Brian, Al, and David Meet and Greet Summer 2013

[mikeddonn]

Exactly Justin.  You're right to mention the consistency of the fakes and the dots above the i's.  That was also what made me initially suspicious.

[Justin]

I suppose we ought to delete our breakdown of the fake signatures so that the official phantom "signer" who may be reading this doesn't take our notes and improve his techniques! 

[mikeddonn]

I also look at it as a great memento to have.  And it's the only item I have with 4 (real) Beach Boys signatures!

[mikeddonn]

Or pay us to sign them!

[leggo of my ego]

The only autograph of Brian I have was a gift so authentic or not I am not out a dime!

[mikeddonn]

From Jeff?!

[lee]

I don't think anyone here takes any offense to your post Ego. I'd be more than pissed off if I were in that situation. I remember Mike Love on stage in Virginia trying to sell the 10 pack and I did think about it for a good minute. I passed but I did buy the signed 50th lithograph off of the official site about two weeks ago. I hope it's Brian's signature and not Jeff's.

[Justin]

Feel free to post a picture, lee...but not if you will be majorly disappointed to find out it may be fake.  Some things are best not known for sure!

[lee]

Here you go Justin. Either way, I'd prefer to know.

[mikeddonn]

Rest easy Lee,  it looks like the real deal to me.

[Heywood]

Definitely real.

Ive got half a dozen or so real ones and they certainly aren't all the same. The only one I didnt get personally, but im pretty sure (99%) was personally done with someone I know, looks a lot like the suspect ones.

Ill have to get in touch and make sure.

[Justin]

Absolutely---you're in the clear lee!  Treasure it well!

[lee]

That's great news! Thanks guys.

[Wirestone]

I'm not posting, I know, but here's something directly applicable to this discussion:

http://live.autographmagazine.com/forum/topics/brian-wilson-autographs-on-the-current-be-careful

Here are a bunch of versions of Jeff's take on Brian's signature

[acedecade75]

 This whole situation is really getting under my skin.  I've never been a big Jeff Foskett fan, but I'm getting more angry with him each day.  Regardless of the situation, he should understand that it is WRONG to sign somebody else's name and then pass it off as genuine.  Even if he is taking autographs for fans and signing them for free, does he not realize that he is ruining items that people treasure?  I have a picture that has been signed by Carl and Dennis.  I've been trying for years to get Brian's signature on it as well.  But I can only imagine how I'd feel if it had been ruined by having a fake Brian Wilson signature put on it!

 Brian always has the right to refuse an autograph.  But, when an item is put out for sale by his management and marketed as his autograph, it should be authentic!  At the Atlantic City meet and greet, we were given cheap pieces of paper that were ghost signed by Jeff.  Brian's management SOLD us these meet and greet packages with the promise of an autograph of Brian Wilson.  This is down right fraudulent!  Supposedly, they are sending us replacement pictures.  I've very curious to see if these have Jeff's signature as well.  There probably aren't enough of us, but we should be looking at a lawsuit to get our money back.

 And what about the 50th reunion merchandise?  These items were not given out for free.  Management put them out for sale at a high price and advertised them as authentic signatures.  It now seems obvious that at least some of them were not.  This is fraud!

 I certainly don't hold Brian himself at fault.  He very well might not even be aware what has been going on.  But his management does!  It is wrong to treat fans this way, and it is fraud to knowingly sell fake autographs!

 

[Shady]

I'm not posting, I know, but here's something directly applicable to this discussion:

http://live.autographmagazine.com/forum/topics/brian-wilson-autographs-on-the-current-be-careful

Here are a bunch of versions of Jeff's take on Brian's signature

That really bothers me. Does Jeff does not understand that is an incredibly deceitful thing to do.

[Jim V.]

Can somebody explain to me how we know absolutely for sure that Jeff is signing as Brian?

[SloopJohnnyB]

Same thing I was thinking. How do you know that it's Jeff?

All of those signatures could have been done by Brian. If Brian slowed down and really tried to sign his name it would look a lot different than the fast, quick Brian signatures. Different every time.

[Heywood]

People want to be a bit careful throwing the word lawsuit around. They might be on the receiving end of one rather than taking one out. Youd want more proof than hearsay on a couple of message boards.

[Nicko1234]

Indeed. If it`s genuinely true then it`s shameful stuff from all concerned.

[lee]

acedecade75, is there any way you can post of photo of the signed photo that was handed out at the meet and greet? I keep hearing about it but have yet to see an example of what it looks like. I'm curious.

[RonBaker2003]

This is from the Ann Arbor MI signing...a real one.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151639606442605&set=a.123573307604.102701.656877604&type=1&relevant_count=1&ref=nf

[RonBaker2003]

Couldn't post the picture to the board here, but that's a link to it.

[acedecade75]

acedecade75, is there any way you can post of photo of the signed photo that was handed out at the meet and greet? I keep hearing about it but have yet to see an example of what it looks like. I'm curious.

 I'm away from home at the moment, but I'll post a picture later today.  We got two of the pictures at Atlantic City.  I believe that the signatures of Al and David are real, but I don't think the Brian Wilson signatures are autehntic.

[JohnMill]

As a longtime autograph collector I'd figure I'd chime in and give my two cents:

First I would suggest anyone questioning the authenticity of a Brian Wilson signature send their autograph in for third party verification preferably to an organization such as PSA/DNA.  They aren't fail proof but are one of the most trusted sources for authenticating documents and autographs.  They even handle work I believe for Fortune 500 companies and have assisted in several legal cases as well.  They aren't necessarily cheap but in my opinion are fair and will give you the peace of mind you are seeking.

Second if what many are alleging here happens to be true it's really nothing different than the "clubhouse signature" racket that unfortunately has rendered many autographed baseballs (and baseball memorabilia) from the 40s/50s/60s worthless.  Back in that era it was a common practice for a clubhouse attendant (or sometimes even a bat boy) to take a baseball down into the clubhouse ostensibly to get the autograph(s) requested by an individual or organization.  Instead of getting the autographs requested, the attendant with full knowledge of the baseball club in question would sign the ball himself forging the signatures of the players in question.  Years later as methods of authenticating such things became more sophisticated, many of these baseballs were found to be worthless and labeled "clubhouse signatures".  It wasn't exactly the "Operation Bullpen" scandal of a few decades ago but nonetheless has rendered a significant quotient of memorabilia from that era worthless and caused many a headache for the collector.

In essence my advice would be to anyone obtaining a signature from any athlete, entertainer or public figure either make sure you see the person sign the piece before your very eyes or in the alternative make sure the piece is authenticated by a highly regarded third party verification service such as PSA/DNA.