Yesterday morning I conducted a small private signing with Yankees legend Tino Martinez. As you all know Tino does not sign very often. This was only the second time I had even met him (the first was a strong Last Licks Armonk appearance two years ago). Yesterday was also Tino's first time up to our office so he spent quite some time walking up and down the aisles doing some shopping. Anyway, we got some incredibly robust pieces signed including MLB baseballs and Yankee Stadium commemorative balls. As I said earlier Martinez does not sign a lot and there is not even that much product on him. I was shocked at how excited everyone in my office was to meet him...as a Mets fan I did not realize how beloved the guy really is. With all that said I definitely recommend picking up a ball if you don't have one already. Aside from signing individual items Tino also added his name to our ongoing 1998 Yankees team project. The pieces are almost done so hopefully in a few weeks they will be available.
Tomorrow I will be signing with Yankees ace Andy Pettitte. Check back tomorrow for a recap (with the Yankees back in town this week and next there are sure to be quite a few signings).

Saturday was our appearance at Last Licks Thornwood with the Giants All-Time Sack Leader (and Super Bowl Champion) Michael Strahan. This was Michael's first public signing since winning the Lombardi Trophy and that was definitely reflected in the turnout. It ended up being our biggest appearance in quite some time. The line pretty much went around the shopping center...luckily the weather cooperated (unlike our infamous tent show in Massapequa last month). With all that in mind I am actually going to change the focus of this particular entry away from the product and autographs. Instead I'd like to talk a little about the appearances in general as I have gotten mixed feedback on Saturday's event. As I said earlier the line was huge. There were definite time constraints (as usual) due to Michael's schedule. In an effort to get everyone's items signed we had to move the line a lot faster than at other smaller appearances. Unfortunately it got to a point where we had to cut off the picture taking as that takes more time than you would believe. At the end of the day we did what we had to assure everyone on line got an autograph...which they did. Strahan was great, as always, and stayed an extra fifteen minutes to accommodate the last fans on line (despite then running late for his event). I did not love that we had to rush people on the line and cut off the picture taking. The truth is though that is is the lesser of two evils...had we not cut off the photos we would not have been able to get through everyone on line (it is a tough call to make but it had to be done). That brings me back to the torrential rainy day in Massapequa where Osi Umeniyora (amongst others) were appearing. Osi was as strong as can be..took photos and talked with every one. Just like Saturday the line was never ending and eventually Osi had to leave for another commitment. That left about twenty people on line without an Osi autograph....if the line moved faster and the photo taking was sped up then I truly feel that we would have gotten to those last disappointed people.
Those two stories tell both sides of the spectrum when it comes to this issue. In a perfect world I wish that everyone can get a photo with and a minute of conversation with the athlete....sometimes it is tough though. I hope that my tale of two signings can at least shed some light on the other side of things. Anyway, here are a few tips on what you, the customer, can do to help speed up the process so as to assure a great experience for everyone involved.
1)Purchase your ticket ahead of time
2)Pick up your ticket ahead of time or early that day
3)Be as on time as possible for the appearance. If it is from 12:00-1:30 then try to get there as close to 12:00 as possible (not 1:25....this point is directed at Johnny D)
4)Have your item out and ready to go once you get on line...if it is a photo then take it out of the protective hard plastic, if it is a ball then take it out of the box...the moral of the story is be ready
5)If you want to take a photo with the athlete then have the camera powered on and ready to go before approaching the table...have the person behind you take photo for you. You should have a plan going into it on who is taking the picture for you.
6)Once your item is signed (and you have gotten a photo with) move away from the table as quick as possible. If you need help repacking up your item (s) say something as soon as you get to the table so we can make sure someone is there to help move you along.
7)Bring one other person with you (or at least the least amount of people possible). Ideally one ticket should mean one person. I have seen up to six people walk up to a table with one ticket for one piece. What happens is all six take a photo with and hold up the line even longer. Not only is that taking advantage of things but it gives the athlete a distorted view of how many people are actually on line with tickets (which sometimes leads to them wanting us to speed up things) The smartest thing to do is bring one person and have them ready to take the photo for you.

