Autographs Sometimes Turn Up at Estate Sales and Flea MarketsI find most of today's estate sales overpriced because too many people think everything is worth a fortune on eBay. There are still some good ones, but one has to spend a lot of time sorting them out from the bad ones. Too many times, the good stuff is cherry picked and put on eBay before the walk-in customers ever see it. The few good ones nowadays are generally out in the woods, down little country roads conducted by family members instead of professional estate liquidators. I did find one of my favorite pieces at an estate sale. I usually like to look through the junk that most everybody else ignores. I found a Three Stooges signed picture (not really a photo, but a copy of a photo on paper, the kind that were distributed to fans because photos were too expensive). It is a good one of Larry, Moe and Shemp signed "To Inez & Drummond ... Moe .. Sincerely ...The 3 Stooges ... 2/15/48". I didn't notice that it was signed by Shemp until I got home. Larry didn't sign. This picture was mixed in with wallpaper that was once used as drawer lining. I asked the person in charge "how much" and he said "free." I wasn't thinking clearly at the time, because I laid it down to look at something else. Some guy grabbed and we got in a little argument. He told the guy in charge that he'd be willing to pay for it. I said I'll give $20, and the man stormed out of the house mad. The picture is worth a few hundred dollars. I have it framed with another Stooge photo signed by Larry and three vintage trading cards. Unfortunately, I didn't pull the trigger when I could have had a Curly Howard signature for $100 a decade ago. I do have signed photos of the other two third Stooges, Joe Besser and Joe DeRita.
I once bought a stack of about a hundred signed photos at a local flea market for 50 cents each. They had once been part of a school class project. Several are inscribed to "The Holly Pond Glee Club." Chyna Phillips, Toni Tenille, Dick Martin (of Rowan and Martin fame), a Brady Bunch photo signed by creator Sherwood Schwartz, James Caan, Bo Derek, Amy Grant, and Naval Admiral Elmo Zumwalt are a few of the names. Nothing of great monetary value, but certainly worth more than what I paid. Point is, autographs can be found at flea markets.
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Since dealers are the biggest buyers at estate sales, many autographs from estate sales end up in flea markets and on eBay. Though the best deals are usually found when the middleman is eliminated, I have found inexpensive autographs at flea markets.