Earlier this month I wrote about yet another Star Trek memorabilia auction, wondering about the provenance of all these supposedly original props and costumes.
Well, looks like my question has been answered, somewhat:
A seven million dollar lawsuit filed by a Star Trek fan alleges that the “one-of-a-kind” memorabilia that he purchased from Christie’s auction house were fakes.
As reported at the NY Daily News, Ted Moustakis is suing both Christie’s and CBS, claiming that a visor and a table represented as props from Star Trek: The Next Generation were not authentic. Moustakis now has doubts about a uniform that he purchased that was supposedly worn by Brent Spiner.
Moustakis was told that the poker visor for which Moustakis had paid $6,000 was not one worn by Spiner as had been advertised, by Spiner himself while attending a Las Vegas Star Trek convention. As reported by the New York Post, when approached by Moustakis to sign the visor, Spiner said, “That’s not my visor. You bought that at Christie’s.” Spiner went on to explain that he had sold the authentic visor himself, in an eBay auction. “He said he had told Christie’s not to sell it,” said Moustakis.
Further research by Moustakis revealed that CBS had been selling numerous versions of Spiner’s supposed “one-of-a-kind” uniform and the table had differences from the one that had appeared in the show.
Moustakis is seeking a refund as well as punitive damages. [Trek Today]
I wonder how long it will be until the visor goes on auction as the “fake visor that caused an uproar and was once spoken about by Brent Spinner himself.”