Basketball Hall-of-Famer Charles Barkley was always one of the more colorful characters during his playing days in the NBA for the Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns and finally the Houston Rockets. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" he truly is gracious when it comes to autographs. I first met Barkley close to 14 years ago at a celebrity golf tournament. Barkley took time to sign for fans after every hole until he noticed that some over-zealous fan had inked his shirt and he now had a ruined shirt with blue Sharpie marks on the sleeve. Understandably, Charles was upset and then somewhat jokingly but somewhat seriously asked us autograph seekers, "Who's going to pay for my shirt?" At that point, Charles started collecting a dollar from each autograph seeker when he signed an autograph for them. As a multi-millionaire, Barkley could easily afford a new polo shirt but it was just the principle of the matter and "Sir Charles" was teaching all us, even those not responsible for the Sharpie marks, a lesson. Even though I was not the one who committed the autograph collector faux paus, I quickly realized with my friends that a Charles Barkley autograph on my basketball card was a "steal" for the low "price" of a dollar. We excitedly greeted Barkley with a dollar in hand at the next few holes. Eventually, Barkley quit collecting our dollars and went back to simply signing for free and we all walked away with well over a dozen autographs each.
About a year ago, I met Charles Barkley and it was nice to see that even a decade since I had last met him that he was still a great signer. My partner and I each walked away with multiple Barkley autographs. So when Barkley was appearing on a television program, we decided to try and secure his autograph once again. Quite a few cars left the studio lot but eventually, a black SUV made it's way slowly down the driveway, slowing as it approached a crowd of roughly twenty autograph seekers. The window rolled down and Charles Barkley began to sign an autograph for each person in line. When it became my turn, Charles took my blue Sharpie and autographed an 11x14 I had from his playing days from the Phoenix Suns. Barkley was talkative, saying hello to each collector as they approached him and responding, "You're welcome" to each person's thank you. This is not always the case either with a lot of celebrities. Some might sign an autograph for a collector but say nothing at all, even when you speak to them. Barkley is definitely a "fan-friendly" guy who interacts with his fans. My partner secured an awesome 11x14 of Barkley and his All-Star MVP Award from the 1991 NBA All-Star game. Two things that struck me about this autograph encounter were the following. First, that the assembled group of collectors actually maintained order and stayed in a single-file line while Barkley signed autographs. By maintaining order, things did not get hectic and every collector was able to walk away with an autograph. Secondly, with autograph collectors and the inherent greediness, no one really "doubled-back" to the end of the line and attempted to sneak through and procure a second autograph from Barkley. Even when a celebrity politely states that they will do "one each" there is always someone, and usually someones, who will disregard the request and still try to get more than one autograph. This time, there only was one younger collector who snagged an autograph earlier at the front of the line and then held up a basketball shoe once Barkley signed for everyone in the line. Barkley obliged this second request but that was the only person that ended up with more than one autograph per person. It's always a good day when you can add an autograph from one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA and even better when it's a pleasant experience. When it comes to seeking to obtain an autograph from Charles Barkley, you get both.
Basketball Hall-of-Famer Charles Barkley was always one of the more colorful characters during his playing days in the NBA for the Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns and finally the Houston Rockets. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" he truly is gracious when it comes to autographs. I first met Barkley close to 14 years ago at a celebrity golf tournament. Barkley took time to sign for fans after every hole until he noticed that some over-zealous fan had inked his shirt and he now had a ruined shirt with blue Sharpie marks on the sleeve. Understandably, Charles was upset and then somewhat jokingly but somewhat seriously asked us autograph seekers, "Who's going to pay for my shirt?" At that point, Charles started collecting a dollar from each autograph seeker when he signed an autograph for them. As a multi-millionaire, Barkley could easily afford a new polo shirt but it was just the principle of the matter and "Sir Charles" was teaching all us, even those not responsible for the Sharpie marks, a lesson. Even though I was not the one who committed the autograph collector faux paus, I quickly realized with my friends that a Charles Barkley autograph on my basketball card was a "steal" for the low "price" of a dollar. We excitedly greeted Barkley with a dollar in hand at the next few holes. Eventually, Barkley quit collecting our dollars and went back to simply signing for free and we all walked away with well over a dozen autographs each.
About a year ago, I met Charles Barkley and it was nice to see that even a decade since I had last met him that he was still a great signer. My partner and I each walked away with multiple Barkley autographs. So when Barkley was appearing on a television program, we decided to try and secure his autograph once again. Quite a few cars left the studio lot but eventually, a black SUV made it's way slowly down the driveway, slowing as it approached a crowd of roughly twenty autograph seekers. The window rolled down and Charles Barkley began to sign an autograph for each person in line. When it became my turn, Charles took my blue Sharpie and autographed an 11x14 I had from his playing days from the Phoenix Suns. Barkley was talkative, saying hello to each collector as they approached him and responding, "You're welcome" to each person's thank you. This is not always the case either with a lot of celebrities. Some might sign an autograph for a collector but say nothing at all, even when you speak to them. Barkley is definitely a "fan-friendly" guy who interacts with his fans. My partner secured an awesome 11x14 of Barkley and his All-Star MVP Award from the 1991 NBA All-Star game. Two things that struck me about this autograph encounter were the following. First, that the assembled group of collectors actually maintained order and stayed in a single-file line while Barkley signed autographs. By maintaining order, things did not get hectic and every collector was able to walk away with an autograph. Secondly, with autograph collectors and the inherent greediness, no one really "doubled-back" to the end of the line and attempted to sneak through and procure a second autograph from Barkley. Even when a celebrity politely states that they will do "one each" there is always someone, and usually someones, who will disregard the request and still try to get more than one autograph. This time, there only was one younger collector who snagged an autograph earlier at the front of the line and then held up a basketball shoe once Barkley signed for everyone in the line. Barkley obliged this second request but that was the only person that ended up with more than one autograph per person. It's always a good day when you can add an autograph from one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA and even better when it's a pleasant experience. When it comes to seeking to obtain an autograph from Charles Barkley, you get both.
