1992 Star Pics SNL Autographs - A Lesson In Forgeries *LONG*

[byronscott4ever]

This is the first time I’ve heard anyone say they pulled any of these—I still think they were sold off during the bankruptcy

[byronscott4ever]

I found an old tiny scan of my Myers and Nealon but deleted it—will try to post here when I dig them out again

[jrfillini]

Originally Posted by charnick

UPDATE (11/16/19): eBay seller curveballsportscards2017, an LCS in Pinconning, Michigan recently had a Farley, a Hartman and a Myers for sale, listed as (they claim) consignments from sellers who used to own an LCS in the area in 1990's who claimed to have pulled these cards in their store at the time:

Chris Farley: https://www.ebay.com/itm/293205838582
Mike Myers: https://www.ebay.com/itm/293205842256
Phil Hartman: https://www.ebay.com/itm/293205840733

Comparing these three cards to the others in this post, and other known authentic autographs, I believe all of them to be authentic. The Myers is on a Sprockets card, like the one listed above that I had in my possession earlier, which failed PSA/DNA. That very same card ended up getting JSA authentication on it, and was sold on COMC quite some time ago:

https://www.comc.com/Cards/Non-Sport...ed/COA_Sticker

Why they listed it as an "Aftermarket Auto" in the URL is beyond me, but comparing the two together, along with the earlier known Wayne's World versions, I now believe the Sprockets cards to be authentic, and that PSA/DNA clearly made an error here, which they have been known to do on far too many occasions. I purchased this new Myers discovery, and it now sits proudly in my collection as raw. I will not be sending this in to PSA/DNA, and quite frankly, with their role in the current trimming scandals, I hesitate to ever do business with them again until they clean up their act.



The Farley sold to a member of this board based my recommendation that it was authentic, and that member provided these images for further reference:


The Hartman did not sell by curveballsportscards2017, and is now back up for sale at a lower price by ebay seller cbcollect-47 in Saginaw, MI. This could be a second account for the LCS, or perhaps the original consigners relisting it themselves. If you're in the market for these, I believe it to be authentic, and if authentication is your jam, I'd be hard pressed to see how PSA/DNA would NOT slab this one, it's a dead ringer for mine that they did grade and authenticate.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/383267606356

Damn fine photos of that Farley, I've got to say.

Glad that you were able to add the Myers to your collection. The Hartman is calling to me, haha.

Not able to get in touch with that shop in Michigan?

[charnick]

Originally Posted by jrfillini

Damn fine photos of that Farley, I've got to say.

Glad that you were able to add the Myers to your collection. The Hartman is calling to me, haha.

Not able to get in touch with that shop in Michigan?

That is some top notch photography for sure!

The LCS stopped responding to me when I asked if I could send over some written questions for them or the consigner to answer as part of the development for my Star Pics documentary.

I also e-mailed the seller of the new Hartman listing a few days ago, and have also not heard back, so now I'm just about firmly in the camp of these were NOT pulled in an LCS back in the 90's. Which would, yes, make them liars, and I have no proof of that. I understand some folks would balk as to participating in a film, but the guy who is the expert in the Star Pics Twin Peaks autos, wrote me back lickety split, and was quite forthcoming with the information he had, so when I hear crickets from other people, it gets me thinking...

I also never heard back after multiple e-mail attempts with an old Star Pics employee who's name was posted in another thread. Why the secrecy? Have I stumbled upon somehting here?!?!?! LOL... Also let it be noted that the Star Pics HQ is remarkably close to these current sellers, so....

[jrfillini]

Originally Posted by charnick

That is some top notch photography for sure!

The LCS stopped responding to me when I asked if I could send over some written questions for them or the consigner to answer as part of the development for my Star Pics documentary.

I also e-mailed the seller of the new Hartman listing a few days ago, and have also not heard back, so now I'm just about firmly in the camp of these were NOT pulled in an LCS back in the 90's. Which would, yes, make them liars, and I have no proof of that. I understand some folks would balk as to participating in a film, but the guy who is the expert in the Star Pics Twin Peaks autos, wrote me back lickety split, and was quite forthcoming with the information he had, so when I hear crickets from other people, it gets me thinking...

