Why do you want autographs?- Page 2

[veronicamae]

Posted: 7/18/13 at 10:23pm

It's a memento of the experience of meeting them, and if they're willing to sign, why not?

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 7/18/13 at 10:40pm

For the memories.

I get lazy now, though, and rarely stage door anymore because I don't like waiting in the crowds.

I was recently looking through some old signed Playbills - it's nice to look back.

[darreyl102]

Posted: 7/18/13 at 11:08pm

"I'm sorry, but in all of my years as a star dresser, I have NEVER seen anyone who compliments a performer who doesn't expect the autograph.

To say that it 'usually end in an autograph' is a joke. Never have I ever seen any performer just offer up their autograph. "

TheatreDiva90016, Maybe in all your years, but in MY years this exact thing happened. I was at the Kennedy Center after seeing Follies and was chatting with Linda Lavin, She looked at my playbill in my hand and asked if I wanted her to sign it. The same thing happened with Christine Pedi after Chicago, she asked people if anybody wanted her to sign anything, without even being asked, she initiated it herself. I mean just them getting in the line, a lot of times with Pens in their hands already is them offering there signatures.

I find that having my playbill signed not only makes for a great addition to my collection, but meeting the performers themselves after is thrilling, and looking back at my collection brings back funny or fond memories from each encounter.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 7/18/13 at 11:31pm

An autograph was invented with the invention of celebrity in America. With newspapers, radio, stage, and eventually television, many different types of people became famous. Entertainers, models, politicians, criminals, etc.

Back in the early days of modern "celebrity," everyone didn't have a camera with them, so an autograph became proof that an individual actually met the celebrity. Autograph books acted as scrapsbooks of signatures, until shops in Hollywood started to sell "pocket-size" autograph books for fans to collect their signatures.

Today, everyone has a camera with them -- their cell phone. Photos suddenly became an substitute to an autograph, and now the intention of an autograph has changed.

To some people, autographs are a way to make money (ie eBay, charity auctions, etc.). To others, an autograph provides satisfaction to one's sentimentality. And to a slght few, an autograph still means that you met that celebrity.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 7/18/13 at 11:48pm

MARGO CHANNING:
Autograph fiends! They're not people--those little beasts who run in packs like coyotes--

KAREN:
They're your fans, your audience--

MARGO:
They're nobody's fans! They're juvenile delinquents, mental detectives, they're nobody's audience, they never see a play or a movie, even - they're never indoors long enough!

[amoni2]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 12:05am

I agree it's about the experience. I was a movie theater manager and have worked behind the scenes of NY Theater so I talk to people about their work and I have never met an actor who doesn't like to talk about their work.

I have met hundreds of actors and many are curious about the movie theater aspect since they never hear about those in the trenches, playing the films. I have over two hundred DVD's, CD's movie posters, Playbills and windowcards signed by the actor's and have had great conversations about them. I have "The Color Purple" DVD signed by Whoopi and she told she's never seen it, even though she was nominated for the Oscar. I have "Whose Life Is It Anyway?" windowcard that Mary Tyler Moore signed for me as a kid while we talked about "The Mary Tyler Moore Show".

I don't begrudge the buying and selling, but I have zero interest, and I don't have one that wasn't signed for me in person. It's not about the collecting. My brother got the Sports Gene and I got the Entertainment Gene and being lucky enough to be from New York where it's all accessible.

Oh and for the record, my two best friends were in London and saw Dame Maggie Smith and waited after her last stage show just few years ago. They were talking to her about how much they admired her work and as they were leaving SHE asked if they wanted their programs signed. Like I said, I've never met an actor that doesn't like to talk about their work.

[Play Esq.]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 12:11am

To quote Dylan: "I used to care, but things have changed."

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 12:34am

They also use the signing as an excuse to end the conversation and leave.


Nothing's more awkward than a one sided compliment.

[darreyl102]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 12:37am

Many sign first and then talk.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 8:18am

WickedRENTawakening-- there is so much WTO g with your statement that it scares me and makes me glad I'm NOT young.

[mamaleh]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 9:26am

"Never have I ever seen any performer just offer up their autograph."

