My Most Prized Possession

I have been a fan of Marvel Comics for as long as I could read. I remember getting a copy of Origins Of Marvel Comics and Here Comes The Bad Guys as a birthday gift. I remember reading the origins of The Fantastic Four, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Doctor Doom, The Green Goblin and Doctor Strange. Heck, I still have that copy of Bring On The Bad Guys, all beat up as it is. But inside Origins Of Marvel Comics, I read a story that cemented my love of comics for the rest of my life and that was the origin story of the Amazing Spider-Man.

I loved the fact the Peter Parker was not much older than I was (Actually, since I was probably 6 at the time, he would have been a lot older than I was). I like the fact that he had such cool powers and dressed in a weird costume. Instantly after reading the story, Spider-Man became my favorite super hero. I read as many Amazing Spider-Man, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man and Marvel Team Ups as I could get my hands on. Sure, I still loved watching Batman and Super Friends on TV, but Spider-Man was the man to me. I owe a huge thank you the man who helped create this wonderful character. Stan Lee.

Now, I know half that thank you would also go to Steve Ditko, who was just as instrumental to bringing Spider-Man to the heights of popularity that he enjoyed, plus he is now credited as a co-creator of the character. But since Mr. Ditko has now since become a recluse, I can only express my gratitude here to Mr. Ditko.

 Now Stan Lee on the other hand is still touring the country at the ripe young age of 91 years old. This man should be celebrated for without him, there is no Fantastic Four. There is no X-Men. There is no Avengers. There are no movies to spend our hard earned bucks on or cartoons on TV or merchandise to pick up. Without Stan Lee, life would have been all DC Comics. Not that it's a bad thing. But last I checked, Spidey was shooting webs at Marvel.

One of my dreams is to meet Stan Lee. Unfortunately, I have not as of yet the closest I have yet to come to meeting him was at last year's Comikaze. The line though was way too long and I didn't want to put my girlfriend and her daughter through that. Not that they would have minded. They are so awesome that they would have waited and had fun doing so. Maybe another time.

My most prized possession is a Stan Lee item. See, a few years back, Stan was still signing his mail (He's long stopped doing so) and I wanted to send something Spider-Man related for him to sign. Now, I wasn't going to send a comic or a DVD cover of Spider-Man to him. Mo, I wanted to send something meaningful to me for him to sign. One day, as I was reading a Spider-Man comic, the idea came to me. I went out and bought a poster of Amazing Fantasy #15. The very first story I remember reading of Spider-Man. So, I packed it up and sent it to his POW Entertainment offices along with return postage.

A couple of months later, this came back to me:

Sorry about the bad picture. I took this with one of my old cell phones which had a crappy camera on it.

But this doesn't look too bad though.

This poster is my most prized possession. To have, essentially, the father of Spider-Man sign my poster is just amazing (No pun intended) to me and I will cherish it for as long as I live. My plan is to be able to have it professionally framed and hung on my wall in the very near future. For now, I have it guarded by 4 ravenous pit bulls and it's also booby trapped. No one is getting this poster if I can help it.

I may never get an opportunity to meet the man who is responsible for hours of enjoyment as a kid, teenager and adult. I can only hope that many of the people who get to meet him express to him just how much happier he made their lives with his creations and fantastic books. Hopefully, one day, I will have that chance. Hopefully, I will have the opportunity to walk up to him, knees shaking, extend my hand out and simply say Thank you. Thank you for all the wonderful stories and characters you created. That, my fellow geeks, would mean a lot to me. Just as it has, I'm sure, to all those who already had the good luck to shake the hand of Spider-Man's dad.

Yes, I Like Pro Wrestling And Here Is My Favorite Wrestler

I don't discuss Pro Wrestling very much, but here's the truth. I love Pro Wrestling and have since I was about 12. It's not because I'm ashamed or anything. It just never really came up here. And boy, have I have watched it all since then: WWF then WWE, NWA, WCW, WCCW, Mid South, Mid Atlantic, Pro Wrestling USA, AWA, UWF, ECW and any other promotion that was shown on TV here in NYC. Technical wrestling, brawling, Fall Count Anywhere, Last Man Standing, Steel Cage Matches, Ladder Matches, Tag Team Matches,  I love them all.

I remember my first time watching it too. It used to come on here on WOR-TV Saturday nights after Racing From Aqueduct, which would usually be around 11:30 PM unless a Mets game either was from the west coast or went to extra innings. I don't remember what the date was or who was wrestling. What I do remember was Pat Patterson, who was working as a commentator next to Vince McMahon, went to interview Ivan Kolloff. There was a discussion regarding Russian wrestlers vs American wrestlers. Patterson defending American wrestlers vs Kolloff upholding the virtues of the Soviets. After a few minutes, Kolloff hauled off and slapped Patterson and stormed off set. Patterson gets up and rips his suit off and is screaming bloody murder and being bleeped after every second word. McMahon is screaming "Pat Patterson is angry and Ivan Kolloff better have left the arena" Me? I'm just sitting on my bed with my mouth wide open. I was hooked immediately.

