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What is your best thrift Store/ second hand store autograph discovery?

Interested in hearing about any gems that people may have picked up whilst scouring the shelves of second hand stores, thrift shops, markets etc. I picked up this Duff McKagan autobiography this week only discover it was signed for 4 Euro ($5) in my local second hand book shop (Sure it's dedicated, but I don't mind!). And a while back a Neil Gaiman - Anansi Boys 1st edition signed book that I discovered for 1 Euro ($1.35). They weren't advertised as signed, just stuck in with other books and I was delighted to discover them.

I have also picked up a few signed CD over the years; The Zombies (Colin Blumstone and Rod Argent), The Cranberries and Supergrass all for a couple of bucks! I also once bought a Jason and The Scorchers LP and only when I got home did I discover a large signed poster inside by all the original band!!

I'd love to hear any of your stories of that cheap and glorious discovery that you happen upon from time to time...

Here's the Duff and Neil Gaiman books.

Tags: Duff, Gaiman, Guns, McKagan, N, Neil, Roses

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Comment by Jeffery Kite on February 8, 2014 at 12:25pm: Wow....and I thought I really did something when I found a Jenny McCarthy autographed Candie's shoe ad for a $1.

Comment by Bjarne Soderholm on February 8, 2014 at 6:52pm: My best would be a fully signed Def Leppard Hysteria Lp for 5 dollars! And that was years after Steve Clark passed away. I was very happy with that purchase.

Comment by Christopher Thompson on February 8, 2014 at 7:01pm: Years ago I found a Danzig Cd signed by Glenn Danzig for $5.

Comment by Micko on February 9, 2014 at 12:40am: Bjarne, that Def Lep with Steve Clarke is really cool! And Christopher's Danzig is a real find! Although Danzig's music always scared me a bit. And ironically I believe that Danzig once had a fight with the Def Leppard boys, backstage at a festival, so they ain't friends! Funny coincidence!

Comment by Micko on February 11, 2014 at 11:05am: This is the Jason and the Scorchers poster that I discovered inside an LP I bought in a market stall. Dedicated to a guy called Noel. Totally unexpected find.

Comment by Mark Shull on February 12, 2014 at 6:36pm: i have found an autographed edition from the publisher copy of former Braves pitcher John Smoltz's book, an autographed copy of UNC head basketball coach Roy Williams' book and a signed edition of one of Gene Simmons' books, which I let my friend Mark Roberts buy to add to his KISS collection.

Comment by crazyrabbits23 on March 14, 2020 at 4:21pm: Apologies for the necro, but I love discussing stories and finds like this. I've had quite a few over the years.

Some of the most interesting pieces I've found are books that have no comparable price information or similar copies online - there's simply no other reference for them. That's not to say that there aren't others (or plenty of others) out there, but there are no other examples I can find on the internet - essentially an "online one-off".

I will list a few of the finds that, based on the scant information I've uncovered, are the most valuable in my collection.

1) Ken Dryden's "The Moved and the Shaken". A unique copy, for several reasons (putting aside the obvious that his sig is very uncommon at the best of times). The book is not only signed simply as "Ken" (as far as I can tell, he never signs like this except for friends or family), but it has a long inscription dedicated to a "Stuart" who did an interview with him. Based on what I've found, it was inscribed to the Canadian author Stuart McLean, who was a prolific media personality (he hosted a show on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's radio station for years). I have strong reason to believe this book was an association copy signed after Dryden did an interview on McLean's show, as it's dated just a few days after the interview in question (the date of which I found through online research). A signed copy typically goes for $50-60 - I'd put this one at $150-200.

2) Darwin Hanna and Mamie Henry's "Our Tellings". To give some perspective, a softcover copy of the book runs about $40-50. Hardcover copies are extremely scarce, and run anywhere from $100-300 depending on availability. This is a copy that was not only signed and inscribed by both authors, but dedicated to the Premier of a Canadian province who essentially spearheaded the effort to save the regional area where the Native tribe described in the book (the NIha7kapmx People) lived, and were in danger of being displaced. I'd probably put this book at somewhere between $250-500.

3) Two signed books by Alice Munro (often referred to as the "Canadian Chekhov"), "Friend of My Youth" and "Too Much Happiness". Spent about $10 total for them, and they're worth anywhere from $250-350. An increasingly-tough auto to get, especially for her older works and since she won the Nobel Prize.

4) David Niven's "The Moon's a Balloon", 1st edition book, 15th printing. Tough book to find, but a gem of an acquisition, considering I only paid a dollar for it. I'd estimate it somewhere around $50-150 (1st edition, 1st printing copies are typically running $250-350 USD).

5) My all-time best pickup is not a book, but a signed lithograph by Roberta Williams, the creator of the famed King's Quest video game series back in the 80s. The piece in question is called "Lord of the Dead", and depicts the main character of the fifth game in the series confronting one of the major antagonists. An incredibly-scarce collectible, moreso because only 450 were made, and even less than that still in their original frames. It's signed by both Williams and the lithograph artist, John Schroades, and is a low-numbered print (32/450). Some estimates online that I've seen bill it at anywhere from $2,500-3,500. I got it for $20 at a Value Village.