The evidence against Barry Halper is mounting

mr2686 · #1 08-26-2010, 12:23 PM

so what's the thinking here...he got duped, knew it, and starting making up authentication stories to save face, or did he knowingly invest very little in bogus stuff in order to sell it later on at high market value?

D. Bergin · #2 08-26-2010, 01:01 PM

I have a feeling Halper was just one of those guys who believed everything he was told, because he wanted to believe it.

The collectible world is full of people with "stories" of their treasured heirlooms. Unfortunately there's plenty of folks out there who take it at face value without doing the research. Why else would companies like Coach's Corner be so successful?

Being in the boxing field, I can't tell you how many calls I get from people who have gloves of famous boxers "given to their father/grandfather" and passed down in the family.

Usually the story goes something like "My father met Rocky Marciano at a gym. Rocky gave him a pair of gloves and told him, these are the gloves I used to knock out Jersey Joe Walcott".

Whether the gloves were even owned or even touched by the original boxer is a matter of debate. The fact is 99 times out of 100 the gloves offered aren't even the right size, brand or even era of glove.............and more times then not, they are sparring gloves and not actual fight used gloves.

Whether Halper made up these stories himself or just naively passed on anecdotes he was told, I don't know.

I'm sure plenty of his material was also pretty good.

slidekellyslide · #3 08-26-2010, 01:27 PM

There is no doubt that most of the material in his collection is good...but that is stuff like cards, and memorabilia. When it comes to the game used stuff I'm not sure I'd trust anything in that collection. And I think at this point it's apparent that he wasn't just duped, but he did some duping himself. (ie Jackson and Robinson jerseys)

mcgwirecom · #4 08-26-2010, 03:26 PM

Around the time of the Halper Auction ( I think it was a few months after) there was someone selling more of Halpers collection on Ebay. Mostly the cheaper items that didn't warrant a catalog auction. I definitely saw a bogus McGwire signed bat. The signature wasn't even close. It bothered me that a guy with a collection that valuable didn't bother to even check out the cheap stuff.

On a related note, when the travelling show of McGwire and Sosa items came through Philly I went to see it (at the Vet during a Phillies game). Todd McFarlane sent a lot of his Guernsey's Auction acquisitions on tour so people could take a look. In there along with all his homerun balls he had two bats, one signed by Mac and one signed by both Sosa and Mac. Both were horrible forgeries. Very strange.

Scott Garner · #5 08-26-2010, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcgwirecom

Around the time of the Halper Auction ( I think it was a few months after) there was someone selling more of Halpers collection on Ebay. Mostly the cheaper items that didn't warrant a catalog auction. I definitely saw a bogus McGwire signed bat. The signature wasn't even close. It bothered me that a guy with a collection that valuable didn't bother to even check out the cheap stuff.

On a related note, when the travelling show of McGwire and Sosa items came through Philly I went to see it (at the Vet during a Phillies game). Todd McFarlane sent a lot of his Guernsey's Auction acquisitions on tour so people could take a look. In there along with all his homerun balls he had two bats, one signed by Mac and one signed by both Sosa and Mac. Both were horrible forgeries. Very strange.

Randall,
Why do you think that Todd McFarlane paid as much as he did for all those McGwire and Sosa balls? Just because you have alot of money doesn't mean that you have alot of common sense. BTW, I wouldn't doubt if the prices realized on some of those balls weren't the result of some spirited shill bidding IMHO.

RichardSimon · #6 08-26-2010, 05:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott Garner

Randall,
Why do you think that Todd McFarlane paid as much as he did for all those McGwire and Sosa balls? Just because you have alot of money doesn't mean that you have alot of common sense. BTW, I wouldn't doubt if the prices realized on some of those balls weren't the result of some spirited shill bidding IMHO.

I was the sports consultant for Guernsey's during that auction and I can guarantee you that there was no shill bidding.

HRBAKER · #7 08-26-2010, 06:02 PM

I seem to recall a case where a Frank Chance jersey that was missing the Cubs patch on the breast somehow ended up with a Cubs patch from another jersey of a minor "no-name" guy. The leap of faith one has to take in the high dollar game used memorabilia hobby is not one I think I'd ever risk.

It was a "Bear" I believe off of a Jake Pfeister jersey that was added "after initial season usage."

Scott Garner · #8 08-26-2010, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RichardSimon

I was the sports consultant for Guernsey's during that auction and I can guarantee you that there was no shill bidding.

Richard,
That's amazing considering where the prices went. Randall Hahn was at the live auction as a Mcgwire consultant and he told me today that the bids were all legit because he saw the live bidder bid all the way to the end. Incredible! I stand corrected...

springpin · #9 08-26-2010, 03:45 PM

I ask this question out of genuine ignorance about uniforms. If these uniforms are not the real deal, where did they come from, or what exactly are they? Are they uniforms used in spring training that never made it to the big leagues? Are they total cut-and-stitch fakes made a month previous to "discovery"? Should we envision some 80-year old seamstress hunched over a sewing machine with orders from some criminal mind to fabricate (literally) a uniform that looks like one worn 70 years previously when she was a child? Is there a "uniform cartel" run by bad guys who just happen to be wickedly handy with a needle and thread? I accept the wisdom and opinions of experts on uniforms to believe their judgments---the uniforms are not what they are claimed to be. OK, but someone please explain where and how these fakes come into existence. Thanks.

slidekellyslide · #10 08-26-2010, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by springpin

I ask this question out of genuine ignorance about uniforms. If these uniforms are not the real deal, where did they come from, or what exactly are they? Are they uniforms used in spring training that never made it to the big leagues? Are they total cut-and-stitch fakes made a month previous to "discovery"? Should we envision some 80-year old seamstress hunched over a sewing machine with orders from some criminal mind to fabricate (literally) a uniform that looks like one worn 70 years previously when she was a child? Is there a "uniform cartel" run by bad guys who just happen to be wickedly handy with a needle and thread? I accept the wisdom and opinions of experts on uniforms to believe their judgments---the uniforms are not what they are claimed to be. OK, but someone please explain where and how these fakes come into existence. Thanks.

The uniforms ARE vintage...the question is, are they legitimate. It's pretty easy to stitch a name into a uniform. According to the article the Joe Jax uniform has stitches that are not faded like the rest of the uniform, and that's only one problem among many with that jersey.

springpin · #11 08-26-2010, 03:59 PM

Dan,

Thanks. If I understand the meaning of your answer, a uniform is declared to be what someone says it is because of the name of a player stitched somewhere into the uniform. So a given uniform was legitimately from some notable team (e.g., 1919 White Sox), but the critical issue is whether it was actually worn by a particular player (e.g., Jackson)?

Paul

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