I had seen wrestlers like the Masked Superstar, the Wild Samoans, Pat Patterson, Sgt. Slaughter,the WWF Champion Bob Backlund, George "The Animal" Steele, Andre The Giant, The Magnificent Muraco, who was the Intercontinental Champion, Rocky Johnson, Tony Atlas and colorful managers like The Grand Wizard, "Classy" Freddie Blassie and Capt. Lou Albano. I did have a favorite at the time. The "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka was a guy who had just turned face right around when I started watching, was having the first vicious feud I had ever seen with Muraco. I loved that rage he had when he was angry, but I loved his Superfly Splash off the top rope even more. But I wouldn't say I went GaGa over the guy. Then one show, there was a wrestler who was called "Dr. D" David Schultz. He was beating up a ham and egger (Bobby Heenan representing, yo!), so I wasn't too interested. Then I saw his manager. Here was a loud mouth who was yelling instructions, had a sneer on his face and was wearing a kilt. Who the heck was this guy? During the interview after the match, I found out he called himself "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and he was the best manager in the business. I found out much later he was managing only because he was recovering from injuries sustained during his vicious Dog Collar match with Greg Valentine at Starcade months earlier. He later added Paul "Mr. Wonderful" Orndorff to his stable and his career in the WWF was off and running.

Piper interviewing Frankie Williams right before pummeling him

Then, he started to host an interview segment called "Piper's Pit" and that's what made he's known for. At the time, it was pretty innovative. Buddy Rogers had a segment called "Rogers Corner", but it was boring as heck. I would have rather watched paint dry. "Piper's Pit" was anything but boring. His first segment, he insulted a writer for the WWF Magazine, who used to host a segment at that spot. The next week, he called an injured Eddie Gilbert's dad stupid for letting him wrestle The Masked Superstar. Piper was so funny as the host. He would complement the rule breakers and embarrass the good guys. He would assault wrestlers like Frankie Williams,  insult Rocky Johnson, and tell Andre The Giant he had a teeny tiny brain. His most famous segment was when he attacked my former favorite Jimmy Snuka by breaking a coconut over his head and then whipping him with his belt. That started off a feud with Snuka that lasted a year. Piper's Pit may have made Piper's career, but it made him my favorite wrestler and I watched everything and listened to everything he said as well.

I was there at Madison Square Garden the night he beat up Capt. Lou Albano, kicked Cyndi Lauper and power slammed her manager Dave Wolfe as well as the next show when he wrestled Hulk Hogan in the first wrestling match aired on MTV. It was called "The War To Settle The Score" and it was a classic. I realize that using the word "classic" and Hulk Hogan in the same sentence is stretching it a bit, but trust me, it was. The electricity in the crowd that night was so electric, you could cut the air with a night. By then, cheering Piper openly was becoming dangerous as I would have cups thrown at me or I would be cursed out. The end of the match had Piper disqualified when Orndorff and Bob Orton interfere in the match. They were about to beat up Cyndi Lauper when Mr. T made the save. Piper and Orndorff beat up on T until Hogan made the save. The interviews leading up to Wrestlemania was classic and Piper stole the show on Saturday Night Live. I wish I could have been at Wrestlemania. But my mom decided my grades weren't up to snuff, so I couldn't go. Back then, there was no pay per view, so I had to wait until the results were posted in the NY Post the next morning. I was crushed to read that Piper and Orndorff had lost. Piper and Orndorff feuded for a while and he "boxed" Mr. T at Wreslemania 2. After, Piper left to film "They Live", which is a Sci-Fi Classic.

If you have not seen They Live, see it!

When Piper returned, he became a fan favorite and hosted Piper's Pit where he now complemented the good guys and insulted the bad guys. He also feuded with wrestlers like "Adorable" Adrian Adonis, Bob Orton, Ric Flair, Harley Race and Bad News Brown. He won his only singles title around this time when he beat the Mountie for the Intercontinental Title. He then had his best match when he wrestled Bret Hart at Wrestlemania 7 and dropped the belt to Hart. After, he would only wrestle sporadicaly, mainly serving as color commentator with Vince McMahon on WWF TV. He left and later showed up in WCW to feud with Hogan before returning to WWE after. He shows up every now and then to host a Pit which is always entertaining.

