CPC: A Disturbing Pattern?
An email exchange between Mark and Phil
(Note: Mark is an avid Patsy Cline fan and collector who was the membership chair for CPC until he recently resigned. Phil is the current History & Collections Chairman for CPC. In late November 2005, Mark wrote to ask for his donated items to be returned to him. In addition to the email exchange below, Mark left 3 messages for Phil in which he described some of his items. Highlighted phrases are mine.)
On 12/1/05, phunter < phunter@www.celebratingpatsycline.org > wrote:
Mark,
Here is the list of items that JSue thought that you donated:
1/9 1/2" ceramic plate with picture of Patsy;
2/Promotional poster for the Sweet Dreams movie
3/1-8 x 10 " b&w photo of Jessica Lange playing Patsy and Ann
Wedgeworth who played Hilda in the movie Sweet Dreams;
4/Patsy "Photo" 33 1/3 LP, Audiofidelty # PD-205;
5/March 22, 1963, issue of Life Magazine-includes an article on Patsy's funeral.
That is all I have on record for you loaning/donating. Let me know if there is
anything else. I'll try to locate it.
Phil Hunter
History & Collections Chairman
Phil,
There were albums as well. Everything that I left to Judy Sue's care was in a
white Office Depot box clearly labeled with my name. She insured me that those
items were never removed from the box, except the plate which she immediately
put on display in the Visitor Center. There should be other albums there. Please
continue to check.
Thank you...
Mark
On
12/1/05, phunter <phunter@www.celebratingpatsycline.org
> wrote:
Mark,
I had to go to the Visitor Center after JSue had resigned [resigned
from the Visitor Center -- ed]
to inventory all of the CPC items. The items such as albums were in two boxes in
the basement. There was no white Office Depot box with your name on it, just two
cardboard storage boxes that were damp on the bottom of the boxes. I had to
transfer albums to dry boxes in order to move them to my house. I
only found one album with your name on it. That was the Audiofidelty, PD # 205
album with Patsy's picture in the vinyl. Most of the albums were donated by two
other fans. I do have 8 albums that I
was not able to match with any names.
Provide me with a list of albums that you donated, i.e., title, label name, and catalog number. I'll pack up your items and mail to you on Dec. 2nd.
Phil
Phil,
There is a Picture Sleeve 45 of Imagine That. There is a small framed color
photo of Patsy on stage in a green dress. The frame is mine as well. There
should also be a copy of 12 Greatest Hits LP.
Please let me know
if you have these things in addition to the list you've mentioned.
Mark
On 12/2/05, phunter
< phunter@www.celebratingpatsycline.org>
wrote:
Mark,
See below for items that will be
mailed on Sat. 12/3/05:
1/ Brunswick Label
"Patsy Cline Showcase" catalog # LAT 8394;
2&3/ two copies of "Here's Patsy Cline" LP, pink promo
label, Vocalion # VL 73753;
Do not have.."one with the songs NOT LISTED on the outer sleeve"
4/picture sleeve 45 of "Imagine That";
5/one copy of "Patsy Cline's Greatest Hits" Decca # DL 74854
6/small gold frame photo of Patsy in
a green dress;
plus the items we discussed before..see below.
We would like to have the membership forms and CD returned COD in the same
shipping carton to:
Celebrating Patsy Cline, Inc. PO Box 3900, Winchester, VA 22604
Phil
Phil,
It seems there are things still missing from this list. However, when I receive
the package I will check it against my list and I will let you know what else is
mine. Once I receive all of my items in good order I will send the items that
belong to CPC.
Thanks,
Mark
From: phunter < phunter@www.celebratingpatsycline.org
>
Date: Dec 5, 2005 3:26 PM
Mark,
I mailed you a box with your items at
1 p.m. EST. That is all of the items you asked for except the "Here's
Patsy" LP with songs not listed on outer sleeve. We don't have any album
like that in the current collection.
There
is a two page form for you to sign and return in an envelope I enclosed in the
carton. Please return the data base info, COD to CPC, Inc., P.O. Box 3900
Winchester, VA 22604 in the same carton.
Phil
for CPC, Inc.
On 12/9/05, phunter <phunter@www.celebratingpatsycline.org > wrote:
Mark,
I received your phone message. OK, I'll try this one more time.
