Favorite Signatures: from Ginsberg to Sedaris

On the LA Times Jacket Copy Blog there's a fun story about book signings.

From the introduction to the story...

Is book signing a curse? Prompted by a U.S. Craigslist ad for sweatshop-style autograph forgers, the U.K. has been abuzz with the legendarily traumatic author signings: James Ellroy taking down a stack of 65,000 first editions, Stephen King signing until his fingers cracked, the autograph line demanding their autographs in blood. David Sedaris admits that after seven hours he loses his decorum, writing a cheerful "Abortions, $13!" in one woman's book.

So signing is tiring, exasperating and sometimes unwise. But if it makes fans happy, isn't it worth it? Jacket Copy asked several readers -- who are also writers -- to tell us about their favorite autographed books.

Collecting books myself, I've been to my fair share of readings and have autographed books from T.C. Boyle, Sherman Alexie, William Stafford, and more. My favorite autographed book tale, however, has to do with one Ethan Hawke (yes, THAT Ethan Hawke).



He writes novels (not very good ones but he writes them anyway). There was a reading a Magnuson Park here in Seattle a few years back where he read from his novel Ash Wednesday. There was quite a hub-bub before the reading from the bookstore that produced the event saying, again and again and again and again, "Ethan Hawke will only sign his novel after the reading. He will NOT sign anything else, movie-related or otherwise. He will NOT sign anything else."

He had his reading. The line quickly formed afterwards, with me in it, Ash Wednesday in my hands. The man in front of me had a backpack FILLED with Ethan Hawke-related stuff. Movie posters, scripts, photos, most everything that can be signed by one Ethan Hawke.

"I'm sorry, sir," an event coordinator said to the man, "he won't sign all of that."

"He will for me."

So, we get up to see Ethan Hawke. The guy takes off his backpack. "You did OKAY during the reading," he said to Mr. Hawke. "I mean, for an actor, I thought you'd do BETTER, but you did, OKAY, I guess."

Hawke looked at him flummoxed. "Cool."

"Yeah, I mean, you're an actor so I thought you'd do it better is all."

"Uh-huh."

Hawke signed the guy's book, ignoring the backpack of Hawke materials, and then shook my hand as the guy tottled off.

"Can you believe that guy?" Hawke asked me. "What an asshole."

"What an asshole," I said. "Complete asshole."