AUTOGRAPHS II: OK, say you pay $50...

AUTOGRAPHS II: OK, say you pay $50 for a signed photo of LaToya Jackson (“sexy pose,” the R&R; ad assures us). How do you know the autograph is authentic? Eaton’s company gives guarantees that signatures are the real thing, but Mike Guiterez says it’s “buyer beware.”

“One thing you’ve got to be careful with, not only in pop but movie stars too, is that a lot of signed photos are done by secretaries in offices,” he says. “And more and more people seem to just scribble their signatures in recent years. So anything post-1970, you’ve got to be careful.”

Los Angeles record collector Mike Keifer (“Musical Mike” of radio’s “Dr. Demento Show”) also warns potential investors that the value of pop collectibles tends to fluctuate dramatically. For example, the 1990 death of guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan boosted his collectors value tremendously. R&R; is listing a signed color photo of him for $395.

But it’s pretty easy to guess which pop stars’ items have the most enduring value.

“The Beatles is the highest demand,” says Eaton. “Something where all four signed the same sheet of paper, we matte this up and we can sell it for a couple of thousand dollars.”