Sports Illustrated?

[steve B]

Is getting the covers signed still a thing? I came across a bunch of newish ones and figured if people still got them signed I might be able to swap for something.... anything... (Seriously, if the offer is like 100 random late 80's cards I'd probably go for it. )

[mrmopar]

I'm sure people still collect them, but as for autographs??? I'm sure there are plenty of people who do liked signed covers still. For me, the newer covers just got too busy with text and covering across images too. I would like older SIs signed, but not new ones. Good Luck unloading them though.

[Bigdaddy]

I agree. The older covers are much better for autographs; better photography and less clutter.

Plus, many of the newer guys who are on the covers are either too expensive if you have to pay, or just sign with a scribble.

I think the magazine, at least in paper form, is hanging by a thread these days. Sad to see.

If there is a veterans hospital near you, maybe you could donate them there.

[mr2686]

agree with all of the above. Newer covers don't really do it for me...or the newer athletes (mostly). Give me an older SI or Sport magazine with an autographed cover and I'm in heaven.

[steve B]

Thanks everyone!

I'll look for a place to donate. Most are post 2000 so I'll look for someplace to donate them. If not, there's always the recycling... Sorta sad, but I'm feeling like I need the space. Probably picking up a big lot of "Stuff" in a different hobby. Like nearly a pallet full of stuff...

When I was in a sports collecting club I hung out with a couple guys who were really into autographs, one did some dealing and was always looking for SI mags he could take the covers off and get them signed. I haven't seen either of them in a few years.

[todeen]

You can always donate to your local public school art teacher! They always love magazines for collages and other ideas.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[Huck]

It is still a thing. I have over 200 plus signed issues (baseball only). I agree the older issues are some of the best covers. I also agree that SI is holding on by a thread and the stars on the covers will be expensive to land. An extra Fisk auto ticket at a 90's Tuff-Stuff show led me down the signed SI cover rabbit hole. A dealer had the 1972 Fisk cover, which I thought was cool and better than the standard stock 8x10 photo. Ebay also helped in providing a way to purchase the older magazines. No label magazines or covers were the label was removed are ideal but I have magazines with labels as well.


The King: http://sikingcollection.com/

Another great site: http://www.sicollection.com/index.html

[Huck]

Originally Posted by todeen

You can always donate to your local public school art teacher! They always love magazines for collages and other ideas.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

Or do the opposite, actually leave magazines at doctor and dentist offices!

[Topps206]

I had about eight signed sporadically throughout the years, then out of nowhere last summer, I decided I wanted to start collecting and really going for Sports Illustrateds. I buy one every month and mail them out to get signed, and now I'm hooked and it's become the main focus of my collecting at the moment. Today was the first time in I don't know how long that I sent out a 1987 Topps request.

Here's what I have.

#1 John Huarte, November 2, 1964

#2 Ron Swoboda, May 6, 1968

#3 Donny Anderson, December 16, 1968

#4 Duane Thomas, August 27, 1973

#5 Lee Trevino, August 19, 1974

#6 John Newcombe, August 26, 1974

#7 Tom Clements, September 30, 1974

#8 Scott May, April 5, 1976

#9 Steve Cauthen, March 7, 1977

#10 George McGinnis, March 21, 1977

#11 Sam Cunningham, November 21, 1977

#12 Jack Nicklaus, Sportsman of the Year, December 25, 1978-January 1, 1979

#13 Vagas Ferguson, September 24, 1979

#14 Jim Craig, March 10, 1980

#15 Paul Westphal, October 20, 1980

#16 Ralph Sampson, December 1, 1980

#17 Bert Jones, May 10, 1982

#18 Gerry Cooney, June 7, 1982

#19 Tom Watson, June 28, 1982

#20 Kent Hrbek, July 5, 1982

#21 Wayne Peace, September 13, 1982

#22 Todd Blackledge, October 4, 1982

#23 Mike Rozier, September 5, 1983

#24 Joe Washington, October 10, 1983

#25 Peter Ueberroth, September 25, 1985

#26 Ray Knight, November 3, 1986

#27 Eric Davis, May 25, 1987

#28 Jon Peters, May 8, 1989

#29 Curtis Strange, June 26, 1989

#30 Craig Erickson, January 8, 1990

#31 Bobby Hebert, October 7, 1991

#32 The 75th Anniversay of the Heisman Trophy, signed by Charles White, Joe Bellino, John David Crow, Johnny Laettner, Gary Beban, George Rogers, Archie Griffin, Ron Dayne, Tim Brown, Jason White, Billy Sims and Steve Owens

