Well, seems I'm coming very late to the party here. I've just won about 30 Bond related autographed photos from bondcollectible Ebay auctions the past few days. Hopefully they will arrive within the next couple of weeks but after reading through this thread, I'm wondering if I've just spent a lot of money on printed paper. Truth is I'm a little confused now. Couple of questions (I'm not being accusatory at all, just trying to determine if I've just been had and whether I ever need to bid on this Ebayer's auctions in the future):
- I'm assuming from the discussions here that bondcollectibles "believes" all his autographs to be genuine, is that correct? In other words, he's not intentionally passing off forgeries as genuine, or is he? And if the latter, is the fact that he's still on Ebay evidence that Ebay isn't receiving lots of complaints about him and they believe him legitimate or something else? (I don't mean to insinuate that he's not genuine, only that it seems to be the prevailing opinion here that at the very least he's not careful with what he sells).
- The reason I went ahead and purchased from him was because of his extremely high and positive Ebay feedback (15,250 positive, 7 neutral in the past 12 months and 1 negative in the past 12 months). I jumped in quickly and won a dozen auctions before I knew it but then over the next couple of days noticed that the same "rare" or "deceased" signatures were being offered and the photos were the same as the ones I had recently bid on. Then when I read the handful of neutral/negative feedback comments, seems the complaints involve the photos received not being the photos shown in the listings. There was supposed to be a question in here somewhere but I think it escaped me.
- How can I determine if what I've purchased from him is legitimate? I've just begun piecing together a Bond collection and everything up to this past week has been TTM and it figures that the one time I actually purchase autographs I'm finding out they may not be authentic.
- Seems the prevailing opinion when dealing with bondcollectibles is "caution" because the "occasional fake slips through." I need help interpreting what everyone means by this. Are we saying that probably 99% of what is auctioned by him on Ebay is genuine and once in a while a fake surfaces or are we just trying to be diplomatic and politically correct and give him the benefit of the doubt? Do most of your guys/gals purchase from him or not?
Sorry for the lengthy post, but having just spent a lot of money (for me) on something I rarely, if ever, spend money on, I'm now worried I've made a huge error in judgment. I don't mean to resuscitate an old topic but would really appreciate some feedback. Thanks!
M.
PS Meant to mention that I'm new here, having found the sight when I just googled bondcollectibles because I've had an uneasy feeling in my gut all week
PPS I keep rereading what I've posted and just want to make sure I've not said anything inappropriate regarding bondcollectibles. Just trying to determine if I should focus my collecting efforts somewhere other than this Ebayer dealer. Thanks!
yikes...30 different items. That's a big investment.
Do they include COA which can be verified?
I'm also fairly new at collecting autographs, but after reading this thread I immediately went to bondstars.com. Ordered signed photos of Lazenby, Roger, and Jaws and they were mailed directly from Pinewood studio. Perhaps a little steeper prices than eBay, but complete peace of mind as to their authenticity.
(However, not all 007 actors are represented on Bondstars)
My current 10 favorite:
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
- I'm assuming from the discussions here that bondcollectibles "believes" all his autographs to be genuine, is that correct? In other words, he's not intentionally passing off forgeries as genuine, or is he? And if the latter, is the fact that he's still on Ebay evidence that Ebay isn't receiving lots of complaints about him and they believe him legitimate or something else? (I don't mean to insinuate that he's not genuine, only that it seems to be the prevailing opinion here that at the very least he's not careful with what he sells).
Sorry to tell you this, but.. Bondcollectibles has been in business since 1997 he knows exactly does he sell genuine or fake autographs.
I have been collecting Bond autographs since 1997 and when I opened my EvilBay account 2007, a little after that he got my interest too..
But soon as I noticed that he is selling same "rare" autographs from time to time all over again and again, I left the seller alone.
A friend of mine won some autographs from his auction and when my friend got those, the photo quality was pretty poor, as well as the signature did not match for that autograph at the auction. In other words.. He did not get what he bought.
And I have heard that same thing from other buyers too..
- The reason I went ahead and purchased from him was because of his extremely high and positive Ebay feedback (15,250 positive, 7 neutral in the past 12 months and 1 negative in the past 12 months). I jumped in quickly and won a dozen auctions before I knew it but then over the next couple of days noticed that the same "rare" or "deceased" signatures were being offered and the photos were the same as the ones I had recently bid on. Then when I read the handful of neutral/negative feedback comments, seems the complaints involve the photos received not being the photos shown in the listings. There was supposed to be a question in here somewhere but I think it escaped me.
There is a lot of new autograph collectors and Bond fans who hasn't studied the signature techniques and fall into the same trap as you and those who left a positive feedback. They trusted the sellers word.
Unfortunately there is some UACC dealers who buys from BondCollectibles too and do trading with him on Ebay like the seller RBees Autographs and Autographica and that's why I stay away from them too.
- How can I determine if what I've purchased from him is legitimate?
As soon as you have received the autographs, take some photos or scans of those and let us see what you have got..
