Dont Get Fooled Again

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Today autograph memoribilia is usually acompanied by a COA. The Certificate or Letter of Authenticity is the insurance papers that states the the piece is real. Unfortunely the certs from most mean little or nothing when the item goes up for resale. Items today need to be examined by Professional Authentication Services. This gives the buyer the documentation that other buyers are looking for. The service consist of a team of authenti-cators. Several are chosen to personally examine a autographed item. A Certificate of Authenticity will be issued for each item submitted that passes the examination. The letter is hand signed by authenticator. These Services uses what is called by many the largest autograph reference library in the world. Many scholars, librarians and auction houses utilize this library for their research. Autograph reference books dating from the 1830s and every conceivable book published on the subject are available to the reserachers.

Once the man took the podium at the 2004 Demoratic National Convention as a canadate for senator of Illinois. Obama connected on a personal level with millions of Americans. He became a man with a destiny to the white house. Along with this came the interest of the autograph collector. At first, Obama would sign for as many people as possible. Then, it became overwhelming. There was not enought time in the day for him to sign. Telling the fans he did not have enough time and if they didn't mind to wait until Obama could sign them after the event, his staff would take the items to a back room and give them back later. Some received the item back with an authentic signuture, but many did not. Obama's staff often used an Autopen to sign the items for him. Autopens are commonly used by presidents and other politicians for official purposes and autograph requests by mail. A high percentage of autograph requests mailed to Obama's Senate offices were sent back with a autopen signature, but his use of one on the campaign trail was a first.

Value brings greed

The value of a Barack Obama signature are in the hundreds, if not the thousands and continues to climb. He might possibly be the most saught after signature to date. With this news many of the forgeries have began to surface. Obama's large signature is easy to copy, because it consists mostly of his initials. A survey conducted found that 85-percent of Obama autographs were likely forgeries, autopen or secreterial.

The Study Begins

Michael Frost head autograph authenticator for P.A.A.S. "Professional Autograph Authentication Services Inc." with over 25 years in business has been established as one of the foremost authenticators in the autograph industry. P.A.A.S. authenticates autographs of sports, entertainment and historical signatures using handwriting experts and state of the art security detection technology. Michael Frost is the foremost expert in the Country on the signature and handwriting of Barack Obama. He has a signature study about to be released through the
IADA-CC. Michael Frost has studied and authenticated hundreds of Barack Obama signatures over the past 2 years. P.A.A.S. now has a library of over 1000 exemplars of Barack Obama signatures and handwriting going back to his early Political career. Mike Frost has obtained over 45,000 autographs in person and has authenticated over 7500 autographs. Michael Frost is a true pioneer in the autograph hobby and autograph authentication industry. Mike Frost has worked hand and hand with 100's of athletes and celebrities with private signings and personal appearances.** Michael Frost could be reached at specialagent 711@aol.com or www.paasautographs.com He is looking for examples and all input on Barack Obama handwriting and auto pen signatures. He is also looking for in-person experiences and comments for

www.iada-cc.com Noteworthy News

Beware of fake Michael Jackson signed items throughout the industry.

Michael Jackson signed memorabilia and other artifacts have more then tripled in price and Forgeries are on the raise.The Internet is now bombarded with non authentic Michael Jackson signed items. Well they can only go up in value and in many cases by huge amounts. Beware as 70% of Michael Jackson autographs on eBay are forged or printed signatures. There will be loads of people out there trying to make some fast money off of Michael Jackson's valued signature.
Michael Frost President of the IADA-CC and head authentictor for P.A.A.S. in a interview with the media last night stated that eBay is well aware of this problem and he and others are helping to examine the items being offered as we speak. Mike Frost was examining eBay items last night until 3.45 am. Michael Frost stated that at 6.30 PM on Thursday June 25, 2009 there were 163 signed Michael Jackson signed items on eBay. Of the 163 signed items 15 were PSA/DNA certified, 89 were reprinted signatures 48 were 100% forgeries, and only 14 others were 100% authentic with the rest being questionable. By 11:35 PM there were 675 signed Michael Jackson signed items on eBay with over 70% being 100% fake.
When purchasing a Michael Jackson autograph or any other signed item, the item should be accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (COA). COA's are an important aspect in the process but buyers need to be careful. Anybody can issue a COA with an autograph item but this doesn't mean that the item is 100% authentic. Who issues the COA is the most significant factor.The dealer standing behind this "guarantee' should be reputable and offer a 100% lifetime guarantee as well as an invoice with their Name, Phone Number, Address and Website. You are always best purchasing from a IADA-CC or UACC Autograph Dealer. Do not make a mistake and buy a fake autograph,do your homework and ask a lot of question's.
Michael Jackson was a great person and a very good signer but ask where, when, and how the signature was obtained.
If you are not sure, or you already own autographs and are not convinced that they are authentic? There are third party authentication services such as James Spence, P.A.A.S., Roger Epperson,and Al Wittnebert, that can examine your autographs and determine if they are 100% authentic. These authentication companies would then issue a Certificate of Authenticity. This Letter of Authenticity can help the buyer purchase with a little more confidence.
Always trust your instincts. Autographs and Sports memorabilia are sold all over and a great percent are not authentic. Do not get fooled by the price. If the price of an item is too low to be true, it usually is. Try to always support the IADA-CC dealers they have solid reputations and you'll have an enjoyable buying and collecting autographs.! See www.iada-cc.com for a Dealer Directory.