Ali
I started collecting Autographs with my sons in 1985 going to baseball card shows. Back in the early 80's I remember my first autograph was from Duke Snider and I paid fifty cents. In 1988 a mall in Sacramento hosted Ali and the autographs were free! I stood in line with my 8 and 5 year old sons. Though the Parkinson's at the time prevented him from talking since it was only 9am and his meds had not kicked in, it stands as my biggest thrill. He came into the mall slowly obviously not the fighter I remember. Then, the chant started; ALI, ALI, ALI and like a tree coming out of the ground he rose up shadow boxing with the kids and there was the greatest athlete I had ever seen before me.
We brought a look magazine and a book to personally autograph for each of my boys (Dumb me I didn't think to get one). He was so large in person and so nice, as you can see he picked up my little boy for my wife to photograph and kissed him, though we didn't get that shot.
I looked at him, thanked him, told him how I had seen all his fights starting in the Olympics. I said "Muhammad, In your second fight with Listen I have watched the replay over and over and that was no phantom punch. He looked up at me, raised his fist in the air and said quietly, so quiet you could hardly hear, "I GOT HIM GOOD".
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