TheatreDiva, I hadn't either--until a certain unnamed actor offered his autograph to me during an intermission at THE BOY FROM OZ. As I slowly made my way up the crowded aisle, I spotted him in his aisle seat, smiled and said Hi, and wished him well on his upcoming theater gig. He quickly picked up a playbill from his lap and said, "Would you like an autograph?" I was a bit taken aback but graciously accepted it and thanked him, again wishing them well.

It's never happened before or since.




Updated On: 7/19/13 at 09:26 AM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 10:16am

I've had actors volunteer an autograph, too. When I've SD with my dd, actors have reached out for my program, and I've just said something like: no, thanks anyway...and then given a compliment (if warranted); said how much I've enjoyed the show, or simply mentioned I was there for my kid.


When you talk to them, I do think there is an assumption. But I don't think its arrogant of the actor at all.

[DEClarke]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 10:21am

I'm sorry, but in all of my years as a star dresser, I have NEVER seen anyone who compliments a performer who doesn't expect the autograph.

I feel sorry for you then. I have spoken with and complimented many actors and actresses without expecting an autograph. I have never demanded an autograph, nor would I ever. Also, there have been more times where I complimented a performance and did not receive an autograph than the times that I did get an autograph.

In my experiences in New York, it seems that having a pen and a Playbill ready to be signed is about the only way to ensure you get to compliment the actor or actress. In that situation, the autograph becomes customary. It is what it is. However, in Houston, where stage door lines are typically non-existent, it is much easier to personally talk with a performer and then depart.

So, TheatreDiva, kindly remove your foot from your mouth and stop pretending to know me and the way I live my life.

[darquegk]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 10:47am

An autograph is one thing and one thing only: a souvenir of a show, a trip, a moment, a conversation, something or other. Some people are souvenir people. Others are not. Neither is right or wrong.

[newintown]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 11:14am

I wonder how many people really (deeply) think about the phenomenon of celebrity worship.

How many people ask themselves, "How is my life made better by this brief, essentially meaningless contact with someone I adore, but whom I don't know and who doesn't know me?"

"Why do I wait in a crowd, perspiring with excitement, hoping to touch this person who I've seen talking, singing, or dancing far away on a stage, a screen, a television, but of whose real character or values I know absolutely nothing?"

"Was this really a significant moment for us? Have we had any kind of true interaction?"

Posted: 7/19/13 at 11:17am

Thank you to the folks who so graciously shared their stories of signatures and such without browbeating me for not sharing the enthusiasm.

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 11:38am

My daughters have waited to get their Playbill's signed but only if there is someone in the cast of show that they really like. They have told me it is like getting another "souvenir" in addition to their Playbill. They are both very polite to the actor/actresses and have never had a bad encounter with anyone.

[DEClarke]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 11:38am

JoeKv99, as a fans of theatre, we to an extent should be interested in human character. I often try to engage in conversations about human behavior I do not understand or feel the same way about. It's neat to figure out how other people think and process information. So, it's not problem for me to answer your question. I hope the quality moments of this conversation were insightful for you.

[mikem]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 12:35pm

I have had an experience where a celebrity volunteered an autograph. I was at dinner with some friends, who noticed that a famous sports figure was at another table. I guess it was pretty obvious that he was recognized (maybe because there was nobody else in the restaurant) because he came over to us, introduced himself, and gave us autographs. And he clearly loved doing so.

In the stage door line, I don't think I've ever seen a star actually wait to be asked before signing. And I don't think that's arrogant of the star -- after all, you're waiting in what is essentially the autograph line with a Playbill in hand. That's like the grocery clerk asking, "Do you want me to ring up the items that you put on the conveyor belt?" The actors will skip over the people who don't seem to be carrying something to sign -- I think they assume those people are just waiting along with the person who wants the autograph -- so if you want them to talk to you, it makes sense to be carrying the Playbill, which will reflexively get signed by the actor.

