James D. Julia for any history related autograph seekers.
I just found this article interesting when one sees the time, thought and appreciation put into an autograph by historical figures such as "Samuel Francis Smith, who wrote the song "America" (or "My Country 'Tis of Thee"), transcribed the first verse and then signed and dated it".
Now we have The Money For Name Game with little kids even charged for autographs. This Name Game was said to have originated at sports memorabilia shows,when athletes discovered that fans would pay for their signatures. After all, dealers were making a good living selling them, so why shouldn't they? Bill Russell has commanded as much as $500 for an autograph. Joe Montana charged more than $100 per signature. Willie Mays will sign a small, flat item for $100, according to Hall of Fame Autographs, and that's only by mail. This is happening now with celebrity guests to *any* convention," says Gary Price, creator of Autograph Central.
Hollywood Collectors & Celebrity Show has Stars mingling under one roof charging for autographs and photos perhaps $10 to as high as $40. Some celebs (and most of these namesI suspect Hollywood would term "has beens")say they sign up to 2000 autographs over a weekend.
As P.T. Barnum said in his "favorite" autograph: "Time is money."
Signed:
fight_truth_decay