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T O P I C R E V I E WTykeanautI may be wrong here, but surely Neil Armstrong has signed as many items as most astronauts?Okay you maybe cannot include those 'on the circuit' at the moment, but say Harrison Schmitt, John Young or Gene Cernan for example.Do you think is correct? Ken HavekotteJust a guess, but I would think the all-time first five most astronaut signers of all categories would be; Glenn, Armstrong, Aldrin, Lovell, and perhaps Shepard as he did many book-signing tours early on. Others next in line would probably be Carpenter, Cooper, Conrad, Bean, Mitchell, Duke, Cernan, Gordon, Cunningham, McDivitt, Haise, Worden, Borman, along with Irwin, Evans, and Roosa. I am not sure where to place Young and Schmitt in this grouping, nor with Schweickart, Scott, and Collins.Least signers, I would think of those still living, would be Anders and Mattingly, but I am not sure where to place Stafford as he has done much lately. Perhaps the former general should be in the next paragraph above.DChudwinNeil Armstrong was a generous signer for years before he stopped in 1994. Somewhere I saw an estimate that he may have signed as many as 100,000 autographs between the time he was chosen as an astronaut in 1962 and 1994. While that sounds like a lot, if he signed for 32 years that would be about 3,000 autographs per year-- not an unrealistic possibilty. During the 1960's and 1970's Armstrong was among the better signers through the mail. I received different items signed by him through the mail in 1966 (inscribed GT-8 photo), 1970 (Apollo 11 launch cover), 1985 (Apollo 11 litho inscribed to my son) and 1994 (Apollo 11 lunar orbit map). While autopens were used on some lithos and covers sent to him, his autograph in the 1960's and 1970's was certainly easier to obtain than Anders, Young or Stafford.spaced outIf I had to guess, and excluding signed books, I'd say there are probably far more Armstrong autographs out there than those of any other astronaut, with Glenn maybe the next most common.TykeanautThen why are they so expensive? I know this may be a stupid question, but normally only items of rarity command a high fee.capoetcThere are not many average Joe's around the world who are interested in an autograph of Donn Eisele, Elliott See, or Stu Roosa, for example -- not to diminish any of their accomplishments... they simply are not well known to most people around the world.But, there are literally billions of people who know the name of the first man to step foot upon the moon. Armstrong could probably sign non-stop for the next 5 years and still not fulfill the demand for his signature.So, while the supply is quite high, it comes nowhere near to fulfilling the substantial demand.spaced outExactly, - supply and demand. And remember that despite the large number of items signed, the vast majority are probably in the hands of people who don't realize their monetary value. After all, how could a signed litho you got through the post as a kid for the price of a postage stamp be worth 4 figures today?gliderpilotukI think the Neil phenomenon is a result of several factors: Huge potential supply BUT small number on the market (for the reasons spacedout quoted), being sought by an eclectic group of collectors/speculatorsArtificially inflated prices due to (a) dealer inputs and (b) competitive pressure (small number of people chasing a small number on the market) It would be interesting to see just how many different buyers there are on RR for the regular $3-4k WSS. I suspect there are a small number of repetitive, speculative buyers storing up these lithos, in the misguided hope of making a killing at some point. Either that, or RR's customer base for these items is constantly expanding!BlackarrowOn the subject of Neil Armstrong's autograph policy, I would be very interested to see some reactions to a post by "NS Jamie" on the Autographica forum. Thoughts?DSeuss5490Within the context of the request, it's hard to image Armstrong signing his autograph. I am aware, however, that he does occasionally make exceptions as he did several years when he had dinner at the home of the President of Ohio State University. I was told by one in attendance at the private dinner that he signed various items for several people at the president's home.leslie quote:Originally posted by Blackarrow:I would be very interested to see some reactions to a post by "NS Jamie" on the Autographica forum. It would be interesting to see the photo that Neil "signed".leslie quote:Originally posted by capoetc:There are not many average Joe's around the world who are interested in an autograph of Donn Eisele, Elliott See, or Stu Roosa... Not sure if I would agree with that statement however, the thousands of signatures out there will include forgeries and those signed by NASA personnel.
Okay you maybe cannot include those 'on the circuit' at the moment, but say Harrison Schmitt, John Young or Gene Cernan for example.
Do you think is correct?
Others next in line would probably be Carpenter, Cooper, Conrad, Bean, Mitchell, Duke, Cernan, Gordon, Cunningham, McDivitt, Haise, Worden, Borman, along with Irwin, Evans, and Roosa. I am not sure where to place Young and Schmitt in this grouping, nor with Schweickart, Scott, and Collins.
Least signers, I would think of those still living, would be Anders and Mattingly, but I am not sure where to place Stafford as he has done much lately. Perhaps the former general should be in the next paragraph above.
During the 1960's and 1970's Armstrong was among the better signers through the mail. I received different items signed by him through the mail in 1966 (inscribed GT-8 photo), 1970 (Apollo 11 launch cover), 1985 (Apollo 11 litho inscribed to my son) and 1994 (Apollo 11 lunar orbit map). While autopens were used on some lithos and covers sent to him, his autograph in the 1960's and 1970's was certainly easier to obtain than Anders, Young or Stafford.
But, there are literally billions of people who know the name of the first man to step foot upon the moon. Armstrong could probably sign non-stop for the next 5 years and still not fulfill the demand for his signature.
So, while the supply is quite high, it comes nowhere near to fulfilling the substantial demand.
quote:Originally posted by Blackarrow:I would be very interested to see some reactions to a post by "NS Jamie" on the Autographica forum.
quote:Originally posted by capoetc:There are not many average Joe's around the world who are interested in an autograph of Donn Eisele, Elliott See, or Stu Roosa...
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