Posts: 281
From: Santa Monica, CA
Registered: Jun 2013

posted 03-28-2014 12:07 PM               

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LA Weekly (36:19; March 28-April 3) published an interesting article (reproduced online here) on the complexities (and questionable status) of the pro-autograph authentication business ("Certifiable: How a Squad of Self-Appointed Experts Took Over the Billion-Dollar Autograph Industry"). Focuses on JSA/PSA — mostly sports and historical (no mention explicitly of astronaut signatures) — but really draws out the ways in which authentication has become an industry that turns signatures (real or forged) into liquid commodities.

Not a lot of surprises — the industry is about as messy (and shady) as you'd expect — but a fascinating read nonetheless. If you collect signed astronautica, definitely worth reading.

Posts: 731
From: Upstate New York, USA
Registered: Mar 2001

posted 03-28-2014 06:31 PM               

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I was interviewed for this article by Jake Rossen, as were a number of other people who also "ended up on the cutting room floor."

In my opinion, the nature of the questions led me to believe he was working a particular angle, and I think the final product confirms my suspicions. My sense is that interviewees who did not support the dramatic narrative, didn't make the cut.

While you could argue the article does present both sides to some degree, in my opinion the writer was sharply focused on the specific issues he highlighted and wasn't interested in responses such as, "I review each autograph carefully against many exemplars, take my time and give each item my best thinking and analysis."

Posts: 82
From: Italy
Registered: Aug 2011

posted 03-28-2014 06:36 PM               

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Extremely interesting.

Thanks for posting it!

Posts: 1014
From: Lausanne
Registered: Apr 2012

Posts: 235
From: Cumberland, Wisconsin
Registered: Aug 2001

Posts: 281
From: Santa Monica, CA
Registered: Jun 2013

posted 03-29-2014 10:54 AM               

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Yes, I agree. In fact, one of the lessons of the article (although not highlighted at all) seems to be that the small-scale "boutique" experts on the signatures of a small group of people — sometimes even a single individual — are often key to exposing the blunders of the large corporatized authentication companies.

It seems to me that this is role played by Steve Zarelli, Florian Nollar, etc. etc. within the space community — they often catch the blunders of others (and help protect us in the process).

But the overall argument of the article seems important and worth remembering — authentication has become an industry in itself, producing documents that have the potential to transform a mere signature into something much valuable than it was before certification...

Posts: 1966
From: Atlanta, GA
Registered: Feb 2007

Posts: 236
From: South Pasadena, CA 91030
Registered: Nov 2003

posted 03-30-2014 02:18 PM               

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I have this article in print here (I'm in LA and the Weekly is free all over town). I'm glad to see it being discussed here because to date among us hobbyists the questions about authenticity have most been around Neil Armstrong signatures, with only a small minority regarding the autographs of other astronauts. I could be wrong of course but I just haven't seen many arguments over the authenticity of a Scott or a Bean, etc.

I fear all that is about to change. The interest in space collecting is expanding, but time will limit the supply of real signatures. The incentive will be there to create fakes for a market that is hungry and not too discriminating.

I've always appreciates collectSPACE not just for the enjoyable community, but because we seek to be practical watchdogs on each other's behalf. This site is in effect a huge peer review exercise--we keep an eye on scholarship and accuracy in historiography; we watch the markets for fakes and forgeries; we help each other in collecting goals; and we keep in mind together how lucky we are to be around now when we can build straight from the sources.

I first found collectSPACE in 1999, just when I started collecting in earnest, and several people here were my early mentors. This group will be indispensable to collectors yet to come. I'd just like to say again that I count myself lucky to be part of it as we all prepare for these changes in our hobby.

Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

Posts: 355
From: Andover, MN
Registered: Dec 2013

Posts: 3445
From: Toms River, NJ
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 03-30-2014 11:24 PM               

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Wouldn't some of the squiggles of some astronauts' autographs be hard to duplicate? What I call the EKG-style of Hoffman, for example, someone would have to practice really hard to not only get the peaks and valleys right, but do it in a way that doesn't show hestitation. The same could be said for some (a majority?) of cosmonauts, for those unfamiliar with the Cyrillic alphabet, or whatever language they sign in.

As for taking the time for a legible autograph, I can understand why, if they have to sign for a whole bunch of people - about 300 to 400 signatures in an hour for Nyberg and Parmitano each at the U of Maryland event, and that was the end of a busy day that included NASA HQ and the Italian embassy - the signature is reduced to a scrawl. Not that I have any experience with that specifically, but somewhat related is that my signature on a receipt is a scrawl compared to my signature on a legal document, where I take my time.