Lelands to offer Nude photo of Joe DiMaggio at auction

[Exhibitman]

Alan, it is not to Lelands credit that they removed the Clemente items from their past auction or the concentration camp memorabilia from their current auction; it is to their shame that they offered items of that ilk for sale in the first place until the complaints from their customers drove them to take them down. One has to wonder at the thinking at Lelands. Considered in light of past offerings (KKK robe, Clemente plane crash pieces, concentration camp 'memorabilia'), it is apparent that whoever is making their consignment decisions suffers from an apalling lack of judgment and approaches business from the standpoint of what they can get away with rather than what is right. What's next, a used rape kit? Mass murderer autographs? As Joseph Welch said to Joe McCarthy: "Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?"

I'm Adam Warshaw and I approved this message.

[yanks12025]

I personally dont have a problem with them offering any of those items. Because they are still an auction house that does offer more than just baseball stuff. Even though you may not like it, there's still people who collect the KKK robe or stuff from the concentration camp. Because in the end, it is still part of history and people collect history.

i know a collector here has a piece of the Hindenburg, so is that in bad taste cause people died from that. I own a WW2 German helmet that was dug from a battle field, is that of bad taste. No because yes they were traffic events but its still part of history and people collect.

I only find it bad if you buy the stuff to cause trouble, liking wearing the robe or making jokes about the concentration camp.

[novakjr]

I'm confused, this isn't "the old balls game" thread?

[mcgwirecom]

Janglin' Joe DiMaggio... Now I feel strange with my hand on his shoulder...

[benderbroeth]

as someone else posted i do not know wht legal rights the dimaggio family has to try and end this auction, the photo is owned by someone else, unless it was stolen from the family i do not see them being able to tell people what they can sell.

[WhenItWasAHobby]

I received the auction catalog in the mail several weeks ago and found these photo auctions extremely disturbing.

First off, Lelands is hyping them as artistic boudoir photos -which they aren't. By definition, boudoir means seductively clothed female photos. These are nothing of the sort.

Second, the comparison of these to Marilyn Monroe nude photos is absurd. Monroe clearly consented to her photos and was financially compensated. We know nothing about the Dimaggio and Feller photos. They aren't even looking directly at the camera, so it's quite possible, if not highly probable that these photos were taken without their consent. Someone could have walked up with a concealed camera, quickly pulled out the camera, taken the photos and ran off before the victims could do anything about it.

I also find it intriguing that these photos didn't surface until after both Feller and Dimaggio died. If these are innocent forms of art, with no concerns of demeaning the individuals, or being sued by the individuals, why weren't they published years ago? In fact, why didn't Feller and Dimaggio pose nude for calenders or magazines as Monroe did if it's no big deal? It's a safe bet that they would have never wanted these to be made public.

Shame on Lelands and the moral degenerates who will try to buy these.

[GrayGhost]

The more I read this, the more disturbed I am, by these "dealers". No need for this stuff to be there.