So what is up with Jim Rice...

[Gary Dunaier]

Originally Posted by David Atkatz

Suppose I had a piece of paper that Babe Ruth used to get the ink in his fountain pen flowing. You know, he just scribbled randomly until the pen began to write, and then kept scribbling a bit longer to make sure the pen kept working. Would PSA consider that a genuine Ruth autograph? Would anyone?

It certainly wouldn't count as an autograph, but presuming the authenticity on such an item was unquestioned, it might be a fun novelty piece to own.

Babe Ruth squiggles? Why not? As long as you don't pay too much for it, and I guess you also have to be in a frame of mind that you don't take the hobby too seriously.

[David Atkatz]

Originally Posted by Gary Dunaier

It certainly wouldn't count as an autograph...

But PSA said those squiggles on the cards (which are certainly not Rice's signature) are "authentic autographs." We agree the are not.

And how does PSA know that Rice made those squiggles? They are certainly not recognizable, or unique to Rice.

[MooseDog]

Originally Posted by Gary Dunaier

It certainly wouldn't count as an autograph, but presuming the authenticity on such an item was unquestioned, it might be a fun novelty piece to own.

Babe Ruth squiggles? Why not? As long as you don't pay too much for it, and I guess you also have to be in a frame of mind that you don't take the hobby too seriously.

Actually, we may be splitting hairs here, but an "autograph", defined by "the act of writing with one's own hand" whereas as a "signature" would be defined "the handwritten representation of a person's name".

[David Atkatz]

Originally Posted by MooseDog

Actually, we may be splitting hairs here, but an "autograph", defined by "the act of writing with one's own hand" whereas as a "signature" would be defined "the handwritten representation of a person's name".

Yes, I'm quite aware of that. But "writing" is defined as

writ·ing
ˈrīdiNG/
noun
1.
the activity or skill of marking coherent words on paper and composing text.
"parents want schools to concentrate on reading, writing, and arithmetic"
2.
written work, especially with regard to its style or quality.
"the writing is straightforward and accessible"

Thus scribbles are not "writing," and it follows that they are not an "autograph," either.