Stan Lee

"Fantastic Four: Ashcan" Comic signed by Stan Lee 

Notable Signatures: Stan Lee, creator of Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, Iron Man, etc. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Lee)

Face front, true believers! Today, I met one of "The Greats" in comic books, Stan "The Man" Lee! I went to this year's Comikaze Expo (now re-branded to include Stan's name) at the LA Convention Center and after ponying up my $50 signing fee (totally worth it), I secured my place in line as we waited for Mr. Lee to arrive. Since my main goal for the weekend was getting Stan's autograph, I made a bee-line straight to the signing area and was lucky enough to be one of the first ten in line (not counting the fifteen or so "VIP" pass holders off to the side). Here is a picture of Stan getting to the area:

Unfortunately, I only had my cell phone with me on the first day so most of my pictures are fairly blurry. I wasn't able to get a picture of Mr. Lee signing my comic since the guy using my cell wasn't able to get it to work properly. Oh well, at least I got to meet Stan! 

EXCELSIOR!

Method: In-Person @ Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo 2012

Date Received: 9/14/2012

Jewel Staite

8x10 Photo signed by Jewel Staite 

Notable Signatures: Jewel Staite (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0821612/)

Method: Via Venue
Request Sent: 6/6/2012
Item Received: 8/2/2012
Total Days: 57 Days

Address Used
Ms. Jewel Staite
c/o Epitome Pictures Inc.
220 Bartley Drive
Toronto, Ontario
M4A 1G1
Canada

Cassie Steele

8x10 Photo signed by Cassie Steele 

Notable Signatures: Cassie Steele (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1012247/)

Method: Via Venue
Request Sent: 6/6/2012
Item Received: 8/2/2012
Total Days: 57 Days

Address Used
Ms. Cassie Steele
c/o Epitome Pictures Inc.
220 Bartley Drive
Toronto, Ontario
M4A 1G1
Canada

Dean Jones

Index Card signed by Dean Jones

Notable Signatures: Dean Jones (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0427894/)

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 4/7/2012
Item Received: 8/2/2012
Total Days: 117 Days

Address Used
Mr. Dean Jones
c/o DJ Productions
P.O. Box 570276
Tarzana, CA 91357

Jerry West

Trading Card signed by Jerry West

Notable Signatures: Jerry West (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_West)

Method: Via Venue
Request Sent: 4/30/2012
Item Received: 6/21/2012
Total Days: 52 Days

Address Used
Mr. Jerry West
c/o Golden State Warriors
1011 Broadway
20th Floor
Oakland, CA 94607

Kathryn Beaumont

(2) Index Cards and Note signed by Kathryn Beaumont

Notable Signatures: Kathryn Beaumont, famed actress who provided the voices for Alice in Disney's Alice in Wonderland and Wendy in Disney's Peter Pan (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0064607/)

In November 2011, I sent Ms. Beaumont the first of two letters. As I had seen many other people receive responses in shorter time periods, I was worried that it might have gotten lost in the mail (due to the small envelope size) or overlooked so I sent another letter last month (May 2012). Interestingly enough, the response I received back from Ms. Beaumont was a combination of the two letters: the SASE from the first and the index cards from the latter (I am glad she chose to return the second set as they are FAR superior to my initial batch). 

Inscription: "Best wishes from Alice to Steve"

In addition to signing the Alice card, she also signed the one I designed for the other character she's best known for, Wendy:

Inscription: " 'I'm flying!' Best wishes to Steve"

Ms. Beaumont also included a little printed note with her initials explaining the delay:

Letter Inscription: "Steve, Apologies for such a delay! The fan department no longer really exists, but I do get occasional bundles of mail from time to time. I just received your request! KB"

Method: TTM
Requests Sent: 11/6/2011, 5/11/2012
Item Received: 6/5/2012
Total Days: 212 Days, 25 Days