- Seems the prevailing opinion when dealing with bondcollectibles is "caution" because the "occasional fake slips through." I need help interpreting what everyone means by this. Are we saying that probably 99% of what is auctioned by him on Ebay is genuine and once in a while a fake surfaces or are we just trying to be diplomatic and politically correct and give him the benefit of the doubt? Do most of your guys/gals purchase from him or not?
Unfortunately I would say.. maybe max. 30% of his autographs are genuine.
I did some time ago a small calculation
if BondCollctibles has been in business since 1997..and perhaps on ebay since, let me say 2007..
If you have followed his auction he lists nearly 40 to 100 products per day.
7 years = 2555 days
If he sells approx. 25 autographs per day he has sold 63875 autographs in that time.
Who can get so many Bond autographs in that time..and how many Bond autographs does he have???
Thank you for your replies, Firemass and BondFanSince77...I really appreciate it. I will certainly post scans of the signatures once they arrive. I'm very anxious to find out if they are authentic.
It had appeared that bondcollectibles was going to be an affordable way to obtain some signatures that I probably wouldn't be able to afford otherwise, but as with most things I suppose, we get what we pay for. If these that I've already purchased turn out to be forgeries, it will be an expensive lesson for me.
Welcome to the forum! -{ You've certainly come to a good place to get some advice. Many of us here like BondFanSince77 and TillyMasterson and DrNo07 have collected for many years and we can certainly help you with your purchases.
As BondFanSince77 has answered all your questions, I can only back him up for everything he has stated.
I have been collecting for many years and have been fortunate enough to meet, talk to and get autographs from some of the rarest and most obscure autographs from the bond world. Anything from the Dragon Tank Drivers in Dr. No, to the bride & groom of the wedding party where 007 drives his boat over land in Live & Let Die.
Several times along the way though I have had to purchase some items as that celebrity died before I was born, certain names like Pedro Armendariz, Teru Shimada & Yuri Borienko. Finding these autographs took me years and years of patience and research and in the end it was truly very satisfying to get them, as was the 1000 or so others I have been lucky enough to add.
Bondcollectibles has (for the real passionate collector) made life extremely difficult. He has been very clever to cover many of his tracks and mistakes and in my opinion he started out genuine. However as time went on, he got greedy and realised if he picked real rarities that no one had seen before, the chances are that not many would doubt him. But like many greedy people, that got the better of him and now many people are starting to doubt him. His website autographs (and prices) are in my view mostly genuine, however you must be prepared to pay the high prices as they are effectively his private collection. He is also by the way a lawyer in real life, so he's got himself covered. However if you wanted to send any autographs back to him, he will take them back no problems.
In short, BondFanSince77 is absolutely correct in saying that many UACC and AFTAL dealers and increasing their stock by buying cheap bondcollectibles autographs and selling them off themselves for bigger profits.
Let me give you a few examples of some "deceased autographs" that bondcollectibles are selling week in and week out:
Rik Van Nutter - Let me tell you that a genuine Rik Van Nutter is EXTREMELY rare. I have been collecting for over 10 years and the only genuine one I have ever seen is the one in my collection, a book from his personal library when he lived in England and signed with his full name. The signature only vaguely matches the ones sold by bondcollectibles...
Austin Willis - you see these week in and week out. Austin was very ill and weak towards the end of his life when people found him in Canada, he would not have had the strength to sign all of those from Bondcollecibles, FACT.
Dolores Keator - this actually makes me fume quite a bit. What was a nearly impossible to find autographs is now found in many ebay stores signed the same: Dolores Keator, Mary, Dr. No, 007.
A very good friend of mine knew Dolores well and he got me a stunning black and white bondshot from her. The signature does not come close to matching those from bondcollectibles.
Irka Bochenko, a good family friend of mine who came to visit last year. I showed her a photo of the stills for sale by bondcollectibles who claimed doing a private signing with her. No such signing took place and she had never seen those photos before, which were apparently signed by her.
The same can be said for several other "rarities" he sells/sold such as John Kitzmiller, Joseph Wiseman (who in truth signed very very few autographs!), Milton Reid, Vanya Seager etc...
In truth, I hope one day Bondcollectibles get shut down for good. They have flooded the market with fakes and because many of their fakes are so good, its nearly impossible to tell which is which. Having said that, when you do find a genuine Austin Willis or Rik Van Nutter, it makes you feel that much happier that your hard work has paid off.
In conclusion, I would stay clear of him, I would agree with BondFanSince77 that some of his stock is genuine but most of the stuff on ebay is not. I am sorry to have to tell you but let me assure you that we have ALL been there and the more experience you gain, the more you understand that collecting autographs passionately is no easy task, but you will be rewarded if you keep searching and working hard.
If there is anything else we can help with, just send a message or post it up on here.