I truly feel that if everyone at least tried to follow some of those suggestions then all would end up with a little more time at the table and a photo with...which I want for you guys as much as you do. I hope this entry shed a little light on what happens on the other side of the table. Feel free to email me any suggestions you have or any comments on this...or anything related to the blog or the signings.

We have a few major signings coming up over the next seven days so keep checking back daily for updates. (....as you can see you were not the only ones that didn't get to take a photo with on Saturday)

A few months ago I spent some time here talking about our auction site and Marketplace. It has become one of our biggest divisions and has grown even more since I last discussed it on the blog. With that in mind I would like to tell you guys about some new strong product up on both our auctions and Marketplace. In what has become the norm over my last year of signings I have been getting a few "Auction Exclusive" items done at every session. One of my favorites is up there right now...the Walt Frazier Six Inscription Playground 16x20 Photograph. As you all know I am not even a big collector...yet I even have one of these. Our incredible graphics department came up with the design and Clyde then went on to add six of his strongest Clyde'isms... incredibly robust.
Then on the other side of the spectrum we have the Marketplace, which allows anyone to send in their items to be sold on our site for a fee. Right now on the Marketplace we have some pretty sick items including a Hall of Fame Yearbook signed by 46 players including none other than Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle and Joe Dimaggio (that's a pretty serious lineup of signatures to say the least). It is, by far, one of the hottest pieces we have had up in a while. While that particular piece is sure to command big money there are plenty of affordable other items on the Marketplace and plenty of steals on the auction. For more on the Marketplace go to steinermarketplace.com.

My last comment for today involves another blog that I have recently been introduced to...http://blog.autographstore.com/ It focuses more on celebrity autographs and is really interesting. I recommend checking it out as I may even be doing a guest spot on their in the near future.
This weekend will be relatively quiet with signings. Saturday morning Michael Strahan is appearing at Last Licks Thornwood from 10:00 to 11:30. I have mentioned before that if you have yet to meet Michael you really should come out on Saturday...he does not disappoint. Hope to see you there.

Sunday we had a major public signing at Last Licks Massapequa with none other than #17... Plaxico Burress. Plax, for any of you that have been hibernating since February 1st, made the game winning touchdown in the Super Bowl. Since then he has become one of our exclusives and has been signing some unbelievable product as well as our team pieces. Sunday, surprisingly enough though, was the first time Plax had signed in public at one of our stores. There was a nice crowd on hand as Burress has become a real fan favorite and a cult hero here. I arrived at the store before nine and their were already people on line. Supposedly the first person was there before 8:00 (for a 12:00 appearance)...you gotta really want it to show up that early (which is the great thing about Giants fans) Anyway, Plax showed up a little bit early to knock out some items in private. We have an unbelievably strong photo of the Super Bowl touchdown and Burress signed a decent amount in both 8x10 and 16x20. We started the public right on time and, for a quiet guy, Plax really seemed to love talking with the fans. I saw a lot of the same faces that have been at our stores over the past two months for Giants signing. A ton of people have started their own team pieces and are taking great pride in seeing them through. With that in mind here are a few random Giants thoughts to close out this entry...Michael Strahan is signing at Last Licks Thornwood on Saturday at 10:00 AM. For those of you who have yet to meet Michael I urge you to come out as he one of the nicest athletes you will ever meet (not to mention a sure Hall of Famer and a vital autograph to have)...I recently read Ernie Accorsi's book. It has an entire chapter on Plaxico and how he coveted him as a free agent. Accorsi describes him as one of the most special receivers in recent memory (which he definitely proved this season and throughout the playoffs.) The book is awesome as it also focuses a lot on the strong Draft Day trade and signing of Eli Manning...Lastly (speaking of Eli), just wanted to congratulate Eli on his recent wedding (the guy has had some run over the past two months!)
We are now full swing into baseball (and the NBA playoffs..Gasol is a beast!) so there will be a lot more Mets/Yankees talk as we approach May. Check back over the next few days for a preview of a busy two week stretch.

