Collecting Ink: Not all autographs are alike ... let's explore

Many people collect autographs -- but not in the same ways -- and not all autographs are made alike. Some are mass-produced, some are in packs. Some are personalized, some are not. Some have all kinds of documentation and many, many more have none at all ... here's a look at a few that have entered my collection in recent months as part of what will now be an ongoing series here. 

CERTIFIED INK
The Item: John Cena autographed The Last Time Is Now retirement tour 11-by-14 -- created and only initially sold by WWE
What It Cost Me: $24 via an autograph mystery buy
What's It Worth: He signed a lot of similar prints last year, typically selling for $75-100 and up over on eBay
The Buzz: The year-long retirement tour of WWE's top active star meant plenty of city-specific merch at many of his stops and then other general stuff like this signed print that was sold at other events. This one isn't tied to any one city -- many are and with some having announced editions of 1,000 copies -- and this one didn't have a specific volume signed that I have seen anywhere but I was more than pleased when I landed this one in a mystery box recently at a sliver of its typical eBay pricing. These photos were not sold unsigned and were released by WWE, making this a certified auto via them. Some eBay sellers have gotten these third-party authenticated (and that brings safety in the eyes of some buyers willing to pay more) while this is just like most of those that were signed. Cena's autographs are in high demand -- and perhaps higher demand now with life away from the ring to amp up more with him perhaps signing less WWE stuff -- but he's also been a signing machine for a long time. Watch this video from years ago. I have had his auto a few times on cards and other items from back in the day, so the stuff like this would not have been on my radar or in my collection if it wasn't for a mystery buy. I'll take it.
Find Ink: WWE boxes at BlowoutCards.com

Keep reading for a look at more autographs of different types.

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CERTIFIED INK ... FROM PACKS
The Item: Doris Burke 2024 Leaf Metal Women of Sport She Got Game Purple Pulsar Autographs (/2)
What It Cost Me: $12.25
What's It Worth: Across all Leaf card types (some higher volume, some lower), Burke's ink has sold for between $25 and $50 on eBay
The Buzz: This long-time NBA announcer and analyst has been in the game since 1990 and has been a regular for ESPN and ABC for a decade-plus. She has been a pioneer, too, as the first woman to work as an analyst for the NBA Conference Finals and the NBA Finals -- and that championship spot is also a first for any American sport. She's among a number of unique autos in Leaf's women-focused releases and was an easy addition at this price.
Find Ink: Leaf boxes at BlowoutCards.com

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RETRO INK
The Item: Franchot Tone autograph book page
What It Cost Me: About $3 in a meaty vintage lot
What's It Worth: Prices are all over the place on eBay depending on the item but all are far more than what I paid.
The Buzz: The lots I picked up of this type of autograph were all meticulously detailed in little vinyl holders by a collector/dealer of signatures from long ago with small printed photos paired with the cuts whenever possible. The lot was in the hundreds if not low thousands of signatures with many of them just like this -- stuff from the mid/late 1970s was the newest stuff, while many more were more like this with all kinds of probably now-obscure names who were big deals in the past. I have no doubt that a lot of the signers in the lots are bigger deals to those who are focused on really old Hollywood (unlike me and the seller I got this from). How old is this? Tone, who has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (in 1960), was a leading man in the 1930s and 1940s and worked on Broadway in the late-1920s and early 1930s until he landed an MGM deal and then worked for Universal, Columbia and Paramount. After that, he became a producer and worked in TV before he died in the late-1960s. His first wife was Joan Crawford (his co-star in a few films) and he married three other times -- all actresses who have a wiki page just like him, too. (There's a lot on his résumé for sure.) Among his biggest projects? Mutiny on the Bounty where he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor along with Clark Gable and Charles Laughton. Among his many other co-stars? Bette Davis, Jean Harlow, Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Lionel Barrymore, Gary Cooper, Lucille Ball ... and on and on. I picked off the lot simply because of its age but there are a lot of stories to be found in many of the autos just like this -- and I'm confident seeing other signatures that this one is real. My gut said that there was big potential here beyond $3 an autograph -- and the curiosity factor is even higher for me. It's something different for my collection, which is probably in the low thousands when it comes to my number of sigs. (I've never tried counting but been amassing them for decades.) 
Find Ink: Non-sports boxes at BlowoutCards.com

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STREAMED INK
The Item: Layla El autographed 11-by-14 photo with inscriptions via a streamed signing
What It Cost Me: A little too much in the moment (but still less than a couple of blaster boxes)
What's It Worth: Doesn't matter as I'm not selling. (Like other stuff here.)
The Buzz: Late last year, I picked off this larger-format photo from a streamed signing -- the first signing in some time for this former WWE star and champ -- via New York-based East Coast Autograph Auctions, which does a lot of sessions with wrestlers, models and TV stars. The 1/1 notation is due to the oversized photos being the lone copies signed at that format for the session with 8-by-10s being done in larger quantities. As part of the streamed format, you can typically get whatever inscriptions added free and that's how this one came together -- but I kind of botched it now that I look back at this one, though. There was plenty of open space, so I had asked about a big autograph across the middle and then added the other inscription in the lower left. However, its potential visual thunder was lost a tad when the auto wasn't huge enough (she generally signs a bit small so this is still a big sig) and seeing the end result it just would have been better in the open space. There were some really creative and long inscriptions done during the signing but my approach -- big ink -- fell flat. It happens and that one is all on me this time. Had I just had her sign it without me trying to trick it up, things would have been flawless. As for authentication, one doesn't need it ... you can just do screenshots or save video of the signing session.
Find Ink: WWE boxes at BlowoutCards.com

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MYSTERY INK
The Items: Autographed 8-by-10 and 4-by-6 photos of ... you tell me (Updated below!)
What It Cost Me: About $2 total in a pair of lot deals
What's It Worth: Once I figure out who it is I can figure that out, so again ... you tell me.
The Buzz: I picked off a couple of super cheap, mixed autograph lots not that long ago with some celebs, TV hosts, media stars, athletes, musicians and more in the mix. Many are inscribed -- the lots were literally piecing out a veteran collector's life-long stash -- with a lot of familiar faces and then some, like this pair, where, well, I have no idea who it is just like the seller who just wanted them gone in chunks. These two signatures are clearly not auto-penned or pre-printed with one being a copyrighted publicity shot (the small one) with a company's line on the back and the other a print of a paparazzi-style photo in what looks to be an airport. So ... the real question is one that I'll let you help with. Who is it?
Find Ink: Non-sports boxes at BlowoutCards.com

Update: The mystery signer is Maria Grazia Cucinotta, an Italian actress who was a Bond Girl in The World Is Not Enough and has more than 100 credits on her IMDb page. That would explain why everybody I asked didn't know her. Meanwhile, she also had roles in The Sopranos and The Simpsons. She does have certified auto cards thanks to that role while signed photos with asking prices anywhere from $20 to $180 depending on item and documentation. I feel pretty good about these.

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