God, I still wish I had this

I really don't have much of a Piper collection. When I was a kid, I got the Piper LJN figure and had the poster that came with the figure on my wall. I also got the Hogan figure and had Piper beat him for the belt, which he wore. I also had a picture book that the WWE put out. I also had a cup that 7-11 had sold with a Big Gulp and the later Hasbro Piper figure from the 1990's. All of this got lost due to various moves and I hope to one day get them all back in my collection, as well as other things so I can have a shelf dedicated to Piper. Here's what I do have:

I have always loved the Unmatched Fury line. The figures were pretty realistic and had a base to pose them on. When I found out that Piper would have a figure in this line, I knew I had to have it and grabbed it when I saw it.

The Entrance Greats was a Christmas gift my buddy, George got for me. The figure also has a stand, but this stand plays a few seconds of his entrance music. I love this figure and was thrilled when I tore open the wrapper and saw Hot Rod underneath.

Speaking of Hot Rod, this was a t shirt I had wanted ever since I was a kid and saw him sporting it on Piper's Pit. Thanks to the magic of eBay, I now have this shirt as a part of my geeky wardrobe.

I had shown this pin off in a blog from last year. I picked this pin up for a buck at SuperMega Fest in New Jersey. There wasn't a lot to be had at the show, but I was more than happy to add this pin to the Piper collection.

One of my most cherished experiences was meeting Roddy at the Big Apple Comic Con a few years ago. I was extremely nervous, which I never get when meeting a celebrity. Waiting on line, I met his son, Colt and struck up a conversation with him until it was my turn to meet Piper. When I got up there, I basically spilled my guts to the man like a little girl meeting the Beatles circa 1964. Piper was the best. He listened intently to everything I said, laughed at a few comments, was genuinely pleased when I told him he was my all time favorite and even asked about my family. He signed these 2 pictures for me and posed for a photograph with me.

When I get my man cave, there will be only 2 photos of myself on my walls. A picture of me at the old Yankee Stadium and this picture of me and the "Rowdy Scott". I want to blow it up and have him sign it for me before framing it. I got Albano to sign the Piper's Pit photo at the same show. I just need Cyndi Lauper to sign it so I can add it to my future man cave wall.

I do have the Piper DVD that the WWE put out not too long ago as well as Hell Comes To Frogtown. I'm always looking for the Pit's burnt on a DVD as well as They Live, but I want that on Blu-Ray and I'm not sure its been released on Blu-Ray just yet.

I apologize for the long read. I guess when you admire someone for as long as I have, there's a lot you want to say about the individual. I know if he was a jerk when I met him all this would have been flushed down the toilet like when I met Graig Nettles. But when you know the man is as decent in real life as he's bad in the world of Pro Wrestling, then you know he's doing something right. Ether he's beating up someone or insulting them with his quick tongue or acting in a movie Piper is one of the most entertaining individuals to ever have stepped into the squared circle. He's as big a reason for the popularity of wrestling in the 80's as Hogan was. To this day, he is wildly cheered when he appears on Raw and that is a well deserved cheer for a man who gave his life to wrestling. He was Rowdy before being Rowdy was cool and that's a fact. When you can't throw rocks at a man who carries a machine gun, the only thing I can do is say thanks to for making my childhood a different, yet entertaining one.

Hey Buddy, Can You Spare Some Room?

I spent a better part of last weekend doing some much needed clearing up of my room. I did this for a few reasons. A-My room had gotten really cluttered. B-I wanted to swap out stuff I had in my closet for future blogs for stuff I had already shown. C-I wanted to see what I had. What should have taken a few hours had taken a couple of days and it was shocking and frustrating.

I had boxes and bags on my dresser, chair, desk and other places in my room, so I packed all of the stuff and opened my closet door to put all my stuff away. When I opened my closet, I realized I had a problem that you would think you could only find in cartoons or comedies. My closet was already filled with boxes upon boxes of sports cards, unopened and opened figures, as well as boxes for most of my bobbleheads. That is when I realized I was in big trouble.

I had just about run out of room and I was stuck holding the bag, literally.

What started out as collecting what I liked had turned into an episode of Hoarders, starring The Sexy Geek. It was an unplanned and most unwanted appearance. I had to figure out what had happened and how I could stop this slippery slope I was on before I was left blubbering over an intervention by friends and family because I was sneaking in a moldy issue of Amazing Spider-Man #500 and a Mego Robin with a broken leg...wait I have one already. Oh God, Help me! (drops to my knees, crying hysterical as I hold Robin in my arms, whispering to him that everything would be O.K)

Alright, seriously, I know how I got here and it's a pretty simple explanation. What started as my collecting stuff I actually loved grew into my picking up something of anything I remotely liked. I have my sports collection which consists of anything Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Islanders and Devils as well as a few player collections. In my sports collections, I have cards (a lot of cards), autographs, bobbleheads, figures, pins, yearbooks, programs and other stuff I can't remember. My pop culture collection consists of Batman, Spider-Man, The Beatles, The Monkees, Luke Skywalker/Star Wars and Back To The Future.

