Extremely Rare Carthay Studios Pink Acid Test Handbill

Lot #286Extremely Rare Carthay Studios Pink Acid Test Handbill

Click image to enlarge

Lot closed - unsold
(9 bids)

Description

Artist Julius Karpen
Size 8½" x 11"
Condition Near Mint Minus. Foxing along the lower edge, otherwise superb.
Signature
High_Res
https://www.classicposters.com/auctions-highres/9-22/67O7wm.jpg

Description:
Known as the Pico Acid Test, the event took place on March 19, 1966, at Carthay Sound Studios in Los Angeles and was the replacement for the UCLA acid test that was cancelled just prior. Very little information exists regarding this event, except for a recollection by Lee Quarnstrom, quoted in On the Bus, by Paul Perry, as follows: “There was at least one other Acid Test; that was held on Pico Boulevard in an old sound stage. It was a pretty crowded one. We had driven down Sunset Boulevard handing out fliers that said, ‘Come to the Test.’ We did an interesting thing at this Test. We didn’t put any acid into the Kool-Aid. We had the same garbage can full of Kool-Aid, but there was no acid in it. We put in some dry ice so it bubbled, but nobody took any acid at all. Still people thought they were high and acted high. It was a psychedelic placebo effect.” Until the discovery of these incredible items, there were exactly five of these rare handbills known to exist and all were printed on yellow stock. All five yellow handbills came from Zane Kesey and have oily stains on them, as well as writing on the back. The last time we offered one of those was about five years ago and it brought $10,062! This newly discovered variety on pink stock is an exciting discovery indeed, and there were only a couple in Karpen’s estate, one of which we sold in December 2021 for $7,475. Coming directly from the Julius Karpen estate, the provenance of this item is impeccable and the rarity undeniable. We also have discovered—with a very high degree of certainty—that the artist for this handbill was none other than Julius Karpen. Having compared the writing on numerous letters and documents in his estate to that on this handbill, we feel comfortable crediting Karpen as the artist. Sure to attract serious attention from acid test collectors and connoisseurs of the rare and unusual! This fascinating item comes directly from the estate of Julius Karpen, a well-known Merry Prankster and the former manager of Big Brother & The Holding Company. Karpen was an integral part of the many iconic happenings of 1967, including The Human Be-In and The Monterey Pop Festival, as well as the early acid tests held in 1965 and 1966.

Categories: Handbills and Postcards, Acid Test Items, Items from the Julius Karpen Estate

Registration: You will be able to browse our auction website without registering. In order to place bids, you must be a registered bidder. Registration can be done online; your name, address, phone number, email address, and a valid credit card are required. All credit card information is handled by Authorize.net , a secure online processing center. By registering, you authorize Classic Posters to charge your credit card in the event of non-payment of your auction invoice. By registering and/or bidding, you agree to be bound by all terms and conditions for this and all future Classic Posters, Inc. auctions.

Bidding: All bids must be placed online. We do accept telephone bids. In the event that a lot receives a bid within five minutes of its scheduled closing time, the closing time on only that lot will be extended by five minutes. This process will repeat until the extended lot closes. This assures that no lot can be "sniped," as they can be on eBay, and negates any advantage a last-second bidder may have. Since there is no advantage to waiting, we recommend placing your maximum bids early. We reserve the right to cancel any bids for any reason, and consignors are not allowed to bid on any items that they have placed in the auction. In the event a consignor bids on their own lots, they will be liable for all applicable buyers and sellers fees. If you have been outbid, you will be sent an email notice. Please note that toward the end of the auction, you may receive this email after the lot closes. Under no circumstances will a bid be accepted once a lot closes. By registering and bidding in this auction you are entering into a legal contract and agree to all of the terms and conditions contained herein.

Bid Increments: Unlike other auction sites, we do not use a percentage for our bid increments. Instead, we use a standard bid increment as follows:

From	To	Increment(s)
0	100	5
100	250	10
250	1000	25
1000	2000	50
2000	5000	100
5000	10000	500
10000	25000	1000
25000	50000	2500
50000	And Up	5000

If you use our "maximum bid" feature, your bid will be automatically increased over the next high bidder as needed by one increment at a time. For example, if you place a maximum bid of $755 and the next high bidder is $620, your bid will be increased to $645. If no further bidding occurs on the lot, you will have the winning bid at $645. This feature allows you to place a maximum bid and buy the item for less than that bid.

Reserves: Some lots will have a hidden reserve price. In this case, there will be a notation on the lot page that the reserve has not been met. Once the reserve has been met, the notation will no longer appear and the lot will be awarded to the highest bidder. For lots that do not have this notation, the lot will sell to the highest bidder.

Buyers’ Premium: A 15 percent buyers’ premium will be added to the final winning bid for each auction lot.

Estimates: We offer estimated prices on each lot. These estimates are a only a guide and an opinion of each items retail value. While we strive to give an accurate valuation based on sales information gathered by us, we realize that there may be substantial differences of opinion, both higher and lower, for any lot in the sale.

Sales Tax: Sales tax in the amount of 4.5 percent of the winning bid will be added to the total purchase price of each lot delivered in the state of Colorado.

Authenticity: We unconditionally guarantee that every item purchased from us is a genuine article as described in the auction listing. We will happily supply a Certificate of Authenticity upon request. In the case of all items listed in the The Collectors Guide to Psychedelic Rock Concert Posters, Postcards and Handbills 1965-1973 by Eric King, we warranty that they are as listed in the then current edition of that guide, and we are not responsible if corrections are made to the guide that change the designation. In the event that the authenticity of any item is in dispute, the written opinion of an impartial recognized authority will be used and both parties will be bound by that opinion. In any case, the buyers’ sole remedy will be the cancellation of the sale and a refund of the purchase price.

