Henri Charriere

Blast from the Past! Q.A.: I am very happy for you. Now on to Part Two... J P M: TWO???! Q.A.: Yes, it's called upgrading. (We shall talk about hits, runs, errors, VAMs and varieties another time.) 🤣

I suspect a collector devoted to this series-- @The Neophyte Numismatist -- may be of assistance...

Welcome to the Forum! I know not what it is but suspect it is not a "coin" in the usual sense of the word. Hopefully, someone will drop by with the precise information you seek. Best of luck!

According to the latest figures, 123,582 people call my neighborhood home. Guideline rules prohibit me from breaking down the demographics, but the number of violent crimes committed here are 264% greater than the national average. I am sorry about your long commute but I can confidently state living in East Harlem has made me a better person. 🤣

The only nagging question here is why, in the presence of a national studio audience of millions, you wouldn't remove the coin from its protective display flip onto an appropriate surface to enable viewers to examine it in its wondrous splendor? 🤔

Probably insensitive and seemingly cruel to even suggest this, but the antique centennial cent, whose only saving grace, if authentic, were made from honest-to-goodness Mint State copper but for reasons unknown was unceremoniously placed in what appears to be (if there is such a thing) a genuine plastic frosted flip. Many awards are given out to members for a variety of delectable delicacies at the end of each year. I am going to risk what remains of my imagined stellar reputation and cobwebby see-through credibility to nominate you for having the most tenacity and dogged determination to bring to the Forum unique heretofore unknown and unseen works to transcend the membership which has mired itself by default into a general lackluster year-end complacency. If you are fortunate, the Great Z shall translate my dense soliloquy into more palatable prose, as only he can with his succinct signature style of translation and biting wit. 🤣

I appreciate your running commentary, and I suspect you enjoy it as much as I do.

Why don't we start at the beginning. What's a basic membership cost at NGC? What's a basic membership cost at PCGS? ANY REASON WHY ONE SHOULD COST NEARLY 3X MORE THAN THE OTHER? (Now bear in mind, grading credits are not awarded in the lowest tiers of membership.) Fact: Regardless number of certifications performed or years in service, one is clearly convinced it enjoys a higher profile than the other but those suggesting it is tarred and feathered for "bashing" and run out of town on a rail. The gentleman referred to as "the Market (first name Fair) can bear witness to this as he has Final Say. 😉

Judge you? I must be asleep at the switch! You mean the eagle is gone, and I hadn't noticed in 25 years? Rip Van Winkle here. Maybe z is right; I should get out more. 🤣

Something about the animal used looks awfully familiar... 🤔

Walter Huston. Yup, that's the clip! Thanks Edit: Also directed by his son, John H.

Spoken like a true photo phanatic! 🤣

At the risk of being ostracized, ad infinitum, by my fellow members, I am all but constrained to confess that having witnessed and participated in the Golden Age of U.S. coinage, when silver was referred to as such generations ago, these pieces I refer to as strictly miscellaneous, do nothing for me. Lincoln cents now litter the streets of New York City. How can I take pride in owning a shiny new Mankiller quarter? Where are all the ornate bank notes of yore? An Educational Series note and St. Gaudens dollar are sights to behold. Generic state coins minted without a smidgen of silver and little or no artistic merit? Not so much. Just about every opportunity to put out a distinctive coin for circulation in the past sixty years has been roundly squandered. What has Government offered, as of late, to young numismatists being raised on E-Z passes, OMNY tap-and-go devices (NYC Transit) parking receipts spat out by parking meter kiosks and a profusion of debit and credit cards... silver, gold and platinum? Innovation dollars? The one-dollar bill has an average lifetime of use in circulation of only 18 months. A genuine "innovation" surely would have come up with a dollar coin that enjoys universal acceptance -- and whose widespread circulation would keep the Treasury Department's coffers full. Why are two-dollar bills gathering dust? The United States Mint's products are mass-produced with little or no quality control, are overpriced, and unloved by all but the strategic speculators. Rant over; nothing personal.

Hi Bill, Late to the party as usual. Your Topic is entitled, "Wheatie find !" Was this coin something you actually "found" or inadvertently came across while engaged in buying, whatever the venue?

In view of the "waving hand," I shall address the following to all members. Before we address any questions related to grading, values and possible optical illusions, front-and-center depiction is a matter of propriety and a reflection on the owner. The point I wish to make goes well beyond an untied shoe lace or one's open fly which ideally ought to be handled discreetly and as unobtrusively as possible. If you wish to be taken seriously, as a hobbyist, make an effort to display your coins properly: beyond presenting the obverse on top and reverse below, position the coins in a fine-tuned straight, up-and-down, perpendicular alignment much like every coin book, coin catalog or coin listing you have ever set your eyes upon. The scatter-shot approach including coin-drift and sideways rotation is distracting. After everything is aligned properly, cropped, and shown under optimal lighting conditions, we can talk about all the other stuff. Presentation, to me, is everything and extends to every facet of life.

Gentlemen, malheureusement, the Great Zadok, whom no one has contradicted to date (and the Hon. V Kurt B, to a lesser extent) has rendered his verdict on this matter, upthread, as posted on Sunday, at 11:27 a.m. As to whom to trust, fortunately, you have a God-given choice: the Principal Keeper of Pallets, or your own lying eyes.

If I am smart, I will make that decision myself within the next ninety-nine days.

Lofty (pardon the pun) and laudable goal, but do yourself and your family (us) a big favor and have yourself cleared for take-off by your doctors.

If you have made prior arrangements with family, a close associate or trusted friend of irreproachable virtue, complete with detailed directions to the site, I am going to take the liberty of referring to this as the "PzlBox Hoard." With your recommendation, I shall play the part of the old man dancing a little jig as performed in that classic epic, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. If you fail to make the necessary arrangements I shall endeavor to make your true crime epic as interesting as possible. Boy Scout Motto: Be Prepared.

It's been only two months and two weeks. I'd say give it time. 🤣

I suspect the various collectibles adapt well to the scale -- Ancients appear to do well with dual 5-point scales -- but coins have managed just fine with 70, not all increments of which are used.

To the OP: we are almost into the New Year... what's the upshot?

Elementary, my dear Watson. How so? How many sides are there to a coin? Two. An obverse and a reverse. How many sides has the OP depicted? Three. But -- -- FULL STOP! It's a most unusual oddity, no question about it, but, nevertheless a counterfeit, no ifs, ands, or buts. 🤣

Your wish, sire, is my command: "WHAT IS UR NEW YEARS COIN WISH?" z: Pallets, more pallets. h: But, but... Dena: I will allow it.

By Law, enforced by the two Moderators peering over each of my shoulders with a direct open line to Dena, I must keep the thrust of this voluntary inquiry on numismatics. Accordingly, what are your hopes, goals and dreams? Is there a hole in an album or set you've been trying to fill? Is there an upgrade you just cannot seem to get your hands on? Are you prepared to make an extravagant offer for a coin you feel no owner in his right mind would be likely to refuse? (Hoping a Brinks armored car hits a bump i/f/o you on an Interstate disgorging its contents all over the road does not count!) In short, what is/are your top coin collecting goal(s) for the coming year?