As a follow up to working on my list of Inkworks Promo Cards, and with the help on others, I see that there are multiple variations on some of the Holiday Cards that Inkworks released each year. Some are blank, some are actually signed, and some look to have printed signatures

Would each of these be considered unique, so for a full set, you would need all the different variations?

My C02 (Holiday 2003 - Scooby Doo) only has Allan's Signature, but have seen some with no signatures, and some with 4 signatures

This can be applied to all other auto cards as well, and now more than ever with Rittenhouse and Cryptozoic Inscription Autos where there lots of different variations of each auto card

For unsigned cards, are these just cards that were not sent to be signed or cards that were returned unsigned? And would they be considered variants?

Regarding what are listed in the NSU Price Guide as Inkworks Corporate Promos
I would not go into the idea of classing them as variants. If we do we are getting into opening up a whole new can of worms.
The only two cards that could be classed as possibly variants would be .
2000 Sunburst Thank you card,mine is unsigned
2002 Scooby Doo, mine is unsigned
The rest eg 2001, 2003, 2005, 2006, are as far as I can tell are facsimili signatures and would be described as such, were as the 2000, and 2002 cards would be described as signed or unsigned as i do not think that you could get these with a fax signature,also the 2002 has at least three signatures of wich there could be a different number of each making one rarer than the other i would still describe them if i had them as with xxx signature/s not as variants.I have seen signature cards with a heart or lovexx on them being classed as variants and a premium added to them sometimes a lot higher than the listed price but everyone to their own.
I would not go down the variant line on these cards.
(my opinion only)

I agree with Piko. There are cards that were available signed or unsigned and some of us are going to be happy having one of them while others definitely want both. Some are going to want as many signature variations as they can find. I'm fine with just getting one but if I can find one with a different number of signatures and it's too cheap to pass up, that's good too.

Similar to that is the situation where collectors bring cards to shows when they know the artist is going to be there or where artists have cards made to be given out. Jusko's "All Superman card" comes to mind. You can find that signed and numbered out of 1000 or unsigned/unnumbered. You might want both versions because that card has a definite limited edition version and a regular version. However, you can't really say in the same way every base set single or promo is available in two versions just because you might be able to get it signed.

Some people like to get their cards signed when they can, but when they decide to sell or trade, they might expect too much and are even surprised there is little to no premium with that (even less of a market for it) because most collectors would rather have cards not designed to be signed left unsigned. It's not just that the autograph isn't certified. They just want the original unmarked card.

I didn't know about the C02 having one or more signatures (did hear that it was available as having a glossy or non-glossy finish but haven't seen the difference yet).

In another thread on this board someone pointed out that there are at least 20 different inscriptions added to a particular autograph card and wondered if anyone else was interested in them. It turned out that there were because the thread went on for a few pages.

Some unsigned cards might be those that were mistakenly sent out before they were signed. Also, as I recall, Allan Caplan gave out extra cards (various promos like those FOA cards or leftover exclusives from shows) to dealers and the unsigned ones might have been among those. After Inkworks shut down and its leftover inventory was sold, some quantity of unsigned cards from various sets (promos and autograph cards) were made available. I've noticed the asking prices for the more famous celebrities tend to be unrealistically-high and they go unsold.

quote:

Originally posted by AWR:
As a follow up to working on my list of Inkworks Promo Cards, and with the help on others, I see that there are multiple variations on some of the Holiday Cards that Inkworks released each year. Some are blank, some are actually signed, and some look to have printed signatures

Would each of these be considered unique, so for a full set, you would need all the different variations?

My C02 (Holiday 2003 - Scooby Doo) only has Allan's Signature, but have seen some with no signatures, and some with 4 signatures

This can be applied to all other auto cards as well, and now more than ever with Rittenhouse and Cryptozoic Inscription Autos where there lots of different variations of each auto card

For unsigned cards, are these just cards that were not sent to be signed or cards that were returned unsigned? And would they be considered variants?

In reading this thread, I was just curious as to the demand and price range of Inkworks Holiday Cards. Do many collectors buy or trade them? Do you go by a guide or the number of signatures, genuine /facsimile, or what?

I did not know these fall under "corporate promos". I thought that was more for actual themed cards, like UD's 2000 Kobe Santa Suit.

I only have a 2013 NSU price guide that i use for reference and these cards are listed in it as Inkworks Corporate Cards.
I am under the impression that most of the issues are sent to Inkworks Mailing List Members. The prices in the guide are quiet high but you can by searchung get them quiet cheap by making offers.
the one commanding the most is the 2002 Scooby Doo CO card wich is issued in a matt finish and a foil finish the matt seems to be the rarer one.
Wether it was signed I dont know I have only seen it advertised unsigned
As said before the 2000 card and the Scooby Doo card are the only ones with genuine signatures by employees of Inkworks.
If you want to give a rarity to the signatures I would say that a card with the signature of Allan wich is how he signed would be the rarest one normally two or three company employees added their signatures most common being Allan and Martha.
All the other cards with signatures are facsimili signatures and there should be no variations etc.
Not having seen a copy or picture of the H2008 signature card I do not know the status of it
Overall I think that only Promo Card collectors would be interested in them.
Also I do not know the numbers printed.

