Sports Memorabilia a True Hobby Essay Example For Students

Sports Memorabilia a True Hobby Essay As he stepped up to the plate, he dug his right back foot into the dirt getting a firm stance. Little did he know that the ball given to the umpire before the game which cost just nine dollars and now coming at him was going to be worth a little over 2.7 million dollars in seconds. Mark McGwire is truly a reason why a person can make money, gain notoriety and have fun while collecting memorabilia. Making money through regular jobs is one thing, making money by collecting sports memorabilia is entirely another. If one wants to make money collecting sports memorabilia, one has to be patient because collecting memorabilia is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Two main reasons why the value of sports memorabilia increases are the passage of time and the achievements of the athletes. One way to get these items before they increase in value is to attend free autograph signing sessions. Another way for one to make money is to write to an athlete and get something signed for free, then turn around and sell it. One example of this is Vince DeAngello who started this process when only a kid and now owns a very successful sports memorabilia shop. I have personally received memorabilia through letters to athletes; I have seen their value rise, then I have sold them to a sports memorabilia shop for a profit. One of the easiest ways to make money by collecting memorabilia is to follow rookies and get as much signed by them as you can. This is very convenient because rookies do not usually charge for their signatures. Also, as a first year player, rookies are more eager to sign autographs so they can make a favorable first impression. Not only can one make money by collecting sports memorabilia but one can also be seen as a hero in the eyes of the public. By collecting memorabilia, one can gain public recognition also. For example, the person who bought Mark McGwires seventieth homerun ball for $2.7 million certainly gained public recognition. Anyone who donates a piece of his or her collection of memorabilia to a sports hall of fame such as the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, will receive a great deal of public acclaim. Such recognition was given to the Rotary club who last year donated George Bretts pine tar bat to the Rockhurst Spectacular. The retired Royals reliever Jeff Montgomery is also known as a great benefactor to many charitable organizations. Con sidered a hero to many young children, Cal Ripken Jr. is known for his willingness to sign as many autographs as are requested both before and after games. Some people gain public notoriety by having memorabilia within their homes or business. I have gained a personal reputation for the amount of memorabilia I have in my house. Former baseball star Danny Jackson, owner of the Incredibowl draws people to his business not only to bowl, but also to gaze at his vast collection of sports memorabilia. With all of this money and fame, we often forget how fun, collecting memorabilia can be. The fun of collecting sports memorabilia can take many ways, shapes and forms. It is fun to meet star athletes and get autographs to add to your collection. One can also enjoy trading and collecting with people of similar interests. Not only does this fun come by trading, but also by watching your investment rise. My friend Brad Long was fortunate enough six years ago to invest $500 in a signed Mark McGw ire jersey, which now is worth several thousands. I have also been privileged to watch my Joe Montana football go up in value. Sports memorabilia has brought many great hours of pleasure to my life, and others. I have had fun decorating rooms of my house with sports history. My neighbor and friend Jamie Quirk has also inspired me by showing me his rooms of fun with endless memorabilia. .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 , .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .postImageUrl , .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 , .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157:hover , .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157:visited , .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157:active { border:0!important; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157:active , .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157 .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u29e52355370c4a8dc0d3b74ece4b0157:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Plato Essay Thesis We will write a custom essay on Sports Memorabilia a True Hobby specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now In conclusion, by collecting sports memorabilia a person can make money, gain notoriety and have fun. One of the nice things about collecting sports memorabilia is the possibility that a hero can emerge at any time, seeming from out of the blue. Nothing can sum that up better than the slogan used for the New York Yankees a few years ago, at any moment, a great moment. Sports Memorabilia a True Hobby Essay Example For Students Sports Memorabilia a True Hobby Essay As he stepped up to the plate, he dug his right back foot into the dirt getting a firm stance. Little did he know that the ball given to the umpire before the game which cost just nine dollars and now coming at him was going to be worth a little over 2.7 million dollars in seconds. Mark McGwire is truly a reason why a person can make money, gain notoriety and have fun while collecting memorabilia. Making money through regular jobs