Last Saturday was our public appearance at the Steiner Sports Store with Mets legends Tom Seaver, Cleon Jones and Jerry Koosman. I have always enjoyed hanging with these three. Cleon and I have a mutual friend in Hank Aaron (they know each other from growing up in Mobile) so we always have a lot to talk about. We have had this trio sign several times at our stores over the past few years and it never ceases to amaze me that they still get a strong turnout. As always Tom, Cleon and Jerry were unreal with their fans...taking photos and giving every customer a good amount of face time. What was best about this particular appearance (and the private signings that followed) was the introduction of some major new pieces to our Mets product line. Both Cleon and Jerry autographed Shea Stadium commemorative baseballs (Cleon even signed some with the "Last Out" inscription..very strong!) and Tom signed a handful of Shea Stadium commemorative home plates with some special inscriptions. These limited pieces will be available shortly on the site. I am really looking forward to upcoming signings with Billy Wagner and John Maine as they will be signing these special balls and home plates. Also I tried something a little different with the home plates and some pitching rubbers that Tom and Jerry signed...an orange paint marker. I never loved the way a replica plate or rubber looks signed in black or blue. It's ok (I like it, don't love it though)..so, with that in mind, I got almost all these equipment pieces signed in Mets orange..came out surprisingly robust! Be sure to check these items out on the site.
Check back here later for a recap of Sunday's Plaxico Burress appearance.

Last week myself and Robert V. headed down to Jupiter Florida for a very special signing. This was to be my first autograph session with the legendary Sandy Koufax. As I said in the last post Koufax is one of the few heroes that I have (Koufax, Magic, Marley, Jerry, Dylan... those are probably my fave five). Anyway, I went into this one cautiously excited to meet the icon. You never know if one of these guys will live up to your expectations and, even if they are nice, you could always catch them on an off day. With all that in mind we began setting up the night before the signing. The next day Sandy popped in right on time (9:30 AM). I was happy to see from the get-go that he was awesome. He was extremely personable and we even got to talk a little baseball and basketball over the course of the session (most people don't know but Sandy was a strong basketball player who very well could have played in the NBA). Thanks to the help of Robert basically everything was ready to ship by the time the signing was complete. Everyone has no idea how much of an assist that is as you have all read about my three to four hour horror show pack-ups...thanks Rich. With all that done we were thankfully able to fly back late that night and were ready to roll bright and early Friday at the office. Aside from some good conversation I was able to walk away from the signing with some ridiculously strong product. When building a robust product line around any baseball player (let alone arguably the greatest pitcher of all time... at least over any six season span) the key piece is simply a baseball. Sandy autographed a handful of MLB baseballs and even inscribed a few. These special inscription balls are as rare as can be..very strong. Aside from the balls Sandy also signed Dodgers pitching rubbers (which came out unbelievable), jerseys and some amazing photos (including the classic four ball image and the no-hitter vs. Mets scoreboard shot!). We are beyond excited about our relationship with Koufax as they guy is a must-have for any collector. There is minimal stuff out there so I do recommend (which, as you know, I rarely do) picking up a piece or two...or three.
Check back later for a recap of this past weekends festivities.