*TO PROTECT THE WEBSITE WWW.AJB007.CO.UK I WOULD LIKE TO STATE THAT ALL THESE OPINIONS ABOVE ARE MY PERSONAL OPINIONS AND DO NOT REFLECT THE OPINIONS OF WWW.AJB007.CO.UK*
007_Autographcollector, thank you very, very much for your insight! I'm beginning to realize just how little I know haha! I'm looking forward to having you guys evaluate the ones I've purchased from bondcollectibles once they arrive. I think for the most part the ones I bid on are some of the more common ones, though there were several who are deceased. Among the ones I've won on Ebay from him are:
Michael Medwin
Wayne Newton
Ken Sharrock
Daud Shah
Geoffrey Keen
Murray Kash
Joe Robinson
Claude Oliver Rudolph
George Roubicec
Gladys Knight
Karin Dor
Mads Mikkelsen
Jesper Christensen
Ben Wishaw
Chaim Topol
Goldie
Marguerite Lewars
Bernard Horsefall
Shirley Eaton
Patrick Malahide
Eva Green
Richard Samuel
Barbara Carrera
Edward Fox
Frederick Warder
George Leech
Martin Benson
Stephen Berkhoff
Joe Don Baker
Barbara Broccoli
Peter Hunt
Michael Culver
Mathieu Amalric
Zena Marshall
Kit Hillier
Dermot Crowley
Olga Kurylenko
It will be interesting to discover which are authentic and which are not. Even though everyone says to return the ones that are deemed not authentic, I think I might be hesitant to do that as if bondcollectibles is not trustworthy in what he sells I don't know how he can be trustworthy to refund the purchase price. With my luck I would send them back to him and then be out the money and the photos haha!
For Sale..
Ilse Steppat signed autograph 5x7" (approx. 13x18cm) photo card.
Ilse Steppat (* 11. November 1917 in Barmen; † 21. December 1969 in Berlin)
In her only English language role, Steppat played Blofeld's assistant and henchwoman Irma Bunt in the James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
Steppat was unable to capitalise on her new fame outside of Germany, as she died (45 years ago!!!) of a heart attack only four days after the movie's international release.
That's why the signature is indeed a rarity.
Asking: €150.00 / $200 / £125 .. or Best Offer
including shipping worldwide (Express mail)
Payment via Paypal as a gift/Family please no fees (the buyer pays the fee).
If You are interested in this EXTREMELY rare autograph, please send a message to my inbox.. Regards,
BondFanSince 77
Don't worry about the refund 75vette, he never makes a fuss and if you say your not happy, he will take them back.
Okay so looking at the list you have, here is my advice:
Michael Medwin (You find him easily on ebay often)
Wayne Newton (You can write to him at his fanmail address and get one dedicated to you)
Ken Sharrock (Is quite rare, so it may tougher to find him, but very few bondshots from him are authentic)
Daud Shah (Again, if you researched around, I am sure you can find his fan mail to write to)
Geoffrey Keen (I think I saw one on ebay this week, again not to rare to find)
Murray Kash (I would stay away from bondshots signed in silver / any other thick markers. He is rare but he does pop up)
Joe Robinson (Head to bondstars for 100% authentic autographs from him)
Claude Oliver Rudolph (Again fan mail is the better option)
George Roubicec (He has done autograph shows so you can find him on ebay, just do your research first)
Gladys Knight (I got mine after writing to her, she signs all her fan mail)
Karin Dor (Quite a common autograph, but again use her fan mail)
Mads Mikkelsen (Again use fan mail, its not worth buying an autograph from somebody you can get it for free from)
Jesper Christensen (Same as above)
Ben Wishaw (Again, young actor, plenty of chances to get his autograph)
Chaim Topol (Chaim signs everything through the mail and his autograph is not that rare)
Goldie (You can buy these officially autograph rittenhouse cards, they are your best bet)
Marguerite Lewars (Marguerite was extremely offended by Bondcollectibles asking her to sign so many autographs, so she refused to sign anything for them. She did autographica a few years ago and you can buy official photos from them.)
Bernard Horsefall (Bondstars.com or rittenhouse official autographed cards).
Shirley Eaton (She charges for autographs now so head to bondstars.com or plenty of vintage pages on ebay)
Patrick Malahide (Fan mail)
Eva Green (Fan mail or in person)
Richard Samuel (A little uncertain on this one but I would imagine fan mail if you research)
Barbara Carrera (Bondstars)
Edward Fox (Bondstars)
Frederick Warder (he was at autographica a few years back, so again head to their site)
George Leech (bondstars)
Martin Benson (bondstars)
Stephen Berkhoff (You can contact him through his fan mail although be prepared to pay)
Joe Don Baker (Official rittenhouse cards or in person, many many fakes of him out there)
Barbara Broccoli (fan mail)
Peter Hunt (A tough one to find, you might have to stay patient as there is another famous director from the US with the same name, so keep a look out.)
Michael Culver (pops up on ebay quite often)
Mathieu Amalric (Fan mail or in person)
Zena Marshall (bondstars)
Kit Hillier (did an autograph show recently so quite a few on ebay)
Dermot Crowley (Fan mail)
Olga Kurylenko (fan mail or rittenhouse card or in person)
Personally, I would send everything back to him. I wouldn't trust that company a yard, but that's just me -{
Thanks, 007_Autographcollector...that is VERY helpful! I much prefer to obtain them through the mail but so far my success has been hit or miss and mostly miss, especially when writing to people in Europe. I joined Startiger this month so hoping that will help my success rate.
