Last night, I was invited to a little gala at the Newport Sports Museum. As you know, the museum is closing its doors and had hired SCP Auctions to sell its wares. This month is the first of 4 auctions that have been planned. BTW, if you've never had an opportunity to visit this place you'll have a couple of last chances later today and tomorrow - I'll have more on that later.
I had previously featured numerous Dodger items last week on this blog. You can check out those stories here and here.
The event was setup to show off the current auction, included numerous displays that had yet to be taken down and served as a social function for the area. So, I had an opportunity to enjoy the sights one last time, and saw numerous VIP's in attendance; such as Peter Ueberroth and Magic Johhnson.
John Hamilton, the proprietor, opened the museum 20+ years ago in order to share his collection with the masses. He also realized that it could provide an avenue for at-risk children to meet with their favorite athletes. Stars, such as Magic, would welcome kids with a smile and a high-five, while also teaching them the importance of staying in school and not doing drugs. Over the past 18-years, John figures they've catered to over 100,000 children, and have no doubt affected countless lives.
Thankfully, I was allowed to take photos as I walked around, so take your time and check them out below. First, I take a look at the auction items that were on display. Later on, I share photos from the museum that they have yet to take down, but are likely to be available for sale in the future.
As I promised earlier, the museum is officially closed to the public, but there remains two last opportunities for you to check it out. They are opening the museum to the public later today and tomorrow as a showcase for the current auction and a final look at the museum. It is free to the public, so if you can find the time I suggest getting your butt down here. Below is the schedule and address.
Thursday: 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Friday: 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
100 Newport Center Drive – Suite A
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Now, on to the photos. Click any pic to embiggen. You can check out the auction online here.
I don't think these items need much of an introduction. Here are the game-used jersey's of Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale. To the right of the Drysdale jersey is a 1924 New York Yankees team sweater worn by Whitey Witt.
Unfortunately, my photo of the Jackie Robinson and Babe Ruth autographed Baseballs below came out fuzzy. On the bottom right is an amazing letter written by Lou Gehrig to his doctor at the Mayo Clinic. He had the will of a fighter; as he lets the doctor know how positive he feels about the current treatment. At the same time he shares his gratitude for the doctors help. It's an amazing read and worth your time to explore. You can check it all out here.
Below are Dodger scout Don Gutteridge's championship rings.
Go Kings Go! On the bottom left is a signed Wayne Gretzky Jersey, and on the right are Roger Craig's 1956 National League Championship Brooklyn Dodger cufflinks.
Here are a bunch of stuff in display shelves. There are some game-used hockey uniforms, Satchel Paige's passport, a Babe Ruth watch and game-worn basketball shoes.
That's it for auction items. Now, I share some photos from the museum. Again, click any pic to embiggen.
Go Kins Go!!!
I absolutely loved the Kings room. Wow!
There was a Ducks room, too. In fact, there was a bunch of hockey stuff all over the place.
Here are some vintage football items.
Golf also had a prominent display.
There was even a little room devoted to some of the more modern sports.
To the left (below) is a Paul Rodriguez board, and to the right is a Bob Burnquist board. Both of these guys are legends.
Surf's up, bro...
Here are some miscellaneous dispalys - some game-used football uni's, Olympics and college sports.
Outside of the museum, at the entrance, were some statues of children playing. I do not know who was the original artist, but I thought they were great looking.
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