Three Historic Docs Signed By Steve Jobs Could Rake in $90K+ at Auction

Steve-Jobs-Signed-Newspaper1 Credit: RR Auction House
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We’ve witnessed a trove of vintage, obsolete, and historic Apple products — from ages-old Mac computers deemed the last in existence, to a pair of ultra-rare never-before-worn Apple tennis shoes — hit the auction block, some going on to fetch unprecedented sums of money.

And while it stands to reason that a 30-year-old Mac in pristine condition would hold a high value, simply given its tangible yet indispensable nature, it appears that even some not-so-palpable Apple memorabilia (like the signature of its late co-founder, Steve Jobs) is just as much a hot ticket item.

We should get a better idea of just how much Job’s ‘John Hancock’ is really worth come March 8th, when a trifecta of ‘historic’ Apple articles signed by the visionary, himself, are slated to go up for auction courtesy of RR auction house, where they could, collectively, fetch up to $90,000 or more, according to pre-auction estimates.

What’s For Sale?

Up for consideration is a total of three articles, each of which is being sold separately as its own consignment, but all of which are part of RR auction’s upcoming Pop Culture auction. It is scheduled to open for bidding on March 8 through March 15th, 2018.

Job Application

First up is a single, 8.5 x 11 job application questionnaire which Jobs allegedly filled out and signed by hand some 44 years ago (in 1973). According to its description, the application was submitted to an unspecified company by Jobs shortly after he dropped out of Reed College, where he’d been studying English Literature for at least six-months prior.

The single sheet is expected to fetch as much as $50,000, according to the latest pre-sale guidance provided by the auction house.

Mac OS X User Manual

Next up is an authentic, 2001-era Mac OS X user manual, which is described as a “rare Apple Mac OS X Administration Basics spiral-bound manual published in 2001.” The booklet boasts a total of 338 pages, is 10 x 11-inches in dimension, and is signed on the front cover: “All the best, Steve Jobs,” in black ballpoint ink.

A brief background on how it came to be was provided, as well:

“It was afternoon, the end of my training day and I just got into my car when I saw Mr. Steve Jobs walking into his car,” reads a letter of provenance written by the manual’s consigner. “I rolled down my window and called up his name. He asked me whether he knew me. I told him I certainly knew who he was and immediately asked him if he would be kind enough to sign my Mac OS X Administration technical manual.”

“I feel weird doing that,” Jobs allegedly told the man, who “refused to back down.”

“After a bit of cajoling on my part, he finally told me to hand over the manual and pen. He said ‘give me those’ and he autographed my manual.”

The manual is expected to fetch $25,000 or more.

Signed Newspaper Clipping

Last but not least is a newspaper article clipped straight from the June 10, 2008, issue of the Palo Alto Daily Post, in which Apple’s first carrier-subsidized iPhone offering — the $199 iPhone 3G — is introduced.

Here’s a brief backstory of how the 10-year-old owner of this gem managed to get ahold of it:

“I went to a frozen yogurt store called Fraiche Yogurt with my Mom when I was about 10, right after the iPhone 3G was announced. I went to the bathroom, and my mom noticed Steve Jobs sitting outside with a friend. She picked up a newspaper off the counter which had a photo of Steve on the cover talking about the release of the next iPhone, and she walked outside, asking Steve to sign the paper. Steve politely declined several times, stating that everything at Apple was a group effort, so he didn’t like to sign and take credit for everything. My mom is pretty persuasive and was eventually able to convince Steve to sign; but under Steve’s condition that the person sitting with him would have to sign it as well.”

Sure enough, the friend with whom Jobs was enjoying a yogurt turned out to be Tony Fadell — the man affectionately known as the ‘Father of the iPod’.

“So when I came out of the bathroom, and my mom showed me the newspaper pointing to Steve and Tony outside, since I was literally too starstruck and nervous to go outside and say anything to Mr. Jobs, I asked my mom if I could have the signature, and I have had it on my wall ever since.”

Pre-auction estimates suggest the framed Newspaper clipping could fetch upwards of $15,000+

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