Now, the problem is not only do I have a large collection of stuff that I like, but I have managed to start side collections of stuff I that while I like, don't have the attachments that I have to my favorites. For instance, I love KISS, but did I really need to buy a huge Love Gun Mister? It's never even been out of the box. Granted, the box is wrecked, which is why I got it for half off at Spencer's, but I honestly didn't need it nor have I used it. Plus, I really don't go out of my way for KISS stuff anymore.  I have a side Iron Man collection. I was never a huge Iron Man fan when I read the comics. I fell in love with the character after I watched the movies and then started reading the books. I'm a huge WWE fan and I never even started a collection save for a few Roddy Piper and Steve Austin figures. Imagine how messed up I would be if I had?

Because I really cannot afford a storage room, I have some boxes and rubber maid bins that have toys, video tapes, autographs, books and other items. I also have my T.V., DVD's, Blu Ray's, clothes and other things. As you can imagine, room is very limited in my area. I'm lucky I have room to move around right now, but if I keep adding stuff I may not.

What I am going to have to do is step back and take a bit of a break from collecting. Reestablish my collecting goals and focus on that. Anything else, I may either put away, trade or sell. I would have to figure out just what I would be willing to part with. That will not be easy. I always did not want to be the collector you all saw on Collector Intervention that would have a hard time letting go of a piece, but the more I think about what I may or may not part with, I can now understand why they always had a problem with letting go. But I also realize I need to take control before the collection takes control of me.

If I decide to let anything go, I will throw it out to you guys to see if there would be anything anyone wanted. I would rather anything I have would go to a good home and a collector who would appreciate it before I give it to Goodwill or turn to eBay. It sucks that I let things get out of control, but at least I was able to catch the problem before it was too late and that is always a good thing.

A Day Of Monkee Madness

I'm not sure when I became a Monkees fan. I know it was when I was a kid. At school, a buddy of mine used to go to the music room during lunch and listen to records (ask your parents what they were, kids). We would always play Fabien's "Sunshine Superman", The Beatles "Hey Jude", The Kinks "Lola" and The Monkees "I'm A Believer", so I'm guessing it was then because I couldn't get enough of "I'm A Believer". I thought it was the greatest song ever. Then, channel 5 used to run 3 shows back to back to back that would become 3 of my all time favorite TV shows. The 1967 Spider-Man cartoon at 3:30, The 1966 Batman series at 4 and The Monkees at 4:30. That was probably the greatest block of programming because I was in front of the TV every afternoon. Homework? That could wait. I wanted to see what mess the Monkees got themselves into this time. 

I continued to listen to their music as I became a teenager. I even got into the New Monkees back in 1987. But the originals were still awesome and I got caught up Monkee-mania when the shows started airing again on MTV. when a neighbor went to see them at what was Brendan Byrne Arena in NJ (It's now the Izod Center), he bought me back a T-shirt, which I wore to school. The kids rolled their eyes, but I didn't care. I was a fan dammit!

When my buddy George and I started hanging out, I didn't initially tell him I was a Monkee fan.He was a metal head and I wasn't sure if that was going to fly. One day, he and I were in Kmart, just looking around, I found Arista's Monkees Greatest Hits CD, That was Then, This Is Now. I wanted it and was going to buy it. I just didn't want George seeing what I was buying and save myself the ridicule that would follow. I started to slowly walk to the register, trying to hide the CD. George actually came up behind me out of nowhere and asked what I had. Busted! I sheepishly showed him the CD. He asked if it was a Monkees CD. I confirmed it. George looked at it for a few seconds and then admitted he loved the Monkees. Relief! I bought the CD and the Monkees became something we bonded over. 

For the next 23 years, he and I would listen to the music together, see them in concert, buy their merchandise, and mourn the death of Davy Jones together. The Monkees are something I can't see myself enjoying without George to this day. 

Last year, We found out about the Monkees Convention and made plans to go. But life got in the way and we both initially said we would pass. Then, last week, George called me and surprised me with a ticket to the convention, so George, his wife Marge, and I went to the convention today at the Sheraton Meadowlands in East Rutherford, NJ. As soon as we got there, we were greeted in front of the hotel

I'm pretty sure it's a reproduction of the famous Monkee mobile, but it was a damn good repo.

We went inside and signed in at the registration desk and got our wristbands for the day. After sitting around downstairs and talked among ourselves we decided to go upstairs and wait in line to get into the dealer room. The line was pretty long by the time we got upstairs.

