The Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas is selling off items that once decorated the now closed Las Vegas Club Hotel & Casino. Owner Mel Exber had turned the casino's walls into a sports showcase, with much of the memorabilia associated with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers. However, the casino at Fremont and Main Streets closed over the summer and the fate of the … [Read more...]
Andre Dawson Collection Up for Grabs This Summer
Memorabilia from the personal collection of Hall of Famer Andre Dawson, including his 1987 N.L. MVP Award, 1982 Gold Glove Award, his final career home run baseball and more, will be up for bid at Goldin Auctions this summer. Five of the marquee items will be sold during a Premium Live Auction on July 31, during the National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago, while the … [Read more...]
Assorted Quick Authentication Tips for Sports Memorabilia Collectors
This and upcoming columns will offer identification, authentication and collecting tips for sports and related memorabilia. These particular tips aren't all-encompassing but intended to be simple and easy to remember. * * * * Is that silverware silver or steel? Try the magnet test This is a simple but not definitive test to give evidence if that baseball themed … [Read more...]
Getting Your Collection Outside the Fan Cave
It is not that I am a total wimp, but I do truly hate going to the doctor unless I am really hurting or sick. It is not the shots or the white coats or the smells or any of that. Mostly it is the bills. But, whatever the reason, I just have a great distaste for visiting the practitioners of the Hippocratic oath. But one doctor made the event a bit more enjoyable. Along … [Read more...]
Historic Early Helms Hall of Fame Collection Set for Auction
SCP Auctions’ “Mid-Summer Classic” will begin on Wednesday, August 6, and run through Saturday, August 23, at www.scpauctions.com. More than 850 top-quality lots will be up for bid including nearly 300 items from the coveted Helms Athletic Foundation/LA84 Collection. The Helms Athletic Foundation was a sports organization founded in 1936 by W.R. “Bill” Schroeder, a private … [Read more...]
A Piece of the Game TV Looking for Memorabilia to Feature
Producers of the Emmy Award-winning reality series A Piece of the Game will be taping two new episodes this month and are looking for collectors with sports memorabilia that has a story to tell. The show, which was recently picked up for national syndication on Fox Sports and Comcast Sportsnet, will tape at Chisox Bar & Grill in Chicago on Saturday, June 21 from 10 a.m. to … [Read more...]
Museum’s Collection to be Sold at Auction
SCP Auctions will sell off thousands of items from long time collector John W. Hamilton’s Newport Sports Museum in southern California. The collection of memorabilia, much of it obtained directly from the athletes represented, will be broken up and sold through four upcoming auctions. SCP Auctions calls the quality and magnitude of what’s been inside the museum … [Read more...]
Best Sports Memorabilia Finds of 2012
In the sports memorabilia industry, 2012 was the “Year of the Find”. Difficult as it may be to believe, there were still collections of old baseball cards and other valuable stuff sitting in attics and closets around the country. The greatest find wasn't much of a contest. Stacks of minty old cards from 1910 sitting in an Ohio attic for more than a century? It doesn't get … [Read more...]
Auction Insider: Bidding for Business
If you wanted to, you could receive a catalog in your mailbox about once every ten days. Between splashy major auctions and weekly internet-based events, sports memorabilia auction companies crank out a lot of copy. Once a small part of the hobby, bid to own has become the primary method of transacting business for many. Those who predicted the demise of the small auction … [Read more...]
2012 Thanksgiving Weekend Sports Memorabilia Deals Underway
Amid the deals on tablet computers, big screen TVs and video games are those aimed at collectors. Chances are your local sports card shop has something going, but if you're ready to do some online shopping over the next few days, we've got a few places to check out that are offering cash back, discounts and more. Our sponsor, Baseball Card Exchange has 10% off and free … [Read more...]