I also never heard back after multiple e-mail attempts with an old Star Pics employee who's name was posted in another thread. Why the secrecy? Have I stumbled upon somehting here?!?!?! LOL... Also let it be noted that the Star Pics HQ is remarkably close to these current sellers, so....

Scandalous!

How can this information be that hard to track down? What does Brett Favre know about all of this? There's a name that's become so closely tied to Star Pics that it's a next logical step, haha. Maybe in a shocking twist, it was actually him who signed all of the SNL cards . . .

[wdmullins]

About 25 or so years ago, I sent a card to Robert Smigel c/o SNL at 30 Rockefeller Plaza for a signature. He signed it and got a couple of his coworkers to sign it too, which I hadn't asked for.

[charnick]

Originally Posted by jrfillini

Scandalous!

How can this information be that hard to track down? What does Brett Favre know about all of this? There's a name that's become so closely tied to Star Pics that it's a next logical step, haha. Maybe in a shocking twist, it was actually him who signed all of the SNL cards . . .

What the hell is Brett Favre doing here?!?? I bet if I asked about Star Pics, he'd just tell me he's "in town to play the Dolphins, ya dumbass!"

I don't get it, but I'm starting to believe these cards were NOT ever packed out. It makes sense... the one guy I DID speak to was the guy who bought out SP's inventory of Twin Peaks autos, and it makes sense that the others were probably the same.

The LCS did not respond to yet another request, and I assume it's a second account of theirs selling the card this time, as the eBay names are similar. I even said I was ready to send an offer on the Hartman if they would just respond to me at all even if it was to tell me to go screw. Why they would turn away the ONLY person offering on it is beyond me. I already bought the Myers, let them know I helped sell the Farley, and told them I knew the cards were good. Why NOT respond in any way at all, unless the story of of having pulled them in store is a crock.

Plus, SP's old HQ was in Farmington Hills, MI right outside of Detroit, while these seller(s) are based in Pinconning & Saginaw, which are just a short drive away. The SP employee I contacted is also still based out Michigan, and if there were shady dealin's back then, it would also make sense that she wouldn't write back. I'm making one last stab at contacting her through LinkedIn, maybe if she sees I really am an above board filmmaker, it might make a diff.

But if the sellers of the card see this thread... dudes, I don't even care if they were packed out or not, I just want to know the real skinny on getting in with SNL!

[charnick]

Originally Posted by wdmullins

About 25 or so years ago, I sent a card to Robert Smigel c/o SNL at 30 Rockefeller Plaza for a signature. He signed it and got a couple of his coworkers to sign it too, which I hadn't asked for.

This is AMAZING, thanks so much for sharing! Not one of the "official" autos for sure, but those are all legit autos, and that card rocks hard!

[webjon]

Keep seeing this one pop up on eBay -- thoughts on it?



The authenticity sticker is upside down, covers part of the signature and has some wear . . .

[charnick]

Originally Posted by webjon

Keep seeing this one pop up on eBay -- thoughts on it?

The authenticity sticker is upside down, covers part of the signature and has some wear . . .

I've had a few people reach out to me about that one, and omg, it's so very obviously the worst Chris Farley fake auto I've ever seen. With the exception of being on the back of the card, everything about it screams not the real thing. And PSA just keeps slabbing them. Of the 7 copies in the pop report, I've now seen 4 of them, and 2 are god awful fakes. Just the worst. I should have taken that research job PSA offered me, maybe I could clean up their database, cuz this is borderline criminal.

[webjon]

Too bad for PSA -- this is why I haven't sent in any of my SNL autos to them.

[byronscott4ever]

Looks like a Myers sold for 175, Meadows 100, Nealon 70. Seems like Myers was the deal out of the three.