is one thing, making money by collecting sports memorabilia is entirely another. If one wants to make money collecting sports memorabilia, one has to be patient because collecting memorabilia is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Two main reasons why the value of sports memorabilia increases are the passage of time and the achievements of the athletes. One way to get these items before they increase in value is to attend free autograph signing sessions. Another way for one to make money is to write to an athlete and get something signed for free, then turn around and sell it. One example of this is Vince DeAngello who started this process when only a kid and now owns a very successful sports memorabilia shop. I have personally received memorabilia through letters to athletes; I have seen their value rise, then I have sold them to a sports memorabilia shop for a profit. We will write a custom essay on Sports Memorabilia a True Hobby specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now One of the easiest ways to make money by collecting memorabilia is to follow rookies and get as much signed by them as you can. This is very convenient because rookies do not usually charge for their signatures. Also, as a first year player, rookies are more eager to sign autographs so they can make a favorable first impression. Not only can one make money by collecting sports memorabilia but one can also be seen as a hero in the eyes of the public. By collecting memorabilia, one can gain public recognition also. For example, the person who bought Mark McGwires seventieth homerun ball for $2. 7 million certainly gained public recognition. Anyone who donates a piece of his or her collection of memorabilia to a sports hall of fame such as the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, will receive a great deal of public acclaim. Such recognition was given to the Rotary club who last year donated George Bretts pine tar bat to the Rockhurst Spectacular. The retired Royals reliever Jeff Montgomery is also known as a great benefactor to many charitable organizations. Considered a hero to many young children, Cal Ripken Jr. is known for his willingness to sign as many autographs as are requested both before and after games. Some people gain public notoriety by having memorabilia within their homes or business. I have gained a personal reputation for the amount of memorabilia I have in my house. Former baseball star Danny Jackson, owner of the Incredibowl draws people to his business not only to bowl, but also to gaze at his vast collection of sports memorabilia. With all of this money and fame, we often forget how fun, collecting memorabilia can be. The fun of collecting sports memorabilia can take many ways, shapes and forms. It is fun to meet star athletes and get autographs to add to your collection. One can also enjoy trading and collecting with people of similar interests. Not only does this fun come by trading, but also by watching your investment rise. My friend Brad Long was fortunate enough six years ago to invest $500 in a signed Mark McGwire jersey, which now is worth several thousands. I have also been privileged to watch my Joe Montana football go up in value. Sports memorabilia has brought many great hours of pleasure to my life, and others. I have had fun decorating rooms of my house with sports history. .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede , .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .postImageUrl , .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede , .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede:hover , .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede:visited , .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede:active { border:0!important; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede:active , .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u44c255eee9384851acccb8fa5131aede:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Through A Narrow Chink: An Ethical Dilemma Essay My neighbor and friend Jamie Quirk has also inspired me by showing me his rooms of fun with endless memorabilia. In conclusion, by collecting sports memorabilia a person can make money, gain notoriety and have fun. One of the nice things about collecting sports memorabilia is the possibility that a hero can emerge at any time, seeming from .

Josephine Baker, Dancer, Singer, Activist, and Spy

Josephine Baker, Dancer, Singer, Activist, and Spy Josephine Baker (born Freda Josephine McDonald; June 3, 1906–April 12, 1975) was an American-born singer,  dancer, and civil rights activist who overwhelmed Parisian audiences in the 1920s to become one of the most popular entertainers in France. She spent her youth in poverty in the U.S. before learning to dance and finding success on Broadway, then moving to France. When racism soured her return to the U.S., she took up the cause of civil rights. Fast Facts: Josephine Baker Known For: Singer,  dancer, civil rights activistKnown As: â€Å"Black Venus,† â€Å"Black Pearl†Born: June 3, 1906 in St. Louis, MissouriParents: Carrie McDonald, Eddie CarsonDied: April 12, 1975 in Paris, FranceAwards and Honors: Croix de Guerre,  Legion of HonourSpouses: Jo Bouillon,  Jean Lion,  William Baker,  Willie WellsChildren: 12 (adopted)Notable Quote: Beautiful? Its all a question of luck. I was born with good legs. As for the rest...beautiful, no. Amusing, yes. Early Life Josephine Baker was born Freda Josephine McDonald on June 3, 1906, in St. Louis, Missouri. Bakers mother Carrie McDonald had hoped to be a music hall dancer but made her living doing laundry. Her father Eddie Carso, was a drummer for  vaudeville  shows. Baker left school at age 8 to work for a white woman as a maid. At the age of 10, she returned to school. She witnessed the East St. Louis  race riot of 1917 before running away when she was 13. After watching the dancers in a local vaudeville house and honing her skills in clubs and street performances, she toured the United States with the Jones Family Band and the Dixie Steppers, performing comedic skits. Getting Started At 16, Baker began dancing in a touring show based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where her grandmother lived. By this time, she had already been married twice: to Willie Wells in 1919 and to Will Baker, from whom she took her last name, in 1921. In August 1922, Baker joined the chorus line of the touring show  Shuffle Along in Boston, Massachusetts before moving to New York City to perform with the  Chocolate Dandies  at the Cotton Club and with the floor show at the Plantation Club in Harlem. Audiences loved her clowning, mugging, improvising comic style, foreshadowing her style as an entertainer. Paris In 1925 Baker moved to Paris, France, more than doubling her New York salary to $250 a week to dance at the Thà ©Ãƒ ¢tre des Champs Elysà ©es in La Revue Nà ¨gre  with other African-American dancers and musicians, including jazz star Sidney Bechet. Her performance style, referred to as Le Jazz Hot and Danse Sauvage, took her to international fame riding the wave of French intoxication for American jazz and exotic nudity. She sometimes performed wearing just a feather skirt. She became one of the most popular music-hall entertainers in France, achieving star billing at the  Folies-Bergà ¨re dancing seminude in a G-string ornamented with bananas. She quickly became the favorite of artists and intellectuals such as painter  Pablo Picasso, poet E.E. Cummings,  playwright  Jean Cocteau, and writer  Ernest Hemingway. Baker became one of the best-known entertainers in France and all of Europe, her exotic, sensual act reinforcing the creative forces coming out of the Harlem Renaissance in America. She sang professionally for the first time in 1930 and made her screen debut four years later, appearing in several films before  World War II  curtailed her movie career. Return to the US In 1936, Baker returned to the United States to perform in the  Ziegfield Follies, hoping to establish herself in her home country, but she was met with hostility and racism and quickly went back to France. She married French industrialist Jean Lion and obtained citizenship from the country that had embraced her. During the war, Baker worked with the Red Cross and gathered intelligence for the French Resistance during the German occupation of France, smuggling messages hidden in her sheet music and her underwear. She also entertained troops in Africa and the Middle East. The French government later honored her with the  Croix de Guerre  and the  Legion of Honour. Baker and her fourth husband, Joseph †Jo† Bouillon, bought an estate she named Les Milandes in Castelnaud-Fayrac, in southwestern France. She moved her family there from St. Louis and, after the war, adopted 12 children from around the world, making her home a world village and a showplace for brotherhood. She returned to the stage in the 1950s to finance this project. Civil Rights Baker was in the U.S. in 1951 when she was refused service at the famous Stork Club in New York City. Actress Grace Kelly, who was at the club that evening, was disgusted by the racist snub and walked out arm in arm with Baker in a show of support, the start of a friendship that would last until Baker’s death. Baker responded to the event by crusading for racial equality, refusing to entertain in clubs or theaters that werent integrated and breaking the color barrier at many establishments. The media battle that followed almost triggered revocation of her visa by the State Department. In 1963, she spoke at the March on Washington at the side of Martin Luther King Jr. Bakers world village fell apart in the 1950s. She and Bouillon divorced, and in 1969 she was evicted from her chateau, which was sold at auction to pay debts. Kelly, by then princess Grace of Monaco, gave her a villa. In 1973 Baker became romantically involved with American Robert Brady and began her stage comeback. Death In 1975, Bakers Carnegie Hall comeback performance was a success. In April she performed at the Bobino Theater in Paris, the first of a planned series of appearances celebrating the 50th anniversary of her Paris debut. But two days after that performance, on April 12, 1975, she died of a stroke at 68 in Paris. Legacy On the day of her funeral, over 20,000 people lined the streets of Paris to witness the procession. The French government honored her with a 21-gun salute, making her the first American woman to be buried in France with military honors. Baker had remained a bigger success abroad than in her home country. Racism tainted her return visits until her Carnegie Hall performance, but she had a profound influence worldwide as an African-American woman who had overcome a childhood of deprivation to become a dancer, singer, actress, civil rights activist, and even a spy. Sources Josephine Baker Biography: Singer, Civil Rights Activist, Dancer. Biography.com.Josephine Baker: French Entertainer. Encyclopedia Britannica.Josephine Baker Biography. Notablebiographies.com.Dancer, Singer, Activist, Spy: The Legacy of  Josephine Baker. Anothermag.com.Josephine Baker: The Black Venus. Filmstarfacts.com