Posted By:
Joshua Leland EvansLeon
I assumed our private correspondence was just that but now I know for the future
You have also perhaps unknowingly misinterpreted the thoughts that I expressed to you
In my first email I merely expressed a problem I had with personal attacks on the board
I will fight for anyone’s right to their opinion so say what you want about the issue or my firm but personal attacks and denigrations should be off limits according to the rules of the Forum
Yes I’m a big sensitive lug
After you failed to understand this point (you seemed to just ignore it) I thought it was wrong and it looked bad that a moderator was making his own subjective attack when I thought a moderator should have some objectivity
Maybe that is not the way Forums work but then pick a better word than “moderator”
This was and is merely a criticism not a condemnation
Overall, I love this Forum (sometimes I hate it yes) but I think you do a great job most of the time and this serves a valuable purpose that benefits all of us ion the long run
As for the Clemente situation we are pleased to be donating the plane (at our cost) to the Sports Museum in San Juan
We do want to apologize foremost to the Clemente Family with whom we have discussed this with and to the people of our industry who were hurt or offended by it
It is you the hobby that keeps us going
This situation has showed us many things
Number one it showed us that this was over the line
The “line” is that of good taste and what is considered to be proper
Whether or not you like us, or believe in what we did I still think it is important to find and define what and where that line is
Also, we will continue to straddle that line in our sales as to what we feel is historically significant
To be frank though, I still have questions and some ambivalence
That line is a narrow one in that it is okay for the Munson Family to sell Thurman's pilot’s license yet not okay for someone else to profit on it
I guess it has to have the family’s blessing
It is also okay to display and charge admission to see a piece of the plane that Otis Redding died in at the Rock ‘N Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland
We differ on whether it is okay to bring up pieces of the Titanic
Much of the autograph business is based on who is dead and who is living (morbid?)
But that is what makes the world go round
As for anyone that thinks we did this for the money that is absurd
You guys know the level of business we do and how little a $5,000 or a $10,000 consignment means in comparison to the $5 million plus auction we are running as we speak (sorry for the plug)
I turned down the record album that Mark Chapman had signed by John Lennon before he shot him
That was an easy decision, but compare the commissions if you think I am a cold heartless Fagin
The commissions would have been tens of thousands of dollars
I put the pieces in the auction based on a vision, my vision, Mike Heffner’s vision
We want an auction that is #1 authentic (and we have the cleanest auction in the hobby) and #2 interesting
We look for historical significance, aesthetics and yes dollars (you have to stay in business)
That is why there has always been a memorabilia focus (now changing to cards as well) where things are more unusual, more aesthetic
An auction should be a beautiful tapestry woven from that vision
So you think my vision sucks?
Well that may be true but that’s why they call it Lelands and not something else
Now I am going to get a ton more of grief for this post
Try to stay constructive and use words that have at least one syllable
And Leon, please do not publish my home phone number
And thank you for listening
Respectfully,
Josh Evans