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kingjammy24
12-29-2007, 02:55 AM
Trekkie claims auctioned prop was a fake
By DAVID B. CARUSO, Associated Press Writer Fri Dec 28, 7:04 PM ET

NEW YORK - A Trekkie who paid $6,000 for a poker visor that was supposedly worn by the android Data on the television show "Star Trek: The Next Generation" claims in a lawsuit against Christie's auction house that the prop is a fake.

Ted Moustakis, of Towaco, N.J., said he began to doubt the authenticity of the visor and other items he purchased at an auction of CBS Paramount props in 2006, after he brought it to a convention in August to have it autographed by the actor who played Data, Brent Spiner.

According to the lawsuit, Spiner recognized the visor as the one that had been sold by Christie's and told Moustakis that it wasn't the real deal. The actual visor had been sold by the actor himself some time ago.

Moustakis, who became a Star Trek fan at age 7, said he was humiliated. "I thought this was a great piece of memorabilia to have, and I was so proud to get it," he said.

Christie's spokesman Rik Pike stood behind the authenticity of the auction and said the disgruntled buyer's case had no merit.

The lawsuit, filed in state court in Manhattan, demands millions of dollars in punitive damages and a refund for the visor and two other items Moustakis bought at the 2006 auction: a table that was part of a set on "The Next Generation" and a uniform that was in Data's wardrobe.

Moustakis said he paid $6,600 for the table and $11,400 for the uniform. He said that, upon close inspection, the table doesn't look like the ones that appeared the show, and the uniform appeared to be one of several made for the program, not a one-of-a-kind, as Moustakis believed it to be.

"They defrauded collectors, fans, honest people," said Moustakis' lawyer, Richard Borzouye. "It's negligent misrepresentation."

Calls and e-mails to CBS Paramount weren't immediately returned
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rudy.

mfsquirrelmaster
12-29-2007, 03:59 AM
"millions of dollars in punitive damages and a refund for the visor and two other items Moustakis bought at the 2006 auction"

I wonder how many millions I can get for a bad Lampson jersey.
Hello early retirement!!!!!!

kingjammy24
12-29-2007, 03:46 PM
what i find interesting is that upon feeling that he was defrauded, the buyer pursued legal action against the auction house, claiming negligent misrepresentation. if i had a nickel for everytime an auction house "negligently misrepresented" an item, i'd own a yacht. and not one of those tiny yachts that you can't even land a helicopter on.

apparently ted isn't a student of the school of game-used collectibles; upon discovering you've been taken, either live with your mistake or try to pawn it off on someone else. preferably another auction house where it'll likely be positively authenticated again and your identity is kept secret. under no circumstances should you take the auction house to task by availing yourself to rights and protections afforded by our legal system. ;)

rudy.

both-teams-played-hard
12-30-2007, 12:12 PM
Since the beginning of the motion picture/television industry, producers and studios have tried to squeeze the profits from actors and writers. Ripping off Sci-Fi collectors may be new to this century. I like to make jokes, but this is actually sad. Did Paramount use a Lampsonesque thought-process: "It's real 'cause we say so"? I doubt this guy will get a million bucks, but a good lawyer should easily get his money back.
I worked at Paramount for a few years and they are tight with their Star Trek stuff. Even scripts are hard to find. When did this auction take place? Does anyone know what was sold? I portrayed a Baku' alien in the Star Trek: Insurrection movie, about 10 years ago. My costume was custom fitted and tailored. That would be cool to own now, wonder if it was sold? My wife played a member of the spaceship crew on the "Enterprise" TV series. She had a flight suit that was also custom tailored with her name chain-stitched inside (just like sports gamers). I would like to own that.
The bad thing is, even if there is a lawsuit, Paramount will use the publicity and probably make money. In the "thirty mile zone", bad publicity is still good publicity.

WadeInBmore
12-30-2007, 12:40 PM
Both-Teams...

Don't know if this will help you much but you can always check out The Prop Store of London...

www.propstore.com

They have a vast collection of screen used/worn costumes and props and are very cool people to deal with. They are responsive to emails and available via phone should you ever need to call them. They might be able to help hunt down said custom costumes...I don't know though. Last I looked I believe they have roughly 30-40 star trek pieces for sale. Check em out.

-wade