hairdresser or claims that the item was part of the official estate auction, this should all be seen and evaluated. Again, these scans or photos should be legible so that you can — and will — verify them. Remember: it’s as easy to type things in a printed letter as it is in a listing.

Sellers/Dealers

Research the seller carefully.

Check with the Better Business Bureau. And if/when they mention they are members in organizations, check with the organization. Many organizations have their membership lists available online; you can also have organizations confirm (or deny) members in good standing via email &/or phone. (And if a seller uses such memberships when they are not members, the organizations may take action themselves.)

When they call themselves experts, ask them to prove it. What credentials do they have? Expert titles such as “film historian” and even “author” are often self-appointed titles.  Contact known experts in the field and ask if they’ve ever heard of your expert.

Be Realistic

Yes, we’ve all seen Roadshow; we know gems can be found in people’s attics etc. But honestly, if you knew you had Marilyn Monroe’s lingerie, wouldn’t you contact an expert to handle the sale?

If you know how to list an item for sale online, you know that Christie’s specializes in celebrity items — and that their reputation and expertise will bring in the Big Bucks. Certainly, even with their fees, you’d get more from selling an authentic item via Christie’s than you would online by yourself. So why wouldn’t you let Christie’s sell it for you?

The only reasons you wouldn’t are either because A) you are a recognized & trusted expert (which means people in your field know about you — and all those calls to verify you as such would be confirmed) or B) because you couldn’t get Christie’s or another reputable auction house to sell the item for you.

And why would a reputable auction house refuse? Because there is no proof, no provenance, to go with the claims made about the item. Reputable auction houses will neither sell nor promote an item if they cannot prove provenance.  That’s their reputation, their credibility — the reason why they’ve earned the trust to get Big Money Bids.

So when you see or hear about celebrity owned &/or worn clothing, autographs, and other unique and valuable items — celebrity related or not — think before you bid or buy.  And for heaven’s sake, don’t let those three letters, COA, sway you from being an aware buyer.

I’ve mentioned before that I fell in love with & began collecting Marilyn Monroe during my early teen years. Back then, besides books, the only things I could really get my hands on were 8 x 10 glossies. (Remember, I’m old and video wasn’t even an idea then.) There were several stores at the mall which sold copies of classic film star photographs and they were pretty darn cheap, so I stocked up on 8 x10 photos Marilyn.

Marilyn Monroe With Stuffed Tiger Photo

From there it wasn’t a big jump to photos and postcards of other vintage glamour girls, pinups, starlets and Hollywood legends.

Colorized Vintage Lana Turner Photo

I used to frame them, but as I’ve now collected so many, I’ve put them in protective sleeves and store them in binders I can page through whenever the mood strikes me — like when you come over to visit.

Some of the photos and postcards are signed — but most of them are either of the stamped signature or autographs printed onto the photo varieties. Many of my postcards have been mailed. They not only have the postmark & canceled stamps on the photo images, ‘personal messages’ from the star (or most likely, her press agent or secretary), but also have printed information including star’s name &/or information on the studio, including how to order additional autographed photos. Some might complain that all this detracts from the images — hwever, I’m mostly thrilled because this information is often the only way I can identify the once hugely popular actress. For example, who readily recognizes the starlet version of Shirley Temple?

Vintage Shirley Temple Pinup Postcard

I’ve since graduated to purchasing the occasional honest-to-goodness autographed photos. I’ve managed to get a number of them personally when interviewing celebrities, like this personalized signed photo of the super fun, super babe, Julie Strain.

Signed Julie Strain Photograph

Naturally, the vintage Hollywood icon photos with signatures can get rather pricey (as can the stamped or printed versions, simply due to rarity), but I’m also a bit leery of buying photos signed by unscrupulous sellers with Sharpie pens while they eat off TV trays and watch reality television shows.

While most everyone offers a certificate of authenticity these bits of (however nicely) printed paper are rather meaningless. There’s no standard certification process — nor any certification police. And while a seller may promise on that-there certificate to refund your purchase price, it’s up to you to pay for an appraisal &/or autograph authentication to prove your dispute/disprove the seller’s claim. That may cost you more than the item itself — plus the egg on your face. (And, of course, getting the refund is entirely another matter.)

