A Sour Note : Auction of Elvis Memorabilia Fizzles in Santa Ana

Who can blame the Stern family for having dollar signs in their eyes?

Last December in New York, Sotheby’s auctioned an acoustic guitar said to have been Elvis Presley’s for $24,200.

Last month in Atlanta, top bid for an acoustic guitar Elvis was supposed to have played was $180,000.

Now the Sterns, pawnshop proprietors and auctioneers, had come into a load of Elvis memorabilia, and among it was ($$$!) an acoustic guitar.

“If we get $180,000, that would be nice,” said Julie Stern. “It’s not worth it, but it’d be nice.” Stern’s specialty is appraisal, but it’s tough when Elvis collectors are so unpredictable they can’t agree even on whether The King is dead or alive. What would they pay, for example, for Lot 285, one of Elvis’ monogrammed handkerchiefs? And would it be worth more if actually used by Elvis?

“Let’s put it this way,” she said. “It’s worth whatever someone thinks it’s worth. If they want to pay extra for his mucous, then it’s worth it. I really can’t put a value on half these things.”

“We’re at the mercy of the trend market, and it’s not too good right now,” said Steve Stern, Julie’s father. “But I know we’ll get a good number of people here, and there are not too many looky-loos showing up.”

Most of the items in the 17-page auction catalogue came from sports and film celebrities, but in the Sterns’ ads, Elvis got top billing. And the guitar--”worth five figures”--was scheduled 185th for dramatic impact--the equivalent of late in Act II.

All was ready at 10 a.m. Sunday, when the Sterns opened the doors of Unique Collectibles to what they hoped would be a horde of check-writing Elvis fans.

As a jukebox played Elvis singles, Steve Stern stood behind the Elvis showcase to answer questions.

“There are copies out, but these guitar picks were used by him,” Stern was saying. “They are guaranteed used by him. You can say any guitar pick was used by anybody, but these were used by him.”

John Castillo nodded. So did his girlfriend, Dawn Paine, who was wearing a red “Elvis in Concert” jacket. “Actually worn by him,” Castillo said.

Both were down from Fresno for the auction.

“You have to be a collector for years to know who really has the stuff,” Castillo said. “I had an uncle who worked for Elvis. They do make copies, but you get a feel for what he would wear.”

Steve Stern announced that the Elvis items had come from, and were authenticated by, a “close family member”--Earl Greenwood of Los Angeles. Greenwood co-authored “The Boy Who Would Be King,” an Elvis biography, and has another book, “Elvis--Top Secret,” on the way.

(One showcase showed clippings and photographs identifying Greenwood as an Elvis relative, but Todd Morgan, a spokesman for Graceland, part of Elvis’ estate, cast doubt on that relationship.

(“We’ve asked every (Presley) family member we can find, and not one backs up his claim of being a cousin,” Morgan said. “They remember him as a fan, one of the regulars at the front gate like a lot of other fans. And like a lot of them, he got invited to a few parties.”

(Greenwood said his grandmother, Delta Presley, was the sister of Elvis’ father, Vernon Presley, which would make Greenwood Elvis’ second cousin. “The way I look at it, I wish I weren’t (a relative),” Greenwood said. “People have this conception that his relatives just live off of him, which isn’t true. I’d rather be classified as a friend.”

(“I don’t want to call him a liar,” Morgan said. “He might have a twig on that family tree somewhere. Whether he’s a cousin doesn’t really have anything to do with the legitimacy of the items he has for sale.”)

Noon arrived, Steve Stern positioned himself before the microphone, and the bidding began.

A 1957 Christmas card from Elvis went for $500. The three guitar picks went for $50 each.

But the gold-and-onyx ring Elvis gave his mother did not inspire the minimum $2,000 bid and was withdrawn or “passed.” It was going to be the first of many Elvis items that went begging.

A promotional hat “worn by Elvis himself. This hat! Opening bid, $500 please.” No bidders. “Amazing,” Steve Stern said. “Pass it.”

An RCA portable phonograph signed by Elvis. No bidders.

A gold-plated card issued to Elvis employees. Minimum bid, $1,000. No bidders.

A diamond ring, “extremely unique, extremely interesting. This would open in Europe for $10,000.” Minimum bid, $1,500. No bidders.

“Why are these people here?” muttered an auction worker.

A custom-made brown mohair suit. “It was used, if I’m not mistaken, for a wedding or some such affair, then used in his own personal life. Can I have $1,000?” Silence.

“Amazing. It cost him about that much to have it made.” Silence.

“Let’s pass it,” and Stern heaved his first sigh of the afternoon.

Nobody wanted to make minimum bids on other rings, on a gold digital watch (“definitely a highlight”) or on a gold-and-garnet bracelet (“the most important of the Presley items; it was his good-luck charm”). Meanwhile, a gold cigarette case used by Sammy Davis Jr. went for $1,500.

Then came Lot No. 185, the Elvis guitar “used in many concerts.” But now Stern was a tad miffed.

“I’m going to show it to you,” he said, prompting a few chuckles in the audience, “but I’m not going to put it up to bid. I’m not going to embarrass the situation. It’s a minimum five-figure piece. One sold for $180,000 that doesn’t have this pedigree. I’m available after the auction if you’re interested.”

Several other items went unsold, but two Elvis autographs were snapped up for $300 each, five “I Like Elvis” envelopes for $60, a diamond ring for $1,375, a black leather jacket for $1,500 and a diamond-and-gold-nugget ring for $2,000, the top sale of the afternoon.

The unsullied handkerchief went for $150.

Linda Albanese of Covina walked off with Elvis’ guitar strap, his script for the movie “Flaming Star” and his monogrammed bathrobe. They left a $1,889.25 dent in her American Express account.

“That card must be smokin’ by now,” cracked her husband, Richard.

“Ain’t he a great husband?” she said. “We’ll live on cheese for the next couple of months.”

Why is this stuff worth the money?

A different look came into her eyes.

“That guitar strap ($350) was a good deal. He had to wear it across him, so it was close to his heart. That’s important to me. I’ll accept their word that it was his. That’s about all you can do.

“He was more than just a singer. He was more than just an entertainer. You could feel it. He gave 150% to every one of his fans. There was a lot of heart in that man.”

But, alas, there was not a lot of money in that audience.

“This was a $10 crowd. It was not a high-line crowd,” said a frustrated Steve Stern.

“I think when it comes to Elvis, what people want is his glitz. The white-fringe jackets and the sequins, that’s what they relate to. This,” he said, gesturing to the leftovers, “was Elvis’ personal life. They don’t want that. They don’t want him to be like you and me.”

Arlene Mitzel of Anaheim, who bought an Elvis autograph for $300, had a different point of view.

“When they ask for $4,000 to start, that’s a little steep for me. There are no rich people in here. And actually, I’m a doll collector.”