Not that anyone asked, but here are some of my thoughts on collecting...

[thekingofclout]

A thread on the memorabilia side got me to thinking about all the talk on how many of us get let down when an auction house catalog comes up short of our expectations, myself included which is hysterical as my spending spree has been put on the back burner for the time being... until my consignments sell and I get some dough back in my pocket. Anyway, the emotional roller coaster is in full bloom as opening day is upon us and here is my take on why we are so passionate about memorabilia...

A Memorabilia collector's frame of mind compared with that of a card collector are much further apart than most of us would suspect. When you collect things that are not found in a monthly price guide or traded as a commodity, value can be very difficult to ascertain and many factors may go into trying to put a fair market price to a particular piece.

Also, the attachment factor is far stronger for memorabilia than it is with cards. As kids we all had a card collection at some point in our youth, but just how many of us had a 24"x48" advertising display or original news service photographs, or maybe seats from an old stadium cluttering up our rooms. They just weren't accessible nor did we have the means to buy them even if they were.

Not all memorabilia was created equal. Some we certainly had displayed, be it a poster of your Hero or a premium from a cereal or sports magazine. But as far as attachment goes, those fall into the same category as cards.

Pennants, programs, pins, and other various ballpark souvenirs were the things we brought home from an actual game our father may have taken us to. Maybe a Sunday afternoon game with the whole family or an organized event with your little league team, or scout troop, maybe your local church or social club. Going to ballgames in any of those scenarios were very special for me and I would think the same is true for almost all of us.

Souvenirs from those special times in your life were so much more than just something we'd hang on the wall of our room. Little did we know then, that those souvenirs were what we would eventually hang our fondest childhood memories upon.

The emotional attachment there will never be forgotten. Maybe the years went by and it just wasn't something that you thought about, until... the Barry Halper Auction made the mainstream news all over the country. I think that was the wake up call for tens of thousands of Baby Boomer men like myself, who had collected cards on and of since we were kids, but never were actually seeking out memorabilia.

At that time Ebay was shifting into third gear and the "how and where" we bought cards and memorabilia was changed forever.

Speaking of shifting gears...

Just think about this...REA had a whole year to acquire the goods that are offered in their current auction, which is big part of the reason we all "Oow and Aaw" over their catalogs.

The other leading houses run two, three, or four catalog auctions in a calendar year, some maybe even more. Point being is, if Heritage or Hunt only produced just ONE auction catalog a year, you really don't think it would rival REA? Now I just want to add that I think REA does an incredible job year in and year out, I'm just commenting on the way I see things.

It all comes down to what business plan best fits each companies needs.

There are several strong auction houses in the hobby that all do a good job, whether we personally like them or not, and of course we all have our favorites, and trust some more than others. But the bottom line is, if they produce the items we desire, we will stand in line to give them our money.

I'm a firm believer of the saying that "people vote with their feet" and in the end, after all the crying and complaining is done, collectors get right back in line. Kind of like the kid at Disneyland that objects about going on Space Mountain, he hates roller coasters. it's dumb, the line's too long, but the second the coaster comes to a halt, he's the first one back in line.

That's just human nature, and eventually, we all end up in waiting in that long line once again.

In closing (finally) I know that most of us don't want to read something this damn long, and I'm one of you, but this has been on my mind for a long time and I thought that maybe with the season starting, everyone would be more forgiving.

Sincerely, Jimmy

P.S. In order to irritate as many board members as possible, I'm posting this on both boards.