Address Used [Department No Longer Exists, Periodic Bundles Still Sent, Expect Delays]
Ms. Kathryn Beaumont
c/o The Disney Studios
500 South Buena Vista Street
Burbank, CA 91521

Greg Louganis

1996 Upper Deck Olympicard & Post Card signed by Greg Louganis

Notable Signatures: Greg Louganis, Olympic Gold Medalist (1984 Los Angeles, 1988 Seoul)

Today, I completed my dual Olympic diving trading card by having Mr. Greg Louganis sign his side. In addition to signing the card, he also included a post card (which he folded to fit inside my SASE) advertising a documentary he is in called My Dog: An Unconditional Love Story and signed it next to his picture:

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 5/9/2012
Item Received: 5/23/2012
Total Days: 14 Days

Address Used
Mr. Greg Louganis
P.O. Box 4130
Malibu, CA 90264

Norman Alden

Index Card signed by Norman Alden

Notable Signatures: Norman Alden (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0017491/)

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 4/7/2012
Item Received: 5/22/2012
Total Days: 45 Days

Address Used
Mr. Norman Alden
c/o Amsel, Eisenstadt & Frazier Talent Agency
5055 Wilshire Boulevard
Suite 865
Los Angeles, CA 90036

Gordon Lightfoot

Index Card signed by Gordon Lightfoot

Notable Signatures: Gordon Lightfoot (http://www.lightfoot.ca/)

I am really happy to get Mr. Lightfoot's autograph as I've loved his honest and beautiful song-writing for quite some time.

Method: Via Venue
Request Sent: 5/7/2012
Item Received: 5/18/2012
Total Days: 11 Days (7 Days After the Show)

Address Used [NO LONGER VALID]
Mr. Gordon Lightfoot
c/o Ulster Performing Arts Center
601 Broadway
Kingston, NY 12401

Ed Asner

Index Card signed by Ed Asner

Notable Signatures: Ed Asner (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000799/)

I had originally sent Mr. Asner another custom index card back in November (he was one of my earlier TTM attempts) but unfortunately, it never came back. I'm glad that this one did! :-)

Inscription: "Steve The Best of Life + Thanks"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 5/11/2012
Item Received: 5/16/2012
Total Days: 5 Days

Address Used
Mr. Ed Asner
c/o Quince Productions
12400 Ventura Boulevard
Suite 371
Studio City, CA 91604

Dr. Sammy Lee

1996 Upper Deck Olympicard signed by Dr. Sammy Lee

Notable Signatures: Dr. Sammy Lee, Olympic Gold Medalist (1948 London, 1952 Helsinki) and coach of future Olympic medalist, Greg Louganis

Inscription: "Rx Best of Health"

In addition to signing my trading card, Dr. Lee also included a signed and personalized business card:

Business Card Inscription: "Rx Always Good Health to Steve & Family"

My next step is to send the card to Mr. Louganis to have him sign it!

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 5/3/2011
Item Received: 5/8/2012
Total Days: 5 Days

Address Used
Dr. Sammy Lee
16537 Harbour Lane
Huntington Beach, CA 92649-2105

"The Guild" Cast

Comic Book signed by "The Guild" cast

Notable Signatures: The cast of "The Guild" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1138475/): Felicia Day ("Codex"), Vincent Caso ("Bladezz"), Jeff Lewis ("Vork"), Robin Thorsen ("Clara"), Amy Okuda ("Tinkerballa"), and Sandeep Parikh ("Zaboo")

This was the main reason why I took the several hour trip up on public transit to Los Angeles for Free Comic Book Day: to meet and get the autographs of the cast of The Guild! It was really cool because we got to talk to each person for a bit since they were only letting a few people in at a time. I spent the most time talking to Jeff Lewis (who is the nicest guy ever!) and of course, Felicia Day! Here is a picture I took with her (I look a hot mess because I only slept two hours the night before in order to catch the first bus out lol):

