Ron Zollo scored his first sports autograph in 1971, when he met a pitcher who was headed for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Now, the Vancouver collector has a good share of the Hall of Fame in his inventory, as well as autographs and collectibles from other sports, film and musical celebrities.
He’ll sell some of them Saturday in a fundraiser for the Clark County Historical Museum. The sale will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the museum, 1511 Main St. Half the proceeds will go to the museum.
Items costing less than $50 include autographed cards; baseballs autographed by Hall of Fame players will be $100 or more.
An autographed photo of Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays represents the top of the line at $3,750. It probably was taken during an All-Star game in the 1950s.
There will be free admission all day to the museum,
The 1961 graduate of Hudson’s Bay High School was assistant general manager of Tacoma’s Pacific Coast League baseball team for more than 20 years. In 1971, he met Early Wynn, a former pitching star working in the Minnesota Twins organization.
“I’d heard how tough he was,” Zollo said, “so I timidly asked him, ‘Could you please sign this?’ He said, ‘I’d be glad to!'”
Zollo was on his way as a collector. He branched out into other areas of stardom. The entertainment celebrities whose collectibles will be for sale include Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, James Stewart, Dean Martin, Eric Clapton, Mick Jagger, and Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
Purchase will be by cash or credit/debit cards only; all sales will be final. A letter of authenticity will accompany each purchase.
Items from Zollo’s collection have been part of local fundraising events for years, and he’ll likely continue to participate.
“I don’t anticipate running out” of items, he said.
Even if he did, Zollo would still have great stories. He recalled when Muhammad Ali made an appearance in the Puget Sound area. At one point, they drove past a lone boy kicking a soccer ball.
Ali shouted, “Stop!” — then got out and kicked the ball with the kid. You have to wonder, Zollo mused, if the boy even knew who Ali was.
And if he did, try to imagine the conversation when the kid got home and told his parents: “I just kicked a soccer ball with Muhammad Ali!”
— Tom Vogt
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