Pawn Stars and the 1933 Farouk Double Eagle
Walkerfan
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Watched the latest episode this evening. Ian Russell was trying to sell Rick Harrison the 1933 MS 65 Saint Gaudens double Eagle. The one and only that just sold a couple years ago for over $18 million. Rick offered him $25 million and he turned it down. Said he would only entertain offers over $30 million. It was a super interesting episode. Did anyone else see it and what did you think? Jeff Garrett was also also there and made a good point. He said ‘when you own the one and only no one can undersell you’. 🤣😉 I was surprised to see it for sale so quickly. Think it sold last in 2021.
“I may not believe in myself but I believe in what I’m doing” ~Jimmy Page~
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
5
Comments
There is a school of thought- by some, not many- that the show is perhaps and somewhat "staged."
(Kind of like roller-derby or whatnot, I suppose.)
peacockcoins
@EliteCollection Are you really marketing the coin? Or it's on loan for TV purposes?
Chopmarked Trade Dollar Registry Set --- US & World Gold Showcase --- World Chopmark Showcase
I’m sure that a lot of it is staged but it was still interesting to see that it was up for sale and that he was asking $30 million!
“I may not believe in myself but I believe in what I’m doing” ~Jimmy Page~
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
I stopped watching the show several years ago. Segments like the one you describe were a prime reason why.
Sometimes, there are good recent comps that make it relatively easy to price a coin at the “right” number. Other times, it can be a lot more difficult.
For purposes of privacy, the names, places, denomination, precise numbers, date, mint, grade and grading company have been omitted.
Only the following information is available to you:
CDN bid was off the charts.
Price guide was $22,500,000
The most recent sale - same grading company and grade - was more than 20 years ago at $7,590,000.
Your maximum bid was $20,000,000.
You won the coin for $18,872,250.
What would your asking price be?
Please feel free to explain how you arrived at your price.
our own pennylady was on seriously selling an ww2 air recon camera --- with film inside! -- and said it was honest bargaiing
there have been other coins & paper money items where the item and people were know to forumites who speculated the items really weren't for sale
$18 mil to $30? I'm guessing it would have happened
This thread needs a photo.
Nothing is as expensive as free money.
Well a 25 Million offer sure ain’t bad — no auction fees either.
I attended a poorly attended afternoon Heritage Auction at the FUN show a number of years ago and saw Rick Harrison in the rear row of chairs way behind me. I did not recognize him and thought it was odd to see an active bidder sitting in the back row with loads of cameras not in the front row or not in the middle row to the side where I liked to sit.
Then he and his team moved up to my row and I thought the group were a bunch of wanna be coin collectors trying to promote themselves on film and I disdainfully looked at them. They then handed to me a piece of paper which I did not want to look at but they insisted I read it and then sign it. I then looked at it and realized it was for a future Pawn Stars episode. I then realized I was going to be a future Hollywood TV star ( LOL) and happily signed the form to not disclose the details of the auction before the episode aired on TV. I never even checked to see if the episode ever aired on TV.
Totally staged, Rick would never pay 25 million for the coin.
Does Rick have 25 million dollars?
Having fun while switching things up and focusing on a next level PCGS slabbed 1950+ type set, while still looking for great examples for the 7070.
I stand to be corrected, but it was my understanding with regard to ultra expensive coins that Pawn Stars would already have a buyer in place for the coin so in effect the show would be acting as an intermediary.
I guess anything is possible, but does Rick really have a better potential buyer/connection list than Ian Russell?
Having fun while switching things up and focusing on a next level PCGS slabbed 1950+ type set, while still looking for great examples for the 7070.
There was an episode of Cajun Pawn Stars over a decade ago where someone came in to sell a $5000 and $10000 denomination set of 4 notes. The actual owner who is a member of another forum said that it was staged and that he loaned them out to the History Channel use for the episode.
Given that, my first assumption would be that it this was staged as well.
I think this was designed to promote Pawn Stars, Great Collections, and the coin.
I'd sure like to hear from Ian @ GC and/or EC (owner of the 1933) about what this was all about.