In terms of why the autograph, I echo what others are saying that it is a memento of an experience. And I don't think waiting for the autograph means that obtaining that autograph has to be a "significant" experience in some way or make my life better, as newintown is wondering. People wait longer to get into Shake Shack, and no one thinks that's a life-changing experience. People wait a LOT longer to get on a ride at Disneyland.

As to why buy an autograph online that doesn't involve a personal encounter, I don't do it myself, but I wonder if the motive is to personalize a mass market memento. People want mementos because the experience has touched them in some way -- they want to remember how the show made them feel. It's a very personal and individual feeling. An autograph is an individually created item, and I wonder if that individuality is what the buyer is looking for.

Updated On: 7/19/13 at 12:35 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 1:46pm

I think it's a keepsake of the moment, and I understand that. I haven't gotten an autograph in years, because the stage door scene is so different than it was a few decades ago. Internet selling of signed swag changed all that.

I suppose having signed proof of an object that somebody famous touched is perceived as cool. It's a chance for them to physically connect to a person they admire in some retroactive way.

When I was a kid, my mom took me backstage for the national tour of 1776. She had a friend in the cast, and they all met me on stage (curtain closed) and presented me with the signed Declaration of Independence. Most of the cast had signed it during the show and the rest afterward. I'm sure they did that every performance, but this was "my lucky moment." It's a reminder of seeing my first big professional show and meeting some truly talented actors afterward (George Hearn, Rex Everhart, etc.). For an 8-year-old, it was magic.

In my late teens and early 20s I got autographs from people I admired. Not a big collector, but I'm certainly happy with the ones I have.

When I was a second-grader, Margaret Hamilton (the Wicked Witch of the West) became my pen pal for the school year. I have signed photos, postcards, and letters from her. I treasure them. I was offered some good cash for them a few years ago, and it seemed so bizarre. Why would someone want this correspondence addressed to someone else? A kid from the Midwest. To me, they're of value, but to others?

It's a little strange on the other side, when, as an author, I'm asked to sign my books and people actually tell me, "Don't personalize it, just make it generic. It will be worth more that way in the future."

Part of me thinks, "from your lips to God's ears," and finds it flattering, and part of me thinks it's a little weird, but I do it.

Updated On: 7/19/13 at 01:46 PM

[carlyrachel_]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 1:49pm

I can't speak for anyone else here, but I ask for autographs after shows for multiple reasons.first, I enjoy the shows and I like having autographs as a keepsake after seeing it. Also, some of them mean a lot to me when they are from my favorite performers. Also, most recently, when one of my favorite performers was signing my playbill, it gave me time to start a conversation with them, and we talked for like 10 minutes. That's just my opinion :)

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 1:53pm

The last autograph I got, and waited for, was Cher's. I'm not even a big fan, unless you count her variety show.

I was with friends, we drove up to see "Joseph" from Philly. "Come Back to the 5 and Dime..." must have been nearby and there was a crowd. We realized it was to see Cher at the stage door. I was more impressed seeing Sandy Dennis, but everyone went ape***t when Cher came out, and we got her autograph. She seemed very nice. I looked at the card she signed illegibly and thought "what am I gonna do with this?!"

[newintown]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 2:04pm

mikem, those are very good points.

By the way, has anyone ever read or seen Inge's one-act, To Bobolink, For Her Spirit? It paints a very unattractive picture of autograph seekers.

Updated On: 7/19/13 at 02:04 PM

[darreyl102]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 3:31pm

Concerning buying autographs- sometimes that is our ONLY option if a show has closed, the actor is deceased ect. I mean, How else could a 21 year old like me get an Ethel Merman autograph except to get one from someone else.

[Kelly2]

Posted: 7/19/13 at 3:38pm

That's where my question goes in. I don't question having mementos from a moment that was special to you for whatever reason, I personally don't do autographs but I collect plenty of things from shows, ticket stubs, my Playbills, souvenirs from any show I worked on, etc. But why do you want a signature from someone you've never seen onstage or why do you want something someone signed to someone else? I guess if you collect autographs regardless of origin then it makes sense, but if you're doing it to have a personal memory of something, if you didn't obtain it yourself...you have no memory attached to it. Shrug. Just my two cents.