Autograph

:An article about a record label is titled Autograph Records.

Fakes - forgeries

But this hobby is extensively fraught with documents, photographs and sports items that were signed by forgers seeking to profit handsomely by selling either a fake or forged item purportedly signed by the real individual to an unwitting buyer. Sometimes it is just the signature that has been forged, other times the entire document has been unscrupulously doctored.

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Fake or forged autographs abound for almost all famous personalities. The problem is: how to tell the real signatures from the fakes? Differentiating is almost impossible by the beginning collector.

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Sadly, there are many forged autographs being sold through various internet auction firms, used book stores, and at "garage sales"; the neophyte collector must cast a jaundiced eye at the many popular items being offered.

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Forgers go to great lengths in making their forgeries appear authentic. They use blank end papers from old books upon which to write their fake signatures in their attempt to "match" their autograph with papers of the era that the personality lived. They research to learn the formulas about how to recreate inks of the era that they want to make their fake writings appear to be from. One fascinating book that explores the production of impressive fake manuscripts pertaining to the Mormons (Church of the Latter Day Saints) is: "A Gathering of Saints" by Robert Lindsey.

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One must know the era in which U.S. presidents signed their documents. U.S. presidents used to sign "land grants" until U.S. Pres. Andrew Jackson (c.1836) grew tired of this extremely time-consuming chore. Ever since then secretaries of the president have mimicked their master's signatures on these documents (known as a "proxy" signature). Virtually all movie stars have their secretaries sign their letters and photographs for them. When U.S. Pres. Ronald Reagan was an actor during the 1940s he had his mother sign his name to much of his fan-mail.

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The "other" American president: During the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865) the president of the Confederate States of America was Jefferson Davis. Due to his extensive correspondence, his wife frequently signed his name to his dictated letters. As she duplicated his signature so well, she usually placed a "dot" or "period" after the signature so that he could tell her signatures of his name from his own!

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All of the Union and Confederate generals from the U.S. Civil War have been forged. Many were faked during the 1880s when there was a fad by aging soldiers in collecting Civil War autographs. Most deceptions were of mere signatures on a small piece of paper, but extensively written letters were forged as well. Beware of buying any "clipped signature" being offered -- sometimes, the bogus autograph will be glued onto an authentic steel-engraved portrait of that person. Some steel engravings will reprint the autograph of the portrayed person; this is known as a "facsimile" autograph, and to an uninformed buyer it may appear to be real.

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Fakes - the autopen

Since the early 1950s almost all U.S. presidents, cabinet members, senators and representatives have had an "autopen" or "robot" signature-signing machine sign their letters, photographs and books that collectors have mailed to them for autographing. The Signa-Signer can even write out in ink an authentically looking handwritten message that has been typed into the machine. One book detailing the use of this machine by Pres. John F. Kennedy (1961-1963) is "The Robot That Helped to Make a President." Forgers have faked the signatures of all U.S. presidents.

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That nice moon photo signed by moon-walker Neil Armstrong (c.1972) being sold -- is most likely an autopen signature; he declined to sign most of these items since 1980. Astronaut Alan Shepard acknowledged that NASA uses the autopen machine to sign the astronauts' voluminous correspondence. Many large corporations also use these machines for signing business letters. One might think that autopen signatures would constantly match one another. However, even autopen signatures will eventually change as the signature drum becomes worn and thereby alters the signature. After reading about these professional fakes, one must be leery of buying any presidential or astronaut signature from unknown sellers.

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In December 2004 a controversy arose when it was revealed that the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, was using an autopen to sign letters-of-condolence to families of U.S. military members who had died during Gulf War II. Shortly thereafter, Rumsfeld announced that he would start to personally sign such letters.

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Fakes - deceptive devices

Some personalities have used a rubber or steel hand-stamp to "sign" their documents. U.S. Pres. Andrew Johnson (c.1866) did so after his right hand was damaged in a train accident when he was a senator before becoming president -- that's why his autograph as president differs from those signed when he was a senator. Pres. Warren Harding frequently used a rubber stamp while he was a senator. Both Roosevelt presidents used them, along with Pres. Woodrow Wilson (c.1916). Even England's King Henry VIII and Pennsylvania-colony founder William Penn used the deceiving hand stamp.

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Excellent forgeries have been made for all of Europe's old kings. The bourgeoisie French nobles had their secretaires de main sign their documents while they spent their time instead thinking about how to expand taxes upon the toiling proletarian. Many forgeries of France's Napoleon (c.1800) war orders exist; he was so busy fighting that he barely had enough time to just sign the promotion orders for generals only, while his scribes counterfeited his name to lesser documents.