I'm hopeful that at least some of the ones I have gotten from bondcollectibles will be authentic, but you're probably right. There will probably always be that nagging doubt in the back of my mind. I will post scans as soon as they arrive and get everyone's feedback.
Just wanted to chime in here, as I've bought a few items off Bondcollectables over the years.
I've always found the customer service to be excellent and I was actually referred to them by a number of posters on this site. I've had no reason to doubt the autographs I've bought, any more than other items I've got through the mail. Ultimately, bottom line is that unless you see the item signed in front of you, you will always have a nagging doubt about authenticity at the back of your mind.
Also, if you trawl back over historic posts you'll see that Alex and the company were excellently regarded here not so long ago, I'm just a bit confused as to when this changed???
Japanese proverb say, "Bird never make nest in bare tree".
Thanks for the input, Smithers500. I'm a newbie here but from what I have gathered from the forums, seems the issues involve bondcollectibles claiming to have certain actors signing under contract and those same actors denying they ever signed for him and bondcollectibles offering dozens of the same autographed photos of actors who are either deceased or very difficult to acquire.
I still don't understand why Ebay hasn't cracked down if he's known to be peddling forgeries as authentic autographs. But his feedback has remained 100% positive for at least the last year, though he does have a couple of neutrals and negatives.
I'm anxious to get the 30 autographs I won from him to compare with known authentic examples. But after reading the forums, I'm not too hopeful.
Hi Smithers500, just in response to your question, I think the truth about bondcollectibles has only really surfaced over the last few years. When people start out collecting, bondcollectibles do look like the real deal but due to the numerous factual evidence surfacing over recent years, everything points to uncertainty. While I respect that many people do buy from bondcollectibles regularly, I believe that many of the rare items like "Michael Gothard" that he sells or "John Kitzmiller" are not genuine and would not pass an authenticity test. If John Kitzmiller was that rare, it would be on his website and not ebay....
I think the more years you spend collecting, the more you learn that some things are never quite what they seem. I made my mistakes with bondcollectibles as have many others before and I wouldn't want to see anyone share the disappointment that I did. I am not out to make bondcollectibles look bad (I am not a rival dealer or anything like that, just a collector), I am here to state evidence and facts if someone like 75vette is looking for advice, no matter who the seller is.
Finally received the 30+ autographs I bought from bondcollectibles. Would very much appreciate your comments as to their authenticity.
Also, they are all printed on super glossy photo paper (with the exception of 4 of them) and look brand new, like they were printed yesterday. And it's difficult to tell that the photos are signed and not simply photographs/photocopies of autographed photos. Any ideas on how to tell for sure?
Also, I bought 2 of the same autographs (Patrick Malahide) on purpose to see if they were identical but they appear to be different, though signed by the same person.
Hi Boys, I've got a bit of detective work for you all :-)
I listed a few bond autographs on the Bay and this one got removed due to a Trademark conflict!! (whatever the *'* that means with a signature, but ebay says "its to protect me and other ebayers" after many mails etc and another 400 grey hairs I thought I'd put a post on here to get your opinions!
Makes my blood boil when I see 1000s of blatent fakes being sold weekly!!!!!!
Its a Paul McCartney signed 7" single I've had for about 6 or 7 years.
Now check this other McCartney Signature I'm pretty sure is a genuine and see the similarities... The "OVE" of Love are so alike especially the "O" and how this has been "swirled"
The McCartney signature on the record is 100 per cent a forgery, sorry to tell you that.
Thanks for the feedback, Its not the end of the world, I bought it years ago and had it boxed up, Just thought I'd get rid of some stuff.
And the similarities in "Love" are just chance you reckon? thats the thing that made me look twice.
Thanks again
Still would like feedback on the above scans I posted a few weeks ago, as I need to make a decision on which ones to keep.
Also, everyone may already know this but apparently George Lane Cooper (Diamonds Are Forever) passed away about 10 years ago. I wrote him at the address provided by Startiger (which was still active) and received an email from the current home owner informing me she is the owner of his former home and he had passed away. I sent the details to Startiger, so hopefully they will update his profile.
I recently bought a small collection of Bond signatures from a private collector. Would appreciate your input on their authenticity, especially Sean Connery and Timothy Dalton.
The Connery is a 5x7 photo, the Dalton is a 3x4 Toy Story 3 card, and the others are 2.5x3.5 007 cards.
CA sec ttm......looks different to the one I got early 00s ?
Maybe she got tired people selling em on ebay 8-)
Re : d'Abo.....met her IP and that is not legit imo.
Re : Blackman......the "H" looks weird , same with the "r" which usually looks rounded at the top. Fake too , imo.
Thanks for the input, Grindelwald! A little confused as to the Claudine Auger comments, though, as none of the photos are of her haha Were you referring to the photos of either Luciana Paluzzi?
