Posts: 1091
From:
Registered: Sep 2003

posted 05-08-2014 09:48 AM               

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Why doesn't the Astronaut Hall of Fame sell inductee plaque postcards that you could get signed at their site like the Baseball Hall of Fame does? I wondered that when I was there.

Seems like it would be an interesting item that collectors could get signed and I would think they'd sell well. Just do it like the baseball ones — a postcard of their plaque. Give it a black border for a silver/gold signature and it would look fantastic.

Seems like a good idea with a lot of these guys still around. It would also get people far more knowledgeable and interested in shuttle astronauts as they get shortchanged on the autograph circuit. Just a thought.

Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 05-08-2014 11:46 AM               

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I wasn't present for the initial Mercury/Gemini and Apollo inductions, but for both they decided to sign posters rather than cards (or other items).

When space shuttle inductions began in 2001, I recall the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation discussed what to have signed, and partly because of past precedent and partly out of a desire to maximize the fundraising opportunities, they chose to continue with posters.

Since then, signed posters have continued to be the tradition.

There's also been a tradition at the Astronaut Hall of Fame that the current year's inductees do not participate in public signings during the induction weekend. It's their weekend to celebrate and be celebrated, and as such there is a desire to limit what they are asked to do.

Perhaps a set of cards could be produced now (or after the Astronaut Hall of Fame is moved to the main Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex campus, as the style of plaques could change as part of that).

Posts: 1091
From:
Registered: Sep 2003

posted 05-08-2014 01:59 PM               

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Sorry Robert for the confusion in the way I worded it. I just meant they could sell unsigned postcards of each individual astronaut plaque (for better word) at the Hall of Fame year round. Then the collector could possibly get them signed later at public signings.

I would pay say $2 a postcard if they were made the same type of way as the baseball ones — with autograph collectors in mind. I think that would be a nice collectible as the plaques themselves are quite beautiful.

It would also possibly supply a minor revenue stream for the Hall of Fame and the astronauts themselves that do signings as I imagine many people like myself would try and get as many different signed as possible. I mean who wouldn't want a Gene Cernan signed Hall of Fame plaque postcard?

Posts: 731
From: Upstate New York, USA
Registered: Mar 2001

posted 05-09-2014 10:10 AM               

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I agree that it would be really neat to have a HOF postcard similar to those they do for the Baseball HOF. Great items for signing and display.

Sadly, at this point, there would be many cards that would forever remain unsigned.

Posts: 1091
From:
Registered: Sep 2003

posted 05-09-2014 10:44 AM               

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I think if it were done in the near future that there's still plenty of guys to be able to get to sign one. The baseball HOF plaques and Perez-Steeles had several deceased players but they still had a big following.

I'd be very interested in seeing how hard it is to get something like this made. It can't be that expensive to make postcards of the astronauts' plaques. The Hall of Fame could easily sell them for a dollar or two above cost if they were made right. Is there someone in particular at the Astronaut Hall of Fame I could contact to inquire about it?

Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 05-09-2014 10:59 AM               

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The Astronaut Hall of Fame is owned by the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex and administered by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. I'd suggest either reaching out to the Foundation or the visitor complex's gift shop.

(As mentioned, the Hall of Fame facility itself will be moving from its current building to a new facility on the main campus of the visitor complex. A date for this move has not yet been set. Ahead of this transition though, the gift shop at the present location has been closed.)

Posts: 1091
From:
Registered: Sep 2003

Posts: 3445
From: Toms River, NJ
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 05-09-2014 02:54 PM               

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I'm glad for the move. The only time I was at AHoF it was sort of a pain to leave KSC, drive down the road, tour the place, then come back to KSC to catch the astronaut signing - particularly since AHoF opens later than KSC, and the hall comes before KSC (e.g., you can't go to the hall first.) It'll be nice to have it all on one site.

As for deceased astronauts, one can try and get their spouse to sign the cards, much like Betty Grissom signed her name on the Mercury 7 print.

Posts: 731
From: Upstate New York, USA
Registered: Mar 2001

Posts: 1091
From:
Registered: Sep 2003

posted 05-09-2014 08:01 PM               

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I collected baseball HOF autographs in the 80's as a kid and I can tell you that collecting those guys autographs on plaques caused me to learn far more about them than I ever would otherwise.

There are a ton of shuttle astronauts around on top of the Apollo guys and collecting their autographs on a consistent set that covers all eras would cause people like me to learn a whole lot more about them besides just being a cool thing to collect.

I also never understood the collecting of people's wives. They used to do that with Mrs. Babe Ruth and it just didn't make sense to me.

Posts: 2610
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Dec 2000

posted 05-12-2014 08:19 AM               

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quote:

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Originally posted by Steve Zarelli:
I'd rather leave it blank or affix a cut signature.

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Fully agree.

Considering that the spouses do not carry the genetic pool of the astronaut, only the children do.