Oh, and I totally got photobombed by Vincent Caso! Sweet. Felicia was really nice (and just as adorable as you would expect!) and we talked about her YouTube channel, Geek and Sundry, and her "The FLOG" videos (watch the end where she talks about hows she deals with internet trolls!):

Method: In-Person
Date Received: 5/5/2012

Andrew Chambliss

Comic Book signed by Andrew Chambliss

Notable Signatures: Andrew Chambliss, writer known for his work on Joss Whedon's "Dollhouse", "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" comics (Season 9), and several episodes of "The Vampire Diaries" (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2544048/)

I met Andrew Chambliss at the Free Comic Book Day event at Golden Apple Comics in Los Angeles. He signed the cover of the free "BTVS/The Guild" comic book they were giving out.

Method: In-Person
Date Received: 5/5/2012

Scott Shaw

Custom Simpsons Sketch and Comic Book signed by Scott Shaw

Notable Signatures: Scott Shaw, comic book artist known for his work on "The Simpsons" comics (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Shaw_%28artist%29)

This year, I attended the Free Comic Book Day (www.freecomicbookday.com/) event at Golden Apple Comics in Los Angeles where I met Scott Shaw. He was drawing custom sketches for his fans (for free!) which had one of the longest waits that day. He was a really funny guy and even though I wasn't able to get him to draw my first choice (Mr. Sparkle!), I did get my favorite character, Ralph, drawn. Here he is drawing the picture: 

It's a little hard to see on the scans, but the blue pencil lines where we sketched the outline are still visible which I love. This guy was amazing on how fast he could draw certain characters! My favorite one I saw belonged to the guys in front of me: he drew them a shirtless Flanders in all of his buffness. It was hilarious!  

Drawing Inscription: "To Steve", "I Like Free Comics!"

I also asked him to sign a copy of the free Bongo Comics they were giving out:

In my best Comic Book Guy voice, "Best. Day. Ever!" haha

Method: In-Person
Date Received: 5/5/2012

David Frankham

Index Card and (4) Photos signed by David Frankham

Notable Signatures: David Frankham (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0291301/)

Index Card Inscription: "Hi Steve!", "Sgt. Tibs 5.1.12"

In addition to signing my custom index card, Mr. Frankham also included four photos of his own, which he signed and inscribed:

Photo #1 Inscription: "For Steve", "5.1.12"

Photo #2 Inscription: "For Steve", "5.1.12", "Sgt. Tibs"

Photo #3 Inscription: "For Steve", "5.1.12"

Photo #4 Inscription: "5.1.12", "Thanks for writing Steve and for the kind words!"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 4/7/2012
Item Received: 5/5/2012
Total Days: 28 Days

Address Used
Mr. David Frankham
c/o 2376 Camino Capitan #4
Santa Fe, NM 87505

Jayma Mays

Index Card signed by Jayma Mays

Notable Signatures: Jayma Mays (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1724323/)

Inscription: "Sending lots of good clean love"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 11/6/2011
Item Received: 5/5/2012
Total Days: 181 Days

Address Used
Ms. Jayma Mays
c/o Framework Entertainment
9057 Nemo Street
Suite C
West Hollywood, CA 90069

Digital Daggers

Index Card Signed by Digital Daggers

Notable Signatures: Digital Daggers (Space and Andrea Wasse)

Tonight, I got the both of them to sign my index card after their set at The Viper Room in West Hollywood, CA. I'm very happy to add Digital Daggers as part of my collection as they are such an amazing band. Several of their songs have been featured on a range of television shows ("Pretty Little Liars", "MTV's Teen Wolf", "CSI: NY", "Nikita", "Degrassi: In Too Deep", "The Vampire Dairies", "Unforgettable"), films ("The Roommate"), and even commercials for video games ("Crysis 2"); their first full-length album is set to be released in the near future and I'm super stoked to hear it. I've been telling Andrea that I've been saving a special place in my collection next to my Alan Rickman autograph for the day that I finally got their signatures. Well, if you're reading this Ms. Wasse, I've delivered on my promise! :-)

