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Lot # 299: Signed Letters To Otto Graham From Richard Nixon and J. Edgar Hoover (3)

Category: Football

Starting Bid: $300.00

Bids: 1 (Bid History)

Time Left: Auction closed
Lot / Auction Closed




This lot is closed. Bidding is not allowed.

Item was in Auction "April 2007 Catalog",
which ran from 4/30/2007 12:00 AM to
5/3/2007 9:00 PM



Intimate, sweet, and ultimately human, these four letters reveal a compassionate side to (especially so) Richard Nixon and J. Edgar Hoover. As Nixon advises to Washington Redskin’s head coach Otto Graham, “try to reflect on the inspiration you have been to football fans like myself,” in a rare handwritten (9/10) letter on “Richard Nixon” stationary dated “7-12-82”, Graham responds candidly, “Yes, you made a mistake in not being truthful to the American public, but… a coach can’t always tell the truth to the press… .” The Nixon (EX) is signed “RN,” and comes with original mailing envelope. The third, typed letter, from Hoover, on FBI letterhead dated December 12, 1966, references a Christmas party that Graham attended and a victory over the Dallas Cowboys. Letter is NRMT with 9/10 J. Edgar Hoover full signature. Lastly is a 1945, typed letter signed by Arch Ward, Sports Editor of the Chicago Tribune, to Mrs. Otto Graham, Sr., stating fondly, “However, our circulation department would not accept money from the mother of a former All Star!” This Tribune letter has top right corner torn off, while all four letters contains the usual fold lines.

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