Bidding Up George On eBay

As ships and divers located the wreckage of John F. Kennedy Jr.'s plane off the coast of Martha's Vineyard with Kennedy's body still aboard, online auctions of issues of the magazine he founded were heating up.

A search for George magazine on eBay turned up more than 634 offerings. Several of the initial copies of George - a snappy political magazine launched in 1995 - were fetching up to about $250 each Wednesday afternoon.

"I'm not trying to take advantage of the JFK Jr. tragedy, but now is when the value is added," said Jack Kron, a New York-based software programmer who listed several of his copies of the first issue on eBay. He added that "most" of the money he gets from the sales will go to a friend's charity.

"It's not something I'm doing against (JFK Jr.); it's just an opportunity right now."

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EBay spokeswoman Jennifer Chu declined to comment on sales of memorabilia related to JFK Jr. or to compare activity over the past two weeks.

"It's such a tragic thing. (The Kennedy family is) like our royalty," said Michael Chapoy, who offered a copy of the inaugural George issue - featuring model Cindy Crawford dressed up like George Washington - for $1,000.

"I basically thought it was a pretty cool Cindy cover," said Chapoy. He was originally planning to sell it for $15 or $20. Then JFK Jr. disappeared.

He said he received an e-mail saying the offer was in poor taste.

"I told her, 'Judge not lest you be judged,'" Chapoy said, adding that he needs the money to pay tuition at the university he attends in west Texas.

Written By Brenon Daly, CBS MarketWatch