1965 Johnny Mercer Watercolor Painting
Watch
GUEST:
I bought it from the Johnny Mercer estate. I thought it was an interesting painting because he was from Savannah, and I did know him.
APPRAISER:
Johnny Mercer was certainly one of the great songwriters and lyricists of the 20th century. Worked with Harold Arlen and Hoagy Carmichael and wrote things like "Accentuate the Positive" for Bing Crosby, and "Moon River" for Henry Mancini, later. But we don't know him as a painter. Apparently, it was a hobby of his that he did. And this one's dated 1965, and his last great hit was "Days of Wine and Roses" in 1962. Did you pay a lot of money at the sale for it?
GUEST:
No, I paid $20 for it.
APPRAISER:
You paid $20. So this is about 20-some years ago, 25 years ago?
GUEST:
Yeah, I guess it has been 15 to 20 years ago.
APPRAISER:
About 20? Yeah. In the Savannah area, I think something like this would probably get about $800 to $1,000.
GUEST:
Well, that's wonderful! My $20 paid off.
APPRAISER:
I think so.
GUEST:
I'm writing a book about my life, and this is going to be an interesting chapter.
Appraisal Details
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
