[Michael B]

I was a hotel hound in Boston from 1983 to about 1988 for baseball. I stuck with basketball and hockey into the 1990’s. Since all of the teams pretty much stayed at the same hotel (Sheraton Boston) for most of those years it was easy and difficult at the same time. Players could walk to Fenway Park (15 minutes) and there were multiple ways out of the hotel if they did not want to be seen. Some players I never saw, like Carew, but if we saw them we would ask them. Most of the time they either would sign or not, but rarely were they jerks. Of the toughies; Eddie Murray signed the one time I saw him. Last player I needed on a 1983 team ball. Last day of the season and he left the hotel late. I was able to convince him to sign out on the sidewalk. The only time I ever saw Jerk Brett he signed. My all-time favorite of the toughies was Mr. Ego himself, Reggie Jackson. Never turned me down, four for four with him. He was the second player I ever got at the hotel when I started in 1983. I had a game bat that I had purchased from a card store near Fenway. My friend was a card collector so I went with him to the store. I liked the bat and bought it. I asked him in the hotel after he got off the team bus. He was hesitant, but signed it anyways. I had no clue about clubhouse people taking things and selling them. The second time he walked into the hotel and was hounded. He saw that I had black and white photos of him that I had taken so he asked me to jump into the elevator with him and he signed them all on the way up. He just asked for copies as one of them was of him hitting a home run (386 or 387?).

The third time was my favorite. Anyone who goes to Fenway Park knows that the visiting team is on the left field side and the players loosen up in the outfield. Reggie was the last player out there and as usual all of the kids were yelling at him to come over. I had the June 3, 1974 Time magazine with him on the cover with me. He finished his workout and was doing his usual walk towards the foul line to go into the dugout. He looked casually towards the crowd, but I knew he did not plan on signing. I took the magazine and very casually held it in front of me at waist level. He walked over to the crowd. You can imagine 50 or 60 people yelling at him and holding out balls and cards and the such. He stopped right in front of me and stared at me. I handed him the magazine and a sharpie. He signed it beautifully and handed it back to me. I said ‘Thank you, Mr. Jackson’ he nodded, picked up his bat and glove and walked to the dugout. The silence was deafening.

One of the earlier posters mentioned that hockey players were good. I found that to be true for those years. I got pretty much everyone. Same with basketball, including many of the toughies. Even Jordan was great back in 1984-1985. One of my favorite stories with him signing was when a friend and I handed him a paper grocery bag, one of those ones with handles, filled with magazines, drymounted magazine photos and index cards. He took the whole bag of items to his room and gave them back to us the next morning, 40-50 items, all beautifully signed. What would that cost with UDA these days?