MasterChief

This is one of the best posts in the thread. Especially for those of us late to the party. Anyone know if a follow-on recap like this has been done?

Dupcak is a loner, he wouldn't get involve with this guy and spill HIS trade secrets. He does have lackeys that he uses for his aliases, like Ed Kelly. Although, I am not sure Ed is still with us anymore. Quick question: This may have been confirmed elsewhere, as it's been discussed multiple times in past threads, but is eBay seller "kellyssuperheroes" Daniel Dupcak?

Dunno. But I’d like to add an additional detail to my previous post. Ewert was not the first person banned by CGC. He was the second. The first person banned from submitting to CGC was done so because they were “caught switching labels on slabbed comic books.”

Seems to be a lot of talk about CGC taking legal action against the alleged perpetrator tampering with CGC holders. Perhaps in the future it will become known whether or not criminal proceedings were initiated by CGC or the Federal government. By way of comparison, nothing of any legal consequence was taken by CGC against Jason Ewert as a result of his alleged fraudulent scheme. The only aftereffect that is publicly known is that Ewert was banned from submitting comic books to CGC and that then CGC President, Steve Borock, told Ewert to “get out of the hobby and do not look back.” The lone litigation initiated against Ewert was driven by a collective of CGC board members and comic book collectors, as announced in The Collector eNewsletter by GPAnalysis in February of 2006. Here’s the announcement as published...

Good question. The following is not my work. Credit goes to valiantman. Image is from his thread titled “CGC label changes through the years - a visual guide”

CGC has used “tamper-evident holder,” “tamper-proof holder,” and “tamper evident hard plastic case” in adverts and articles to promote their product, service, and brand down through the years. Here’s how the phraseology is used...

Update! With the close of November, this update reflects over $1M in losses since the initial offering of the Promises Collection over two and a half years ago. While there has been sporadic gains here and there with minimal returns, the month of November recorded the highest overall loss as of yet this year with a -37% downturn driven largely by the liquidation of Batman #37 CGC 9.6 and Detective Comics #118 CGC 9.8. Note: Included in this update is a new chart reflecting the grades of Promises resold. Data sorted oldest to newest Sale Date. (Source: Heritage Auctions (HA), Comic Connect (CC), ComicLink (CL), eBay)

I guess these cross the $1 million LOSS threshold for the Promise Collection resales. Don't know if MasterChief's Promise tracking has been updated recently, but this was the list from September: Yup...I’m still tracking Promise resales. Update should be out after the holiday. That said, asset liquidation has been mixed from a genre perspective over the last two months. Overall, sales continue in the downward trend. Remarkably, the time horizon on holding Promises has been relatively short so far. Take for example the Detective #146 mentioned. That book has resold twice since initial offering. Perhaps it has now reached a realistic FMV...

Good question. Genre classification proved to be somewhat tricky as I used both GCD and HA as references. The two didn't always agree. While GCD sometimes listed more than one genre for a particular issue, HA stuck with just one for lot listing. On occasion, the HA classification appeared to be off or wasn't listed (Mask #1 for example), so I relied on GCD to make the call. But IIRC, both websites agreed more often than not. If you have any suggestions for data refinement, just shout. Here's how the Adventure genre broke out...

Update! At the close of today's Signature Auction, 48 Promises were liquidated increasing the total catalogued to 262. While today's sales register a 14% loss for the month of September overall, there is a slight dip in net loss (-23%) as compared to the last updated (-26%). Note: With data points increasing, a new table is presented to look under the hood and analyze Promise Collection genres. Data sorted oldest to newest Sale Date. (Source: Heritage Auctions (HA), Comic Connect (CC), ComicLink (CL), eBay)

Update! As we approach the next Signature Auction loaded with Promises, here's a quick update since June indexing 18 books sold on several platforms. A total of 214 Promises liquidated over an 18 month period since divestiture began. Net loss continues to hover at -26%. PS. I've also captured books that previously sold, which I missed, that were brought to my attention. Thanks to those that provided info. Data sorted oldest to newest Sale Date. (Source: Heritage Auctions (HA), Comic Connect (CC), ComicLink (CL), eBay)

For the record, I have always been very dubious about that story and never bought any of those books. That's the opinion I remember. Thanks for the reassurance. It's perfectly natural to suspect the claimed authenticity of a collection advertised and sold as originating from Stan's personal files when books appeared at auction with distinguishing marks such as arrival dates, penned names (other than Stan's), sales stickers, kid's scribbling, and all manner of handwritten marks on the covers. So, it's not a stretch, after seeing those characteristics, to come to the conclusion that the file copy collection appeared to be nothing more than a random assemblage of discarded books from some long-forgotten owners who outgrew their childhood toys.

Surely you don’t believe that. I’ve read your take on the collection down through the years and you don't exactly come across as a “True Believer.”

Here's the backstory. Interesting stuff. Years later, I remain highly skeptical as to the collection's provenance.

You got that right. And for some inexplicable reason, this thread reminds me of Stan's (fake?) file copy collection.

Update! With the close of today's Heritage Auction, 46 Promise books were added to the ROI snapshot, two of which sold earlier in the month via HA and CC. The current rate of return for June is trending down at -34%. Nine esoteric books will be auctioned by HA as the month comes to a close. Those books will be captured in a later update. Data sorted oldest to newest Sale Date. (Source: Heritage Auctions (HA), Comic Connect (CC), ComicLink (CL), eBay)

Where exactly are you guys seeing this tagline with Doug's full name in there, as I can only see the title of the auction, namely Doug's Dell & Gold Key Comics (& Comic Art) Showcase Auction(s)"? Well, now you've gone and done it, Dean! Richie was speaking for everyone on the boards when he said the tag line was a useful hint for the rest of us.

So any auction with the name "Doug" in the title automatically means Doug Schmell. Got it. Your logic remains as always infallible and beyond reproach.

Thx. I did not know that. Guess I need to pull the curtain back and look closer at these books for manipulation.

I must have missed something... those were Doug Schmell's books?

Update! With the close of today's Heritage Auction, 19 Promise's sold were added to the ROI snapshot for April. Data sorted oldest to newest Sale Date. (Source: Heritage Auctions (HA), Comic Connect (CC), ComicLink (CL), eBay)

Thanks Mike!

That eBay book is a counterfeit. It's not the Promise copy. Just a cursory comparison of the two covers is a dead giveaway. eBay: Blue beetle #44 CGC 7.0 from the Promise collection! Rare Find!!! Heritage Auction #122213: Blue Beetle #44 The Promise Collection Pedigree (Fox Features Syndicate, 1946) Condition: VG+

Update! Current Promise Collection ROI snapshot. Chart includes 39 auctions closed in March. Data sorted oldest to newest Sale Date. Note: Currently tracking 19 Heritage lots that will close April 1 – 6. Those sales with be reported with April's update. (Source: Heritage Auctions (HA), Comic Connect (CC), ComicLink (CL), eBay)