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CARDSHRP.ASC
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1990-09-18
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4KB
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If there was any one catchword at the 11th annual National Sports
Collectors Convention, it was "fraud." Counterfeiting has become such a
problem for sports card collectors that dealers discussed the possibility of
forming a national association to police the industry. But the problem isn't
restricted just to the card industry. Memorabilia dealers at the convention
last weekend in Arlington said fraud has found its way into every phase of
sports collecting. "Whenever there's a buck to be made, somebody's going to
try to cheat," said Murf Denny, one of the top mail-order memorabilia dealers
in the country. "Some of these people are just scum." Authentic player
jerseys, autographs and player equipment are all subject to fraud, Denny said.
"It's nothing to go out and buy a replica jersey for $100, sew a player's name
on the back and sell it to someone as having belonged to that player," he said
"It happens all the time."
"There was this one guy in Canada that just got sent to prison for
fraud," Denny said. "This guy did mail order business from about 10 or 12
different addresses so it took a long time to catch him. One of the really
rotten things he did was to sell his fakes to all those Last Wish charities -
you know, the people who grant wishes to dying kids. These kids would ask for
a jersey from their favorite player and this scumbag would sell those people a
fake." By selling the fakes for as much as $100 - $200 less than what an
authentic player's jersey might cost, the frauds are cutting into the
business, said Robb Wochnick, a dealer from Portland, Ore. "Let's say, for
instance, I've got a Rickey Henderson jersey for $900," he said. "Well, one
of these frauds might have one for sale for $300. If you don't know any
better, which one are you going to buy?"
Fortunately, Wochnick said, there are ways of knowing if a jersey is
the real McCoy. "You have to check the tagging," he said. "Authentic
gamewear has the proper tagging, designating it by the team or the player."
The tagging, usually found on the tail of the jerseys and inside the pants,
will either have a set number, the player's name or the team's name, Wochnick
said. But the big key, he said, is to know who you're dealing with. "What
really irks me is the guy who will spend $500 for a jersey but won't spend $5
on phone calls to check out whoever he's buying it from," he said. The same
advice holds true for equipment and autographs. Jim Roy, an autograph
collector and dealer from Kansas City, Mo., said the only way to know you're
getting an authentic autograph is to make sure you're buying it from a
reputable dealer.
"If you don't know him, ask a lot of questions," he said. "A dealer
who knows his business will know, for instance, that a Babe Ruth autograph
isn't that hard to come by. Babe liked to hit the bars and he signed a lot of
autographs for a lot of people. "On the other hand, a reputable dealer will
know that a single Lou Gehrig autograph is real hard to come by. Gehrig was a
real private guy who stayed at home with his wife." Denny agreed that one of
the best ways to separate serious dealers with possible frauds is to test
their knowledge. People who are in it for a quick, dishonest buck usually
don't know much. "Ask them what were the Shreveport Steamer's colors," he
said. "Serious dealers know the items from the old World Football League are
in demand. They'll know that you can get as much as $1,100 for an old Steamer
helmet. "A fraud probably won't know who you're talking about."
*** From The (Shreveport) Times, Shreveport, LA ***