1/I found a "Sentimentally Yours" LP that does not feature
"Heartaches";
The "SY" album is mine. I found the second copy last night. But the remaining one you have is mine.
2/I found two "Patsy Cline" LP's..one has a Decca black & silver label and the other one has a Decca multi colored label..both are Decca Cat # DL 8611;
The two "PC" albums are mine as well. I found the pink promo label copy at home.
3/photograph of Patsy in a gold scroll frame..I think it is in the museum I'll have to check as soon as possible...snowstorm supposed to hit tonight and tomorrow;
This photograph with Patsy in the gold scroll frame is mine. It is a color photo of Patsy in a green dress. If you remove it from the frame you'll see Michigan 1961 written in ink on the back. That's an actual print from the negative that I won on ebay and it is quite valuable as there are very few color photos of Patsy in concert.
4/"Country Song Roundup" magazine..I have one (Fall, 1961) but it does not have any article with Patsy in it..it only has the words and music to "I Fall to Pieces." Judy Sue has no memory of any other old magazines. We lost control of these items after Judy Sue left the Visitor Center in Dec. 2003. I performed an inventory of items that were on hand on Feb, 2004.
The CSR magazine you listed is mine. It is the one with I Fall To Pieces in it. There is another magazine. I don't have it at home. There were two that I left there. The other one does have an article with Patsy in it. It's got her standing by a poster that's displayed on an easel in one of the pictures. Not so much a full article per se. But that picture is in it. I would appreciate it if you could continue your search for that issue and that you send me the one you have located.
It appears that I may have sent you some albums and one picture that did not belong to you. I assume you will return them to us.
You have not sent me anything that does not belong to me. I didn't realize that I had left the Here's Patsy Cline albums with JS until I saw them last night. I had simply omitted those in my list by mistake. When I saw them I realized they were mine. I was glad you included them. Also, you mention a picture that you say isn't mine. If you are speaking of the gold framed picture that is autographed by Patsy, that is indeed mine. It is a copy made from the original that was sent to me by Guy Cesario. He owns the original autographed picture. I placed it in that frame myself and it was initially displayed on the jukebox with the picture of Patsy in the green dress I mentioned above. So it is indeed mine. Again, there was nothing in the box you sent that does not belong to me.
Let me know if item # 2 is the right album. It looks like I have everything you want except for 2-old Country Song Roundup magazines. I'll mail these additional items as soon as I hear from you.
I do appreciate you doing this and I know there are differences in opinions going on right now. I appreciate your respecting my feelings about this entire mess. I just wish you guys could see what you've done and how this has made the fans distrust CPC. I do wish each of you well personally. I also appreciate the care you took in packaging these items. I'll look for these additional items in the mail.
Mark
On
12/14/05, phunter <phunter@www.celebratingpatsycline.org
> wrote:
Mark,
Karen Helm will be mailing you a package on Thursday. It will include: 1-SY
album, 2-Patsy albums, & 1-Hit Parade Mag. We
do not have any pics of Patsy in a green dress with Michigan on the back and
we do not have any more Hit Parade Mags. If
you have a E-Bay or other receipt for these items, we will consider a
reimbursement.
We would appreciate the return of the data base forms and CD.
Phil for CPC, Inc.
Phil,
I'm positive the photo is there. I will re-check my collection but I've been
through it with a fine tooth comb and I did not locate it.
I will return the cd and database forms as soon as I've received the rest of my
items.
Mark
Note from webmaster:
This is where the exchange ends. I'm posting this confusing exchange between CPC
and a
Patsifan who had worked hard for CPC and had loaned to them quite a few items with total
trust in order to demonstrate what could happen to anyone who trusts any
organization completely without receiving receipts for every single little item.
As of February 1, 2006, Mark still does not have his beloved Patsy photo. Notice
above that Phil himself recalls the photo:
3/photograph of Patsy in a gold
scroll frame..I think it is in the museum I'll have to check as soon as
possible...snowstorm supposed to hit tonight and tomorrow;
so it's not a matter of Mark simply being careless or forgetful. Would you forget the location of your photo if you had something like that in your collection? Plus, Phil specifically included that photo on the list of items to be mailed on 12-03-05. So it is plain to me (and correct me if I'm wrong) that Phil had seen this photo in the museum, and that Mark's cherished photo was indeed in the possession of CPC... and as far as we know, remains so to this day.