Method: In-Person
Date Received: 4/30/2012

Angela Lansbury

5x3.5 Photo signed by Angela Lansbury

Notable Signatures: Angela Lansbury (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001450/)

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 1/14/2012
Item Received: 4/28/2012
Total Days: 105 Days

Address Used
Ms. Angela Lansbury
635 North Bonhill Road
Los Angeles, CA 90049

Heather Morris

(2) 4x6 Photos and Letter signed by Heather Morris

Notable Signatures: Heather Morris who plays Brittany S. Pierce on GLEE (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3529987/)

Unfortunately, I did not receive my custom index card back (which I had sent on behalf on a friend), but I received two signed photos (one with my name, the other without) so it's nice to have an unexpected autograph become part of my collection. There was also a funny letter that accompanied it (I think it's playing off her character's ditziness). Since the signature is fairly simple, I'm unsure of its authenticity, but similar ones I've found online haven't been proved as being unauthentic so for now, I'll say it is!

Inscription: "To Steve", "You Rock!", "AKA Brittany S. Pierce"

Here is the second photo:

And finally, the letter:

Inscription: "Dear Steve, I'm sorry this took so long... I got lost trying to find the Post Office. My Mom just found me... YEA MOM !!! She's helping me now ;-) Thank you for the nice letter! I love Unicorns. Isn't my new friend pretty as a rainbow. His name is Joshua, He's a Pegasus :-) We like to tell secrets, Shhhhhhh!!!!!!!! I'm going to go, play with my Cat now, His name is Zach Morris. I rescued him. XOXO, He Mo"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 12/19/2011
Item Received: 4/25/2012
Total Days: 128 Days

Address Used
Ms. Heather Morris
350 S. Beverly Drive
Suite 200
Beverly Hills, CA 90212

Donnie Dunagan

Index Card and 4x6 Photo signed by Donnie Dunagan

Notable Signatures: Donnie Dunagan (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0241760/)

In addition to signing my custom index card, Mr. Dunagan also included a personalized photo of Bambi, Thumper and Flower:

Inscription: "Hi Steve", "Bambi"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 4/7/2012
Item Received: 4/21/2012
Total Days: 14 Days

Address Used
Mr. Donnie Dunagan
P.O. Box 309
San Angelo, TX 76901

Irvine Welsh

Index Card signed by Irvine Welsh

Notable Signatures: Irvine Welsh, author of Trainspotting (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irvine_Welsh)

Inscription: "Steve Best Wishes"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 3/6/2012
Item Received: 4/11/2012
Total Days: 36 Days

Address Used
Mr. Irvine Welsh
1248 W. Cornelia Avenue
Chicago, IL 60657

William Phipps

Index Card signed by William Phipps

Notable Signatures: William Phipps (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0681055/bio)

Inscription: "4/10/12 Malibu, CA", "To Steve - Tks For Kind Words"

This is easily one of my favorite TTM successes because on the reverse of the index card, Mr. Phipps wrote a personal note requesting copies of my custom card! I will be sending him a stack as a way to say "Thank You" for signing my card. He seems to be really into his fans and I want to show him that we appreciate him as well! Here is his note:

Inscription: "4/10/12 Steve: Where'd you get this card. I've never seen one. Can you get some more like it? Tk's"

It's interesting to note that on the front, he signed it as "William Phipps" and on the back, "Bill Phipps". Such an amazing success!

