OperaHouseSydney-migration

Another interesting fact. Many of the "identities" Richard has been using on his scams are actually real people. Kerry Pocock and Vince Greck (both residents of Australia) had their details stolen by Rae and there is very likely many others. Here's a photo of the actual Vince Greck:

Richard worked in advertising for Maher and Holmes, but after he was fired he went after some clients on his own including controversial Australian politician Pauline Hanson. Hanson was known for her far right, anti-multicultural views. Rae didn't last long in the role. Around 2009, some purported nude photos of Pauline Hanson surfaced, sold for $15,000 to the media. Richard starts giving interviews to the media that the photos were "real" and Hanson had "admitted it all" to him years before. The photos were later found to be as fake as much of Richard's original comic art and Richard's statements were "retracted"

A few years earlier, Richard entirely funded a portal and publishing venture known as Home Grown Media and Art Banana by scamming ten of thousands of dollars from a businessman called Andrew Miles who never saw any return. Material that was published included golden age Oz artists Hal English, Stanley Pitt. There's also a Gully Foyle Stars My Destination reprint mentioned here . Rae seems to have been selling this English & Pitt stock on ebay for years with no payments going to any of the investors or artists or their families. Andrew Miles never got any of his money repaid from the failed portal or books.

I have at least one more post on a major scam involving (of all things) the Olympic Games and also details on Australian veteran comic artists who had their property stolen by Richard.

The Australian police are very aware of Richard's past activities and he has been arrested and jailed on numerous occasions. If you've been scammed by him, please report it to CrimeStoppers or the Australian police.

A former Sydney dealer has shared press clippings and photos which tell some of the story. Peter Mitris ran a comic store called Comic Empire which was at 105 Bathurst St in Sydney Australia. Initially it was Mitris and Rae who were originally friends before things turned sour. Mitris later hired a guy called Ken first in a temp position and then permanently. Rae saw this as an effort to screw him and was very bitter. The 1986 convention ran badly and both Peter Mitris and Richard Rae had brushes with organised crime and drugs. Mitris also seems to have also worked as an architect and Rae had a bizarre run in advertising. More on that later.

Precise details on the Mitris murder are sketchy. The murder occurred around April 17, 1991. Police had been told Mitris was savagely bashed and his body dumped "in the ocean off Sydney" a week later. The body was not found and evidence was sparse. Alleged involvement was from Rae and a certain Jim Taousanis

The alleged reason for the murder was the theft of a large quantity of drugs worth between $30,000 to $100,000 hidden in a shipment to Australia of comics and magazines

The case remains unsolved to our knowledge and charges not laid, mostly due to the lack of a body.

Here is a rare photo of Richard Rae and Peter Mitris some years before the incident.

Next, I have more on Richard scam's with a company called Home Grown and his involvement with fake nude photos of Australian polititian Pauline Hanson.

Can't make out the text. Do you have a link where we can read on-line?

That's from the Facebook page of the "publication", doesn't seem to be a bigger version. Here's another bizarre article and cartoon written in incredibly poor taste by Richard Rae, regarding the disposal of dead bodies. You can actually read the text on this one.

Follow that with this newspaper article written on Richard's murdered business partner Peter Mitris. Feel free to draw your own conclusions:

http://www.crucifix.com.au/crucifix-articles/1996/3/28/unkown-bones/

Richard has also being submitting his Collector's Society posts as articles to a giveaway ad-zine. Seriously. Here's one of them, published under yet another fake name.

And yeah, that's the Steranko/Buckler lightbox art AGAIN.

What a lunatic.

Tried confrountiing me but I'm still here...don't degrade yourself any more

 

Regarding Rich Buckler he was likable but difficult but his comments have hurt me so I will not pay him any money he claims he is owed

Richard, either pay Rich Buckler or don't use his work. How about you just leave the world of comics entirely? You won't be missed.

and be sure I will be squeezing the value out of the work I got...Same with the cripple

Are you referring to Bill Loebs??

