Autograph Recap, Inland Empire Celebrity Bowling 7/14/14

I went to a new charity event, Inland Empire Celebrity Bowling hosted by Denver Broncos safety Omar Bolden and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner. To be honest the event wasn't exactly great for myself and fellow graphers.

The primary goal and what really sold us on going was news that Bobby Wagner's teammate Russell Wilson was supposed to be in attendance. The handler at the door was apparently from his passing camp and said he would be coming to the event latter on so we happily made our donation and went inside.

Now here's where things get a little murky. The event was great in that it had all you can eat ribs, chicken and sides and unlimited cocktails with a decent DJ. Everyone seemed to have a good time. In attendance to begin the event with Bolden and Wagner was Broncos safety Duke Ihenacho and Steelers linebacker Chris Carter. Bolden, Duke and Carter were great being really social, very funny and generally everything you would expect from celebrity hosts at a charity event.

I started the day off getting Omar Bolden's autograph on my 8x10 photograph. It was great to meet and talk to him since I'm a big Bronco's fan and he had a great season for us.

After Bolden I got his fellow Broncos' safety Duke Ihenacho's autograph on an 8x10. I'm not really sure why but he signed it "#27" so maybe he's changing his number next season? But it doesn't make much sense since the photo he signed has number 33 on his jersey. It was that kind of day.

After Inhenaco signed not much action happened besides taking photos and goofing off with really awesome guy Chris Carter. He was one of the highlights of the event hanging out with us but we didn't bring anything for him. That was until we got Bobby Wagner's attention. Wagner came over to sign for us and he wasn't happy about it at all. He was short with us, seemed irritated we had different color pens for our different photos and would only sign one item each. I understand we didn't spend thousands to be there like some of the participants, but we made a donation just like every other person who was inside. No one tried dropping more than 2 items on him it just seemed unnecessary for him to come off like a jerk to us and to give us a rough time.

I'm not really sure what's the real difference between us asking him to sign our photos and other attendees asking him to sign their tshirts. We came prepared to meet the host of the event and wanted a nice item from the event. We donated just as much as some of the other guests who were treated much more politely. Maybe Bobby didn't want us at the event and it shows, but you signing two photos and not glaring when I ask for a photo together makes this a better event that draws more graphers. Yeah you'll have to sign more but you'll make more money in donations for the American Heart Association. I thought that was the point.

Matt didn't have anything for Wagner so he helped me out and got my other Bobby Wagner photo autographed. As you can see theres a random mark under the "B" because Wagner marked the photo with the sharpie before signing it. I appreciate the help in getting it done, but come on Bobby. Really? Regardless I'm glad to have both my photos done so I'm finished getting Bobby Wagner's autograph and have a Superbowl Champion's autograph in my collection.

Russell Wilson never ended up showing up. Twitter showed us he went out to dinner somewhere by the beach instead of showing up to his teammates event. A teammate who had just gone and spent time at Wilson's own camp the day before. Nice support right?

Someone who did have a lot of support was Darren Collison. As the event was wrapping up and we were walking out the door I literally shoulder checked Matt to stop walking as Collison walked right through the front door inside past us. He made the drive from LA to Rancho to spend maybe 25 minutes saying hi to the guests still in attendance taking photos and signing for everyone who was left and asked him. We overheard him saying he didn't realize that the event ended so early and he seemed genuinely surprised. But it was great to see him come by and immediately make himself available to fans.

I ended up getting this Darren Collison 8x10 photograph autographed as the best autograph right at the buzzer to make the day worthwhile graphing wise. I'm sure Clippers fans will agree with me saying it'll be rough seeing him in Sacramento playing for the Kings now instead of in Los Angeles.

Now don't get me wrong. I had come to the event from a long weekend at work. I got my moneys worth from the catering and had a good time meeting players on my favorite football team and getting a few autographs. But the attitude Wagner had and the handler telling us Wilson would come only for him to skip out on it was really disappointing. I'm down to support good causes but I'm not sure if I'll be back next year.

Autograph Recap, Reggie Bullock 6/14/14 at Dr. Alex Liu's Practice

As I previously posted Dr. Alex Corbin Liu hosted an appearance by Clippers player Reggie Bullock at his practice in Rowland Heights. It was a good chance to pick up an NBA autograph at an affordable price, and the limited number of appearances made by members of the team this past season made me jump at the chance.

Reggie made a prompt arrival and the signing started on time. The line moved along quickly with Reggie signing and taking photos with fans.

I was able to get this Reggie Bullock 8x10 photograph autographed and inscribed "Rookie Season" by Reggie. It came out great and I'm really glad to have made it out to the signing. The North Carolina product was selected by the Clippers in the 1st round of the 2013 NBA Draft and provided limited minutes off the bench. Hopefully next season he can provide some more firepower off the bench. Regardless it was a great experience at Dr. Liu's event and I look forward to making it out to more in the future. Definitely keep an eye out here for more postings of the events that Dr. Liu will host.

You can follow Reggie Bullock's Twitter @ReggieBullock35

Blake Griffin Kia LA Autoshow Appearance 11/30/13

This is one of the graphs that makes me thankful that I live in Southern California due to all the great autograph opportunities. The Los Angeles Autoshow is one of the biggest and most important in the industry so vendors are sure to pull out the stops to try to draw large crowds. Kia for the past few years has leaned on drawing a crowd with its spokesman Clippers star Blake Griffin.

I went to the autoshow extremely early so I could make a full day of the event. I wondered the various booths and checked out the luxury cars before wandering over to the Kia booth. There was a line starting to form so I waited for Alex and Rob to come give me company. When they arrived we hung out and waited patiently for Blake to arrive for the signing scheduled from 4:30-6:30.

As we were waiting we saw the line grow. That's not unexpected to us. Apparently though it was unexpected to Kia as they had a small stack of small 5x7 photos that they were expecting to have Blake sign and hand out. However there were easily 400 people wrapped around the convention center going from the far left of the photo all the way around the Kia booth and wrapped back past the right side of the photo. And everyone was waiting for a chance to meet Blake for an autograph and photo op.

Since they were vastly under prepared for the crowd they made a surprising announcement that they'd allow you to get one item signed. One item that you could provide yourself. That's right. A free Blake Griffin autograph on an item of our choosing, not the standard provided Kia stock photo.

We couldn't believe ourselves and even when Blake showed up we still didn't believe it. Blake doesn't do signings besides the Kia appearance and the past 2 years he's only signed the Kia photo. Well it came down to it and Blake started signing autographs.

And what would you know it was true. The Kia booth was nice enough to have an employee who took a photo for you, and they were nice/smart enough to snap two to make sure it came out. I took my turn saying hello and then was able to my Blake Griffin autographed jersey.

Getting Blake Griffins autograph was awesome enough, but I was able to get him to sit down and knock out a jersey for me instead of a small stock photo. It was a great day running into everyone, checking out some cars and not only meeting Blake but getting him to autograph my jersey.

RBI (123) Lamar Odom. Read.

Lamar Odom signed at a Kia dealership in Glendale. He was drafted by the Clippers. He won 2 NBA championships and a 6 man of the year award.

I went with my family to the signing. He was 45 minutes late and didn't seem to care. He was staring at the clock and barely acknowledging anyone. I went first and brought Lamar some gummy bears and a 8x10 of him on the Lakers. He took the candy mumbled a thanks and threw them over his shoulder to a handler behind him. Took my photo and started complaining about how he doesn't understand why people bring photos from 4-5 years ago.

My mom went next and he gave her this terrible autograph in gold while complaining about how I brought that photo. She was extremely upset that he was complaining about a fan who waited all day for him and then saw that he gave a disgusting autograph to another while he was being rude about someone who liked him.

My dad went next and he got the last photo signed nicely. I guess he was over complaining about someone who wanted to acknowledge the highest point of his career.

I used to like Lamar Odom. Now I can care less of him as a person. Have fun on "Keeping up with the Kardashians" Lamar.

RBI (121) Matt Barnes Sprint In Store Appearance 2/22/13

Earlier I posted that I had bought a used Los Angeles ClippersMatt Barnes practice jersey from the Clipper Foundation this season. I was pretty excited to make the pick up at a reasonable cost and to have a player used jersey even if it was a practice one. I'm sure many of you are aware that basketball can be a tough sport to graph if you're not willing to figure out what hotel the team is staying at, so I was very excited to see an opportunity to get Barnes to sign the jersey.

