Month: October 2012

Rare Book & Memorabilia Collector to Sell Collection for Ailing Daughter

Collection at auction
Date: October 26, 2012
Source: CBC Books

A Florida memorabilia collector who has spent decades amassing thousands of celebrity autographs and rare books is selling off his prized possessions to help his ailing daughter, the Associated Press reports.

Ken Kallin, 67, started collecting signed photos, books and trading cards in 1980 after meeting Bette Davis. Since then, he's added to his treasure trove by attending book signings, charity golf tournaments and celebrity appearances, scouring garage sales and buying from other collectors and friends.

However, his 43-year-old daughter and her husband have been struggling financially because she suffers from a rare autoimmune disorder, which sometimes involves taking powerful chemotherapy drugs. The family pays $2,200 a month for health insurance and her deductible is $1,250. The couple also has two children to support.

Kallin's collection, which includes 120,000 pieces of memorabilia, was described as "once-in-a-lifetime" by an expert not connected with the sale, and is expected to draw some big spenders this weekend.

The collection features more than 680 antique books, more than 7,000 contemporary books, rare letters, and tens of thousands of autographed photos, trading cards and sheet music dating back to 1864, and vintage Tin Tin books in French. The celebrity signatures in Kallin's possession include Michael Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor and Julia Child.

The collection hasn't been independently appraised, but the auction house and Kallin believe it's worth $4.5 million based on valuations for comparable items that have sold recently.

"It's for a higher purpose," Kallin said.

-With files from the Associated Press

Bids can be placed through LiveAuction. Lots are listed according to "Rare Books" - 680+ est USD 17,500 - 40,000, "Autographed Books" - 7,300+ est USD 175,000 - 375,000, "Autographed Letters" - 1,470+ est USD 1,750 - 15,000, as well as movie posters, autographed photos, autographed trading cards, and more...

Hilary Mantel wins 2012 Man Booker Prize

Hilary Mantel wins 2012 Man Booker Prize

16 October 2012
Source- Man Booker prize . com

The whittling has finished. The judges of this year's Man Booker Prize started with a daunting 145 novels and have winnowed, sifted, culled, and in some cases hurled, until there was only one left: Hilary Mantel's Bring up the Bodies.

Hers is a story unique in Man Booker history. She becomes only the third author, after Peter Carey and J.M. Coetzee, to win the prize twice, which puts her in the empyrean. But she is also the first to win with a sequel (Wolf Hall won in 2009) and the first to win with such a brief interlude between books. Her resuscitation of Thomas Cromwell – and with him the historical novel – is one of the great achievements of modern literature. There is the last volume of her trilogy still to come so her Man Booker tale may yet have a further chapter.

Be sure to read more HERE

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Consumer Alert: Beware of buying rare books online

This is from the Lexington Kentucky News

"If you're thinking about buying a rare book online, be very careful. The multi-million dollar industry has skyrocketed as a result of internet auction sites, but rare book collecting is also ripe for fraud.

"The suspect worked this scheme by purchasing unsigned first edition antiquarian books on Ebay. He then forged the signatures of famous authors and resold them on Ebay for much higher prices," said U.S. Postal Inspector Al Herzog.

Book prices ranged from $50 to $1,000 each, depending on the author and book.

"(The scammer) took the actual genuine samples of the authors signatures took them to a local stamp company and had actual stampers made so the stampers could be used to mass produce the fraudulent autographs," said Herzog.

Buyers skeptical of the signature began complaining to postal inspectors, who started checking the defendant's background.

"We made some purchases of our own and eventually we were able to obtain a search warrant and that's how we were able to obtain the heat stampers," said Herzog.

If you are buying rare items or memorabilia online, exercise caution. Postal inspectors recommend always using credit cards, not debit cards, for online purchases. Credit cards offer dispute rights, making it easier to reverse a fraudulent charge. Experts say to always research the seller as well.

"In this instance, the defendant was one person operating out of his home, there was no business, no licenses, there was no reputation if you will in the antiquarian book business," said Herzog.

The defendant was sentenced to more than two years in prison and ordered to pay $120,000 in restitution"

I have experienced this as my longtime readers may remember. I posted about it ages ago. I bought a book on Ebay and some time later received an email from the US Justice Department telling me I had purchased a book with a fake signature on EBay but the would not tell me which book. For a couple of weeks I looked with great concern at my library wondering which one of my books it might be. Eventually a sympathetic customer service rep at EBay looked it up (I was given the email address the fraud used). It turned out to be Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions first edition. Not great... but, the problem was resolved as to which book it was. I heard from the Justice Department from time to time over the next year as the cheat went to trial and was eventually sentenced to jail for 2 years (I think it was..) - time served plus a huge fine. He eventually got out and was in a half-way house the last time I heard from them.

Did that make me stop buying books on EBay - No - But I am much more careful about the buyer - how many books have they sold, how well is the book described, is there any negative feedback?

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