Complaint Review: PSA DNA Authentication

For years, decades , Autograph collecting was a popular hobby. People often wrote to their favorite celebrity for a signature. A chance meeting would often prompt a customary request of a momento that was both a souvenir and proof of that chance meeting.

Early on AUTOGRAPHS became a popular hobby. One of the very first dealers ever, was a man named WALTER R BENJAMIN . Mr Benjamin's story is fascinating. He fished through trash and found relics in the way of letters,documents of historical interest that had been thrown away. Walter R Benjamin collected and marketed historical papers. Many historical papers were discarded or used as fillers.  Paper was also reused as is was a scarce commodity and it is a known fact that papers written by Mozart were lost forever as they were used to wrap fish ! Mr. Benjam not only found and pioneered a new market, he preserved history. His business was handed down to his daughter Mary Benjamin, and today lives on with Chistopher Jaeckel , Mary's nephew, running this business with the same care and integrity of his family members that began this company.

THE UACC, Universal Autograph Collectors club was once a thriving successful organization. This organization unified collectors,dealers, and combinations of, in the interest of maintaing integrity and legitimacy in the hobby of autograph collecting. Members like Mary Benjamin, Joe Rubinfine, Bob Batchelder, Al Whitnebert ,Roy Deally ,Cordelia & Tom Platt all helped to make this club a fantastic success. The UACC was successful for many  years . They had wonderful autograph shows. The magazine, PEN & QUILL had wonderful articles. Truthful articles with integrity.

A man named John Eaton , a wonderful talented artist , began integrating forged photographs of modern celebrities into the market place. These forgeries are so well executed that they are still in circulation today. This was one step toward the destruction of this hobby.

R&R Enterprises began putting out monthly catalogs. Robert Eaton sold  mostly modern material. He had a never ending supply of modern material. Bob wanted to really dominate this hobby. In the 1990's R&R Enterprise was in its infant stages. Bob and his staff began to call out other dealers on veracity. UACC member , Mike Minor was one of the first UACC members to be DEFAMED by circulation of scandal sheets being mailed to various UACC members ,the mailings bearing no return address , but New Hampshire and Massachusetts post marks. Bob Eaton began making accusations against certain UACC members. He called out Mark Vardakis, Monroe Mendoza, Paul Hartunian, and selective others, causing concerns heightened about authenticity to the point of creating a panic. There have been some people that theorize that Bob Eaton was somehow related to John Eaton, but there is no real evidence. The two men share the same last name, lived in the same geographic area, and both look very much alike. It is a fact that John Eaton was a forger and he lived in Florida for a while until he was prosecuted for identity theft. John served out his term in a Florida prison and was released a few years ago.

Collectors Universe was a high profile dealership. They contracted various astronauts to do signings. Influential people like Bob Eaton, Steve Grad, John Reznikoff, Steve Cyrken and Joe Orlando decided the "forgery issues" within the UACC and all the internal dishonest behavior within the UACC had reached an all time high. The power of suggestion is a powerful weapon and some have a talent for creating issues that simply do not exist, or are less of an issue than anticipated. The biggest forgery issue in autographs was the flood of John Eaton fakes of the late 80' and early 90's .

Using the power of panic , efforts were made to "educate" collectors about how dangerous the hobby was. Forgeries existed , but most were exposed. THE PEN & QUIL was a huge success for years, in thwarted forgery scemes. The UACC did a remarkable job  keeping autograph collecting clean and upright. The unfortunate thing about the UACC is that is is nonprofit. Authentication should be an opportunity to derive profit according to the motley crew of Eaton, Reznikoff, Cyrkin, ad Orlando. The idea of a third part authentication was formed.

Many old time autograph dealers of the UACC era , rejected PSA DNA as an authenticator. For many years , buying from a dealer, who was a UACC member meant that you were dealing with an honest person. Dealers had return policies. Any discovered trends in forgeries were shared with other UACC members via THE PEN&QUILL MAGAZINE. UACC shows had proctors to monitor the dealers . The UACC Membership meant EVERYTHING and it was extremely difficult to sell without being a UACC member. No dealers ever dared step over any lines of integrity and jeopardize their membership. Bob Eaton knew this and he was very successful in causing damage within the UACC early on.

With internet, many dealers began selling online. PSA DNA has promoted there ONLINE OPINION SERVICE. This service gives potential buyers an "OPINION" on an item prior to purchase. PSA DNA has been successful in discrediting honest dealers , giving false opinions, and has made UACC Membership totally worthless.

PSA DNA has a conflict of interest because Bob Eaton, John Reznikoff, Bill Mastro, Roger Eperson, and others are dealers. Many "opinions" given are based on excluding new dealers, or discrediting established dealers. There are numerous stories about individuals, who attended "IN PERSON SIGNING"  of books, baseballs, photographs and actually experiencing the joy of meeting a celebrity , and having the rug yanked from under them, as PSA DNA submissions from such signings are rejected . PSA DNA charges the same regardless of authenticity. Dealers who patronize PSA DNA on a regular basis get rewarded, but in the beginning will receive very disappointing  results until PSA DNA has collectively received the appropriate dividends. PSA DNA basically allows dealers to sell and gets a percentage.

Recently , Bill  Mastro was arrested by the FBI . His connections to PSA DNA have been questioned and an investigation is in progress. At a recent PSA DNA dinner, the Mastro investigation was referred to as the 800 pound gorilla. They served Chicken Marsala , which i understand was quite good  !

Pictured  is PSA DNA members, Bill Mastro, John Reznikoff, Roger Epperson  and Steven Grad . Steven grad is the dude with glasses, Reznikoff is wearing the white shirt, Epperson is wearing a black shirt, The Mastro's are wearing matching blue shirts. A nice photo !!!