#33 Jason Grilli, July 22, 2013

#34 Jason Heyward, August 24, 2015

Ray Knight, Eric Davis, the Heisman Trophy winners and the Jason Heyward Sports Illustrateds were all obtained in person by me. The rest are TTM successes. Wayne Peace and Jon Peters corresponded with me directly via email saying they would sign.

Someone from John Newcombe's Tennis Ranch in Texas and Tom Watson Enterprises both told me they would sign. Newcome lives in Australia, but comes to Texas on occasion. Watson I wanted to double check to make sure about him, and the person from his website said that he hand signs all items himself.

[steve B]

Wow, Joe Bellino is still around?

I used to go to his coffee shop. One day he was surrounded by old guys consoling him. I asked the counter person if he was ok, and they told me they'd been held up. He tackled the guy in the doorway, but the thief struggled free and ran off. As I left he was saying " when I tackled someone they used to stay tackled. "

Our shop moved, and I didn't know his place was closing. Wish I'd saved a couple donut bags.

[Topps206]

Originally Posted by steve B

Wow, Joe Bellino is still around?

I used to go to his coffee shop. One day he was surrounded by old guys consoling him. I asked the counter person if he was ok, and they told me they'd been held up. He tackled the guy in the doorway, but the thief struggled free and ran off. As I left he was saying " when I tackled someone they used to stay tackled. "

Our shop moved, and I didn't know his place was closing. Wish I'd saved a couple donut bags.

He is no longer with us, unfortunately. He passed away in 2019. I don’t have his own cover signed, just the Heisman one.

[Bigdaddy]

I have about 250 of the issues signed from all sports. Probably the earliest are a 1955 Yogi and a 1956 Stan Musial.

In general, I think the ones from the '60s and early '70s are the nicest for getting signatures.

I've really slowed the march in the last couple of years though and have not added many to my collection lately. The last one was a Benito Santiago from one of the recent Chantilly shows.

[Topps206]

I’ll be sending a couple of SIs out tomorrow. So, I’ll share results when I can.

[Nsucolonel]

I love Vintage signed sports illustrated. /here is a link to a few of mine:

http://jasonscollection.weebly.com/magazines.html

Jason

[mr2686]

Originally Posted by Nsucolonel

I love Vintage signed sports illustrated. /here is a link to a few of mine:

http://jasonscollection.weebly.com/magazines.html

Jason

Jason, I really like your webpage. If you ever want to part with the January 1958 Sport, please let me know

[Nsucolonel]

Originally Posted by mr2686

Jason, I really like your webpage. If you ever want to part with the January 1958 Sport, please let me know

Thanks for the compliment. I’m constantly updating my site. Just found a box of about 1000 cut autos of players from 1920’s to 1960. So that my next project for the site. The 1958 Sport is one one of my favorites since I’m a huge Brooklyn dodger fan. I also have that piece authenticated by JSA.

Thanks

Jason

[sicollector1954]

Anyone ever run across one of these hard cover first issues....Had Mathews sign it about 20 years ago or so....he remarked at the time he had never seen another issue like this....needless to say, with the hard cover protecting it....the issue itself is in like new condition. Don't think it would be possible to have it slabbed or graded however.
I have heard these were issued in 1964 (10 year anniversary) as a thank you to the first 500 people who subscribed but have never been able to find out for certain.

[ocjack]

Phil Regli used to publish a sporadic newsletter called The Sports Publications Newsletter (appropriately enough). It contained rundowns and lists of various sports related magazines, variations, player addresses, etc. He also published a soft-cover price guide which was eventually taken over by Beckett. In pre-internet days, his newsletter and guide were valuable tools for me.

