February 4, 2001
Greetings Accumulators!
It's been a wild and woolly weekend, as we've been involved in family
matters. A gray and quiet Sunday morning - perfect for staying in!
FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE DEFICIENT CROOKS
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Fort Lauderdale, Fla. police have charged Dewey Lane Moore, 69, with mail
fraud. The arrest is based on chrages that Moore tried to sell around 300
forged paintings and sculptures, most poorly done, and some with misspelled
artists' signatures. Moore claims he bought all the works at flea markets.
Some of the fakes he's allegedly tried to sell are "Mother and Child" by
Picasso, "Poppy" by Georgia O'Keefe, "Bird" by Brancusi, and some Winslow
Homer paintings. A couple of clues that all was not right with the works:
Homer's name was spelled "Windslow", and the Picasso was being offered for
sale at only $40,000. Oh, and "Bird" was offered in wood, a medium
Brancusi never used for that series. Add to all this the fact that several
paintings were the wrong size, and you have a pretty suspicious sale going
on. The FBI shut it down. Another strange twist to the story: the FBI shut
down the sale in 1996, and Moore was charged January 5, 2001. Guess they
were just being very, very thorough or they were just very, very busy.
CROTCHETY OLD LADIES DEPARTMENT
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Anna Eakes, an elderly antiques dealer in Durham, NC, was not amused when
Durham County Sheriff's detective Stokes Barnes showed up in her shop and
said she was selling stolen merchandise. He was referring to a crock Mrs.
Eakes was selling on eBay for a consignor. The crock was being claimed as
stolen property by Joel Schatzberg of Greenwich, CT., who said it was taken
from his home in 1986. He found it for sale on eBay and called police. Now
the plot thickens. Mrs. Eakes had already refused to turn the crock over to
Greenwich police, when Barnes showed up at her place. He was greeted at the
door by Eakes' sister, Dorothy McLean, who told him he couldn't see Eakes
because she was recuperating from surgery. She told him he couldn't see the
crock either, so it might be a good idea for him to go on home. Barnes
returned with a search warrant the next day, but McLean physically blocked
the doorway. It was only when Barnes told her he'd search the entire shop
unless she turned over the crock, that she did so. The crock is now in the
police evidence room waiting for the original owner's daughter to pick it
up. The law states that if the original owner discovers a stolen item, the
new owner has to return it. Schatzberg kept photographic records of every
item in his collection. Not a bad idea. No report on the two aged outlaws
and what they told their consignor.
LA-A-A-A-A-A-Y-D-E-E-E-E-E-E!
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Jerry Lewis, proof that the French have no reason to look down their noses
at American taste, is suing a former employee for trying to sell
memorabilia that Lewis says belongs to him. Inside.com reports that Lewis'
company, JAS Productions, filed suit in Los Angeles against David
Schultheiss for unauthorized use of his name, photograph and likeness, and
misappropriation of his right of publicity. Schultheis worked for Lewis in
1982, a job that gave him access to various items of memorabilia. This gets
better: this isn't the first time Lewis caught this guy selling his stuff!
In 1982 Schultheiss was caught trying to sell kinescopes of Lewis' 1960s TV
show and 16mm prints of the Colgate Comedy Hour. Schultheis signed an
affidavit admitting to his guilt, but was caught again in 1985 and 1990,
doing the same thing. Now, he's been allegedly offering rare posters and
footage for sale on The Movie Exchange internet site. No wonder Jerry's
ticked off!
IMPORTANT NEWS FOR EGOTISTS
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If you think it would be just dandy to have a street named for you, contact
the mayor of Dublin, CA immediately. They're auctioning off street names to
raise money for the rapidly growing city. The town is about 45 minutes
northeast of San Francisco, and there are plenty of streets left. Don't
procrastinate, though. They're going fast.
There are some great films on cable today, Accumulators, so we may just
stay in. I hope it's warmer, sunnier, more fun-filled where you are, and
that you can get out there and find a prize somewhere. I'll be working hard
on this new venture, about which I'll let you know as soon as it's ready.
Have a great week, Accumulators. Happy hunting!
Best,
Judith
© 2001 Judith Katz-Schwartz. All rights reserved.
Antiques and Collectibles Newsletter #139
U.S. Library of Congress
ISSN 1520-4464
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