Autograph scandal about to blow up, involves many athletes

[Gismo]

What was the motivation to out Johnny Manziel? Apparently he screwed these memorabilia dealers by trademarking his nick name. 

 

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/blog/bruce-feldman/23055431/did-rift-with-memorabilia-dealers-fuel-manziel-controversy

 

 

 

"When his family filed to patent his name, 'Johnny Football,' all of us dealers, and I'm talking like 500 of us, had items on eBay related to Johnny Manziel," Rudolph told CBSSports.com Wednesday. "They weren't necessarily signed by him. I had Heisman programs from where he won the Heisman. So on that listing it would say, 'Johnny Manziel, Johnny Football, Texas A&M Heisman Program.' eBay swiped across the country and took all of those items down. All of 'em. And, in addition to that, they banned everyone who had done it for two weeks. No prior warning or nothing.

 

"I had 400 items up. I had six or eight related to Manziel and they pulled all of 'em. I called [eBay]. I said, 'I've never had any trouble on eBay whatsoever.' They said, 'This is a legal thing and you violated a legal code so you're suspended for two weeks.' For me, I'm small time. That was an irritating thing because for two weeks, I couldn't sell anything. I am quite sure for people whose livelihood are this business, that was crippling.

 

"If there's anybody who has an ax to grind, pick any of those people."

 

Rudolph says his company has paid many pro athletes for the signing of items, but says when it comes to college athletes, "it gets a little sketchy. ... we've had arrangements to sign memorabilia for us as soon as their bowl game ends. We have many bowl games down here in Florida. It may be two hours after the game ends, we're gonna meet at this hotel room. We'll buy their used game jerseys, their cleats. They'll sign stuff for us. That's a gray area because the moment they're signing and getting their money, their eligibility is done, but when the arrangement is made before their eligibility. ... that's what I can say. I have never had a paid signing with an eligible player, but I know that is going on all the time. All the time."

Edited August 7, 2013 by Gismo

[smazza]

he did it on purpose

[Gismo]

he did it on purpose

I thought he signed hundreds of items accidentally.

[Gismo]

Good article, interview with an autograph dealer talks about the business.

http://tamu.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1533977

[charsibb]

I don't ever blame anyone for selling something for which there is a market (unless it's been stolen, etc)

 

But whoever goes out and actually pays money for this stuff is an idiot, IMO. It's one thing to ask for an autograph in person, it's another thing to pay for something somebody else asked for personally, but it's a whole new level of stupid to pay for something signed en masse just to generate funds for the signer and the distibutor

 

:smh: