Autograph collecting

I've been unofficially collecting autographs for awhile.  The very first ones being of country superstars like Trace Atkins, Billy Currington, Jodi Messina.  My cousin and I were attending several concerts and bought cowboy hats and had them signed every chance we got.

This moved onto Playbills. During a trip to NYC, my daughter took a dance class taught by a cast member of Mary Poppins who invited the class to come to the backstage door where they were able to get their playbills signed by cast members.

I soon learned that Broadway actors are very personable, willing to sign and take pictures when they can. They really love fans of their shows.  Shortly after, I learned that you can actually write to the theatre and request a cast signed playbill just by sending a letter and a self addressed stamped envelope (SASE). Most theatres will send back, though there are a few that don't participate.  As I started this collection and posting pictures on Facebook when they came in, I received a note from a friend asking if I collected autographs through the mail because he knew of a website that had celebrity addresses.  My response at that time was "no only Playbills".  However, I was intrigued. I had never given much thought as to collect autographs through the mail.

Being of the very inquisitive nature I researched this and found that it really is quite the hobby.  There is a whole process from find the addresses, to composing a short but sincere letter, printing and sending the photos you want signed (not all celebrities have their own photos), sending off with a SASE.  Mail and wait.

It's best to create an excel sheet so you can keep track of who you send to.  I created a sheet that has name of celebrity, category (actor, singer, etc), best known for, date sent, date received and the address.

There are celebrities that will sign and return quickly, some that take months, others just don't sign.  When you do receive a signature back, there's a whole other component.  Is it authentic, pre print, signed by secretary or autopen?  

You can collect autographs via mail, via venue (which means you send the request to the place an artist is at in the hopes that venue will pass it along) or in person.

Even though you know you've sent the request out, it's a thrill to open the mailbox and see an envelope sitting there and not knowing who is inside.  It's like Christmas.  I drive my kids crazy because I get so excited when a envelope arrives.  I get giddy like a child.

It's a relatively inexpensive hobby and you can collect by a variety of ways...you can focus on actors, athletes, specific tv shows, it's endless.

Give a try...but warning, you might get addicted.