The episode with pennylady aired many years back when the emphasis was on buying odd but much less expensive items. Those were the years when I actually watched the show.
Would have been better had the coin been unboxed from A Witter Brick.
Years ago I happened to be watching and I saw a segment that had a guy that used to work for me at ANACS on it. Next time I saw him at a show I asked him about it and he said that when somebody came in with something interesting and uunusual they called him to be there as a consultant when the guy came back in a few days, by appointment, and the whole thing was scripted.
Dana Linnett and Brian Hendelson, both numismatists, have been featured as experts or sellers on the show, as well.
Yep, first place I'm going to go with my multi-million dollar, one of a kind numismatic treasure is to a pawn shop!
Well, it is a third of a mile from Binions.
Clearly there are many segments where buyers have no intention of selling anything, so it's really a show where they talk about interesting things and their possible value. Like the Adam Carolla episode where he was selling a race car. Adam had no intention of selling the car. I wish they wouldn't have contrived segments, but I still the objects and discussions interesting.
Having the Pawn Stars hawk the 1933 Double Eagle is like basting horse meat with Dom Perignon.
There would be no auction fees on that coin anytime... well, unless you sold it yourself on ebay.
I agree. The backstories are often educational.
The show has to keep viewership. Show casing Banksy paintings and one off race cars etc. helps.
The likelihood of someone trying to sell a $20M coin at a pawnshop is slim to none. If it was my coin I would be afraid of walking around with it.
Pawn Stars isn't your normal shop.
Not sure about your analogy. Basting any any meat with DP sounds unappetizing.
Grey Poupon on a coin show hotdog maybe.
You must not of seen Ian’s protective detail.
Also for everyone else - ITS ENTERTAINMENT!
Or any number of the objects on the show. Who has a rare painting and thinks a Pawn Shop is the best place to go with it? Or trading cards, or comics or cars & motorcycles? It isn't your typical pawn shop though, it's not full of tools and old electronics, but still...
I know the guys on “Botched” and one segment of every episode is dedicated to something outrageous a patient wants or has had done- they have no intention of operating on them they just do it for ratings.
Ian, wheeling and dealing with Pawn Star, Sr.
Made mimosas once. Good OJ though.
https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/rick-harrison-net-worth/
FIFY
It's all about what the people want...
At one show I remember they had a booth at Long Beach where people could take items and the producers would decide whether or not they thought the items were interesting enough to have on the show. I know of at least one person who went to Vegas for a shoot where they filmed the negotiation and they did not air the exchange and no deal was made. Had the seller actually sold them the coin, maybe it would have aired. Even though the show is mostly scripted, from what I've seen, they actually buy the items if a deal is made. Shows like storage wars are total re-enactments where often the items that they "find" in the units are actually provided by the "experts" that they try to sell to for entertainment or marketing reasons.
My Ebay Store
Interesting how neither Ian nor John Albanese mentioned this coin to me at the coin show in Tampa a few weeks ago when I chatted with them. I certainly would have loved to have seen it….🤔😬😉
Hi -
Hope everyone enjoyed it.
We approached the show for a few reasons.
Could they have a huge client who wants the most valuable coin? (If a deal is done and filmed in real time, how amazing would that be to be part of?)
In general, it's great exposure for the hobby. It was Elite's idea initially and awesome how it all came together so quickly. We need as much exposure for coins as possible. At GC, we spent money on this endeavor because it's so important to attract collectors in the future.
Elite really wants people to learn more about coins and see a rarity like the 1933. Pawn Stars has a vast viewership - and the majority is outside of the numismatic community.
Rick's shop is impressive. The amount of foot traffic is astonishing. He has knowledge about coins. I wondered if he was going to call Steve Wynn or someone like that, he knows everyone in that town.
I had several conversations with Elite in the lead up to the taping "okay, we need to be prepared that your complete Saint set is not complete anymore" - he would have been a very reluctant seller, but knew that was the purpose of the project.