As soon as we got to the dealer room, I jumped on the line to get Mickey Dolenz's autograph. I have been working on a Monkees 8x10 picture for a few years now, having gotten Peter Tork and Davy Jones to sign it. I needed Dolenz to sign it and today was the day I would get that autograph. I looked across the room and noticed George and Marge on a line across from me. Apparently, they had to wait on another line just to get into the dealer room. The room was crowded with VIP's who paid to get into the dealer room an hour before the general public. 

After waiting a few minutes, I was allowed into the dealer room and lined up by a table where Mickey was appearing. I managed to get off a few shots of him from a distance, as you really weren't allowed to take a pic of him unless you paid for the photo op.

And when I got a bit closer

A few minutes later, I got up to the front of the line and got to meet Mickey. It was truly an honor to meet one of my all time favorite personalities and he was such a nice man. I got to shake his hand and thank him for all the years of music and laughter.

I met up with George and Marge and we wandered around the dealer room, looking at the tables. To be honest, there was not a whole lot. Either the VIP's cleaned up or the dealers didn't really bring much. I did pass by Peter's table and snapped a quick pic of him signing an autograph.

I had met him countless time before, so I didn't meet him today. I saw he was walking around with the use of a cane. I just hope it's nothing too serious. 

I managed to pick up 3 posters for 20 bucks. A Vote For Batman, A Back To The Future and a Green Hornet poster. I'll show those off at another time. They will be used for autographs. I also picked up Season 2 of The Monkees. 

After we headed to the ball room to rest up and was told there would be an opportunity to take a picture with David Cassidy of The Partridge Family if you paid a donation. I was told the woman who made the announcement had a laundry list of rules before taking the picture like, no messing about, leave your stuff behind, get in and out, blah , blah, blah. Cassidy arrived soon after and announced he had a plane to catch soon. He sat down and talked about Davy Jones and how close he got to him the final 5 years of Davy's life.

As you can see, we were pretty far back, so the picture is not the greatest. The yellow blur is Cassidy. 

Cassidy kinda bored me. He went on and on about how depressing it was to be type cast and not being able to find serious work after the Partridge Family and how he understood Davy's frustrations at the same as he was a talented actor and could comfort Jones. Pretty egotistical if you ask me. Then he bought up Jones's daughters and it seemed to me like he was drooling over them, saying how beautiful they were, more than once.. Kind of creeped me out. Then we realized that Cassidy was talking on and on because he had no intention on taking the photographs with the fans. Mickey was taking the stage for a Q & A at 4 pm and it was 3:45 pm at that point, so we decided to grab a bite and end the day.

Here's the small haul

Mickey adding his autograph to my 8x10. He was selling a Monkees drum head for $60.00 signed, which I was considering, but since Davy is gone, I can't get him to sign it. I passed on it for that reason. Just need Mike Nesmith to sign this piece and he is the hardest one to get. I might try to get him to sign when he does his solo show in New York coming soon. If that fails, I do have his autograph on a book he wrote when George and I went to his book signing in the 90's. I could just matte that with the pic and frame them.

Season 2 of the series  which would also be the last. I cannot wait to watch it. Three of my favorite episodes are in Season 2: Fairy Tale, Monstrous Monkee Mash and The Frodius Caper. I highly recommend Fairy Tale. Mike Nesmith in drag as a crabby princess is pretty funny.

Overall, I had a nice time at the convention. I just wish that the dealers had better stuff to sell. I was looking to see if they had the 1:18 Die cast Monkee mobile  the Monkee finger puppets from the 70's, The Monkees hand puppet from the 60's Those are tops on my Monkees wish list and I might have bought them if I found them there. But, meeting a favorite of mine was good enough for me as well as spending time with 2 of the best people in the world. I can't think of any better way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

The Start Of A New Collection:Signed Playbills

Now, I will let you all in on a little secret: I have lived in NYC all my life, save for 1 year in Dobbs Ferry, NY, and I have never seen a Broadway show. I love the theater though. I used to have aspirations of being an actor at one time. I performed in high school shows, college shows, college movies, summer stock and off, off, off, off Broadway shows, always thinking I would one day perform on Broadway one day. It just never panned out for me. Damn my lack of acting talent!

Because of my love for acting, I decided I wanted to start a new autograph project: cast signed Playbills. I have watched you tube videos from other autograph collectors and have always marveled at their signed playbills and have wanted to try my hand at starting a collection of them myself. So, a few weeks ago, I sent 6 requests out to different shows hoping I would be lucky enough to get them back with signed Playbill goodness.

My first success has arrived:

Mary Poppins has always been one of my all time favorite Disney movies and I have always wanted to see the show on Broadway. Unfortunately, the show ends it's run in March. I included the show in my batch of requests and biggity bam, I got a signed Playbill to start my collection.

I have already started thinking of storage. As I receive more in the mail, I plan to shell out for the official Playbill binder. It's pretty expensive for a binder, but for 33.95, I get the binder and 18 polypropylene sleeves with backing board. It's a steep price, but worth it to keep my signed treasures in the best possible condition.

