Autographs - Bruce Lemerise

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Bruce Lemerise was a personal friend. He was a talented commercial illustrator. I crashed on his couch on several short visits to New York City. Bruce died of AIDS in 1989.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - Gilbert Shelton

I must have obtained Gilbert Shelton's autograph at a bookstore when this book came out, but I can't remember! I was a fan of his from work such as the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and Wonder Wart-Hog.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - Arthur C. Clarke

This is one of the few authors whose autograph I have without having met them in person. This is also one of the few author autographs I have that's not in a book! 

In this case, my father attended a conference and briefly met Arthur C. Clarke. Knowing I would love it, my dad asked for Clarke's autograph for me. Not having a Clarke book handy, he used his name badge.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - Steve Wozniak and Larry Wilde

In the early 1980s, I spent half of every summer in Palo Alto. A nearby bookstore held a book signing with the authors, Steve Wozniak and Larry Wilde, when this book came out. There was a crowd, but not as big as I was expecting. I guess seeing Woz in person wasn't as unusual for local folks as it was for me.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - John Rechy

I'm pretty sure I got John Rechy's autograph when he spoke at USC (where he later taught creative writing for many years), and not at a bookstore. And I think it was a speech for the public, but it might have been for the Gay Student Union.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy

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I got Christopher Isherwood's autograph on two different occasions. I helped arrange a speaking engagement for him at USC's Gay Student Union. He agreed if we would provide transportation. I did the driving. My friend Kieran Prather (long ago dead of AIDS and still missed) and I went to Isherwood and Bachardy's Santa Monica Canyon home, where they invited us in for drinks. I remember Bachardy's paintings and drawings everywhere. Happily for me, Kieran provided most of the conversation while I drove. The GSU turnout was light, but Isherwood didn't seem to mind. Sometime during the evening, I got him to autograph The Berlin Stories.



Isherwood and Bachardy both came to A Different Light bookstore when My Guru and His Disciple was published. I bought a hardbound copy (gasp!) and got Isherwood to autograph it. When I saw the dedication and saw Don Bachardy quietly wandering the store's shelves, I asked for his autograph, too.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - David Hockney

I got both of these autographs when David Hockney appeared at A Different Light bookstore. As you can see, when Hockney autographs a book, he crosses out his printed name, "replacing" it with his autograph. (The cover of this book shows the results of being in a stack of books, with sunlight hitting only part of the cover over many months. It's still in a stack these days, but out of the sun.)



This is a tiny book, maybe 2 inches by 3 inches and about 60 pages, with black and white Hockney etchings every page or two.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - Jorge Luis Borges

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I heard Jorge Luis Borges speak at USC's Bovard Auditorium. I asked for his autograph after the speech. Borges was blind. His assistant positioned my book and Borges' hand, and Borges scrawled the illegible autograph you see here.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - Isaac Bashevis Singer

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In August 1966, when I was 15, I spent two weeks at a Jewish arts camp in the Catskills. I was one of four "campership" winners at Temple Beth-El in San Antonio. I think it was because I was in my high school band and a good student generally.

Isaac Bashevis Singer, later to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, was one of several distinguished visitors who stopped by the camp. I bought this book at the camp and asked for his autograph. As you can see (click the image to enlarge), he misread my name from the inside front cover, signing to "Rooney J Hoffman"

I think this is the first author autograph I ever got.

(Index of autographs)

Autographs - Ken Kesey

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I went to hear Ken Kesey speak at USC's Dedeaux Field baseball field - an unusual venue. I had a number of items I hoped to get him to autograph, starting, of course, with One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Before the talk began, I walked onto the field and asked him to sign the book.

When he finished, I handed him the second one:



He grinned and asked my name, and gave me one of my most treasured autographs. You must click the image to read what the page is about and what he wrote.

Now that we were on intimate terms, I asked for two more autographs:

(Index of autographs)