HUGE vintage pick up for me - project in the works

[Custom Made]

Well,...I just picked up this SUPER RARE, cut auto tonight for what is IMO, an absolute steal!!


(For those of you who are into vintage cuts, you know his autos just about NEVER pop up). Just to put it into perspective, Legendary Cuts has been out for 8 years, and NEVER has there been an Ebbets cut.

Anywho,...when the autograph arrives, I will be chopping it, and God willing, transforming it into this:

[Ralph Zig Tyko]

Looks to me like Charlie DiGiovanna's grandfather signed that letter.

[Custom Made]

Looks to me that Charlie DiGiovanna's grandfather signed that letter.

Pardon my ignorance. Could you explain what you menat with your reply? It comes with a LOA from Spence/PSA, and I compared w/ another known/authentic Ebbets.

[AutographCollector]

Pardon my ignorance. Could you explain what you menat with your reply? It comes with a LOA from Spence/PSA, and I compared w/ another known/authentic Ebbets.

Heh. Charlie DiGiovanna's (Charlie is a member of this site) grandfather was the bat boy for the Dodgers in the 50's. His claim to fame (besides being the bat boy) was that he would "sign" MOST of the players names on balls. Basically a ghost signer if you will.

[Custom Made]

Heh. Charlie DiGiovanna's (Charlie is a member of this site) grandfather was the bat boy for the Dodgers in the 50's. His claim to fame (besides being the bat boy) was that he would "sign" MOST of the players names on balls. Basically a ghost signer if you will.

I thank you for the reply.

In regard to Ralph's reply, unless he was being sarcastic, I highly doubt this was signed by Charlies' grandfather. As you mentioned, he (grandfather) was known to sign balls, bats, etc. of players. Unless he (grandfather) was hanging around in the front office, and/or handling Mr. Ebbets' professional/business mail, all signs including the opinions of world renowned & respected authenticators, point to this being a rare, legit, Charles Ebbets auto.

[Ralph Zig Tyko]

I was just funnin' with [or without] you, Custom Made, not being sarcastic. Not that sarcasm isn't part of my annoying repertoire, just not in this case. Stay tuned...

[donzblock]

Well,...I just picked up this SUPER RARE, cut auto tonight for what is IMO, an absolute steal!!


(For those of you who are into vintage cuts, you know his autos just about NEVER pop up). Just to put it into perspective, Legendary Cuts has been out for 8 years, and NEVER has there been an Ebbets cut.

Anywho,...when the autograph arrives, I will be chopping it, and God willing, transforming it into this:


That stationery suspiciously resembles Jaykay's. The signature appears to be Jimmy's.

[jaykay]

Congratulations to our buddy "Custom Made" for this unprecedented stroke of good fortune. I'm sure that as a collector you are aware that almost without exception an autograph as part of a document has greater value than the signature clipped from its original source, so that you might want to think twice about removing the Ebbets signing from what remains of the famous Kowitz letter. Seriously. During my very brief and very unprofitable career as an autograph collector I saw many legitimate Washingtons and Lincolns that had been cut and were being offered for a surprisingly low (considering the signer) price, whereas those signatures on a letter concerning some humdrum business would command thousands. Needless to say, the scarcity of what you have purchased is very much in your favor. At one time I owned Nixon's letter resigning the presidency and Ford's pardon of Nixon (both absolutely legitimate, I assure you) until I learned on the best authority that Tricky Dick had signed a minimum of 18 such documents (probably more, and then sold all but those three or four required by the Library of Congress), whereas Ford made no pretense about signing at least 80 of the pardons in order to please collectors. So much for the scarcity of rare historical papers.

