Questions on gold HOF plaque postcards

[JimStinson]

To address your question on signed George Weiss gold plaques specificially here is what I know. A few maybe even several have surfaced over the years , ALL were signed by his wife or caregiver. He was in ill health and almost bedridden.

A collector I used to know actually went to Weiss house and requested his autograph on the 3 or 4 plaques he brought. The wife or person who answered the door suggested he leave them and pick them up the next day.

Already suspecting Weiss was NOT signing them he somehow managed to convince her to let him in to actually speak to Weiss as he lived nearby and had met him before. He was surprised at how ill he was and asked if he would sign one of the plaques for him which he did in his presence IN-PERSON, but only one and asked that the others be left and he would sign them.

The Weiss signature he obtained looked nothing like George Weiss signature and certainly was not the signature he recieved on the others when he eventually picked them up which matched those that collectors had recieved prior and suspected they were ghost signed.

So its generally believed or at least I was always told there is exactly ONE authentic Weiss signed gold plaque in existence , The one that was signed that day. it was sold about 15 years ago to a private collector for a pretty penny and still resides in that collection. We speak often and the owner of the plaque believes as do I that it is the only known authentic example of a George Weiss signed Gold plaque. Hope this helps
______________________________
jim@stinsonsports.com

[dgo71]

That is a fascinating story, as always I appreciate the knowledge of the subject that you bring. I would imagine with Goslin front signed plaques selling in the $6-7K range, Weiss would easily be into five figures, should the collector ever choose to sell it. I would love to see scans of both the legit plaque, as well as the ones signed by his caregiver/wife for comparison. Thanks for your input Jim!

[RichardSimon]

The only signed gold plaks of Weiss that I have ever seen have been ghost signed.

[dgo71]

Thanks Richard! As for Waner and McKechnie, safe to assume they don't exist? Would either of you, or anyone, know if the gold plaques were in fact made available to the public for the first time in late 1965?

[RichardSimon]

Waner and McKechnie do not exist as far as I know.
While I have seen a few ghost signed Weiss plaks I have never seen a Waner or McKechnie plak with any signature on it.
I have always believed that the gold plaks became available in 1966, making it impossible for Waner or McKechnie to have signed them.

[dgo71]

That makes even more sense. McKechnie passed in October of '65, so surely if the plaques had been issued prior to that, you would think a forgery at the very least would have entered the market. Thanks again Richard!

[RichardSimon]

Originally Posted by dgo71

That makes even more sense. McKechnie passed in October of '65, so surely if the plaques had been issued prior to that, you would think a forgery at the very least would have entered the market. Thanks again Richard!

No opportunity would pass the forgers by. After this thread, I would not be surprised to see a discovery of these two plaks coming out of a Southern state .