Hopefully, the rest of my requests will start trickling in. I also have a few more requests ready to go out this week and hopefully, those will come back shortly as well.

As for my dreams of playing on Broadway, you can find me appearing on the corner of 42nd St and 7th Ave playing the violin with a turned over hat on the ground. Bring money.

Lights, Camera, Action: League Assignment

So I took a break from blogging. I had some family issues that needed my attention. After dealing with all that nonsense, I was looking forward to just chillin like Bob Dylan, sipping on some beers as I read some comics, watched the Yankees and look for more additions to my growing collection. But no, the lure of the League draws me back like a fly to an electric zapper, wanting to be the cheesey hambone showoff that I am.

So, as I returned to the spotlight that is so richly mine, I get handed this assignment from our esteemed leader, Brian:

Television executives have determined that you lead an amazing life and have pegged you as the next big reality TV star. What’s the name and the premise of your show?

Well, after much thinking, consulting with the stars, meditating with Sexy Sadie (Beatles reference) and swiming with the sharks, I would have name my show what my mom calls my collection:

Mike's Bunch Of Crap

I mean, the title works. To most people, what I have would be a bunch of crap, but to me it's treasure and I'm like Captain Jack Sparrow, I am drawn to treasure....and rum.

The show would be pure Mikey. The viewers would watch as I go to Toys R Us to pick up the latest Spider-Man toy or follow me to Walmart as I fight with a woman and her 8 year old for the Walmart Exclusive Avengers Hulk figure. See me as I anxiously await the final minutes of my ebay bid for the vintage Batman Soakie bottle and look at my frustration as a sniper comes in with 2 seconds left to out bid me for it. See as I go to Yankee Stadium and beg a ballplayer 20 years my junior for his autograph and see me explode into a venomus cobra as I am rejected for the scribble I need. Come with me as me and occasional guest star, my buddy George, go to diffrent comic cons, toy shows and sports card conventions looking to uncover the "Wow" factor. See me as I perform my legendary Pee Pee dance when as I find a vintage 1968 Justice League comic for 5 bucks because the dealer bought it to a Sports Card show. Watch in sheer horror and disgust as I watch Collector Intervention and drool over Elyse Luray while wearing wayyyyy to small Batman Underoos and Taz slippers...ok, maybe we won't be seeing that. Plus, I want an english narrator describing the action as it happens like those old Jacques Cousteau/Natural Geographic shows: "As the collector walks down the aisle of Toys R Us, he spots his prey. A mint in the box Star Wars Luke Skywalker Green F/X Lightsaber and it is the last one. A few paces away, another collector spots the box and a struggle ensues. The first collector, unsportingly, knees his competitor in the groin and rushes off with his prize." This show just sells it's self.

I'm pretty sure a bidding frenzy would ensue over the show. I can see channels such as A&E, SciFi, NatGeo, Travel Channel, Spike and Bronx Public Access getting in on the action until TLC wins the battle for the right to broadcast the show. It would win it's time slot, making yours truly a reality star until I get arrested for buying a mexican bootleg of a Batman figure. I would be kicked off the air and would be resorted to panhandling in the streets of Manhattan with a sign that reads: Will Buy Toys For Money.

Honey Boo Boo ain't got jack on me.

If you enjoyed this blog, please check out blogs from my fellow League Members which are bound to be way better than mine:

http://coolandcollected.com/whats-in-the-box-starring-yours-truly/

http://dorkhorde.blogspot.com/2012/09/league-of-extraordinary-bloggers-weekly_11.html

http://greenplasticsquirtgun.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-league-of-extraordinary-bloggers-me.html

http://primordialbadgersmediahoard.blogspot.com/2012/09/league-assignment-star-of-show.html

http://spacemanstar.blogspot.ca/2012/09/the-ward.html

2 TTM Mailday.. 1 Amazing Success

I wasn't expecting any mail today. I haven't really been sending out any requests in a while. I do know I have quite a few requests still out there, I haven't been getting any of them back. So, when I opened my PO Box and found 3 envelopes in there, I was pleasently surprised. On fortunately, one had the dreaded RTS sticker on there.

RTS-Phil Simms. Kind of bummed I didn't get him to sign. I have seen successes for him and he was one of my favorite players growing up. I also enjoy his work on CBS calling games, but alas, he returned my letter. Oh well, maybe I'll try again later.

Success #1

Former WWF World Champion, Bob Backlund. When I first started watching wrestling back in 1982, he was the World Champion. He won the belt a few years earlier at Madison Square Garden from "Superstar" Billy Graham and held it until late 1983 when he lost to the Iron Shiek. He returned to the WWF 8 years later and became WWF champion again, beating Bret Hart. Backlund turned into a crazed heel in a prior match after losing to Bret Hart. He lost the title 3 days later to Diesel (Kevin Nash) at MSG in 8 seconds.