I'm still waiting for a d'Abo TTM so didn't have anything to which to compare it. That's bad news
I've gotten Blackman TTM as well as purchased and the truth is every signature I have of her differs in some way from the others. Sure wish everyone would sign the same haha!
I was refering to the Augers coming thru mail last few yrs , they differ in the way they're written and that is never a good thing......they seem too neat compared to real ones ?
I was refering to the Augers coming thru mail last few yrs , they differ in the way they're written and that is never a good thing......they seem too neat compared to real ones ?
I took a chance with this one , it's difficult to see intendation though since it's black ink.
Okay, I understand now. I got her TTM about 5 years ago and it looks similar to what I'm seeing today, so may be secretarial as well.
Your Connery looks similar to mine. I've looked on this thread at some of the other postings of his authentic signature and it seems mine is very similar (I hope). Hope the Dalton is, as well.
Comments
Well, seems I'm coming very late to the party here. I've just won about 30 Bond related autographed photos from bondcollectible Ebay auctions the past few days. Hopefully they will arrive within the next couple of weeks but after reading through this thread, I'm wondering if I've just spent a lot of money on printed paper. Truth is I'm a little confused now. Couple of questions (I'm not being accusatory at all, just trying to determine if I've just been had and whether I ever need to bid on this Ebayer's auctions in the future):
- I'm assuming from the discussions here that bondcollectibles "believes" all his autographs to be genuine, is that correct? In other words, he's not intentionally passing off forgeries as genuine, or is he? And if the latter, is the fact that he's still on Ebay evidence that Ebay isn't receiving lots of complaints about him and they believe him legitimate or something else? (I don't mean to insinuate that he's not genuine, only that it seems to be the prevailing opinion here that at the very least he's not careful with what he sells).
- The reason I went ahead and purchased from him was because of his extremely high and positive Ebay feedback (15,250 positive, 7 neutral in the past 12 months and 1 negative in the past 12 months). I jumped in quickly and won a dozen auctions before I knew it but then over the next couple of days noticed that the same "rare" or "deceased" signatures were being offered and the photos were the same as the ones I had recently bid on. Then when I read the handful of neutral/negative feedback comments, seems the complaints involve the photos received not being the photos shown in the listings. There was supposed to be a question in here somewhere but I think it escaped me.
- How can I determine if what I've purchased from him is legitimate? I've just begun piecing together a Bond collection and everything up to this past week has been TTM and it figures that the one time I actually purchase autographs I'm finding out they may not be authentic.
- Seems the prevailing opinion when dealing with bondcollectibles is "caution" because the "occasional fake slips through." I need help interpreting what everyone means by this. Are we saying that probably 99% of what is auctioned by him on Ebay is genuine and once in a while a fake surfaces or are we just trying to be diplomatic and politically correct and give him the benefit of the doubt? Do most of your guys/gals purchase from him or not?
Sorry for the lengthy post, but having just spent a lot of money (for me) on something I rarely, if ever, spend money on, I'm now worried I've made a huge error in judgment. I don't mean to resuscitate an old topic but would really appreciate some feedback. Thanks!
M.
PS Meant to mention that I'm new here, having found the sight when I just googled bondcollectibles because I've had an uneasy feeling in my gut all week
PPS I keep rereading what I've posted and just want to make sure I've not said anything inappropriate regarding bondcollectibles. Just trying to determine if I should focus my collecting efforts somewhere other than this Ebayer dealer. Thanks!
Do they include COA which can be verified?
I'm also fairly new at collecting autographs, but after reading this thread I immediately went to bondstars.com. Ordered signed photos of Lazenby, Roger, and Jaws and they were mailed directly from Pinewood studio. Perhaps a little steeper prices than eBay, but complete peace of mind as to their authenticity.
(However, not all 007 actors are represented on Bondstars)
1. GE 2. MR 3. OP 4. TMWTGG 5. TSWLM 6. TND 7. TWINE 8.DN 9. GF 10. AVTAK
Where should I begin..
- I'm assuming from the discussions here that bondcollectibles "believes" all his autographs to be genuine, is that correct? In other words, he's not intentionally passing off forgeries as genuine, or is he? And if the latter, is the fact that he's still on Ebay evidence that Ebay isn't receiving lots of complaints about him and they believe him legitimate or something else? (I don't mean to insinuate that he's not genuine, only that it seems to be the prevailing opinion here that at the very least he's not careful with what he sells).
Sorry to tell you this, but.. Bondcollectibles has been in business since 1997 he knows exactly does he sell genuine or fake autographs.
I have been collecting Bond autographs since 1997 and when I opened my EvilBay account 2007, a little after that he got my interest too..
But soon as I noticed that he is selling same "rare" autographs from time to time all over again and again, I left the seller alone.
A friend of mine won some autographs from his auction and when my friend got those, the photo quality was pretty poor, as well as the signature did not match for that autograph at the auction. In other words.. He did not get what he bought.
And I have heard that same thing from other buyers too..