 

At this point I don't think raking-up any of this sordid business with Rich Buckler is such a good idea.

 

Hip, Hip, Ho Rae may have duped those guys into contributing but, hopefully, no further involvement will be forthcoming.

 

. . . and he's just 'fired' Ralph Reese for saying that he's a screwball.

 

Hmmm... Perhaps. Rich Buckler did ask to be kept informed on the trouble Rae was causing. Does he know that Rae is advertising his book all over Facebook as featuring him as a major contributor?

 

I was in contact with Rich Buckler several years ago, highlighting the business of Rae trying to sell his light-boxed Captain America as being an original 'Steranko/Buckler' illustration.

 

Rich, at the time was (painfully) aware of Rae's dishonest practices.

 

Is Rich's work for 'Unearth' something he produced before he became aware of Rae's true nature? I find it hard to believe that he would actually want to go back and collaborate further with old, 'Hip, Hip, Ho Rae' . . .

The work intended for 'Unearth' is the same that Rich has referred to in the past:

I am sorry that I actually did get duped into contributing to one of his publishing ventures. If he is actually not at fault in my dealings with him that went south--well, how come it has been over a year now and he still hasn't straightened anything out yet?

Has Buckler actually been properly paid yet? I doubt it. Does he want to be associated with such a book and publisher as Richard Rae? Richard is shilling this book on Facebook by stating Buckler, Loeb and Royer's involvement. Most of the work was done years ago.

Most Australian comics are cr*p, sorry but it's true. Oi Oi Oi may be in the newsagents but it is appalling what kid would want to read it??? My up and comming publication UNEARTH will show everyone and will be distributed where the kids go as well as Diamond.

 

Now I was intending to pay Ralph Reese but after hearing what he has said about me being a screwball and loony he is now fired....and all monies must be returned or I will seek legal acton.

Does anyone have contact with Rich Buckler or Bill Messner-Loebs? We need to get them to withdraw their work from this "Unearth" comic as it may damage their professional reputations to be associated with Rae.

Back like a bad smell.

Here is an extract from an email I received from an Australian dealer who knew Richard Rae in the 1980s in Sydney:

I REMEMBER RICHARD BACK FROM THE 80S. HE'S ALWAYS BEEN DODGY. HE OUTRIGHT STOLE FROM MANY COLLECTORS AND ARTISTS, OFTEN FROM THEIR HOMES. STEVE SMITH, PETER LEDGER, PAUL POWER. RICHARD'S STORE COMIC EMPIRE WAS KNOWN FOR THEIR AND DISHONEST PRACTICES.

 

HE SO CALLED EDITED A BOOK CALLED CARTOONISTS OF AUSTRALIA WHERE HE GOT OTHERS TO WRITE THE ACTUAL TEXT. A LOT OF VALUABLE ART WAS LOANED TO RICHARD FROM THE CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS AND NEVER RETURNED. I SUSPECT HE EITHER STILL HAS IT OR HAS SOLD IT. THIS IS ART BY MONTEY WEDD, STAN NICHOLLS, JIMMY BANCKS, RON VIVIAN etc.

 

THE 1986 CONVENTION WAS A POORLY ORGANISED FARCE AND RICHARD AND HIS PARTNER PETER MITRIS WASTED MOST OF THE MONEY ON DRUGS. MITRIS WAS BASHED AND MURDERED A FEW YEARS LATER IN A GANGLAND STYLE KILLING.

 

RICHARD'S MOSTLY SHUNNED THESE DAYS, LAST I HEARD HE WAS NOT ALLOWED TO APPROACH HIS EX WIFE & KIDS DUE TO AN AVO BUT IS STILL UP TO HIS OLD ANTICS.

Rae is trying to shill his STERANKO/BUCKLER in this FB group and other new fakes, some just printouts of OA.

He has been gloating about finally publishing the work he scammed from Buckler, Royer etc in a self published comic called UNEARTH.

