RockMyAmadeus

They do. They already have a program in place where they put signed items in slabs that are witnessed, but aren't comic books. It's the "art" program. It's been in place for years. Here's an example: Pretty cool, huh? It probably wouldn't make much sense to have a signed label AND a comic, but you never know, it might be worth considering if enough people are interested.

Me too.

Lives are finite. We have already lost many big name creators in the last 10 years. In a perfect world, where everyone lived forever, yes, the market would eventually get around and correct them...but Herb Trimpe and Stan Lee and Gene Colon and Joe Simon and Joe Kubert and Mike Turner and Norm Breyfogle and many, many others are done signing books in this lifetime. I don't think you've been paying attention to what I've been saying: creators are reacting to people in the industry...art reps and facilitators...who are lying to them, and telling them that people doing CGC are making "fat stacks of cash" off of them, and they need a cut of that...in fact, "here, let ME manage you, and I'll make sure you get your cut!!" (while, of course, ensuring they get THEIR cut, too, and all the free sigs they want, for themselves, naturally. It's quite the racket.) Or, they're being told "well, CGC is making money off of them, so you should, too!" (Nevermind that CGC performs a service requiring far more effort and resources than a signature.) THAT is what the creators are reacting to at this moment in time. When you have people lying to you like that, and nobody voicing the other side of the equation, what do you think is going to happen? Let me tell you, the "I'm sorry, I was told I had to charge more for CGC" statement has come out of the sheephish mouths of more than one creator that I have stood in front of. I paid it...I have always paid what creators demand...it's a requirement by CGC, and if you do not, you will be barred from the program...but not without making some (very polite, very professional) effort to explain the issue. Frequently, I've paid more, and most of the time, been thrilled to do it (see: Mark Texeira.) And, yes, I have put books back in the box that I had prepared for them to sign, and they got $0 for those books. Once these creators are gone, their body of SS copies is DONE. OVER. FINISHED. Ain't no more coming. I own the only copies of Showcase #83 and #84 signed by Bernie for SS. The only ones. There will never be another copy of those books in SS. You want one? Too bad. For all intents and purposes, they don't exist.

Right. Folks who have nothing to do with the program have the strongest opinions about it... No creator's CGC punishment tax is "justified" based on "ROI." SS books have value because of what they are, and what condition they're in. The creator takes zero risk in the transaction, and therefore deserves zero reward. THAT is Econ 101. If the creator wants to sign and submit his own copies, there is an existing CGC program by which creators get FREE/LOW COST submissions...lower than the average shlub gets...and then they can get an "ROI" of their own. They assume all the risk...they get all the reward. If a creator wants to say "hey! My signature adds value to your books!" I'll be happy to go over the numbers with him or her, and negotiate something fair for both of us...but that would involve the creator assuming SOME of the risk, and most creators wouldn't be interested. They just want the extra $$$ with none of the additional effort or risk. Explain how that works....

The short answer is because the individual copy is far removed from the creator. The creator had nothing to do with producing the copies of his or her work. They just created the original. What you hold in your hand is a copy of a copy of a copy of the original work. So, having a creator sign a specific copy...to touch that copy...makes that copy more special to some, because it is a direct connection to that specific copy of their work.

With all due respect, I don't think you understand the SS market, or how and why signatures affect the value of books.

Knowing what we know about Bill Cosby these days, I hope Rita Moreno wasn't drinking around him...

Did you know Bill Cosby, Morgan Freeman, AND Rita Moreno were in The Electric Company...? That's a lot of star power for a children's show.

Moderns are the fastest they've been in the 11 years I've been regularly submitting. Very pleased. Value and Economy is substantially slower, but I'm ok with that.

same

Great survey, just filled it out. One quick note: the word "impotant" shows up more than once; I don't know if that can be corrected or not. Otherwise, excellent survey, with a good grasp of the issues facing the comic marketplace. 9 thumbs up!

That's been considered... Abandoned as totally untenable...but DEFINITELY considered...

Yes!

It's just more from the master of the moving goalposts. Someone negates your argument? Pretend it's a different argument. Problem solved! PS. I haggle with creators all the time. "If I get 4 of these prints, can I pay (something less than the 4 would cost individually)...?" for example.

Cyborg is Vic Stone. So, none of the rest of them are in the show yet, right? Just the five "originals", Cliff, Rita, Negative Man, Crazy Jane, Cyborg...and, of course, the Chief? So, right now, the only 1st modern appearance in that lineup is Crazy Jane?

Because that's not how the SS aftermarket works. I think many (most...?) of the people arguing in favor of a CGC punishment tax don't understand the SS market and how it works. "Wanting a piece of the aftermarket pie" is where your argument starts, but also where it stops. The creator has no right to the "aftermarket pie" on other people's property. "I won't get any of them signed & CGC won't get business because of it" is not relevant to the raw vs. CGC signature "cost variance", but no one is suggesting it is. These things aren't occurring in vacuums; it's the part of the process with which CGC should be concerned. But no one is arguing that creators should be told this, or even aware of it. Again: what someone does with their property is no one's business but the owner of that property. That is the only argument that should matter to creators. However, if additional reasoning is required, the argument that should be aimed at creators is this: "you have an inaccurate impression...fed to you by the self-interested who are lying to you...of the SS market. Your signature is not the driver of value. It is the item and its condition. If you sign a piece of toilet paper, I can't sell that."

Force is not the answer. It's never the answer. You have an inaccurate impression of SS books and how they function in the market, Have you ever been involved in the SS market?

That's not the answer.

Isn't the "make offer" option an appeal to "do things cheaper"...? Isn't "I'll buy this for $375, but not $450" mean that you have a sale at $375, but nothing if you insist on $450...?

That shortbox I mentioned earlier is 97% junk, even if high grade. If those books get signed, CGC grades them. If they don't get signed, CGC will never see them.

yes and it makes me wonder why the thread was created and posted here in CG.