[Topps206]

This brings my total up to 36. Lou Graham was a TTM Success. Leon Spinks I got via a private signing.

[Topps206]

I very seldom, hardly ever, send signed items through the mail. This was worth it.

Thank you, Mr. Jones, for adding yourself next to Sam Cunningham's signature.

Two down, three to go. I'm done sending this by mail. The other three will have to be obtained at a show or some other venue.

[Topps206]

I apologize for the double post. I had a hard time uploading the picture.

[Lordstan]

To the Op, getting SI's, and magazines in general, signed is still very much a thing. As someone who has collected signed Sport Magazines for 30yrs, i can say its a lot of fun and challenging.
My father and i started our collection together. We chose Sport, rather than SI as we preferred Sport Magazine's cover and inside photos. Plus there are only 12 per year.
Many more people seem to collect SI at this point.
One of the few SIs that i have is this one.

This is a link to my Sport Magazine collection.
https://flic.kr/s/aHsm2aCX3d





Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

[Huck]

Originally Posted by Topps206

I very seldom, hardly ever, send signed items through the mail. This was worth it.

Thank you, Mr. Jones, for adding yourself next to Sam Cunningham's signature.

Two down, three to go. I'm done sending this by mail. The other three will have to be obtained at a show or some other venue.

Fun cover. I have a few multiple signed SI's. The multiple signature covers are a challenge. Good luck.

[Topps206]

Originally Posted by biohazard

Fun cover. I have a few multiple signed SI's. The multiple signature covers are a challenge. Good luck.

Thank you.

[Topps206]

People who play sports and appear on the cover often do other things in life. Such is the case with John Laskowski.

Laskowski was the first Indiana University basketball player to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and he now owns a Culver's up in Bloomington, which is just more than an hour away from me. I went there yesterday to meet him, since my SI and pen had just arrived by mail.

However, he was out of town and was not there. I was bummed out. They called him and I talked to him by phone. He offered to sign it and send it back by mail if I left it there, but I told him I wanted to meet him. I asked if he would be there today. He said he would be, and I got there this morning.

The man couldn't have been nicer. He was very polite and obliging. The signature itself turned out okay, but I'll cherish the memories of how polite and courteous he was. He was kind enough to take a picture with me as we took off our masks and put his arm around me. Then, we talked a bit of IU Basketball.

He has his jersey framed on display, along with his cover framed and other framed IU basketball SI covers. He also has a framed picture signed by Bobby Knight. Knight bought a place in Bloomington not that long ago, and he regularly frequents the Culver's, as he was there as recent as Tuesday.

Knight used to go inside, but because of the virus, he now uses the drive-thru. Laskowski also has a picture on display of him and his son with Knight. I asked him if he was there this year when Knight returned to Assembly Hall, and he said he wouldn't have missed it for the world.

I love getting SIs signed, no matter what, and while Laskowski does sign by mail, this was a memory I'll never forget.

[ocjack]

My small, but meaningful to me, collection.

[Topps206]

Originally Posted by ocjack

My small, but meaningful to me, collection.

That looks really awesome.

[ocjack]

Thanks topps. They were even more memorable because I was able to meet them at the same time.

[Jewish-collector]

Question -

Are the unsigned ones with pretty big names (McAdoo, Knight, Moncrief, etc,...) from the 70's, and 80's really worth anything, in average condition with mailing labels ?

Thx.

[commishbob]

march27_0031.jpg

My long story, reposted from my blog...

In July of 1971 Ali and Jimmy Ellis were preparing to fight in the Astrodome here in Houston. For a buck or two you could get in to watch sparring sessions in the Arena next to the Dome.

I went to a couple and would watch Ali clown with the small audience set up on three sides of a ring set against one wall. He liked to flip up the hem of his rubberized sweatshirt and watch the ringsiders duck the sweat that flew out. He put on a real 'Ali' show, talking about Ellis, hollering at the boxing writers, showing off his 'Ali Shuffle', etc.

