PSA will authenticate anything

[drc]

I assume no one here knows how PSA goes about authenticating a ticket like this-- what are the methods, exemplars (if any), knowledge--, so I don't know how anyone here can knowledgeably criticize their methods.

The assumption here has been PSA didn't have an exemplar for this ticket, but that's nothing more than a guess. Tell me why the expert who examined this ticket couldn't have a large collection of sit com tickets for comparison? Presumably one becomes an expert in tickets by having accumulating a huge collection of tickets.

Did the examiner have an exemplar for this ticket? I don't know. How did he go about judging this ticket as authentic? I don't know.

Perhaps there was compelling provenance, such as it coming from a scrapbook which included snapshots of the submitter and vacationing family at the studio and set. Perhaps it came from the estate auction of a producer. I once got a small collection of 1970s-80s 'everyday fan' baseball game tickets from the estate auction of a former MLB GM. The collection also included his personalized executive's passes, so it wasn't hard to demonstrate the executive provenance.

[toybulldog]

Originally Posted by drc

I assume no one here knows how PSA goes about authenticating a ticket like this-- what are the methods, exemplars (if any), knowledge--, so I don't know how anyone here can knowledgeably criticize their methods.

The assumption here has been PSA didn't have an exemplar for this ticket, but that's nothing more than a guess. Tell me why the expert who examined this ticket couldn't have a large collection of sit com tickets for comparison? Presumably one becomes an expert in tickets by having accumulating a huge collection of tickets.

Did the examiner have an exemplar for this ticket? I don't know. How did he go about judging this ticket as authentic? I don't know.

Perhaps there was compelling provenance, such as it coming from a scrapbook which included snapshots of the submitter and vacationing family at the studio and set. Perhaps it came from the estate auction of a producer. I once got a small collection of 1970s-80s 'everyday fan' baseball game tickets from the estate auction of a former MLB GM. The collection also included his personalized executive's passes, so it wasn't hard to demonstrate the executive provenance.

I'm not knowledgeably criticizing their methods, I'm knowledgeably criticizing the fact that that call themselves "authenticators". PSA doesn't prove or serve to prove anything, they do not authenticate. I'm primarily an autograph collector, can anyone here show an autograph that they submitted and supply any proof of a "method" that was used by PSA to determine if their autograph is in fact authentic?



Proof exists that many of their "slabbed" boxing autographs are not authentic, the notion of a "method" could be a fairytale for all we know?

[packs]

These arguments are strange to me. They offer an opinion on things. If you ask ten guys what their opinions are on an object that could potentially make you some money, you're going to go with the opinion of the guy that most favors you and your endeavor and slam the guys who don't.

I wish this was the last thread like this but it won't be.

[travrosty]

they need an exemplar, not just a scan because an offset printer or a home printer can duplicate the ticket if you dont know the thickness, card stock, etc.

i am sure they have a lot of sitcom ticket examples over there at psa. please, really?

remember the autographed piece of canadian para-olympic athletes they certed?

i am sure they had exemplars of all those para-olympic athletes too, because who doesn't?

[Oldtix]

Like many of you, I get a thrill in holding an old ticket stub that allowed the original owner to witness a Babe Ruth home run or a Walter Johnson shutout. I get the same thrill from owning tickets to other events - big band concerts, Worlds Fairs, political speeches, and (you guessed it) radio and TV shows. I now own over 5,000 broadcast tickets. I refer to this as "my collection"; my family and friends refer to is as "my cry for help." But I digress...

There are many dealers who follow "If you slab it, they will come" business model. From time to time, sellers have used PSA to try to enhance the importance and worth of an item. PSA is apparently more than willing to support their wish. In general, because the value of old TV tickets is pretty low, there's not much downside to the practice.

But believe it or not, there are a few TV tickets that have been reprinted or counterfeited. Authentic tickets to the Beatles Ed Sullivan Show appearances have sold for over $10,000, and tickets for early Elvis Presley appearances aren't far behind. Tickets to I Love Lucy routinely sell for over $1,000 and as high as $5,000. There is a case to be made for a company to reliably authenticate such tickets. Case in point - the famous Elvis 1968 comeback TV special was cut from four different taping sessions, each will less than 200 audience members. A few years later, exact replicas of the tickets were printed as insert "extras" in an Elvis LP. These reprints are routinely sold on ebay as genuine to unsuspecting buyers. If memory serves, some of these have been slabbed. If you've bought one of these tickets, you're probably in for disappointment.

So the point is that the questions raised in previous posts are not hypothetical. In some cases, the false sense of security given by authentication isn't worth the plastic it's packed in unless the grading company does their homework.

For those who have made the effort to read this far, I reward you with a peek at my rare 1974 rookie season "Chico and the Man" ticket...and the ticket for the 1977 taping cancelled by the suicide of Freddie Prinze a few days earlier. Ain't Net54 grand?