Mr. Backlund signed my 2 photos in about 4 months c/o his company, Backlund Energy.

Success#2

Legendary Spider-Man Artist John Romita. To me, the definitive Spider-Man artist. From 1966-1970, Romita drew some of the character's legendary stories like "Spider-Man, No More" and drew the story that revealed The Green Goblin finding out Spider-Man was Peter Parker and revealing himself to be Norman Osborne. Some of the more significant characters introduced during Romita's run was Joe Robertson, Gwen Stacey, Capt. Stacey and Mary Jane while some of the more notable villians introduced were The Shocker, The Rhino, The Prowler and Kingpin. Prior to his run on Spider-Man, he had a successful run on Daredevil.

Mr. Romita signed my Artist Card in about 3 months. It is now my favorite TTM and is one of the centerpieces of my Spider-Man collection.

These autograph successes weren't returned right away. In the case of Bob Backlund, I hadn't seen a success for him in a few years and I just took a shot in the dark with Romita. I actually gave up on both knowing the chances of success were slim. But when I saw them come back I was thrilled. Sometimes, the longer the request takes, the sweeter the rewards. And today was pretty sweet.

Yes, I Still Root For The Islanders

Haven't done a sports only blog in a while and this one starts off as a bit of a confession: I still am a huge fan of the New York Islanders.

I know, I know. I'm a Devils fan. I hate it when I meet someone and when the subject of sports comes up, I might sometimes get a "I root for all New York Teams" Grrrrr. If you root for the Rangers, there is no way, I mean no way you root for the Islanders. But, I digress. I'm being a bit hypocritical here. But you get what I'm saying. How can I root for one team if I root for another, especially if they are both in the same divison? Well, read on and maybe the question will be answered.

Let's hop in our Delorean, drive up to 88mph and visit the year 1980. I was 9 years old and really into baseball. The Yankees were the only sports team I followed religously at that point. I mean, with following the Yankees, reading about the Yankees and playing baseball, on top of reading comics and buying toys and playing superheroes, where would I have the time to watch any other sport?

Well, that winter, everyone at school was talking hockey. Hockey this and hockey that. I was beginning to wonder what this "hockey" was all about. I had a couple friends try to explain it to me. They also told me it was nothing like the Nock Hockey I played with them. This had more people, was played on ice and was pretty violent.

Woah, violent? You had me at hello.

Needless to say, after about 2 hours of trying to explain it to me, I was told to watch a game that would be on TV that night. It was a very important game and I should not miss it. So, like a good little trooper, I tuned into my very first hockey game. Oh, did I mention it was Team USA vs The Soviets for the Gold Medal in the 1980 Winter Olympics?

I don't remember much about that game. I do remember the final seconds and Al Michaels asking if I believed in miracles and me running around yelling USA, USA until my counsoler told me to knock it off.

After that, I knew I wanted to watch more hockey. It was a drug, Al Michaels was the dealer and I ecame addicted. I couldn't wait until Team USA's next game. Maybe I could attend a ga....wait, what do you mean they were not a real team?? I just saw them! Clearly, it took a while for me to comprehend that Team USA didn't play in the NHL. Now, I had to pick a team to follow.

My friends father, who was like a dad to me knew which team I should root for. If I was to be an honorary member of his family, I would root for the same team his faily rooted for: The New York Rangers.

Um, ok...So, I watched a game with them, but I didn't have that feeling I did when I watched Team USA. Don't ask me why, I just couldn't get into this team. Maybe my guardian angel, Harold, told me that this team would rival the Boston Red Sox for my hatred and venom. I don't know. All I know, I just didn't get up for this team like my buddy, his brother and his dad did.

One day, I was home from school, flipping through the channels when I found a hockey game on WOR-TV, Channel 9. I wasn't looking for a game, but there it was. They were showing this team  had never heard of, The New York Islanders. I sat and watched that game. Afterward, I knew I found my team. I loved the Islanders logo from first view. Loved the blue, white and orange. They were Mets colors, but it was a diffrent sport. I was allowed to like them. When I found out a member of Team USA, Ken Morrow, was an Islander too, that pretty much sealed the deal.

I watched as many games as I could that year. I learned they were based out on Long Island which was awesome as my grandmom lived out in Centereach and I loved going over to her house.

This was the house where I used to watch games in the living room and play hockey by myself in her driveway. Unfortunately, My grandmom doesn't live here anymore, moving to Puerto Rico in the 90's. This was a picture of the house I found on line. As soon as I saw this pic, all the memories came flowing back. If I ever hit the lottery and this house is up for sale, it will be mine. I loved this place.