I had taken along this cover just on the off chance that what happened after his session would happen. After Ali finished and not long after Ellis entered the ring I heard the metal crash doors behind me open and close a few times. I turned and saw Ali peeking in from the corridor. I went out there and he was alone, it was just me and one of the most famous figures on the planet. I mumbled a few words and asked him to sign the cover and he took my 'Flair' pen (the 70's version of a sharpie) and signed across the crown as you can see.

I thanked him and went back into the Arena seating area. As I got to the row of metal chairs I was sitting in I was jolted from behind and before I could react Ali dove into a chair pulling me down by my shoulders into the seat next to him. And there I sat. Next to Muhammad Ali, with Dick Young of the New York Daily News (among my favorite writers) now standing on the other side of me, kibitzing with him.

Ali taunted Ellis for a bit, ducking behind my back as if hiding from Ellis. After awhile Angelo Dundee's people (Dundee was Ellis' trainer for that fight!) had had enough and began yelling at Ali from the ring.

That was almost [fifty] years ago but I remember it vividly. I have a lot of nice cards and lots of other cool memorabilia but I'd give all that away before I'd give up this SI cover. Looking back I wish I had kept it in glass or something. I had it in a cheap frame in dorm rooms and the apartments I lived in for years. You can probably tell it's a bit frayed along the edges. The blue 'Flair' ink has turned purplish (but it hasn't spread or faded, thank goodness) And I wish I had not covered my mailing label with the smaller photo. But nevertheless this piece holds a great memory.

[ocjack]

Commishbob, great autograph but even greater story and I'm sure a treasured experience.

[commishbob]

Originally Posted by ocjack

Commishbob, great autograph but even greater story and I'm sure a treasured experience.

Thanks, it was something I didn't really appreciate then as much as I have over the years. I can't tell ya what I had for breakfast today but I really remember that afternoon.

[Topps206]

I went to Indianapolis yesterday for the Indiana Boxing Hall of Fame. Michael Spinks and Buster Douglas were both there.

Michael Spinks arrived early to his signing, which was scheduled for 11:15. He was was a very nice man. I took a picture with him. I asked him how Leon is doing, he said much better. I also asked him what he would've done differently if he could have the Tyson fight again. He said he would've moved around the ring more.

The signatures were $20 each. I didn't know. So, initially, he only signed one cover for me because of that.

Meanwhile, Buster Douglas was late. It was as if people completely abandoned social distancing while there yesterday. I wore a hat, sunglasses, mask and gloves to try and protect myself, since I only went for the autographs.

I was standing by the door by the signing table, and sometimes went outside, holding the door open, to keep six feet. People were shaking hands and had their masks on their ears, but not being covered. Not to mention, the room over was very small, with many tables and people packed in. That's probably my one complaint about the event is they didn't take enough precautions, in my opinion.

Anyway, I'm wondering where Buster is and I have to use the restroom, and I look over in the lobby. Buster is sitting down chatting with somebody. So, I pass him his $20, and I lay my SI down. He puts it on his lap and signs it. I asked him if he could believe it's been 30 years.

I have $15 left. So, I ask Michael Spinks if he would do another cover for $15. He agreed to do so. This one was a thing of beauty.

I didn't get my cover signed with him beating Larry Holmes, but honestly, that magazine isn't in as good of a condition as the others are. I waited months for this, and three out of four isn't bad at all.

I believe this now puts me at 43 signed covers. It's obviously a long way to go, but also a lot of progress since I had about eight signed through the years, but only decided to go for this since July 2019. I love getting these by mail. I love getting them in person even more.

[HNM1959]

Very cool thread...I only have one Autographed S.I. John Wooden on Sportsman of the Year cover. Not sure what year it was. I’ll dig it out and post a picture.

[Topps206]

I'm now at 45 signed Sports Illustrateds.

Not pictured is a Sports Illustrated signed by Michael Graham, who was on the cover in 1984 after Georgetown won the National Championship. I omitted it because it's personalized, but he thanked me for my friendship.