Condition: We make an effort to accurately describe every item. We assign a grade coupled with a detailed description of any defects, along with the highest quality scans in the business. If you would like to discuss the condition with us in person, give us a call toll free at 1-866-380-3212.

CGC Certified Posters, Postcards and Handbills: Many of the items on our website have been graded by CGC, a subsidiary of the Certified Collectables Group, the largest authentication and grading company for collectables in the world. CGC uses a numerical grade from 1-10 as well as an adjectival description of the quality.

10.0	Gem Mint
9.9	Mint
9.8	Near Mint/Mint
9.6	Near Mint +
9.4	Near Mint
9.2	Near Mint -
9.0	Very Fine/Near Mint
8.5	Very Fine +
8.0	Very Fine
7.5	Very Fine -
7.0	Fine/Very Fine
6.5	Fine +
6.0	Fine
5.5	Fine -
5.0	Very Good/Fine
4.5	Very Good+
4.0	Very Good
3.5	Very Good -
3.0	Good/Very Good
2.5	Good +
2.0	Good
1.8	Good -
1.5	Fair/Good
1.0	Fair
.5	Poor

In addition, CGC uses several different colors of labels to denote different things:

Blue – Universal

This label is applied to posters and handbills that are simply the grade as marked, with no qualifiers or special considerations.

Yellow – Signature Series

This label is applied to posters or handbills that have been signed by someone of significance to the piece, under the direct observation of a CGC representative, and are thus certified as an authentic signature by CGC.

Purple – Restored

This label is applied to any item that has evidence of repair so that it will appear as it did when it was in its original condition. Restoration can come in a variety of degrees, from slight professional restoration (SP) to extensive amateur restoration (EA). The degree of restoration is noted using a code that can be found here: CGC Restoration Scale

Blue/Purple – Conserved

This label is applied to any item with specific repairs done to improve the structural integrity and long-term preservation. These repairs include tear seals, support, piece reattachment and certain kinds of cleaning.

Notification and Payment: All winning bidders will be sent an invoice via email once all lots are closed. We accept payment for auction purchases in U.S. Dollars only and payment can be made by American Express, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, PayPal, wire transfer, cashier's check, and money order. Many of our customers prefer to have their credit card information on file with us and have us automatically settle their invoice and ship the lots. If you would like to take advantage of this option, please give us a call and we will be happy to oblige. We do not accept personal or business checks without prior arrangements and no shipments will be made until they clear. Payment is due within 7 days following the close of the auction. If you fail to pay for your lots within the alloted time, interest at the rate of 18% per annum compounded will be applied. In the event Buyer fails to pay any amounts due, Buyer authorizes Auctioneer to charge the Buyer’s credit card on file with Auctioneer in the amount required to pay the invoice in full or sell the lot(s) securing the invoice to any underbidders in the Auction that the lot(s) appeared, or at subsequent private or public sale, or relist the lot(s) in a future auction conducted by Auctioneer. A defaulting Buyer agrees to pay for the reasonable costs of resale (including a 15% seller’s commission, if consigned to an auction conducted by Auctioneer). The defaulting Buyer is liable to pay any difference between his total original invoice for the lot(s), plus any applicable interest, and the net proceeds for the lot(s) if sold at private sale or the subsequent hammer price of the lot(s) less the 15% seller’s commissions, if sold at an Auctioneer’s auction. Please note that placing a bid in our auction is a legally binding contract. Any winning bidder who fails to pay for lots won will be barred from participating in any future sales.

Shipping: Generally, all items will be shipped within three days of cleared payment. We keep our shipping costs low and do not mark them up. Our shipping charges include insurance and shipment via Priority Mail on all invoices under $2500 and via Registered or Express Mail on all invoices over $2500. If you require special shipping needs such as Express Mail, Federal Express, flat packaging or the like, be sure to let us know and these will be charged on an individual basis.

Return Policy: Please note that an auction is not an approval sale and that refunds will not include postage. We offer a 7-day return privilege for items that are improperly described or damaged in shipping. Under no circumstances will we accept returns for items which were not paid for within the 7-day time period allotted in the terms and conditions, nor will we accept returns which are attempted more than 7 days after receipt by the buyer, except for reasons of authenticity.

International Customers: All overseas shipments are insured and declared at the full invoiced value—no exceptions. As the buyer, you are responsible for all customs and duty charges. In no event shall Classic Posters, Inc. be liable for any sales tax, customs or duties for any items purchased or shipped outside the United States. Please be aware that shipping overseas is expensive with the new postal rates: Posters start at $35 and handbills start at $25.

Questions: Call us toll free at 1-866-380-3212 or email us at info@classicposters.com with any specific questions or comments.

Release: By participating in this sale and placing a bid or by consigning any lots contained in this sale, participant expressly releases and holds harmless Classic Posters, Inc., its officers, directors and stockholders from any and all claims, losses or damages that could arise from participation in this sale. This includes, but is not limited to, computer failures, power outages, internet related issues, listing errors or any other reasons or errors that could arise. Classic Posters, Inc., the auctioneer, may consign items to be sold in the auction and may bid on those lots or any other lots. In keeping with our reputation for the best in customer service, Classic Posters, Inc. and its principals will make every effort to correct any problems or errors to the best of their ability.

Consigning with Classic Posters: We welcome consignments of quality material and offer competitive commission rates as well as the best descriptions, highest quality photographs and largest customer base in the business. Your lots are fully insured by Lloyds of London while in our care and we run our auctions on a secure, dedicated server.