I even found a player to root for and developed my first "man crush". It was on one of the greatest snipers I ever saw play the game.

Number 22 on your scorecard, Mike Bossy. This guy was awesome! I watched him score 50 goals in 50 games, score 2 Stanley Cup winning goals in consecutive years, win the Lady Byng Trophy 3 times and the Conn Smythe Trophy once. The first hockey stick I had was a Mike Bossy model, which I wish I still had. I still collect Bossy cards to this day. I want to own a Bossy jersey and would love to meet him one day, just to tell him what huge part of my childhood he was.

I got to see them win their first Stanley Cup that year. I still remember watchng John Tonelli feed Bobby Nystrom the puck and watching Nystrom punch it past Flyers goalie Pete Peeters for the win and the Stanley Cup. I was jumping up and down and screaming at the top of my lungs. My mom, just closed the door to my room, letting me bask in the glory and the glow of the TV set.

The Islanders were a part of my teenage years as well. I watched them win 4 straight Stanley Cups, saw Pat LaFontaine score the winning goal in the 4th overtime of Game 7 of their first round matchup against the Washington Capitals which has now become known as the Easter Epic.

Unfortunately, I got to see Mike Bossy retire after that season at the age of 30 due to chronic backpain. Denis Potvin retired the following season and Billy Smith the following. It was not the same Islanders to me, My childhood heroes were retiring.

I still followed the team and got to enjoy one last memorable playoff run with them during the 92-93 season when they knocked out the Capitals in the first round. Dale Hunter nailed Pierre Turgeon with a cheap hit after Turgeon scored the series ending goal, injuring him and rendering him ineffective for the rest of the playoffs. They managed to knock off The Pittsburgh Penguins before bowing out to Montreal in the Wales Conference finals.

By then, I was in college and I wasn't watching with the regularity that I used to. I had started dating this girl who I really liked a lot. She was into hockey, but was a Devils fan. So, I watched a lot of Devils games with her and her brothers and really got into the Eastern Conference Finals which pitted the Devils against the Rangers. Even though The Devils lost that series, I was hooked. I also started folowing their young goalie, Martin Broduer and he became my favorite player.

But I still followed the Islanders. I watched their games and never, ever rooted against them when they played the Devils. I hated those "Gordon's Fisherman" Jerseys they wore for a couple of years and was glad when they bought back the classic logo and I'm thrilled that they are back to wearing the classic Islander uniforms.

My Islander collection is small, but I think I have some nice stuff. Here are some of my favorites in the collection:

Bryan Trottier signed puck

So, why the sudden trip through Nostalga Lane? And why did it take me so long to get this wrapping this blog up? I guess as you get older, you start to yearn for things that you loved as a kid so you can still feel young. Some go out and buy expensive cars and dress like a teenager. Me? I dress like a teenager regardless. But, I made a promise to myself that if there is a hockey season this year, I will get my Mike Bossy jersey and make my first trip to Nassau Coliseum. Can you believe I never watched an Islanders game there? But, come hell or high water, I will make it out there before they knock the old barn down and either get a new arena in nearby or in Brooklyn. I want to just look down, see the Islander logo in center ice and then look up and see the retired numbers of those I watched as a child, especially Mr. Bossy. Call me sentimental but I might even squirt a tear or 2 because I won't be 41 or whatever age I will be at that point. I will be a 9 year old kid without a care in the world, rooting hard for his Islanders.

Recent Through The Mail Autograph Successes

On Thursday, I had a nice 2 ttm mailday. The maildays are still not as frequent as I would like them to be. But for now, any mailday is a good mailday for me. Ok, enough dawdling. Time to show ff the goodies.

Dan Jurgens signed and sketched my Artist Card for me in a couple weeks time. I sent to him in care of DC Comics, but the postmark came back from Minneapolis. I know he is a Minnesota native, so I'm guessing he has a studio up there where he works out of.

Jurgens has worked on titles such as Superman, The Sensational Spider-Man, Teen Titans, Thor, and Booster Gold. He has created characters such as Doomsday, Cyborg Superman and Booster Gold. Booster Gold is the character he sketched on my card. Another solid return for my Comic Book Artist PC.

This was a huge add to my Yankees PC. Wade Boggs signed my baseball in a weeks time. Sent to his home, I included the baseball as well as a 20.00 donation to his charity, which I think helps inner city kids build baseball fields in the Tampa area. This is a great success for me as he was on my favorite Yankees team, the 1996 Yankees, which won the World Series that year. I might send another request out to him soon.

Another week is starting, so I hope my mailbox is full this week. I will be getting out some more requests this week. Sports stars, actors and artists are who I am targeting this week.Hope you guys who share in this hobby have your mailboxes full as well.