Here's the two I have.
The 2002 Scooby is the foil finish with 4 actual signatures on back.

The 2004 Robots is foil embossed with facsimile signatures on back.




As for how I got these, I collected the Scooby set Mysteries and Monsters set big-time, including the autographs, sketches, and promos, so I think I bought the Holiday card featuring Scooby on Ebay at least 10 years ago.

The Robots card was in the hoard of a comic book store whose non-sports card inventory I acquired when they went out of business about 6 years ago, so it's likely that was sent directly to them by Inkwork as they handled a lot of Inkworks product in the 2000's. Buffy, Angel, and Charmed, for instance, were huge sellers for them. Indeed I got the first two cases of non-sports cards I ever pre-ordered through that store, 2000 Simpsons 10th Anniversary and 2001 Simpsons Inkworks Mania, so they likely had a good enough relationship with Inkworks to merit receiving a holiday card.

Good Evening

I have seven Holiday cards, the first two bearing actual signatures, the next three facsimile signatures and the last two no signature at all. See group image below of the front and backs.

I presume that after the second card was issued it was easier to sign the one and create the facsimile.


[IMG:left] [/IMG]


[IMG:left] [/IMG]

regards

John

I was looking at an online auction site yesterday and noticed that one seller is selling the Scooby Doo C02 card with and without autographs but he wants a lot more for the one with the autographs. The funny thing is that he doesn't even say if it's the foil or matte finish variant. He thinks the signatures are what make the card valuable.

quote:

Originally posted by catskilleagle:
I was looking at an online auction site yesterday and noticed that one seller is selling the Scooby Doo C02 card with and without autographs but he wants a lot more for the one with the autographs. The funny thing is that he doesn't even say if it's the foil or matte finish variant. He thinks the signatures are what make the card valuable.

Hey Jess,

Could you elaborate on that comment? Are you referring to the finish as being shorter produced in a particular version? Aren't the signed cards more valuable than unsigned ones, even if there may have been more cards made for certain years or in different variations?

While the signers are not celebrities exactly, the certified autographs are the only inherit value a card has to offer. They do add value and there is generally more demand. Just as cards with facsimile signatures may look better than the plain card, but they aren't as valuable as ones with genuine signatures.

I know I would at least consider picking up one of the hand signed promos if I stumbled upon it, whereas I really wouldn't have much interest in any of the other Inkworks holiday cards, not being a pure promo collector myself.

Hey Raven,

Yes, as I understand it, the foil finish is the card variant that was released. The matte (flat/regular) finish variant appeared on the market later after Inkworks went out of business. There seem to be fewer of the matte finish cards. As you said, the signers aren't celebrities (and we get just the first names) though a card collector might get a kick out of having a card signed by someone (Allan Caplan) they knew back then/met at a show.

The foil card used to go for maybe $35-40 but you could find it cheaper if you were patient. I haven't seen a matte finish card for sale in at least a year - don't really know the sales history of that one.

I just thought it was weird that the seller doesn't mention whether it's the foil card or not and priced it just based on whether it was signed or not. Maybe that has worked for him before?

quote:

Originally posted by Raven:

quote:

Originally posted by catskilleagle:
I was looking at an online auction site yesterday and noticed that one seller is selling the Scooby Doo C02 card with and without autographs but he wants a lot more for the one with the autographs. The funny thing is that he doesn't even say if it's the foil or matte finish variant. He thinks the signatures are what make the card valuable.

Hey Jess,

Could you elaborate on that comment? Are you referring to the finish as being shorter produced in a particular version? Aren't the signed cards more valuable than unsigned ones, even if there may have been more cards made for certain years or in different variations?

While the signers are not celebrities exactly, the certified autographs are the only inherit value a card has to offer. They do add value and there is generally more demand. Just as cards with facsimile signatures may look better than the plain card, but they aren't as valuable as ones with genuine signatures.

I know I would at least consider picking up one of the hand signed promos if I stumbled upon it, whereas I really wouldn't have much interest in any of the other Inkworks holiday cards, not being a pure promo collector myself.

Regarding the Scooby Doo Holiday card Matt finish
I would consider this a very rare card
I have only seen one for sale from the UK seller and thought that there would be more available and did not purchase it but it seems thst they only had the one so I missed out
I have seen a three signature one for sale but also missed due to shipping costs

Hi AWR
I did not properly read your post
The unsigned cards can readily be purchased
But they do or still command a good price
I would presume that if it was a matt finish that it would not have a signature
Bud can not be certain as the UK seller did not list it as a having a signature as they do not normally show pictures of the back of their for sale cards
I have the following cards
No Signatures Foil
2 Signature Foil
4 Signatures Foil
And seen for sale
3 Signatures Foil
Matt Finish
I would possibly call the Matt one a variant but not the signed ones
As you say the signatures are not only first name and not famous only Inkworks employees or higher ups but interesting

Regarding the Matte finished card
I pulled the trigger and purchased the UK sellers one last year quiet expensive I think $40 US
And was very disappointed in the card I received .
A very dull card dose not have the vibrancy of the foil card
However it is the matte card
Any one thinking of purchasing one do not have great expectations of getting a great card