The Beckett Blog

With the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission to the moon upon us this coming Monday, there might be more than a few collectors interested in picking up something related to the flight that starred Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and “Buzz” Aldrin.

Now there have already been countless movies, documentaries and tributes about the Apollo missions, but there also will undoubtedly be some added interest as people read about one of the most historic events in world history on its anniversary. Several newspapers and magazines already have produced items relating to the anniversary and there’s sure to be more.

But when it comes to mass-produced collectibles — and in particular the autographs of Armstrong — there’s not a lot to choose from,  despite there being a healthy interest in NASA memorabilia and astronaut autographs.

Armstrong signed many autographs in the past, but generally stopped signing regularly in the 1990s as values and demand for his signature increased. (This, in turn, has led to higher values and many, many forgeries and pre-prints/autopens being sold as real.) Armstrong’s shunning of the spotlight really hasn’t stopped there as he reportedly won’t be attending the 40th anniversary celebration in Washington, D.C.

According to The Associated Press, a personal check signed by Armstrong not long before thge Apollo 11 mission sold for $27,350 this morning. It was sold by RR Auction of Amherst, N.H., and is believed to be a record price paid for his autograph.

In recent years, Topps has included autographed cards of astronauts in its sports sets, most notably the 2007 Co-Signers set baseball that included Moon Shots autographs of 10 space explorers — and even pairing them with memorable baseball players from the past.

That set included: Alfred Worden, Aldrin, Charles Duke, Edgar Mitchell, Fred Haise, Robert Crippen, Richard Gordon, Scott Carpenter, Walt Cunningham and Wally Schirra. Aldrin is the most valuable at $250.

In 2004, Topps included a single cut Armstrong autograph (cut from an item and embedded into a card) in its American Treasures Signatures set (sold for $1,710 in June 2004), while this year Upper Deck announced a card in its A Piece of History Hair Cuts set that includes a single strand of Armstrong’s hair.

Among more traditional sets, the most memorable came in 1969 as Topps produced a 55-card set chronicling the space program (one card up top) which is relatively easy to find at roughly a couple bucks per card.

Coming in August is a space-heavy second set of Topps American Heritage cards which will include cards with small pieces of equipment from space shuttles embedded into them.

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As someone who visited the Armstrong Space & Air Museum in Wapakoneta, Ohio, (Armstrong’s hometown) more than a few times as a young child, it’s always interesting to see how space exploration gets focused on at times and see how peoples’ interests are piqued.

While it’s Armstrong’s right to not sign autographs, it’s unfortunate that many a collector can’t complete their collections (or can’t without deep pockets) with perhaps the most important piece possible — the first man to set foot on the moon.

Chris Olds has collected sports cards and memorabilia since 1987. Before coming to Beckett Media, he wrote about the hobby for the Orlando Sentinel on his blog, SportsStuff, and for the San Antonio Express-News and The Tuscaloosa (Ala.) News. Do you have a comment, question or idea? Send e-mail to him at colds@beckett.com.