One other benefit, I got to hang out with Jeff Garrett after the taping - although I've known Jeff for years and we've done some business, I hadn't spent an afternoon with him before the day of the shoot in Vegas. We had a nice dinner at a classic Vegas restaurant after touring the Pawn shop.
The security and insurance was probably the most difficult part to arrange. It's why it was not filmed at his shop. Their team were very helpful and ensured everything went to plan and the coin's time on site was kept to a minimum.
Owner/Founder GreatCollections
GreatCollections Coin Auctions - Certified Coin Auctions Every Week - Rare Coins & Coin Values
@ianrussell Thanks, Ian! I REALLY enjoyed watching the episode of Pawn Stars with the 1933 DE.
Thank You for EVERYTHING that you do for our hobby/investment/business!!
“I may not believe in myself but I believe in what I’m doing” ~Jimmy Page~
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
Many years ago there was a Pawn Stars episode with one of my "1964-D" over-struck Peace Dollars.
This is how that came to be:
1.
An acquaintance of mine found the web site where a person could apply to be on the show. The application process included a description of the item and the price that the owner was looking to get.
2.
An application was made by my acquaintance. That application included a description of my "1964-D" Peace.
3.
Some time later, my acquaintance was invited to be on the show. One problem - he did not have a "1964-D" Peace. So I gave him one and I told him to sell if for whatever was offered and he could keep that amount for his trouble.
4.
During the show taping the price negotiated was $140, and it was sold to the shop for that amount (which was about half the going rate on eBay at the time). But that was OK, I wanted it to be sold and not have Pawn Stars reject it.
So, while the items that appear on the show are pre-selected (scripted), the negotiations regarding any deals on those items appear to be mostly live and not scripted.
Thanks Ian....I missed the original airing but will make sure I catch the re-broadcast.
So I take it from what you are saying that EC definitely WOULD have sold the coin if his asking price ($30 MM ?) was met -- is that correct ?
Everything is for sale at a certain price. I won't consider selling it for under $30M at this time, but I would have to really think hard if I did get an offer over $30M.
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Was the offer of $25,000,000 legit or scripted.
Seems Harrison would need to sell the coin for $30M unless he had a buyer in his pocket.
Heady stuff for a coin that traded for 7M two decades ago.
There's no way he would stock a $25M coin, so he definitely has a buyer if a deal is to be made. I do not know if his offer is legit.
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Nice. Any in hand photos? Will you be showing the coin at any shows soon? I saw part of your collection prior, but your 33 was not there and was told it was due to insurance value at the show.
It will definitely be shown in future coin shows. There are actually many good shots of it on the Pawn Stars show.
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And then ask for 12 million more than what it last sold for....yeah right!
Leo
The more qualities observed in a coin, the more desirable that coin becomes!
My Jefferson Nickel Collection
In 2014, a producer from the show reached out to me after a mutual acquaintance told them about my (now former) collection of original 1st edition Hardy Boys books. After 2 virtual and 1 in-person interview (of which included bringing the items in for review by a team based in LA), I was accepted for the show and went out to Vegas to film my segment.
I can confirm the negotiation was real (the producers picked Chumlee and The Old Man as the "team" for my segment), but the items in question were clearly pre-approved by the producers of the show. They had to do the whole thing where they needed the book expert (Rebecca Romney, who was very nice in person) to come out and review my items, which was all planned out as well. I remember that I actually had to change my outfit to make it seem like she came in the next day to review everything. We ended up not making a deal, and the segment ended up never being aired as a result.
I eventually sold off the collection to a private book collector several years later for 3.5X what was offered to me in the segment by Mr. Harrison, who off camera loved my items. I guess the producers didn't like how it all turned out, as I have no idea how much, if anything, the the lack of a deal influenced the segment not making it onto the show.
I think confusing the Pawn Stars shop/show with a regular average pawn shop is like comparing a 1923 Saint to the 1933 Saint.
Owner/Founder GreatCollections
GreatCollections Coin Auctions - Certified Coin Auctions Every Week - Rare Coins & Coin Values
Hope to see it at the FLL show next April. Cheers, karl