If you've seen this photo, you would never forget it. Mark obtained it several years ago, I remember when he won that auction, he was so happy! Photos of Patsy in concert are as rare as hen's teeth. Now I ask you ebayers: do you think that you could obtain a receipt for an item that you won at ebay years ago? I ebay regularly, and I know I couldn't. I wouldn't know how to contact even half of the buyers and sellers I've dealt with over the years.
This is what can happen when you loan items to any institution based on mere trust. You need to do your part and the institution needs to do its part to ensure a mutually successful relationship. Did Mark do his part? Did CPC do its part? Did any of you find this email exchange disturbing?
Statements from Patsy Cline Fans
Statement from
Fan #1
On
Labor Day weekend 2003, we were at the Friday night dinner, and we presented the
blouses to the group. Judy Sue Huyett-Kempf had the blouses still in the
original auction shipping paper, bubble wrap and tissue paper. She opened one to
show us, and then re-wrapped them, and took them back to her table. I did not
see what she did with them before or after this time.
In June of 2005, Ms. Huyett-Kempf brought the blouses to the CMA in Nashville. I
did not see both blouses, only one [the plaid blouse]. She had it in a canvas
tote bag, still wrapped in the original auction shipping paper, bubble wrap and
tissue paper.
Statement from
Fan#2
I can vouch for the original auction shipping
paper, bubble wrap, and tissue paper at the CMA in Nashville in June of 2005.
Ms. Huyett-Kempf told us it was in the original auction wrapping, and at a TV appearance
with Charlie Chase, in the green room, she told those present that the blouse's
condition was "the way we received it."
Statement
from Fan#3
In September 2003, I saw both blouses won at the Profiles In History auction
during a visit with Ms. Huyett-Kempf at the Winchester Visitors Center. She took me and the members of my party outside to the parking lot and retrieved them
from the trunk of her car. Both blouses were wrapped in tissue paper and bubble
wrap, and she confirmed they were just as she received them from the auction
company. The two items were sealed, but they were not contained in any
other packaging. They were laying loose in the trunk.
Later that same evening, she presented the blouses at the Always Patsy Cline Fan
Club banquet. She did not remove them from their packages. I was later able to
hold them.
In June 2005, one of the blouses was brought to Nashville for presentation
during the CMA Music Festival. The blouse was still packaged in the same tissue
paper and bubble wrap as two years previous, although the bubble wrap had been
opened for closer examination.
Statement
from Fan#4
September 2003, Labor Day Weekend. I went to the Visitors Center in Winchester,
Va. Judy Sue Huyett-Kempf showed the two blouses won at the auction that year.
She pulled them out of her trunk of her car, still in bubble wrap and tissue
paper. She let us look at them and put them back in the trunk of the car. That
is the last time I saw them until she showed them at Labor Day, September 2004.
Statement
from Fan#5
I saw the blouses in Winchester in September 2003. Upon my arrival for the
annual APC gathering over Labor Day Weekend, myself and a few of my friends
stopped at the Visitor's Center to say hi to Judy Sue Huyett-Kempf, who was
expecting our arrival. After we said our hello's she said, "Do you want to
see them?" Of course we responded an emphatic, "Yes!" since we
had a financial stake in the blouses, as we had donated to the effort to
purchase them at auction. We had each given a financial contribution, as well as
helped publicize the auction and our fundraising efforts. The blouses were
either in the back seat or the trunk of Judy Sue's car. I can't be certain, but
for some reason I remember her opening the trunk to retrieve them. Either way,
the blouses were wrapped in plastic wrap, I seem to remember it was bubble wrap,
but I could be mistaken. I saw no signs of any conservation effort. No tissue,
no box, just the blouses individually wrapped in the same condition in which
they were shipped from the auction house. Folded as if they were someone's
everyday laundry clean from the dryer and ready for the dresser drawer. I
remember thinking that it was odd that in the nearly one year since the auction
that the blouses weren't being stored more appropriately, but as Judy Sue WAS a
trusted source at the time, I felt she would take care of the storage issues in
due time.
Questions submitted to a textile expert
1. What is the ideal storage condition for a simple cotton shirt circa 1955? Is folding the shirt harmful if left folded for years?