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All of the famous scientists, space astronauts, arctic explorers, musicians, poets, and literary authors have had forgeries produced of their epistols and signatures: Einstein, Adm. Richard Byrd, John Philip Souza, Florence Nightingale, the actor Charlie Chaplin, Henry Kissinger, Mark Twain and Charles Dickens, just to mention a few. False signatures of the aviator Charles Lindbergh were clandestinely signed onto real 1930-era airmail envelopes bought at stamp shops and then re-sold to unwary buyers; the same with aviatrix Amelia Earhart and the flying Wright brothers. "Mickey Mouse" creator, Walt Disney (1955), had several of his cartoonists duplicate his artistic signature on replies to children seeking his autograph.

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When "liberators" freed their country from foreign control they soon issued new paper currency. You will see Texas currency apparently signed in ink by Sam Houston (c.1835), who presided over the Republic of Texas, before it became a U.S. state. However, that's not Sam's real handwriting, he had various treasury officials pen his name to those notes -- after all, he was busy governing a new country!

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A "Smithsonian Magazine" article explored the "melting timepieces" artwork of the Spanish painter Salvador Dali. It quoted one of his secretaries as claiming that she used to sign the eccentric artist's signature to postcards depicting his paintings.

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Nixon Resignation: Some deceivers cut pages from books that U.S. Pres. Richard Nixon (c.1970) signed on the blank flyleaf, typed his letter of resignation from the presidency on that signed page, and then sold the doctored item as if Nixon had personally signed a scarce copy of that historical document! The miscreant has changed the value of a lower-priced signed book quite easily to a much more lucrative item; changing a mere signature into a signed manuscript!

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Fakes - World War II (1939-1945)

Many of the autographed documents allegedly signed by the German leaders of the NAZI government have been forged. Many spurious documents and postcards claiming to be signed by Adolf Hitler exist. Many were written on blank NAZI stationary that had been purloined by Allied soldiers ransacking the desks inside of the Fuhrer's shambled bunker in Berlin. German Fieldmarshall Erwin Rommel has had many bogus signatures penned in his characteristic green pencil that he used (because ink dried too quickly in the hot North African climate). Italian dictator Benito Mussolini's signature has been forged on authentic documents actually signed by King Emanuel -- this helps to make the phony Mussolini signature appear to be real, as it is on an otherwise sound document -- a great disguise.

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Confused Identifies: During the U.S. Revolutionary War (1776-1783) both Oliver Wolcott (Sr.) and his son, Oliver Wolcott Jr., signed various government documents. Senior signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence and his autograph is, thereby, valuable. His son, who was a state treasurer, isn't. Watch out for that WWII blitzkrieging Gen. Guderian autographed document, it could be signed by his son who became a German general, too, but after the war! The same confusion can exist in trying to differentiate between the signatures of the sons of Rommel and the American Admiral Nimitz (1945).

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Writing Style Changes: An individual's writing styles change throughout the life-span of a person; a signature of Pres. George Washington (c.1795) will be different from when he was a young 18-year-old land surveyor versus when he was president. After British Adm. Nelson lost his right arm at the Tenerife sea-battle in 1797, he switched to his remaining left hand -- which signature is rarer? Forgers buy real Revolutionary War-era documents and surreptitiously pen a famous patriot's name between other real signatures in a manuscript in hope of deceiving an unsuspecting buyer. The more nefarious ones will even use tea or tobacco stains to brown or "age" their modern missives.

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It has been estimated that over 80 percent of the autographed items of famous American sports players being sold over the internet are fakes. Even the great baseball legend Babe Ruth has had his signature duplicated on old baseballs, then rubbed in dirt to make them appear to be from the 1930s.

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The bottom line is that if you want to protect your financial "bottom line" when buying autographed items of famous people, you need to buy from long-established autographed dealers. They have many years of research experience to determine the genuiness of their offerings. Yes, there are indeed many authentic autographs being sold on the internet, but can you afford to lose your valuable investment by buying through internet auctions from sellers who may vanish before you discover that your signed item is fake?

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As the U.S. Post Office cautions potentially unwary and gullible postal patrons: "If the offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is." Some sellers offer a COA: Certificate of Authenticity. These certificates are rated as "worthless." Any forger can provide them, too. Whenever you make a purchase you need to get an itemized bill-of-sale from only those dealers who are willing to provide a "lifetime" money-back guarantee -- again, best only from a long-established autograph dealer.

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AUTOGRAPH SOCIEITES: Two important autograph groups dedicated towards educating the populi about autograph collecting are "The Manuscript Society" and the "Universal Autograph Collectors Club" (UACC). Both of them have websites; please research them. The UACC lists autograph dealers who have agreed to follow certain ethical standards in selling autographed items. The Manuscripts Society's quarterly magazine contains advertisements placed by firms selling autographed items.

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The best way to avoid being cheated out of your hard-earned autograph-buying money is to understand how extensively forgeries exist of all famous people. Any serious collector needs to undertake some basic research by reading several important reference books written by some of the great autograph sleuths; several of which are described below. They are listed more or less in order of usefulness to budding scriptologists.

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