Both Michael Graham and Rick Slager I managed to connect with them after adding them on LinkedIn, and they were nice enough to oblige when I emailed or messaged them my request. I thank them both, and it was very kind of them to do so.

I really like the Shealy cover. That's going to be a hard cover to complete. He's the only one I know of who signs by mail. Art Schlichter has lived a troubled life of being in and out of prison. The other three I cannot seem to track down. Still, a signed cover is a signed cover, and I love getting the former college athletes to sign these.

Then, there's Andy North, a two-time U.S. Open Champion. This was the second time he appeared on the cover, and he returned this to me in relatively short order.

Rich Karlis has always been a very good signer by mail. When I first started expanding my Sports Illustrated collection, this was one of the SIs I wanted signed the most. It's a really cool cover.

I gave a big thank you to all five for helping expand my collection.

[ocjack]

Forgot to add my Sportsman of the Year Johnny Podres .

[Topps206]

I got this today from Manny Mota. Thank you, Manny.

[dwr11]

Some Signed Newsstand Edition Sports Illustrated magazines in my collection. All autos were received in person.

[Bigdaddy]

Originally Posted by dwr11

Some Signed Newsstand Edition Sports Illustrated magazines in my collection. All autos were received in person.

Very nice, especially the Trouts. And the Olivias, and the Killebrews.

Not easy to find that many Oliva newsstand issues.

[mr2686]

Here's a couple of random issues...the Glenn Davis is from the day I was born.

[rj.cataldo]

So this topic is near and dear to my heart. I have always loved signed SI magazines and cover art and have probably 30-40 magazines and/or blowup cover art. For those that collect these you might remember UDA had a large run of signed SI covers in the 90s. I tried to collect a number of those as well. Here are a few of my favorites in my collection (uda/in person) I thought it share. All non-UDa were obtained at shows. The framed ESPN magazines are about 30x36.














Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[mr2686]

Here's a couple more. By the way, and don't ask me why, but I only collect signed "full magazines", not covers by themselves.

[Topps206]

These are all really neat.

[Topps206]

I'm now at 48 signed Sports Illustrateds.

I'll probably send the Joe Dudek one to Chuck Long at some point. I've wanted this SI for a while. Dudek also played with the Broncos during the 1987 strike season. He finished in ninth place for the Heisman that year, the highest ever of a non-Division I player.

David Miln Smith is an adventure athlete, and he's another one I was able to send and get in touch with thanks to LinkedIn. He's a very intelligent fellow and also wrote a nice note.

It's a nice signature, and I appreciate him signing, but condition wise, it's one of the worst in my collection. It has a crease on it, the cover isn't steady and it has a label on it, and I try my absolute best to get Sports Illustrateds without labels than with them. The problem with that, though is ones with labels are cheaper to purchase.

Thank you both, David Miln Smith and Joe Dudek.

[mr2686]

I actually don't mind the labels too much, as long as they're in a good spot on the cover and not too crooked. What I really hate are labels that have obviously been removed and you can see obvious residue or paper loss. Sometimes that's all you can find though.

[Topps206]

Originally Posted by mr2686

I actually don't mind the labels too much, as long as they're in a good spot on the cover and not too crooked. What I really hate are labels that have obviously been removed and you can see obvious residue or paper loss. Sometimes that's all you can find though.

To me, labels stand out, and not in a good way. It’s especially awkward when it’s not my name on it. While I do have signed SIs with labels, labels are not at all preferable for me.

I get your comment of the residue, though.

[mr2686]

Labels, no labels, or removed labels, at least we have access to a variety of magazines thanks to the internet. Heck, I would have 4 times the signed magazines if we had the internet in the 80's and early 90's. Really love a good signed magazine.

[Bigdaddy]

I think one of the greatest draws of signed magazines, Sports Illustrated in particular, is that they were only produced for a short time. In SIs case, only a week. For Sport magazines, a month. So unlike a baseball or an 8x10 photo which can continually be produced, these are limited and usually showcasing a photo of a particular slice in time.

[mr2686]

Added this on last week.

[Topps206]

Originally Posted by mr2686

Added this on last week.

Nice. Was that a TTM return?