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'Prophetic' Steve Jobs autograph telling kid to 'go change the world!' among Apple memorabilia at auction

(2021/08/03)


Wealthy people continue to assign inordinate value to items associated with the rich and/or famous so here's yet another auction of relics touched by our lord and saviour Steve Jobs (peace be upon him).

Among the paraphernalia set to be flogged by Boston-based RR Auction is a signed Apple II manual addressed to the son of Michael Brewer, an entrepreneur who won exclusive Apple distribution rights in the UK in 1979.

Opposite the table of contents the Apple co-founder wrote:

Julian, Your generation is the first to grow up with computers. Go change the world! Steven Jobs, 1980

Apple's second CEO and angel investor Mike Markkula also signed the document.

[1]

Click to enlarge

Bobby Livingston, executive VP at RR Auction, said in a statement: "Steve Jobs inscription powerfully conveys his grand ambition and vision for the future of Apple and personal computing as a whole," with the auction house adding: "Jobs' inscription was prophetic, with Generation X-ers such as Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk truly 'changing the world' with technology after being the first to 'grow up with computers.'"

[2]NFT or not to NFT: Steve Jobs' first job application auction shows physically unique beats cryptographically unique

[3]Apple's Steve Jobs: Visionary, dreamweaver... and the kind of fellow who might tell a porky or two on his job application

[4]And you thought that $999 Mac stand was dear: Steve Wozniak's Apple II doodles fetch $630,272 at auction

[5]One for the super rich fanbois: Ultra-rare functional Apple-1 computer goes on auction

Sadly, we've never heard of Julian Brewer, but we're told he "wrote game reviews for Apple User magazine before going on to read Computing Science at Imperial College London and then to work for IBM. After completing an MBA at Wharton, Julian set up several successful small businesses, including a software venture whose games were distributed with JVC video cameras." All of which could never have happened without receiving Jobs' blessing. Amen.

He recalled: "I was sitting in my bedroom writing games on my Apple II when Dad called me down to meet some guests. To my amazement, it was Steve Jobs and Mike Markkula. I had the manual with me and only later understood how rare it was for Jobs to sign anything, let alone to write an inscription like this. He got on well with Dad, so I feel the inscription was made with care."

[6]

Click to enlarge

However, the young buck's defection to IBM down the line would have probably rankled Jobs as among the Apple-related lots set to be sold is his leather bomber jacker, which he wore [7]in this photo .

There's also a fully functional Apple-1 up for auction along with an Altair 8800, Apple II, and Apple Lisa from the collection of personal computing pioneer Roger Wagner. The first is described as "extremely rare" and regularly collects six figures at similar events.

[8]

Click to enlarge

Minimum bids and estimated prices can be explored [9]here . The "Apple and Steve Jobs" auction starts on 12 August and will run until the 19th.

Well-heeled Apple fanbois are sure to watch the sale with interest, and while we could debate the virtues of throwing heaps of money at obsolete hardware and the scribbles of [10]not particularly nice people , at least there isn't a [11]fucking NFT in sight . ®

[12]

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[1] https://regmedia.co.uk/2021/08/03/stevejobsautograph.jpg

[2] https://www.theregister.com/2021/07/29/steve_jobs_nft_auction_race/

[3] https://www.theregister.com/2021/03/19/steve_jobs_job_application/

[4] https://www.theregister.com/2020/12/21/steve_wozniak_notes_auction/

[5] https://www.theregister.com/2020/03/06/ultrarare_functional_apple1_computer_goes_on_auction/

[6] https://regmedia.co.uk/2021/08/03/stevejobsjacket.jpg

[7] https://cdn.osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/steve-jobs-ibm-finger.jpg

[8] https://regmedia.co.uk/2021/08/03/apple1auction.jpg

[9] https://dmanalytics2.com/click?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rrauction.com%2Fauctions%2Fauction-details%2F615%3Fpage%3D1%26itemQty%3D24%26view%3Dgallery%26sort%3Dhp%26cat%3D0&i=3&d=2GMc6vkbSoa-y80zKK8OPw&e=pkunert%40sitpub.co.uk&a=Kr_BvfqLRfCyfoF9kwv0dQ&s=2xH7afsWhok

[10] https://www.theregister.com/2018/10/05/dead_steve_jobs_saint/

[11] https://www.theregister.com/2021/07/29/steve_jobs_nft_auction_race/

[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YQloPDgWqjzWbQ3A6hr3yQAAAAw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0

[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/



"The kid went on to work for IBM"

Pascal Monett

Has he been fired yet ?

He should be in the right age range by now, no ?

Re: "The kid went on to work for IBM"

Danny 2

I was made redundant when I was 22, and my IBM pal said, "Well you've been there five years now, at least you'll have your five months redundancy money to tide you over."

"No, no, five weeks!"

I guess that is a proud boast for younger readers but it was a cry of desperation then.

I get a £100 pa pension from Texas Instruments when I'm 65. I'm both grateful and confused because I never worked for them, but I don't qualify for a state pension so I'll take it.

Wait, what?

User McUser

[...] a software venture whose games were distributed with JVC video cameras.

Ummmm, what? Why would a video camera come with video games? So confused...

Re: Wait, what?

Valeyard

For the hilarious moment when the wedding videographer ran out of batteries playing tetris waiting for everyone to arrive

Go change the world

Anonymous Coward

By doing LSD, missing the meaning completely, ignoring a daughter and screwing over your partner, lumbering through a whole decade of failure, and finally getting a successful product out only to have it made the lowest common denominator, then trying to fight cancer without science, and after you're gone your flagship invention is propping up the world of advertising

Jobs changed the world alright.

Re: Go change the world

overunder

I agree with everything but the cancer part, that's not really cool and who's to FACTUALLY say what prevents death from cancer? Go out on your own terms.

KnobJobs aside, I continue to shake my head at the fact that the people who pay for these have no clue who actually made them. With every sale, the name of that person becomes more and more faint and forgotten. But hey, Al Gore invented the internet.

P.S. The first successful Apple product was the trailblazer for the iPhone, which was the iPod (although that seems to be forgotten as well... but I guess it's all about NOW! NOW! NOW!).

P.S.S. I'm not sure you're using " lowest common denominator" (LCD) correctly :-/

Should have been more specific

Mike 16

Like the old Lily Tomlin bit:

"I always wanted to be someone. Now I realize I should have been more specific."

Of course, "change the world" without the qualifier "for the good" is pretty much how humans have acted.

That's just the 80's

Version 1.0

Remember those days when people would just try and be nice to kids.

These days what happens? We steal their data and sell all their information via social media companies; back then nobody had privacy statements requirements, these days a kid would get a "free account, please get your parents to sign the privacy statement and enter their email, phone number, and location" and they would start getting adverts.

Monitor not included.