Our LIFETIME GUARANTEE
Our Lifetime Guarantee
Conway's Vintage Treasures
Lifetime Guarantee
Our Lifetime Guarantee applies to all autographs and movie posters .
For over 25 years we have pursued our collecting passion with an intense integrity and code of ethics, that some dealers have even found annoying. Yet, nothing annoys us more then someone selling a valuable piece of memorabilia that is a blatant forgery. When it comes to autographs in particular, we are about as annoyingly meticulous as any reputable dealer in the industry. That’s why we back EVERY autograph or movie poster we sell with a Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity. Not 7, 15 or 30 days like some dealers, but with no time limit. Also, to establish a standard (and not have an array of less reputable authenticators, some of which will issue any "finding" for a price) we require a certification analysis from PSA (Sports ONLY for PSA, see Update below) or JSA as stated on our COA.
We also don’t sell everything. In other words, you will not find any contemporary autographs on our site that are usually extremely difficult to authenticate. How a dealer can sell a completely illegible Kevin Costner or Al Pacino autograph, which are indecipherable scribbles, I don’t know. All of our autographs are vintage signatures that can be examined based on several signature studies and over 25 years of experience. We specialize in Frank Sinatra autographs because we are experts with his signature and because there are outstanding signature studies on him illustrating how his autograph changed dramatically over the years along with secretarial examples. We also maintain a good reference library of authentic autograph examples. You will NOT see us selling such well known secretarial autographs like Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, John Kennedy or Babe Ruth among many other celebrities who employed others to sign their autograph requests.
Also, another reason we shy away from contemporary autographs is there is no historical data. For example, there are extensive signature studies that have been accomplished for many Hollywood legends like John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe and every President. However, there are no studies or data for modern day celebrities like Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt.
I am often asked, “how do you know if it’s real”. The answer comes from a Picasso expert when I asked the same question many years ago, “EXPERIENCE”. An autograph is like a fingerprint and after you’ve developed a certain level of expertise, even the best forgeries are usually easily detectable.
Today, the most risky venue for buying autographs are online auctions like Ebay. Since I became an Ebay member in 1998 I have seen a proliferation of obvious online forgers trying to prey upon the inexperienced. To this day, this unscrupulous activity continues to grow. When a forger gets terminated from Ebay, he usually starts another account. It’s a very sad and unfortunate predicament. Our friends and customers are advised to never buy autographs on Ebay as it is estimated as high as 90% are fake. Refer to our “Safe Buying Online Guide”.
Note: Most major
celebrities, like Frank Sinatra signed autographs and personalized it to someone. Some collectors don’ t like inscriptions,
while other collectors do. I personally don’t
mind inscriptions because not only is it additional handwriting from that celebrity
but it also adds to the authenticity. Not
many autograph forgers will risk providing additional evidence of their forgery
handiwork by adding an inscription. For example, for such notables as Judy
Garland, Frank Sinatra, Bela Lugosi , JFK and others their handwriting is so
exclusively unique that even if a forger’s signature is a close match the other
elements, like inscriptions will be the dead giveaway.
Meanwhile what some people do is mat out the inscription during the framing process. For example, I will mat a photo of Mr Sinatra and at the bottom of the mat have a separate opening for the signature. If my client does not want the inscription showing, only the signature will appear in the autograph window. On the other hand, others will actually cut out the signature only from the autograph paper. Many dealers do this and sell it as an un-inscribed autograph. We would rather let the new owner decide if he/she wants to alter the autographed piece to accommodate the final presentation.
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*Secretarial signature: Many if not most celebrities have always employed secretaries (or proxy signers) to sign autographs for them. About 20 years ago, I actually dated one of Elvis Presley’s secretaries and her main job was working in a small office in Graceland signing all his fan mail. She signed his name for me and trust me, NO experienced collector or dealer would fall prey to her forgery technique.
UACC Registered Dealer NO. 307
LAMP (Learn About Movie Posters)
Kevin Conway
UACC Member since 1989
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Important Topics
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