Forget coffeemakers for a moment. Joe DiMaggio is back at celebrity shows
at a time when frustrated, if not angry, baseball fans feel like they've
taken a third strike with the winning run on third. DiMaggio is making his
first autographing appearance in two years on Oct. 29 and 30 at Hofstra
University for the 11th Long Island Classic. The show is organized by The
National Pastime of New Jersey. Most of the DiMaggio autograph tickets
($150 for balls, $175 for flat items) at press time were sold out. Don't
despair. He's already scheduled to appear at a National Pastime event the
first weekend in January in Atlantic City's Bally's Casino Hotel. The
resurfacing of America's national icon ends a stint when DiMaggio signed
exclusively with The Score Board, Inc. Under the contract, DiMaggio was
paid $3.5 million in each of the two years, and was given stock options and
bonuses not to do public signings. Sources close to DiMaggio said the
Yankee Clipper is looking forward to meeting his adoring fans; that his
relationship with The Score Board became explosive at the end, following a
private signing session during which time he was presented with flats and
other items that he refused to sign. "He looked at the items, threw his pen
up in the air and walked out," the source said, acknowledging that signing
those particular items were not part of his contract. "This was a
Rolls-Royce guy who wasn't going to sign Mustang material." DiMaggio seems
to be a curmugeon at times, the friend acknowledged, but "he likes people
and needs the contact with the adoring public." The slugging outfielder's
last show was in Chicago with The National Pastime, which had produced more
shows featuring DiMaggio than any other promoter (11).
Forget coffeemakers for a moment. Joe DiMaggio is back at celebrity shows
at a time when frustrated, if not angry, baseball fans feel like they've
taken a third strike with the winning run on third. DiMaggio is making his
first autographing appearance in two years on Oct. 29 and 30 at Hofstra
University for the 11th Long Island Classic. The show is organized by The
National Pastime of New Jersey. Most of the DiMaggio autograph tickets
($150 for balls, $175 for flat items) at press time were sold out. Don't
despair. He's already scheduled to appear at a National Pastime event the
first weekend in January in Atlantic City's Bally's Casino Hotel. The
resurfacing of America's national icon ends a stint when DiMaggio signed
exclusively with The Score Board, Inc. Under the contract, DiMaggio was
paid $3.5 million in each of the two years, and was given stock options and
bonuses not to do public signings. Sources close to DiMaggio said the
Yankee Clipper is looking forward to meeting his adoring fans; that his
relationship with The Score Board became explosive at the end, following a
private signing session during which time he was presented with flats and
other items that he refused to sign. "He looked at the items, threw his pen
up in the air and walked out," the source said, acknowledging that signing
those particular items were not part of his contract. "This was a
Rolls-Royce guy who wasn't going to sign Mustang material." DiMaggio seems
to be a curmugeon at times, the friend acknowledged, but "he likes people
and needs the contact with the adoring public." The slugging outfielder's
last show was in Chicago with The National Pastime, which had produced more
shows featuring DiMaggio than any other promoter (11).