For youse baseball fans. (Ugh!)

[Thumper]

Gots an estate sale I "might" go to this weekend. It's in a hoity-toity neighborhood so I'm not real excited (I love digging through "junk"), but this caught my eye. I have no clue how the prices will run, but this dude has a ton of sports memorabilia and autographed baseballs, etc. (also has a signed copy of a Muhammad Ali pic). Anyway, judging by the ritzy neighborhood, I'd have to think there's a COA on the back of this thing and I find it interesting.

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[BarryBobPosthole]

That'll be worth some bucks if its authenticated. I have no idea what. Sadly, the sports memorabilia market can go fuck itself as far as I'm concerned. Its essentially full of hucksters.

Now, you all must find a way to use 'huckster' in a sentence today.

BKB

[Buckrub]

I agree with what the huckster said.

P.S.
I saw Ted Williams play against Al Kaline in 1957 in Briggs Stadium in Detroit. How's that for hoity toity?

[Thumper]

Yeah, I'm not into that "scene" myself. I kind'a wish I were. I was exposed, and had personal interaction with so many "big names" while in the Cadillac business, I could probably retire comfortably on just autograph sales. But ... I never got one ... even threw away about a bazillion Elvis autographs when I purged the service files in Memphis years ago. (THAT is a move I kind of regret to this day). I've rubbed elbows with tons of 'em ... just always thought it was goofy to ask for an autograph and never ONCE asked. :(

Heck, I even had a book written by one of Marilyn Monroe's ex-husbands (can't remember his name) and he even mentioned my name in the book (he misspelled it ... Cribbs I think). He gave me a signed copy as a gift (even included a short message). I have no clue whatever happened to it. I think it was lost (or discarded) during the move from L.A. to Florida.

[HideHunter]

Hey - Thump story :D Back in my tender youth, when I was going to broadcast school, Ted was doing an appearance at a Sears store in KC. They set up an opportunity for 6 of us to interview him. I was chosen. Everyone else there were hard-core baseball fans. Not me. We were all allowed to watch each other's interviews and of course, everyone went though the whole.400 thing and various baseball questions. I happened to draw the last straw and even as inexperienced as I was, though he was *super nice* he was getting pretty bored. Just the year before he had just set a world record in the IGFA (black marlin if memory serves) so I opened with that. Man lit up like a Christmas tree. The instructors finally shut the interview down because he had to get back to work - and we had to get back to class. I learned a *very* valuable lesson in interviewing that day. ;)

Oh - and Thump - I'm like you. I've met a who's who of the outdoor world. They are people.. some are really nice and some are pricks. My boss in the mag bus was always having me take pics of him and some celebrity. I was embarrassed for both of them. ;)

[Buckrub]

Which was what?

Don't ask a man about what fish he caught??? :smileinbox

(Niner sure has some crazy cool icons, huh?)

Mr. Williams was something else. Pilot in the war. Hit .406 but demanded to play a double header his last day of the season. Could have gone 0 for 10 and lost the .400. But he went something like 4 for 6 and ended up .406. He said he could see the seams of a baseball as it was on its way from the pitcher.

So, Thump, what do they want for that picture?

[Thumper]

HH, my first shotgun and 8X10 canvas tent was a Ted Williams. I was (and still am) such a non-ball fan, I figured he was simply some "outdoorsman" who endorsed "stuff" (like Sir Edmund Hillary).

My early "star" exposure was in racing ... I sat in the same room or spent time in the shops of ALL the early stars of NASCAR, NHRA and even off-road stuff like SCORE. But, back in the days when Cadillac was THE car to own (before the European market got big), I met 'em all. My early years (both before and after the military) were spent at the Cadillac dealer in Memphis. It was the ONLY Caddy dealer in town back in those days and was 1 block (walking distance) from Sun Records. Anybody who was anybody in the recording business ended up there at one time or another. Then as my career progressed I moved to L.A. and managed the dealer in Hollywood ... then from there, went to Beverly Hills. Then I spent 3-4 years with a (Cadillac/Lincoln) limousine dealer in Beverly Hills before going back to the Hollywood Caddy dealer. Between Bev Hills and Hollywood, I'd eat lunch next to all the "who's who" in the industry from stars to producers to directors ... was even invited to a few of their crazy parties. I could have cared less ... it just never meant anything to me.

I have to admit, looking back, I'm kind'a kicking myself in the ass for not capitalizing on the situation. :(

[Thumper]

So, Thump, what do they want for that picture?

I have no clue Buckster. They never mention prices ... ya' just have to take your chances and show up. There's a ton of sports memorabilia ... most of it signed ... so I half way expect some frigging dealers to show up. I seriously doubt I'll even go. I have a couple local sales and this one is 30 miles from here which is outside the distance I'm normally willing to drive.

[Thumper]

Here are a few more of the items there.

Heck, other than Mantle and Ali ... I have no clue who these people are anyway.

I think this first Mantle pic is some sort of "commemorative" thing with a reproduced signature. Prolly some limited edition of some sort. I see Ron Lewis '89 in the corner ... I assume he's the artist who drew this pic. (?)

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[BarryBobPosthole]

Harold Baines. Blech. the Rangers got him in a trade where they gave up Robin Ventura to the White Sox in exchange for that sulky sonofabitch. He phoned it in until the Rangers got rid of him and back to Chicago he went. He kind of perked up after that.

There's really only one thing I'd actually pay money for as far as memorabilia. There is a photo of Mickey Mantle on one knee in the on deck circle with a bat over his shoulder. The photo is B&W but the on deck circle and Mickey are in color. Its an awesome phot and there's a signed one in the Mickey Mantle restaurant in Okie City.

BKB

[Thumper]

Is Robin Ventura Jessie's brother? :D

[BarryBobPosthole]

Sorry, that was Sammy Sosa the Rangers traded for Baines. Still a bad trade.

BKB

[Buckrub]

No Brains for No Baines???

[Bwana]

At least it looks like different folks signed the pics even if they did use the same pen.

Related story: A couple of years ago we stopped in a store that sold items like you have listed but most of it was simply autographed pictures of famous folks. Though I have only achieved apprentice noticer status, it didn't take me long to realize that John Wayne and Marilyn Monroe had the exact same handwriting. I suppose if push came to legal shove, the place was selling autographed pictures even if they were all signed by the same person.

[Thumper]

I've learned that ANY celebrity autograph needs to be authenticated and have a COA with it if it's a high-bucks item. Many "celebrities" (especially the one's with "fan clubs") have a secretary sign many of their "mail-out" type pics. Even Presidential photos sometimes have "bogus" signatures. There are also COPIES of signed photos as well as some rubber stamped "signatures".

As for the "same pen" ... that is a common thing. Most autograph hunters hand the celebrity whatever it is they want signed (ball, program, autograph book) along with a pen/marker to sign it.

[HideHunter]

Which was what?

Don't ask a man about what fish he caught??? :smileinbox



Exactly the opposite. ;) Do a little research and hit it from an unexpected angle. ;)

Bwana.. when I was writing Ted Nugent (back when the whole "blood-brothers" thing was big) had a recognition program for writers who published conservation, pro-gun, pro-hunting articles. I got several congratulatory cards signed by "him". I had one Big River hat in the office that he himself signed. The card signatures were all, let's say, "questionable. ;)