[dd316]

Originally Posted by charnick

I've had a few people reach out to me about that one, and omg, it's so very obviously the worst Chris Farley fake auto I've ever seen. With the exception of being on the back of the card, everything about it screams not the real thing. And PSA just keeps slabbing them. Of the 7 copies in the pop report, I've now seen 4 of them, and 2 are god awful fakes. Just the worst. I should have taken that research job PSA offered me, maybe I could clean up their database, cuz this is borderline criminal.

Shouldn't the label have Chris Farley's name on it somewhere?

[charnick]

Originally Posted by webjon

Too bad for PSA -- this is why I haven't sent in any of my SNL autos to them.

I definitely regret sending mine in, they made such a stink about not facing the auto forward on my Farley and then they just do it no questions asked to these fakes. I interviewed with PSA back in 2019 and spent 2 days in the grading room and they eventually offered me a lowball job in research. Very eye-opening experience for me.

Originally Posted by byronscott4ever

Looks like a Myers sold for 175, Meadows 100, Nealon 70. Seems like Myers was the deal out of the three.

That Myers is a fake in a BGS slab. I guess it could be real, I don't study Myers, but it's signed in exactly the same way an official one would be, but without the damn sticker on it at all, so it doesn't even pass the sniff test for me. Someone got screwed. The Meadows and Nealon were my sales. I recently obtained a full set of these raw from a private collector, so I had doubles of a few and parted with those.

Originally Posted by dd316

Shouldn't the label have Chris Farley's name on it somewhere?

That super fake is also the only one in the PSA pop report as only having the card graded, not the auto. All the others, including the one I still own are dual graded. So while yes, the label should still match the dual graded ones, someone in PSA's data entry/research department decided to be a contrarian, I guess.

[byronscott4ever]

Missed the non-sticker on Myers....

So does PSA and/or Beckett usually have the auto facing towards the front or back?

[charnick]

Originally Posted by byronscott4ever

Missed the non-sticker on Myers....

So does PSA and/or Beckett usually have the auto facing towards the front or back?

They're all over the map with them. On the ones I've personally submitted, the first time I requested the back of the card with the auto facing front and even provided previous examples where they did it. And they did, my Nealon on ebay being one example. And then I sent in my Farley and Meadows, and they didn't.

Called customer service and was told that there operations manager specifically DENIED this most benign request. They never explained exactly why, but I've seen newer slabs since then with the back facing front. They are soooo turned around backwards by these cards themselves, but they'll never dare admit they don't really have a clue about them.

Next time you see a card with an incorrect slab, just know their research department is small, paid horribly, and probably not even interested in the subject matter all that much.

[byronscott4ever]

Goldin auctions sold a Hartman for 553.50 and a Farley for $4305!

[charnick]

Originally Posted by byronscott4ever

Goldin auctions sold a Hartman for 553.50 and a Farley for $4305!

i’m happy to say… they’re real, and they’re spectacular!

will update the original post with images in a short bit!

[PrinceVegeta]

Originally Posted by byronscott4ever

Goldin auctions sold a Hartman for 553.50 and a Farley for $4305!

Fought hard on that Farley. Someone wanted it bad

[glorbgorb]

Makes you wonder how Goldin would go with a purportedly fake PSA slabbed auto. Do they check these forums (not really, but do research in general) and err on the side of caution, or just sell it anyway cause PSA said it was legit.

[webjon]

Wow. Amazing sales.

Maybe it's time to sell.

Probably not.

[charnick]

op updated with images from the farley & hartman goldin auctions sales from this past summer.

[nicker10]

Thought I would add to this discussion. These should be in hand in the next day or two. The person I got these froms mom was an employee of Star Pics in the 1990s. These do not have the stickers but they all seem to match up with other examples

[TimoGoose]

Does anyone know why this Kevin Nealon without sticker and signed on the front got a Beckett slab?

https://www.ebay.nl/itm/114877125870...gAAOSwaMZfFela

[byronscott4ever]

Originally Posted by TimoGoose

Does anyone know why this Kevin Nealon without sticker and signed on the front got a Beckett slab?

https://www.ebay.nl/itm/114877125870...gAAOSwaMZfFela

Maybe just a case where they deemed the autograph as authentic?