- The reason I went ahead and purchased from him was because of his extremely high and positive Ebay feedback (15,250 positive, 7 neutral in the past 12 months and 1 negative in the past 12 months). I jumped in quickly and won a dozen auctions before I knew it but then over the next couple of days noticed that the same "rare" or "deceased" signatures were being offered and the photos were the same as the ones I had recently bid on. Then when I read the handful of neutral/negative feedback comments, seems the complaints involve the photos received not being the photos shown in the listings. There was supposed to be a question in here somewhere but I think it escaped me.
There is a lot of new autograph collectors and Bond fans who hasn't studied the signature techniques and fall into the same trap as you and those who left a positive feedback. They trusted the sellers word.
Unfortunately there is some UACC dealers who buys from BondCollectibles too and do trading with him on Ebay like the seller RBees Autographs and Autographica and that's why I stay away from them too.
- How can I determine if what I've purchased from him is legitimate?
As soon as you have received the autographs, take some photos or scans of those and let us see what you have got..
- Seems the prevailing opinion when dealing with bondcollectibles is "caution" because the "occasional fake slips through." I need help interpreting what everyone means by this. Are we saying that probably 99% of what is auctioned by him on Ebay is genuine and once in a while a fake surfaces or are we just trying to be diplomatic and politically correct and give him the benefit of the doubt? Do most of your guys/gals purchase from him or not?
Unfortunately I would say.. maybe max. 30% of his autographs are genuine.
I did some time ago a small calculation
if BondCollctibles has been in business since 1997..and perhaps on ebay since, let me say 2007..
If you have followed his auction he lists nearly 40 to 100 products per day.
7 years = 2555 days
If he sells approx. 25 autographs per day he has sold 63875 autographs in that time.
Who can get so many Bond autographs in that time..and how many Bond autographs does he have???
Regards,
BondFanSince77
It had appeared that bondcollectibles was going to be an affordable way to obtain some signatures that I probably wouldn't be able to afford otherwise, but as with most things I suppose, we get what we pay for. If these that I've already purchased turn out to be forgeries, it will be an expensive lesson for me.
Fingers crossed...
Welcome to the forum! -{ You've certainly come to a good place to get some advice. Many of us here like BondFanSince77 and TillyMasterson and DrNo07 have collected for many years and we can certainly help you with your purchases.
As BondFanSince77 has answered all your questions, I can only back him up for everything he has stated.
I have been collecting for many years and have been fortunate enough to meet, talk to and get autographs from some of the rarest and most obscure autographs from the bond world. Anything from the Dragon Tank Drivers in Dr. No, to the bride & groom of the wedding party where 007 drives his boat over land in Live & Let Die.
Several times along the way though I have had to purchase some items as that celebrity died before I was born, certain names like Pedro Armendariz, Teru Shimada & Yuri Borienko. Finding these autographs took me years and years of patience and research and in the end it was truly very satisfying to get them, as was the 1000 or so others I have been lucky enough to add.
Bondcollectibles has (for the real passionate collector) made life extremely difficult. He has been very clever to cover many of his tracks and mistakes and in my opinion he started out genuine. However as time went on, he got greedy and realised if he picked real rarities that no one had seen before, the chances are that not many would doubt him. But like many greedy people, that got the better of him and now many people are starting to doubt him. His website autographs (and prices) are in my view mostly genuine, however you must be prepared to pay the high prices as they are effectively his private collection. He is also by the way a lawyer in real life, so he's got himself covered. However if you wanted to send any autographs back to him, he will take them back no problems.
In short, BondFanSince77 is absolutely correct in saying that many UACC and AFTAL dealers and increasing their stock by buying cheap bondcollectibles autographs and selling them off themselves for bigger profits.
Let me give you a few examples of some "deceased autographs" that bondcollectibles are selling week in and week out:
Rik Van Nutter - Let me tell you that a genuine Rik Van Nutter is EXTREMELY rare. I have been collecting for over 10 years and the only genuine one I have ever seen is the one in my collection, a book from his personal library when he lived in England and signed with his full name. The signature only vaguely matches the ones sold by bondcollectibles...
Austin Willis - you see these week in and week out. Austin was very ill and weak towards the end of his life when people found him in Canada, he would not have had the strength to sign all of those from Bondcollecibles, FACT.
Dolores Keator - this actually makes me fume quite a bit. What was a nearly impossible to find autographs is now found in many ebay stores signed the same: Dolores Keator, Mary, Dr. No, 007.
A very good friend of mine knew Dolores well and he got me a stunning black and white bondshot from her. The signature does not come close to matching those from bondcollectibles.
Irka Bochenko, a good family friend of mine who came to visit last year. I showed her a photo of the stills for sale by bondcollectibles who claimed doing a private signing with her. No such signing took place and she had never seen those photos before, which were apparently signed by her.
The same can be said for several other "rarities" he sells/sold such as John Kitzmiller, Joseph Wiseman (who in truth signed very very few autographs!), Milton Reid, Vanya Seager etc...
In truth, I hope one day Bondcollectibles get shut down for good. They have flooded the market with fakes and because many of their fakes are so good, its nearly impossible to tell which is which. Having said that, when you do find a genuine Austin Willis or Rik Van Nutter, it makes you feel that much happier that your hard work has paid off.