Now on to Walter Kowitz and Professor Don Z Block. The stationery is, of course, not mine. Professor Block is widely known for his wit and barbs, so it is no surprise that he accuses me of owning pink stationery. Of Ebbets and/or Hoffa I cannot be sure. Walter Kowitz was a distant relative of my maternal uncle Wolf Engelberg. An outstanding prospect, he signed with Brooklyn in 1914 and immediately solicited Mr. Ebbets' permission to play the winter league schedule with St. Petersburg to make some "walking around" money. According to family legend, Ebbets feared a raid by the Federal League - which explains the sentiments put forth in the letter. Walter Kowitz never played in the big leagues, for reasons that have been shrouded in controversy resulting from conflicting entries in family Bibles. Some say he was seen in the grandstand at Washington Park during later years, but his fate remains one of our clan's great mysteries.

In closing, I wish to reassure "Custom Made" that the Ebbets document is absolutely authentic, and therefore should not be cut.

[dodger dynamo]

I knew rzt was kidding all the time and the memorabilia is a great pick up. If only charlie(ebbets) had afixed that signature to documents somehow ensuring a dodger stay in brooklyn for all time. oh, well great stuff. battlin bake the dodger dynamo

[Custom Made]

Thank you again for the replies.

jaykay,...thank you for giving a brief history surrounding the contents of this letter. Appreciate that.

After careful consideration, I have retracted my idea of turning the card into a "cut" card, and taken the advice/opinions of most. I will frame the remnants of the letter. I will probably keep the "card" I made, (with some slight changes), and just frame it in a seperate window in the frame.


Thanks again for all the input, advice, & replies!!

[Gary Dunaier]

During my very brief and very unprofitable career as an autograph collector I saw many legitimate Washingtons and Lincolns that had been cut and were being offered for a surprisingly low (considering the signer) price, whereas those signatures on a letter concerning some humdrum business would command thousands.
I've seen auctions from reputable dealers where the item offered is a single word in George Washington's handwriting!


At one time I owned Nixon's letter resigning the presidency and Ford's pardon of Nixon (both absolutely legitimate, I assure you) until I learned on the best authority that Tricky Dick had signed a minimum of 18 such documents (probably more, and then sold those three or four not required by the Library of Congress), whereas Ford made no pretense about signing at least 80 of the pardons in order to please collectors.
Some of the "souvenir" Nixon resignation letters that I've seen are in a different font than the actual resignation letter. The letters themselves aren't real, but the Nixon signature is. I wonder why he was willing to sign such items, though.

[Shotgun Shuba]

This thread is out of control. I can't believe that slanted political views are welcome on a baseball forum. I urgently ask that Deb put a stop to this now and delete the posts that do not belong. Links to Ralphie's blog should not be allowed either. I think we can all see how links to worse content than his could exploit this loophole.

[Ralph Zig Tyko]

Pardon me [pun]. :-)

[donzblock]

This thread is out of control. I can't believe that slanted political views are welcome on a baseball forum. I urgently ask that Deb put a stop to this now and delete the posts that do not belong. Links to Ralphie's blog should not be allowed either. I think we can all see how links to worse content than his could exploit this loophole.
I have just acquired a document listing the manifesto of the NRA. The manifesto has been signed by Shotgun Shuba. Jaykay has assured me that the signature is genuine.

Was Charlie Ebbets' middle name Hercules or Heracles?

[Ralph Zig Tyko]

... and yes Shotgun, for a while there this thread was horribly "out of control."
Things are okay now, thanks in no small part to your diligence.

[DODGER DEB]

Let's get back to topic everyone, like BASEBALL....and stay away from the personal politics!

Thank you.

c.

[Ralph Zig Tyko]

... back now. :-)

[2Chance]

I missed a couple of days.

Sometimes that can be a blessing!

[donzblock]

I have just made a sensational find at a price I consider to be a steal. A beret once worn by Charlie Ebbets turned up at a Paoli thrift shop. The initials CHE appear on the inside next to "Viva Cuba Libre!" Stuck inside the beret was some ridiculous note penned in Spanish and signed "Siempre, Evita!" I tossed that thing, but the beret will be appearing soon on Ebay.