[Scott Garner]

Originally Posted by Oldtix

Like many of you, I get a thrill in holding an old ticket stub that allowed the original owner to witness a Babe Ruth home run or a Walter Johnson shutout. I get the same thrill from owning tickets to other events - big band concerts, Worlds Fairs, political speeches, and (you guessed it) radio and TV shows. I now own over 5,000 broadcast tickets. I refer to this as "my collection"; my family and friends refer to is as "my cry for help." But I digress...

There are many dealers who follow "If you slab it, they will come" business model. From time to time, sellers have used PSA to try to enhance the importance and worth of an item. PSA is apparently more than willing to support their wish. In general, because the value of old TV tickets is pretty low, there's not much downside to the practice.

But believe it or not, there are a few TV tickets that have been reprinted or counterfeited. Authentic tickets to the Beatles Ed Sullivan Show appearances have sold for over $10,000, and tickets for early Elvis Presley appearances aren't far behind. Tickets to I Love Lucy routinely sell for over $1,000 and as high as $5,000. There is a case to be made for a company to reliably authenticate such tickets. Case in point - the famous Elvis 1968 comeback TV special was cut from four different taping sessions, each will less than 200 audience members. A few years later, exact replicas of the tickets were printed as insert "extras" in an Elvis LP. These reprints are routinely sold on ebay as genuine to unsuspecting buyers. If memory serves, some of these have been slabbed. If you've bought one of these tickets, you're probably in for disappointment.

So the point is that the questions raised in previous posts are not hypothetical. In some cases, the false sense of security given by authentication isn't worth the plastic it's packed in unless the grading company does their homework.

For those who have made the effort to read this far, I reward you with a peek at my rare 1974 rookie season "Chico and the Man" ticket...and the ticket for the 1977 taping cancelled by the suicide of Freddie Prinze a few days earlier. Ain't Net54 grand?

Rick,
I love it! Merry Christmas.

[Deertick]

Originally Posted by Oldtix

Like many of you, I get a thrill in holding an old ticket stub that allowed the original owner to witness a Babe Ruth home run or a Walter Johnson shutout. I get the same thrill from owning tickets to other events - big band concerts, Worlds Fairs, political speeches, and (you guessed it) radio and TV shows. I now own over 5,000 broadcast tickets. I refer to this as "my collection"; my family and friends refer to is as "my cry for help." But I digress...

There are many dealers who follow "If you slab it, they will come" business model. From time to time, sellers have used PSA to try to enhance the importance and worth of an item. PSA is apparently more than willing to support their wish. In general, because the value of old TV tickets is pretty low, there's not much downside to the practice.

But believe it or not, there are a few TV tickets that have been reprinted or counterfeited. Authentic tickets to the Beatles Ed Sullivan Show appearances have sold for over $10,000, and tickets for early Elvis Presley appearances aren't far behind. Tickets to I Love Lucy routinely sell for over $1,000 and as high as $5,000. There is a case to be made for a company to reliably authenticate such tickets. Case in point - the famous Elvis 1968 comeback TV special was cut from four different taping sessions, each will less than 200 audience members. A few years later, exact replicas of the tickets were printed as insert "extras" in an Elvis LP. These reprints are routinely sold on ebay as genuine to unsuspecting buyers. If memory serves, some of these have been slabbed. If you've bought one of these tickets, you're probably in for disappointment.

So the point is that the questions raised in previous posts are not hypothetical. In some cases, the false sense of security given by authentication isn't worth the plastic it's packed in unless the grading company does their homework.

For those who have made the effort to read this far, I reward you with a peek at my rare 1974 rookie season "Chico and the Man" ticket...and the ticket for the 1977 taping cancelled by the suicide of Freddie Prinze a few days earlier. Ain't Net54 grand?

Rick, you have provided me with yet another example of how great Net54 is!

Leon, I hope you understand how truly special this place is. It is an island of truth, knowledge, and information in the morass that is the interweb. (Or, if you prefer, a beacon on a rocky outcropping in the Bering Sea on the solstice)

[Leon]

Originally Posted by Deertick

Rick, you have provided me with yet another example of how great Net54 is!

Leon, I hope you understand how truly special this place is. It is an island of truth, knowledge, and information in the morass that is the interweb. (Or, if you prefer, a beacon on a rocky outcropping in the Bering Sea on the solstice)

I think Net54baseball is a special place. It is a place where anyone can say anything they want to as long as they put their name by it. I have seen some things, on this side of the board lately, that might get some folks very upset and I hope everyone has their ducks in a row. And I have a feeling they don't. It is worth mentioning that people can easily do screen shots and save things that WERE said, and then edited, and everyone is always legally liable for what they say. Overall I think PSA does a very good job on the card side of things, however, they as with any company, will make some mistakes. I always say if you aren't making ANY mistakes you aren't doing enough . As far as authenticating a ticket, I have no problem with it. They get paid to authenticate things so, if I were them and felt I could do it, I would. As to the autographs, I am completely leaving those alone as I don't know enough to say anything about them. I will bow out of most autograph and memorabilia authentication debates. Once again, if you are commenting on a company or person your full name needs to be in your post. If you don't then I will, per the rules. If that is not ok then your comments need to be edited out. Always the same rules here....... thanks much and happy collecting