In general, I only trust those sellers/dealers that I know or that have excellent reputations, like I did with this signed photo of Sophia Loren in spectacular lingerie.

Signed Sophia Loren Photo

Some collectors only want “real” signatures on authentic vintage photographs (not modern prints or copies), claiming that these are the only collectible photos of any value. But me, I just ask myself, “How much do I love looking at thee?” If the price matches my love, then I pay for it and enjoy it.

After all, as Marilyn said, “Hollywood’s a place where they’ll pay you a thousand dollars for kiss, and fifty cents for your soul.” No price was put on the photos; that’s up to me, my wallet, and my adoration.

Among my favorite vintage magazines to collect are the gossip rags. While I don’t buy today’s celebrity gossip mags, I find these vintage issues to be very interesting. For one thing, I tend to at least have heard of, or recognize, the celebrities on the covers and headlines — the faces & names on those in the supermarket check-out lanes are virtually meaningless & unrecognizable to me.

But the old magazines, they are familiar…

While I’m not, as mentioned, a big fan or today’s celebrities, I do have a thing for the icons of yesterday. And these publications are full of them. While you can’t trust these old publications to have published the truth any more than you can the mags of today, you can find some photos you’ve never seen before, and read dramas that never were mentioned in celebrity biographies and autobiographies.

For me, it’s much more fun to live vicariously through those icons from the past.

But these old magazines aren’t only about the past.

Just look at the headlines on this October, 1959 issue of Top Secret:

Hypnosis — Secret Weapon Against Overweight

Why Brigitte Bardot Will Never Again Drop That Towel

Does Harry Belafonte Really Want To Be White?

For Sale: 20,000 Babies. Price: $35,000,000.

Now It Can Be Told: How Ike Saved The Life Of Maurice Chevalier!

The Real Inside Story: How Ava Gardner Sneaked 400 Gs Out Of The U.S.A…

The names may have changed over the years but some things never change… Sex, medical claims, race issues, celebrity & government scandals, fear-based “news”, legal issues… Gossip, gossip, gossip.

People haven’t changed much in nearly half a century, so the same issues and inflammatory headlines still work; just change a name or two, maybe update the street price of babies ($35,000,000? That’s a lot of money back now!), change who is suing who, and what’s really changed?

What has changed is the advertising.

With a cover price of just 25 cents, Top Secret and it’s ilk made money in volume — cranking out weekly or bi-monthly issues. Sure, the paper was cheap, more like newsprint than the slick pages of People or even Star, but then they were trying to quickly grind out more gossip for the mongers and rumor for the mills. Cheaper, both in terms of quality and cover price, than issues of Life, Good Housekeeping, Post, Ken, etc. the old gossip rags apparently didn’t need as much advertising to produce the magazines because they had far less of it.

Flipping through today’s celebrity publications, you find many ads; so many, they rival more “traditional” or “respectable” magazines. You might think that this is because the gossip business has grown over the years, become much more expensive with the slick paper etc. It could be those things.

It could also be that gossip magazines have grown to become more respectable than they once were. In vintage celebrity gossip magazines, you certainly do find much more risque advertising, sex fulfillment in marriage & Frederick’s ads, mixed in with the business opportunities, Bible fellowship out-reach, weight loss, body building, secrets to winning poker, and other ads for the easily susceptible.

There are a few other ads, toys for example; but they are not filled with the usual ads for food, cars, etc. Mainly these old gossip magazines are filled with the ads & offers reserved for the the back pages of other publications.

I’m not in any position to know the complete answer to the differences in advertising. But flipping through, it’s near impossible not to notice how different these magazines are from the more typical magazines.

Vintage gossip magazines are more difficult to find than other magazines. Their rarity is due in part to the cheaper paper, but other things shorten their lifespan.

Certainly then, as now, people quickly devoured their issues, passing them along to friends &/or cutting out photos of their favorite stars, then discarded them for the next issue with the latest celebrity news and gossip.

And I bet more than a few buyers & subscribers threw their issues away due to embarrassment; just like today, few want to keep their guilty pleasures laying around for others to see.

What issues do survive are fun to explore.

It’s fun to look at the past. Not just the celebrities, but to look at “the other side” of life from decades gone by. And to see how our culture still — perhaps even more so — idolizes celebrities.