Barnes had a free autograph signing at a Sprint store in Bell Gardens and even though I had plans for that afternoon I decided to put on my hardcore grapher shoes and give it a try driving out to Los Angeles. I got to the signing and ran into my friend Kyle. We caught up and when we went inside I snapped a photo of Barnes signing a painting that Kyle was working on of him.

I had a bit of a conundrum where to have Barnes sign the jersey. Since it's a practice jersey the logos and numbers are heat pressed screens not cloth that's stitched on, so I assumed over time they'll probably start to peel and I'd hate to lose the autograph that way. The name logo on the bottom is the only thing stitched but with the different levels of stretching and colors I didn't think it'd be a very good spot to get signed on. I had Matt sign the jersey itself next to the logos and number since I figured it was probably one of the few decent spots.

It came out well enough and honestly this is a jersey I'd like to keep wearing around to Clipper games. It's not an official game used jersey and I like how it's different than everyone else walking around in a Chris Paul or Blake Griffin jersey so I'll risk the eventual fade to the autograph because just knowing Barnes signed it is good enough for me. I mean how many people are able to say they're rocking a Matt Barnes autographed jersey around Los Angeles?

Now I'll just have to work on eventually knocking off the Randy Foye practice jersey I was able to pick up.

RBI (114) Practice Makes Perfect...

Or at the very least it helps you kick around the NBA for a while. I went to the Clippers vs. Bulls game at Staples Center and was able to purchase Small Forward Matt Barnes' Los Angeles Clippers practice jersey.

Barnes was a 2nd round pick out of UCLA but was repeatedly cut and didn't make his NBA debut until 2004 with the Clippers. A bumpy start to his career finally leveled off and he has been able to find regular playing time since 2006. He has been a strong addition for teams playing at a high level signing with the Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, and the Clippers during their time as playoff contenders.

I was happy to pick up the jersey and now need to be on the lookout for a chance to get Barnes to sign it. Since I'm still not the greatest at NBA signings anyone who spots one of Barnes please let me know. On a side note it is kind of funny that I picked up the Barnes jersey since he was the best player available seeing as the past few seasons he's been a Laker who I've actually disliked. All's forgiven as long as he keeps playing tough for the Clippers.

UPDATE: I was able to get the Barnes jersey autographed at an in store appearance.

Balk 8 - A pair of off topic autographs

Even though baseball is my big passion and focus for collecting, living in Southern California does have it's occasional perks by being able to run into various sports athletes and celebrities when you're just out and about.

This is post is a dual post since they're kind of related but I did get each signature on separate days. While most of Southern Californians are now flying their "Clipper Nation" flag, I had mine up a bit longer. Last season I went to 70 something baseball games and one of the main reasons I would miss a game was work or to go to a Clipper game.

Last season I was with my family getting a late bite to go and some gas for the trip home after a Clippers-Suns game when my dad looked out the window at a really nice car pulling up to get gas. When the door opened he immediately said, "Hey, that's Brian Cook."

We waited a minute for him to get situated and then asked Brian if he could sign my ticket stub and told him how happy we were that he was back in LA after a few seasons away. Though I'm a Clipper fan, Laker games were always predominantly what made it onto TV and Cook was a 1st round selection by them in the 2003 Draft. There are few things as exciting as a momentum changing 3-pointer and through his Laker years he was a talented 3-point specialist. Brian Cook autographed my ticket and we said thank you before walking back to fill up his tank and head home.

This season Brian started with the Clippers, but as many of you are aware the fortunes of the team has drastically changed with the addition of Chris Paul and his role was reduced until he was finally traded. One benefit of the changing fortunes of the Clips, is the addition of more high profile fans. On my way into a game against the San Antonio Spurs, I spotted Rainn Wilson, better known as Dwight Schrute, on the way into Staples Center. I was able to get a Rainn Wilson autograph on one of my cards.

Like I said, living here has some perks. Not a bad pair of random autographs to add to the collection.