CGC Signature Verification Questions 0

[Supermarbie]

I had my comic books signed at Comic Con 2016. It was signed by Jim Lee. Are those signatures not valid anymore since I cannot prove that it was really Jim's signature?

If there are signings at my local comic book store by some artist. Do I need a certificate of authenticity from the comic store or the artist in order for CGC to verify the signature? 

 

Thank you,

Ian

Edited July 12, 2018 by Supermarbie

[ExNihilo]

4 minutes ago, Supermarbie said:

I had my comic books signed at Comic Con 2016. It was signed by Jim Lee. Are those signatures not valid anymore since I cannot prove that it was really Jim's signature?

If there are signings at my local comic book store by some artist. Do I need a certificate of authenticity from the comic store or the artist in order for CGC to verify the signature? 

 

Thank you,

Ian

The signatures from Comic Con 2016 would not qualify you for a yellow label.  Nor would a COA from the store/artist.  An authorized CGC witness has to be on hand to witness the signing or the passing of the book from the creator to you.  And by that I mean, if you commission a cover sketch, the CGC witness doesn't have to witness the artist sketching the entire time, but they need to witness the completed sketch passed from the creator to you.  By that same token, if a creator signs 100 books to sell at their table, you can buy one of the pre-signed books and as long as a CGC witness is there to witness the creator passing you the pre-signed book, it will qualify for a yellow label.

[Supermarbie]

Thank you for the quick answer ExNihilo. So, I just call a CGC representative from their booth in order to witness the authenticity of any signings? What is the purpose of a local comic store signing if there aren't any CGC representatives there?

[RockMyAmadeus]

16 minutes ago, Supermarbie said:

Thank you for the quick answer ExNihilo. So, I just call a CGC representative from their booth in order to witness the authenticity of any signings? What is the purpose of a local comic store signing if there aren't any CGC representatives there?

CGC has facilitators and witnesses, who must sign contracts and abide by a set of strict rules, that allows store signings to be covered under the Signature Series program. There are facilitators and witnesses all over the nation, as well as in other nations; you only need to find one participating in that store signing. You need to 1. find a facilitator (you can do that in the Sig Series forum) and 2. have them get permission for that specific signing if they haven't already, and 3. arrange to have a witness attend that signing, and then take possession of your books once they are signed to turn them in to CGC on your behalf.

For example...Matt Wagner was at a store signing here in SoCal on May 19. My facilitator and I, his witness, attended the signing, and that's all that was required. Easy peasy.

Vital: AT NO TIME are the books to leave the chain of custody after they have been signed, or they will be "green labeled." That means that the moment the creator has signed all of your items, those items must go into the hands of the witness, and that chain of custody must be maintained until the book(s) get(s) to CGC. You can handle them, but do leave sight of the witness. 

Play by the rules, and you'll be fine.

It seems like a lot, but it's an excellent system once you get the hang of it. I would recommend trying out a few different facilitators (some are DEFINITELY better than others) and see who you are comfortable dealing with. 

[ExNihilo]

2 hours ago, Supermarbie said:

What is the purpose of a local comic store signing if there aren't any CGC representatives there?

To get people into the store to buy stuff.  Your LCS doesn't really care whether you get your book slabbed or not.  They only care about the attention it draws to their shop.

50 minutes ago, RockMyAmadeus said:

You need to 1. find a facilitator (you can do that in the Sig Series forum) and 2. have them get permission for that specific signing if they haven't already, and 3. arrange to have a witness attend that signing, and then take possession of your books once they are signed to turn them in to CGC on your behalf.

I've never been to a store signing and sent books off.  Do you really need facilitators for that?  I had always assumed you only needed a CGC witness to attend the store signing, witness the sig and then have the book sent off to CGC via the witness.  Just like at a con, you just go to the CGC booth and grab a witness before getting books signed.

[RockMyAmadeus]

3 minutes ago, ExNihilo said:

I've never been to a store signing and sent books off.  Do you really need facilitators for that?  I had always assumed you only needed a CGC witness to attend the store signing, witness the sig and then have the book sent off to CGC via the witness.  Just like at a con, you just go to the CGC booth and grab a witness before getting books signed.

Authorized/Contract witnesses work in conjunction with facilitators. A witness can't simply e-mail Sam on his/her own initiative and say "hey, there's a store signing, can I go witness?" That's not how it works. That's the role and function of the facilitator. At least, that's always how it's been with me, as a witness for 10+ years.

The reason that's the way it works at cons is because the witnesses there are working directly under the auspices of CGC. The "facilitator" at conventions is CGC itself. 

There have been a few different SS directors in my time as a witness, and everyone does things a little differently, so if there's any question, a call to CGC customer service would answer them.

[Gaard]

A couple of questions from someone who has never had a book signed nor ever owned a yellow label...

What's the difference between a facilitator & a witness?

What makes one facilitator better than another?

[Lazyboy]

14 hours ago, Supermarbie said:

What is the purpose of a local comic store signing if there aren't any CGC representatives there?

To meet creators and get comics signed? Publicity for the store?

 Was that a trick question?

[The Lions Den]

15 minutes ago, KoolAidDrinkingMorons said:

Nope, just another Kool Aid drinking dumas, a by-product of CGC dumbing down the hobby.

Welcome to the boards! 

[The Lions Den]

3 hours ago, Lazyboy said:

To meet creators and get comics signed? Publicity for the store?