He's trying to raise money to fund it by shilling fakes/stolen art on FB with this Fake Account. I highly recommend everyone go on and report it as a fake account if you're on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/richard.rae.75

Glad that Ralph got some money. A shame that the publication will never see the light of day, as the character is one that Rae was specifically forbidden to use by the rights holders.

Nat Karmichael Bill I have just messaged Richard to ask him to clearly state his position. I expect he will do so. He is well aware the Wedd family do NOT wish to have The Scorpion character used. This is not a slight on Richard...they want NO ONE to use the character. Which is fair enough. And I do believe Richard will say this when he makes his statement.

Justin Wedd Hi All, Monty Wedd's "The Scorpion" will not be continued. I am Monty's son and state that it is my mother's wish (Dorothy Wedd) that her late husband's (Monty Wedd) work not be continued by any other artist. The Wedd family hold the copyright for all Monty Wedd's body of works. .

Ralph Reese this is the first I am hearing about any of this.... I guess the deal fell through....

December 10 at 5:14pm

 

Whoa, the original of a seriously iconic cartoon!

 

Is it yours, or did you just get the pic from FB? That's a really nice piece to own if it's yours.

 

Welcome to the boards and the thread in any case. (thumbs u

Not mine, but it was found in Sydney a few weeks ago and announced by the Australian Cartoonists Association.

Also, there is a Frank Johnson Publications exhibition planned in early 2015 at the State Library NSW.

Some Golden Age Australian Original Art from Facebook groups

Stan Cross and Yarmak.

His current scam is to propose a trade and ask the other party to send their art first, which he will claim was never delivered. He will then threaten them to pay for art which he claims to have sent them.

Richard's latest example of this scam involved a George Wilson Lost in Space painting, which he swindled from Joan Gispert some years ago. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=318559521661734

Richard has now just swindled work out of veteran artist Ralph Reese

 

This is in line with cheating other veterans like Rich Buckler, Russ Heath, Tom Sutton, Stan Pitt, Herb Trimpe. Can someone alert Bleeding Cool??

 

I don't actually see anything here that suggests Rae has swindled Reese . . . yet!

 

I've sent Reese a FB message suggesting that he exercises the utmost caution in any dealings with Rae and will report back if I receive any reply.

 

In the meantime, is it not possible to have the police authorities turn their attention to Rae? You live over there and would surely be in a position to do something about this on-going mess. . .

The information is available on the FB pages of Richard and Ralph over the past few months. Rae got Ralph Reese to draw up a bunch of work on spec for a character that it has just emerged he didn't own and had no rights to. Here's one of the pieces. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=338679859649700 The character of The Scorpion belongs to the estate of Monty Wedd who FORBADE Rae to use it as soon as they became aware. Ralph Reese was not informed of this denial of permission at the time and continued to create work for free on the project which can now never be used. I'd call that swindling a veteran artist.

We have alerted the Australian police to Rae's activities in the past. He is quite isolated in Australia and conducts most of his current scams over Facebook with overseas collectors.

Richard has now just swindled work out of veteran artist Ralph Reese

This is in line with cheating other veterans like Rich Buckler, Russ Heath, Tom Sutton, Stan Pitt, Herb Trimpe. Can someone alert Bleeding Cool??

Looks like he is quite well known. More links.

http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=4729749&fpart=1

http://www.statueforum.com/showthread.php?t=131709

Heads up to everyone in the OA community. Australian Original Art Scammer Richard Rae is trying to sell fakes again, including Kirbys and Steranko. His current scam is to propose a trade and ask the other party to send their art first, which he will claim was never delivered. He will then threaten them to pay for art which he claims to have sent them. Be warned that much of the art he is offering is fake, lightboxed copies or stolen from collectors or artists in Australia or overseas. Here is a link on Bleeding Cool about him: http://www.bleedingcool.com/2011/05/30/the-jack-kirby-and-mike-royer-original-art-that-isnt/

Avoid at all costs!