In conclusion, I would stay clear of him, I would agree with BondFanSince77 that some of his stock is genuine but most of the stuff on ebay is not. I am sorry to have to tell you but let me assure you that we have ALL been there and the more experience you gain, the more you understand that collecting autographs passionately is no easy task, but you will be rewarded if you keep searching and working hard.
If there is anything else we can help with, just send a message or post it up on here.
*TO PROTECT THE WEBSITE WWW.AJB007.CO.UK I WOULD LIKE TO STATE THAT ALL THESE OPINIONS ABOVE ARE MY PERSONAL OPINIONS AND DO NOT REFLECT THE OPINIONS OF WWW.AJB007.CO.UK*
Michael Medwin
Wayne Newton
Ken Sharrock
Daud Shah
Geoffrey Keen
Murray Kash
Joe Robinson
Claude Oliver Rudolph
George Roubicec
Gladys Knight
Karin Dor
Mads Mikkelsen
Jesper Christensen
Ben Wishaw
Chaim Topol
Goldie
Marguerite Lewars
Bernard Horsefall
Shirley Eaton
Patrick Malahide
Eva Green
Richard Samuel
Barbara Carrera
Edward Fox
Frederick Warder
George Leech
Martin Benson
Stephen Berkhoff
Joe Don Baker
Barbara Broccoli
Peter Hunt
Michael Culver
Mathieu Amalric
Zena Marshall
Kit Hillier
Dermot Crowley
Olga Kurylenko
It will be interesting to discover which are authentic and which are not. Even though everyone says to return the ones that are deemed not authentic, I think I might be hesitant to do that as if bondcollectibles is not trustworthy in what he sells I don't know how he can be trustworthy to refund the purchase price. With my luck I would send them back to him and then be out the money and the photos haha!
One of the best Shaws out there
Ilse Steppat signed autograph 5x7" (approx. 13x18cm) photo card.
Ilse Steppat (* 11. November 1917 in Barmen; † 21. December 1969 in Berlin)
In her only English language role, Steppat played Blofeld's assistant and henchwoman Irma Bunt in the James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
Steppat was unable to capitalise on her new fame outside of Germany, as she died (45 years ago!!!) of a heart attack only four days after the movie's international release.
That's why the signature is indeed a rarity.
Asking: €150.00 / $200 / £125 .. or Best Offer
including shipping worldwide (Express mail)
Payment via Paypal as a gift/Family please no fees (the buyer pays the fee).
If You are interested in this EXTREMELY rare autograph, please send a message to my inbox.. Regards,
BondFanSince 77
Okay so looking at the list you have, here is my advice:
Michael Medwin (You find him easily on ebay often)
Wayne Newton (You can write to him at his fanmail address and get one dedicated to you)
Ken Sharrock (Is quite rare, so it may tougher to find him, but very few bondshots from him are authentic)
Daud Shah (Again, if you researched around, I am sure you can find his fan mail to write to)
Geoffrey Keen (I think I saw one on ebay this week, again not to rare to find)
Murray Kash (I would stay away from bondshots signed in silver / any other thick markers. He is rare but he does pop up)
Joe Robinson (Head to bondstars for 100% authentic autographs from him)
Claude Oliver Rudolph (Again fan mail is the better option)
George Roubicec (He has done autograph shows so you can find him on ebay, just do your research first)
Gladys Knight (I got mine after writing to her, she signs all her fan mail)
Karin Dor (Quite a common autograph, but again use her fan mail)
Mads Mikkelsen (Again use fan mail, its not worth buying an autograph from somebody you can get it for free from)
Jesper Christensen (Same as above)
Ben Wishaw (Again, young actor, plenty of chances to get his autograph)
Chaim Topol (Chaim signs everything through the mail and his autograph is not that rare)
Goldie (You can buy these officially autograph rittenhouse cards, they are your best bet)
Marguerite Lewars (Marguerite was extremely offended by Bondcollectibles asking her to sign so many autographs, so she refused to sign anything for them. She did autographica a few years ago and you can buy official photos from them.)
Bernard Horsefall (Bondstars.com or rittenhouse official autographed cards).
Shirley Eaton (She charges for autographs now so head to bondstars.com or plenty of vintage pages on ebay)
Patrick Malahide (Fan mail)
Eva Green (Fan mail or in person)
Richard Samuel (A little uncertain on this one but I would imagine fan mail if you research)
Barbara Carrera (Bondstars)
Edward Fox (Bondstars)
Frederick Warder (he was at autographica a few years back, so again head to their site)
George Leech (bondstars)
Martin Benson (bondstars)
Stephen Berkhoff (You can contact him through his fan mail although be prepared to pay)
Joe Don Baker (Official rittenhouse cards or in person, many many fakes of him out there)
Barbara Broccoli (fan mail)
Peter Hunt (A tough one to find, you might have to stay patient as there is another famous director from the US with the same name, so keep a look out.)