 Was that a trick question?

Here's another trick question: Do you know Doug Sulipa?

[Lazyboy]

5 minutes ago, The Lions Den said:

Here's another trick question: Do you know Doug Sulipa?

How is that a trick question?

I know who he is. I've seen him around and talked to him. I've bought from him and sold to him. We're not good friends or anything.

[RockMyAmadeus]

13 hours ago, Gaard said:

A couple of questions from someone who has never had a book signed nor ever owned a yellow label...

What's the difference between a facilitator & a witness?

What makes one facilitator better than another?

A facilitator is the one who works directly with the Sig Series program to arrange and approve of signings, such as store signings, mail-aways, private signings at cons, and the like. 

A witness is merely the person who watches the books get signed, and makes sure the chain of custody is maintained until the books or other items get to CGC.

What makes one facilitator better than another...?

Sooooo many things.

There are facilitators who don't take care of other people's books, who "hamfist" books, who double dip the system, who create unrealistic expectations on the part of creators, who are slow, lazy, and inept.

There have even been rumors running around that certain facilitators have "exchanged" their books for customers' copies in better condition, though I don't think this has been proven yet.

I wouldn't trust many facilitators as far as I could throw them. There are very few I would ever let get within 1000 yards of my books. 

Rich Henn I would trust with my books (and have.) I also trust Triston Pence. I'd trust Joel Elad with my life. Same with Brad Foster. Maybe a couple more. Not many.

Your mileage will vary.

Edited July 12, 2018 by RockMyAmadeus

[Melgo]

Ok. Completely new here. So sorry if this is a dumb question. Along the same lines as this topic.  But how can I get a signature verified for a book that I'm looking to buy that does not have a coa? Or does the CGC do that when the book is sent in for grading?

[Crops068]

4 hours ago, Melgo said:

Ok. Completely new here. So sorry if this is a dumb question. Along the same lines as this topic.  But how can I get a signature verified for a book that I'm looking to buy that does not have a coa? Or does the CGC do that when the book is sent in for grading?

CGC main page, click on Grading then Signature Series.  It should have all the answers you need.

[theCapraAegagrus]

21 hours ago, Melgo said:

Ok. Completely new here. So sorry if this is a dumb question. Along the same lines as this topic.  But how can I get a signature verified for a book that I'm looking to buy that does not have a coa? Or does the CGC do that when the book is sent in for grading?

If you're talking about submitting a book that is already signed - CGC will not verify it.

They will either grade it as Qualified, ignoring the 'defect' of the writing, or;

They'll potentially grade it lower in a Universal Label case.

Either way, they will note, "Name Written on Cover" in the label notes.

[ExNihilo]

On 7/28/2019 at 8:35 AM, Melgo said:

Ok. Completely new here. So sorry if this is a dumb question. Along the same lines as this topic.  But how can I get a signature verified for a book that I'm looking to buy that does not have a coa? Or does the CGC do that when the book is sent in for grading?

There's a distinction to be made here: verify vs witness.

Verify implies that a signature exists on the book and that you're looking for a professional handwriting analyst to verify that a stated signature indeed belongs to the creator you believe it to be from.

Witness means a CGC representative is on hand and physically watches the creator sign the book.  Or physically sees the creator (or a representative of the creator) hand you a pre-signed copy which the creator affirms to be their signature.

When a book is verified, the chain of custody from creator to customer to CGC is broken by a 3rd party.  Whether that 3rd party is an authorized vendor or the USPS.  When a book is witnessed, the chain of custody is physically witnessed by CGC from beginning to end.

[nines]

Hate to hijack a thread, but if I crack a CBCS SS to add another sig (CGC witnessed), would CGC then recognize the CBCS witnessed sigs?

Edited July 30, 2019 by nines

[funkpirate]

14 hours ago, theCapraAegagrus said:

If you're talking about submitting a book that is already signed - CGC will not verify it.

They will either grade it as Qualified, ignoring the 'defect' of the writing, or;

They'll potentially grade it lower in a Universal Label case.

Either way, they will note, "Name Written on Cover" in the label notes.

So there's no way of knowing if the signature will negatively impact the grade? 

I'm very new to collecting comics, if someone wouldn't mind giving their opinion on my situation. I have a comic that is signed with a COA. I know it can't be verified by CGC, however do you think there is still value in having it graded and slabbed? Would you prefer that CGC graded/slabbed it over another company like CBCS/PGX (hopefully not taboo to ask here) that may certify signatures, or would you rather it just be raw?

[revat]

1 hour ago, nines said:

Hate to hijack a thread, but if I crack a CBCS SS to add another sig (CGC witnessed), would CGC then recognize the CBCS witnessed sigs?

Cgc doesn’t recognize or verify any signatures they did not witness, so no.

theres a signature sub forum that answers newbie style questions, it’s worth a look

[Sensei Ryan]

3 hours ago, nines said:

Hate to hijack a thread, but if I crack a CBCS SS to add another sig (CGC witnessed), would CGC then recognize the CBCS witnessed sigs?

I would imagine this would 'qualify' no pun intended for a qualified green label combined with the yellow sig series label (I've never seen one in person but I believe it basically looks like a yellow label with a green stripe at the top) - it would say Signed by (whoever signed it that was authenticated by CGC and their witness) and then 'name written on cover' for all the non-authenticated by cgc sigs.