Eve Arnold is known for her celebrity photographs, and perhaps most known for her photos of Marilyn Monroe.  This is how I, as a woman with an obsession with Monroe, discovered Arnold.  After reading my last book on Monroe, I had decided to swear-off my obsession and stop buying more Monroe stuff — at least books.  But then I discovered Eve Arnold’s book of Monroe photographs…

Full of photos — nearly 100, including 48 previously unseen — yes; but it’s the quality, not the quantity.

Arnold’s photographs of Marilyn are unique.  Unusually benevolent, these intimate photos of Marilyn Monroe expose the icon’s personality rather than her flesh.  In these photos we see a person, not a sex object; a human, not any kind of object at all.  And while I could go on and on about them, the important thing to know here is that these photos are different for several key reasons.

One is the all important matter of timing — and developing.  The two met at a party and forged a wonderful friendship that would last a decade.  As Arnold says, “We were both at the beginning of our careers, and I believe that neither of us knew precisely what we were doing.”

At the risk of more bad-pun-making, I’ll say what allowed the friendship to develop was the chemistry between the two.  While many dismiss Marilyn’s intelligence, Eve didn’t.  Both women knew what effect being a woman had on the world around her, and as Eve says, “We could make use of it, or we could let it be.”

Arnold would later say, “I didn’t want to be a ‘woman photographer’. That would limit me. I wanted to be a photographer who was a woman, with all the world open to my camera.” (And more recently confirms this belief, saying in a BBC interview, “No, I am a photographer. And you don’t say, a man photographer. So it seems likely that I am a photographer.”) This certainly puts the the two women on decidedly different paths, at least in appearance; yet it would stop neither’s success.

Arnold was the first woman to be nominated for membership in Magnum in 1951, and became a full member in 1957.  In 1995 she was made fellow of the Royal Photographic Society and elected Master Photographer, the world’s most prestigious photographic honor, by New York’s International Center of Photography; and in 2003, she was awarded an honorary O.B.E. (Order of the British Empire) by the British Government.

Looking at her photographs, you can see why.

Through her photos of celebrities, we see more than famous people, more than a time capsule of “us” or “society”.  Even with such famous & familiar faces, we see something — someone — new.

If the mark of a really good novel is that you think of the characters long after the book ends, then photographs of people ought to do the same. Eve Arnold’s photos do that.  Even if you think you know the people in the portraits.

And when you don’t know the people in the photographs?  You long to…

In fact, if I have one complaint about Arnold’s works, it’s that I can’t find out enough.  I know that photographers believe that a photo is worth a thousand words, but often they do not seem to document the details which I long to know…  A perpetual problem for me, I know; but still, why can’t I find out more about Charlotte Stribling aka ‘Fabulous’?  Or Girl Holding Head, Insane Asylum, Haiti 1954?

The titles are stark, in such contrast to such compassionate, deep, rich images.  Perhaps this is by design, so that I, we, move past words and labels into what seeing and feeling.  But I still want to know more about Charlotte and Girl Holding Head.  For now, all I can do is stare at the photos and wonder.

Along with her famous celebrity protraits, there are a few others we can learn more about. Such as the Veiled woman, Muscat, Oman 1969.  She, and others, can (presumably) be seen in Arnold’s 1969 film about Dubai, Behind the Veil. This film is said, not only to capture “a traditional Muslim society just as it begins to become modernized, but also the antagonism between Islamic and Western societies that has been the stuff of news stories throughout the first years of the 21st century.”

I bet it’s amazing.

If there’s one thing I’ve read which seems to sum up the brilliance of Arnold’s photos, it’s this quote from the artist herself: “If a photographer cares about the people before the lens and is compassionate, much is given. It is the photographer, not the camera, that is the instrument.”

This is the gift of this talented photographer.  A gift no doubt noticed & appreciated by Monroe, allowing such a friendship, but by all who were before Arnold’s camera.  Indeed a gift she shares with all who see her photographs.

So now I’ll collect Eve Arnold works — likely in books, due to my modest means.  Not because she knew Marilyn; but because she knew how to take pictures of her.  And of everyone she photographed.

PS  Through June 14, the David Gallery exhibits All About Eve, the single largest collection of vintage and period Eve Arnold prints available for acquisition.  I wish I were close enough to see it.  If you go, I’m accepting souveniers.