So here is the conclusion of my trilogy of catch up entries. Unfortunately there are no pictures with this one as I forgot my camera in New York Saturday night (I just got a camera phone so that shouldn't be an issue anymore) Over the past two and a half weeks we have been working on a second round of team signed Giants product. I will be getting much more into this early next week when it concludes Monday. This time the lineup was slightly different than the first go-around. We even added defensive coordinator Steve Spagnola to the new pieces. Out of all the guys on the team I probably enjoyed talking with him the most. Also unlike last time I was around and conducted the signing with Coach Coughlin (who also was really interesting)...but I will leave the recap of the team signing to a later entry.
Last weekend (right after the Goose and Duke appearance) I headed up to Boston with Double C (haven't mentioned him here in quite a while). The purpose of this trip was a public appearance and private signing with David Ortiz in Brockton, Mass. We finally arrived up in Massachusetts a little after 10:00 Saturday night. After "borrowing" a hotel blanket to cover up the product in the back of my rental mini van we went for dinner and back again to hotel for a few hours sleep. Sunday morning, bright and early, we drove over to the Shaws Center to begin setting up for the signing. Unfortunately there was not enough room for us to lay out our pieces properly for Papi to sign so I ended up taking over the corporate office there to expedite the signing. After David signed for the public he popped in the office and signed for about two hours. This session gave us an opportunity to get some incredibly strong pieces signed. Over the few hours David autographed road and home Sox jerseys as well as some of our staple, classic photos and a handful of robust game used pieces. I mention the game used because that leads into the next part of the story. After loading up the product Double C and I drove a half hour north into Boston. We had to go over the Fenway for a pickup/drop off of some game used items as part of our Red Sox/Steiner (Fenway Collectibles) partnership. We were mere hours away from the start of Sunday night's Yankees/Red Sox game and Yawkee Way was mobbed. I have never seen a game at Fenway (I have seen Bruce there in what was arguably in my top five Springsteen shows ever...wasn't the best setlist but the Because the Night was legendary!) so have never witnessed the pandemonium first hand. It was nuts. After getting done what we had to we braved our way out of the Fenway area and back on the road. The whole experience there made me think of the time I did a small signing with Bernie Williams in Yankees Stadium a few hours before a playoff game. I had my car parked in a garage was pulling out as everyone was pulling in...quite a difficult task and it definitely added to my animosity towards Yankee fans. Anyway, we finally arrived back in New Rochelle around 10:45 that evening.
After two more days of Giants signing that brings me to now...Wednesday. I am about to leave the office to head over to JFK to catch a flight down to West Palm Beach. Tomorrow I am signing with the legendary Sandy Koufax. I have never met Sandy and am as excited as I have ever been for a signing. He has always been an idol of mine and cannot wait to kick off the signing tomorrow morning...it's going to be a strong one!
Check back for an update from Jupiter, Florida.

Saturday was our appearance at the Steiner Store with Hall of Famers Duke Snider and Goose Gossage. While Duke has been enshrined in Cooperstown since 1980 Goose is a few months away from his induction. I have worked with both quite a bit in the past but it was definitely cool to observe the interaction between the two. Goose, being as old school as he is, completely deferred all to Duke out of respect...seniority is a big deal in baseball. Both guys were awesome with the customers, as always. Gossage has been so great to us since the hall of fame announcement. Earlier in the day Goose stopped by the Scarsdale Little League for their opening day ceremonies (as a favor to Last Licks). While I wasn't there I heard the kids went nuts for him and it was a huge success. After the public portion concluded we were able to get some seriously strong product signed for our inventory including HOF inscription baseballs from both and a handful of Yankee Stadium commemorative balls signed by the Goose.

So, once again, I am a little behind in my blogging. Over the next few hours I will try to get you all up to speed and, once again, try my best to keep up going forward.
Last weekend we "invaded" one of the bigger autograph shows of the year..The Football Spectacular (in Edison New Jersey). The usual cast of characters was there (Elway, Montana, Marino) but this time was slightly different. Due to the obvious events of the past few months we were able to bring in the big guns...the Super Bowl Champion Giants. On the public end we had six (yes 6!) Giants..including SBXLII MVP Eli Manning. Aside from the Giants we also brought in SBXLI MVP Peyton Manning. I actually ended up spending time with Peyton there who, ironically, was able to kind of go under the radar there while his brother was the biggest draw. Peyton seemed to love that.
Anyway, aside from the public we were able to get quite a bit of private items done by others at the show. With that in mind let me give you the whole run-down of the weekend. That Friday night we headed out to Edison in a 10 foot box truck to go set up for the event. (In the days leading up to the show we had been working on yet another round of team signed Giants pieces...more on that soon) Not only were we doing signings with our guys but are also working on a Cowboys greats project and a few other things. So Saturday morning we unloaded the truck and set up for our signings. All was going great and we banged out signings with all the Cowboys, Giants as well as Peyton, Brady Quinn and Paul Hornung (to name a few). Once Saturday's events were finished we began to re-load up the truck. We had everything loaded up aside from the Cowboys helmets...it was then that I had a realization...would not be able to fit the Dallas helmets (as if I didn't despise the Cowboys enough already)
Early Sunday morning (while the last two Cowboys were signing) I had to drive the truck back to New Rochelle to unload the product. After emptying the ten footer at our warehouse we headed right back to Edison to load up the Dallas pieces. Despite the unscheduled trip back to New Ro it was still a strong weekend of work. Not only were our Giants the biggest draws but we were able to secure some robust product (which will be unveiled soon).