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 4/7/2012
Item Received: 4/10/2012
Total Days: 3 Days

Address Used
Mr. William Phipps
P.O. Box 6036
Malibu, CA 90264

Betty White

Index Card signed by Betty White

Notable Signatures: Betty White (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0924508/)

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 11/6/2011
Item Received: 4/2/2012
Total Days: 148 Days

Address Used
Ms. Betty White
P.O. Box 491965
Los Angeles, CA 90049

Josh Martin

Index Card signed by John Martin

Notable Signatures: Josh Martin (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0552575/)

Inscription: "To: Steve Thanks for the love and support!", "'Me Eat You Up!" - Buu!"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 1/23/2012
Item Received: 3/22/2012
Total Days: 59 Days

Address Used
Mr. Josh Martin
c/o Funimation Entertainment
1200 Lakeside Parkway
Suite 100
Flower Mound, TX 75028

Jonathan Coulton

Index Card signed by Jonathan Coulton

Notable Signatures: Jonathan Coulton, singer-songwriter best known for the song "Still Alive" from Portal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_coulton)

Inscription: "Hi Steve!", "∞ :)"

Here is a video of Mr. Coulton singing "Still Alive" at PAX 2008 with nerd goddess, Felicia Day:

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 2/17/2012
Item Received: 3/19/2012
Total Days: 31 Days

Address Used
Mr. Jonathan Coulton
172 5th Avenue #219
Brooklyn, NY 11217

Robert Guillaume

Index Card signed by Robert Guillaume

Notable Signatures: Robert Guillaume (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0347039/)

Inscription: " A Sante Sana!", "Thank You Steve!"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 2/1/2012
Item Received: 3/12/2012
Total Days: 40 Days

Address Used
Mr. Robert Guillaume
8840 Wilshire Boulevard
Suite 200
Beverly Hills, CA 90211

Sara Bareilles

CD Booklet signed by Sara Bareilles

Notable Signatures: Sara Bareilles (http://www.sarabmusic.com)

I picked up this signed Sara Bareilles booklet through Newbury Comics which sells many autographed CDs they receive directly from the artists' labels. I'll most likely buy through them again because not only do you get the album (sealed) but the autographed booklets come separate so you don't have to sacrifice the one that comes with the disc. Plus they are only a few dollars more than the unsigned retail prices at stores.

Method: Purchase (NewburyComics.com)
Purchase Date: 3/5/2012

Bobby Doerr

Post Card signed by Bobby Doerr

Notable Signatures: Bobby Doerr, Hall of Fame second baseman for the Boston Red Sox (1937-1951) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Doerr)

Method: Purchase (eBay auction)
Purchase Date: 3/4/2012

Jason Mewes

Index Card signed by Jason Mewes (x2)

Notable Signatures: Jason Mewes (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0582939/)

Inscription: "Steve, I Eat Butt!", "Snoogans!"

In addition to signing the back of my LOR (pictured above), Mr. Mewes also signed my Jay and Silent Bob index card. I will be sending it to Kevin Smith for completion. Here is the other index card:

Inscription: "Nootch!"

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 12/24/2011
Item Received: 3/5/2012
Total Days: 72 Days

Address Used
Mr. Jason Mewes
c/o View Askew Productions
69 Broad Street
Suite B
Red Bank, NJ 07701

Dick Van Dyke

Index Card signed by Dick Van Dyke

Notable Signatures: Dick Van Dyke (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001813/)

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 1/14/2012
Item Received: 3/3/2012
Total Days: 49 Days

Address Used
Mr. Dick Van Dyke
23215 Mariposa DeOro Street
Malibu, CA 90265

Eugene F. Kranz

Index Card and Bookplate signed by Eugene F. Kranz (x2)

Notable Signatures: Eugene F. Kranz, best known for his role as the NASA flight director of the Apollo 13 mission. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_Kranz)

In addition to receiving my custom index card back, Mr. Kranz also included a signed bookplate with the NASA Mission Control logo on it. I actually received two of each item (two index cards, two bookplates) as I had requested an additional set as a gift for my father who recently celebrated his 30th anniversary working in the aerospace industry designing satellites. Here is what the bookplates look like:

Method: TTM
Request Sent: 2/1/2012
Item Received: 2/25/2012
Total Days: 24 Days

Address Used
Mr. Eugene F. Kranz
1108 Shady Oak Lane
Dickinson, TX 77539