Ideally, if the shirt is strong enough, it should be hung on a padded hanger that supports the shoulders. Folding is not entirely bad, however. Many choices have to be made when it comes to storage, and practicality is one of the factors. Folding can be an option, though care should be taken to pad out (with acid free tissue rolls, for example) the folds to prevent permanent creasing and other items should not be put on top of folded textiles. Also, it is a good idea to use acid-free tissue and acid-free storage boxes.
2. Can such a shirt remain folded for 3+ years and then simply ironed with an iron, just as one would do with any shirt, in order to press out the wrinkles? Or is ironing harmful?
Ironing is generally not in common practice in a museum for historic textiles. Repeated ironing can be harmful, and of course there is a risk that the person doing the ironing may damage the textile.
3. Is it safe for such a shirt to travel in a canvas tote bag and carried from place to place, then shown to various individuals? Is it safe to leave such a shirt in the trunk of a car for extended periods of time?
Changes in
relative humidity and temperature can cause deterioration mechanisms within the
textile to hasten. The amount of light exposure is also of concern to dyes and
fragile fibers. It is best to store, transport and display textiles in a stable
environment, with the least amount of handling.
I can't speak to the decisions being made by the group in charge of caring for
the textile; however, it does not sound like they are following museum
conservation practices. If they would like to learn a bit more on how to care
for textiles, or other works of art, they may want to consult the American
Institute for Conservation.
Also, the book "Preserving Textiles" by Harold Mailand and Dorothy
Stites Alig (published by the Indianapolis Museum of Art) is a good reference
for caring for textile collections.
I hope this was helpful.
Beth Szuhay
Textile Conservation
de Young
Museum
Here is a website I find very helpful on this issue as well. It's very instructive and truly highlights the level of care that is needed by items with historical value such as Patsy's clothing, in order to ensure that they will be around for many generations to come.
I've recently learned that in spring of 2005, CPC was going to ensure the safety
of its collection by entrusting it to the care of Handley Regional Library (I do
not know where the collection had been housed in the years before that). On the
night Philip Martin was elected president in February 2005, the care of the
collection was the third item on the agenda. Handley had extended the offer to
house CPC's collection free of charge, and the offer also included the dress
owned by the fan club APC. The board voted unanimously to have the dresses professionally
cleaned and stored for $500, then entrusted to HRL. One of the board members was
assigned to move forward on the project. Philip recommended that the project be
done immediately, stressing the importance of taking professional care of the
collection.
In addition, he had brought up to the board the issue that CPC needed to explore
securing a rider for its insurance policy to cover the collection, but in
Philip's opinion, no one seemed interested in discussing the issue, therefore
this was not done during his tenure. As of January 26, 2006, I do not know if
there is or is not insurance for these items, which is why I've asked CPC to
supply us with that information.
Having learned of this plan, I wanted to see for myself if CPC had followed through with
it. On January 20, 2006, I called HRL to see if they now, or at any time
previous, had been entrusted with any item or items from CPC. I was informed
that in spring of 2005, such an agreement was indeed underway, but HRL had never heard
back from CPC and does not now have, and has not at any time had, any item or
items from CPC housed in its building.
Needless to say, I was stunned. Where is CPC's collection? Who decided to ignore
the unanimous vote of CPC's board and take the items someplace other than HRL? And why?
Are the items safe? Are the items stored properly? How long has this been going
on? Is the collection insured? Is CPC consulting with experts who can teach them
how to care for these precious items? As a caring fan, in the face of this new
information, I felt that I had no choice but to ask CPC about this issue
directly. I truly hope we get some answers this time, instead of the incessant
"no comment" that we've been receiving thus far when we ask other
kinds of questions.
So whoever chose to take the items elsewhere apparently circumvented the formal
unanimous decision of the entire CPC board and never informed the board of this. This
reminds me of how they disregarded some of the board members and failed to
follow established parliamentary rules of record when they ousted
Philip. I see a pattern here... is this simply how they operate? Who went behind the backs of the CPC board to do his/her own thing with
the entire collection? Had one of those items been something I had donated, I
would certainly want to know. Potential donors have the right to know, as well.
I would be insisting upon these answers even if I didn't know any of you, or any other fans, even if I had no website. Every fan should be informed of these events, should be allowed to ask questions, and should be given a respectful response to these questions, particularly those of us who contributed money, time and/or memorabilia to CPC.
This is your brain:
This is your brain after dealing with CPC:
Any questions?