Thursday, November 24, 2005

I want a Marshall

Now don't take what I'm saying as something against Marshall figures. I love Marshall figures and his work, but why are there so many copies out there. I remember one time I got a phone call from one of my friends and they were so excited. "Guess what", they said, "I'm having so-and-so make me a Marshall copy. I'm really excited. I'm going to call him whatever." I said that sounds nice. What I don't understand is why would you have some one custom make you a copy of a Marshall? It's not a real Marshall and honestly, if I was having a custom made figure, I would want to have something unique. The funny thing is, a few years later there was a picture taken with all the owners of Marshall figures and you'll never guess who was in that photo. Yep, that friend of mine holding their copy and passing it off as a real Marshall.

Now one day I'd like to own a Marshall. I mean, I got to look at one and hold it once. I was at a performance and Bill Lisby was there and asked me after the show if I ever saw a Marshall figure up close. I said No so he took me out to his car and he had his Marshall figure in the trunk. I liked it and it would be great to have one but I want a real Marshall, not a copy. Do you really feel good trying to pass off a Hartz or a Semok as a Marshall? Not saying that they couldn't duplicate Frank Marshall's work, I'm sure they could, but I want a real Marshall. If I'm going to have a Semok, Hartz, Selberg, etc.. I want one of their own designs, not a copy of a Marshall.

Let me close by saying this, if I was a figure maker, I would want to see if I could duplicate a Marshall or a McElroy and I've seen many figure makers work that have been able to do just that. I respect them and even envy their work, but again, the day I own anything that looks like a Marshall, it's going to be a Marshall.

Picture of Frank MarshallJerry Lane Marshall Copy

Selberg Marshall Copy

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