BEATLES hand signed HELP 45 sleeve w/COA - No Reserve

$

2,962

This is from my fathers estate, part of my inheritance. He started with his own Beatle items in the 60's, and never stopped. . . There are well over 1,000 items - 90% of them Beatles. They have been stored in a locked, humidity controlled storage facility in N.Y.C. for years. I haven't decided what to do with them, as I'm not a Beatle collector; I only collect early Punk Rock items. (That's why the screen name, RottenLtd- The Sex Pistols). Anyway, that's what I was into as a youngster, 25 years ago.

*ADDITION* It has come to my attention that certain people may dismiss this item out of hand, misunderstanding that for now, all I am selling are doubles and Autographed items that can be, or have already been replaced, unsigned. ANY QUESTIONS, no matter how small, can be easily answered, explained, and Verified/Proved to your satisfaction. PLEASE - Don't hesitate to eMail ANY questions or concerns. You WILL get an appropriate response. This piece is legit. . . One thing I do know, is I will not deal with the big houses: Sotheby's, Parke Burnet, Christie's etc. My family Has had nothing but trouble (purchasing) with these places, that all claim to be "Reputable" Dealers, with "Expert" appraisers. . . So, I decided to try eBay, and picked out a few test items to list here. . . My Father kept very complete Ledger Books with his collection. Here is the entry for this one:

Item B7-126: A fully autographed Help 45 picture sleeve, acquired in 1974 from a Capitol Records executive, whom I had to track down in L.A. . . When I did, he was reluctant to sell; having no reason to. In the end, I believe he did because of my enthusiasm, because he had no one to leave them to, and because he had several signed pieces, this being his least favorite. (You should have seen what was on his Office wall. . .) The signing took place in August 1965, during the Beatles week long stay at a rented house in Benedict Canyon, L.A; while finishing up their tour. The sleeve itself would grade NM, with zero ringwear, splits, etc. (As it should be- it was brand new when signed, the record never kept inside). Even the colors show no sign of fading. I grade it NM because it was never framed, and over the years, has been handled by various friends and viewers, but it s basically Mint. The signatures are not - They already had the same few slight smudge and fade marks when purchased (but I don t think they detract at all from this piece s stunning look). He explained: (and I paraphrase). . .

There were three of us at the house upon their arrival, as a sort of welcoming committee on behalf of Capitol. We had each brought items for signing (and a camera), should the opportunity arise. I knew from previous experience, that fountain and ball point s did not show up well on glossy type material, and was unaware of any felt tips that had the fine points available today. So I grabbed what was at the office, tried them out on different records, and finally decided on the felt tip. They were in pen form, not the Magic Marker type, but the tip was still fairly thick- I d say what we d call Medium today. What I did not take into account, was the drying time for these markers. . . They signed three items for me that day, and as they finished, I would slide them back into my folder - I suppose there were a couple of spots, still damp, that were either smudged, scraped or transferred back from the nearest paper, who knows? . . .

As far as I can see, only the top left Paul , and the top right Lennon were affected this way - which leads me to believe he slid this one in top first. Lennon s signature is unusual in it s curve: I believe he was running out of room, and decided to finish downward; causing a longer n , and making the R in Capitol Records look integrated. - From another item earlier in my Father s journals. . . There were no such things as COA s in those days. In fact, in the 1970 s, interest waned in the Beatles, and their stuff was going pretty cheaply. There wasn t really a market for forgeries. . . By the mid to late 80 s, forgeries were beginning to appear, and it seemed the first question on everybody s lips was: Have you had it authenticated? Eventually I gave in, and got expert verification and certificates for all of my autographed items (there really aren t that many), - for the sake of the collection; even though I am 100% sure of the authenticity of these items. I have usually had to track the owners down myself, have spent days and weeks getting to know them, increasing offers, and trying to convince the reluctant ones. Plus, as I said - most of them were acquired in the 70 s, and hard to find, even then. - J.P.W.

Sorry about the photo reproductions. They are not good. This looks WAY nicer in person: All the little subtleties that the pen makes are there - all the curves and lines crossing over others etc... Like how 'Ringo is all done in 1 stroke, and the 2nd 'r' in 'Harrison is totally visible, the end of 'Lennon'is not blurred, the 'A's are different in 'Starr', 'Harrison', and 'McCartney' etc. - Look at the "Capitol" Logo- I'm sure you all know how clear that is on the sleeve. The signatures are that much clearer too. It's like seeing someone in person compared to a bad photo. . .

NO RESERVE - $2750 starting bid. Payment by PAYPAL, POSTAL M.O. s, or CASH (registered) ONLY. Postage: First Class Insured $4. Item shipped when funds have cleared. If you you have a 0 rating, CONTACT ME FIRST. Overseas - Paypal Only, unless you send U.S. cash securely - registered or insured for signature. Payment to be made within 10 days of notification. Feel free to eMail any questions, but Please . . . No Want Lists.