Michael Culver (pops up on ebay quite often)
Mathieu Amalric (Fan mail or in person)
Zena Marshall (bondstars)
Kit Hillier (did an autograph show recently so quite a few on ebay)
Dermot Crowley (Fan mail)
Olga Kurylenko (fan mail or rittenhouse card or in person)
Personally, I would send everything back to him. I wouldn't trust that company a yard, but that's just me -{
I'm hopeful that at least some of the ones I have gotten from bondcollectibles will be authentic, but you're probably right. There will probably always be that nagging doubt in the back of my mind. I will post scans as soon as they arrive and get everyone's feedback.
I've always found the customer service to be excellent and I was actually referred to them by a number of posters on this site. I've had no reason to doubt the autographs I've bought, any more than other items I've got through the mail. Ultimately, bottom line is that unless you see the item signed in front of you, you will always have a nagging doubt about authenticity at the back of your mind.
Also, if you trawl back over historic posts you'll see that Alex and the company were excellently regarded here not so long ago, I'm just a bit confused as to when this changed???
I still don't understand why Ebay hasn't cracked down if he's known to be peddling forgeries as authentic autographs. But his feedback has remained 100% positive for at least the last year, though he does have a couple of neutrals and negatives.
I'm anxious to get the 30 autographs I won from him to compare with known authentic examples. But after reading the forums, I'm not too hopeful.
I think the more years you spend collecting, the more you learn that some things are never quite what they seem. I made my mistakes with bondcollectibles as have many others before and I wouldn't want to see anyone share the disappointment that I did. I am not out to make bondcollectibles look bad (I am not a rival dealer or anything like that, just a collector), I am here to state evidence and facts if someone like 75vette is looking for advice, no matter who the seller is.
Finally received the 30+ autographs I bought from bondcollectibles. Would very much appreciate your comments as to their authenticity.
Also, they are all printed on super glossy photo paper (with the exception of 4 of them) and look brand new, like they were printed yesterday. And it's difficult to tell that the photos are signed and not simply photographs/photocopies of autographed photos. Any ideas on how to tell for sure?
Also, I bought 2 of the same autographs (Patrick Malahide) on purpose to see if they were identical but they appear to be different, though signed by the same person.
Thanks for any help you guys can offer!
Mike
I listed a few bond autographs on the Bay and this one got removed due to a Trademark conflict!! (whatever the *'* that means with a signature, but ebay says "its to protect me and other ebayers" after many mails etc and another 400 grey hairs I thought I'd put a post on here to get your opinions!
Makes my blood boil when I see 1000s of blatent fakes being sold weekly!!!!!!
Its a Paul McCartney signed 7" single I've had for about 6 or 7 years.
Now check this other McCartney Signature I'm pretty sure is a genuine and see the similarities... The "OVE" of Love are so alike especially the "O" and how this has been "swirled"
What do you think?
And the similarities in "Love" are just chance you reckon? thats the thing that made me look twice.
Thanks again
'68 Ferzetti ?
Still would like feedback on the above scans I posted a few weeks ago, as I need to make a decision on which ones to keep.
Also, everyone may already know this but apparently George Lane Cooper (Diamonds Are Forever) passed away about 10 years ago. I wrote him at the address provided by Startiger (which was still active) and received an email from the current home owner informing me she is the owner of his former home and he had passed away. I sent the details to Startiger, so hopefully they will update his profile.
Thanks,
Mike
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Madonna-Autograph-Cut-Signature-w-8x10-Photo-Mounted-Framed-to16x20-w-LOA-/151213031859
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gillian-AndersonAutographed-8x10-Black-White-Photograph-Fr-Private-Collector-/151231961668
I think this dealer sells forgeries , maybe we can contact ms Blackman to put legal pressure ? X-(
Gill Anderson doesn't appear legit either.......I've met her personally and that's not how she signs.
I recently bought a small collection of Bond signatures from a private collector. Would appreciate your input on their authenticity, especially Sean Connery and Timothy Dalton.
The Connery is a 5x7 photo, the Dalton is a 3x4 Toy Story 3 card, and the others are 2.5x3.5 007 cards.
Thank you very much,
Mike
CA sec ttm......looks different to the one I got early 00s ?
Maybe she got tired people selling em on ebay 8-)
Re : d'Abo.....met her IP and that is not legit imo.
Re : Blackman......the "H" looks weird , same with the "r" which usually looks rounded at the top. Fake too , imo.
Thanks for the input, Grindelwald! A little confused as to the Claudine Auger comments, though, as none of the photos are of her haha
I'm still waiting for a d'Abo TTM so didn't have anything to which to compare it. That's bad news
I've gotten Blackman TTM as well as purchased and the truth is every signature I have of her differs in some way from the others. Sure wish everyone would sign the same haha!
Thanks, again, for the input,
Mike
Okay, I understand now. I got her TTM about 5 years ago and it looks similar to what I'm seeing today, so may be secretarial as well.
Your Connery looks similar to mine. I've looked on this thread at some of the other postings of his authentic signature and it seems mine is very similar (I hope). Hope the Dalton is, as well.