Shigeru Miyamoto might be famous to anyone who knows their Mario from their Sonic, but it's easy to forget this wasn't always the case – and even today, there are people who might not be aware of the great man's legacy. So, when non-gamer Tony LeCroix had a chance meeting with the legendary game designer at the end of the '80s, it's perhaps not massively surprising that he didn't know who he was.
"I was in the music business, and in 1989, I was working for a country band," LeCroix tells us. "We were playing at a festival in Japan. The promoter owned a country bar that was named Good Time Charlies; his name was Charlie Nagatani. After the concert, he invited us to his bar. Upon arriving, he introduced me to his friend that could only speak broken English, but enough to communicate." No prizes for guessing who this 'friend' was – but suffice to say, LeCroix and Miyamoto hit it off thanks to their shared love of music.
"We stood at the bar and talked about music," says LeCroix. "He was very interested in the stringed instruments that I took care of, such as the guitars and mandolins and so on. We just talked about music as we shared some beers together. At the end of the night when it was time to depart, he asked me for my autograph; jokingly, I told him I would give him mine if he would give me his. As I pulled out my business card and signed it, he did the same. I noticed after he signed his name he quickly drew a little character on it. I am not a gamer and had no idea who the little fellow was that he drew. A while later in life, I saw someone playing a game and recognized the character – it was Mario!"
This amazing chance encounter led to LeCroix owning something that, while perhaps not blessed with massive commercial value, has plenty of sentimental value. However, it wasn't until very recently that he actually caught up with Miyamoto's achievements.
"I kept this card for 32 years," he continues. "Earlier this year I retired, and with time on my hands, I looked up on the internet 'Shigeru Miyamoto' and realized what he had achieved in his lifetime, and how important he was to the gaming community." Sadly, it's at this stage where the story takes a turn for the worst.
"I was curious to see what this card might be worth and began trying to find an appraiser," LeCroix adds. "I came across an ad for an auction house that specialized in gaming and contacted them – at this time I would rather not disclose their name – and I was convinced to send the card to them for an upcoming auction. They claimed this would be the 'featured' item. I sent them the card and now they call me and say the card is missing."
Of course, items go missing in the post all the time, but LeCroix is convinced that there's some foul play here. "I truly believe my card was stolen from me and will probably show back up in the future," he tells us. "I honestly doubt that I will ever get my card back, but I would really like to get the word out to the gaming community about the true story of the history of this card, and how it came about and how it was taken away from the original owner."
While it's likely that Miyamoto has signed many other cards from this period, the illustration and signature make it fairly unique and easy to identify. If the card does show up for sale, there's a small chance it might get reunited with its rightful owner – the man who shared a common passion for music with Miyamoto in a Japanese bar 32 years ago.
Comments 36
Oh dear, NEVER send stuff to be appraised, it WILL go "missing" always go in person.
This is terrible for him, but you never know...heres hoping
"and I was convinced to send the card to them for an upcoming auction."
I saw that line and just frowned.
Misfortune aside, this is a pretty cool encounter. I am not sure if I would of wanted to sell the card if I were in his shoes but fair play if that is what he wanted to do. I do wonder if Miyamoto still has this guy's card.
He should absolutely name the auction house if he’s convinced it’s foul play. Pile the pressure on for them to ‘find’ it.
I feel bad for him in a “his property was stolen” aspect but in general I am sorta meh about the whole thing. His first thought was to turn a profit on a chance encounter. Also you should send things like this certified.
I have a Miyamoto signed copy of A Link To The Past on GBA. I’d never trust letting that out of my hands.
Man, he was putting it up for auction, he doesn’t care about the sentimental value of the card. He was looking forward to those dollah bills rolling in.
Next.
You really should name the auction house, because it may just turn out to be one of the usual suspects.
Miyamoto probably doesn't even remember this guy, is clear by this story that they did not kept in touch. Still, is very unfortunate his card went "missing" which probably would have been a smart idea not to mail it in the first place since they know the true value of this card. This man got swindled.
I can't imagine it being worth all that much..a couple thousand perhaps?
From what I've read in the article, I believe he was just valuing it and not actually selling it. Many people do this with things that could be worth money but they would never sell.
@ImDiggerDan That's awesome! Was it signed in-person or perhaps one in a contest?
@PessitheMystic still his property.
So if someone robbed your bank account, it’s just money, tough loss? Still a shame this guy had his asset “lost”, but let’s not diminish this because he stood to make a financial gain.
You guys have fun arguing about silly things, I'm gonna go nerd-gasm over the Elden Ring network test footage, again <3
Why would you ask someone random to reciprocate an autograph with theirs? Don’t get that.
Plus, not sure this would hold as much value as he thinks - Miyamoto has done many signings over the years, making his autograph not that uncommon.
It's called KARMA
@HeroOfTime32 he admitted that he looked up Shigeru Miyamoto just earlier this year and had no idea of his work for the past 30+ years 😂 Aye, sucks it’s went missing or whatever, but I don’t really have much sympathy when he was just trying to turn a profit.
The bank account analogy doesn’t make sense. I’m not sending my bank account or my money to someone else and risking it being intercepted. Not a comparison with this story.
@PessitheMystic Can you blame him if he isn't into gaming? I'm not a sports guy, so if I were to meet Michael Jordan and get his autograph, you'd better believe I'm selling it. I'm more impressed he kept it all those years when he thought Miyamoto was a nobody.
I personally think this should have a much higher value that many vintage mint cartridges.
I would love to own that kind of stuff, framed and hanged in a wall
@Not_Soos the difference here is that you already know Michael Jordan isn’t a nobody. And if you did think he was a nobody back in the day, that business card would have been long gone.
I once met John Cena and he signed his CD for me. I have no idea where it is now 😂
Not a chance would I even think of selling something like that.
The people saying they wouldn't sell it, seriously? I bet if someone offered you several thousands of dollars you would totally sell it.
@PessitheMystic so no sympathy if someone is trying to earn a profit. Got it. I understand now.
This is why I will never send anything in the mail that i honestly care about. I can't even fathom sending in games or cards to get graded let alone for a auction. I'd worry too much that the post would eat it (aka someone steal it even if its just a porch pirate).
Yeah absolutely never send something through the mail to be appraised. As a former insurance industry veteran, I can’t tell you how many times these specific items just “get lost”.
So what if he was selling it? He just retired, so he’s probably going to need the money.
Thanks Cheeky for seeing the big picture!
I just want to jump in here and let everyone know that I did send the card FedEx and the auction house signed for it.
I even got a confirmation from the auction house that they acknowledged receiving it.
As Cheeky pointed out I have recently retired so wait till you get to the point in your life when you realize that you are now living on a fixed income before you pass judgement on others.
Like I mentioned, I am not a gamer but I do realize what this would have meant to the gaming community and instead of being selfish and taking the card to my grave with me I choose to give others a chance to have this very rare autographed business card from the Legend himself. I still have the memories from the night in the bar with him and to me that is worth more than the card!
I also have 45 years of memorabilia from some of the biggest names in the music industry....do you think I'm not selling that also???? can't take it with you so why not sell it and enjoy the financial benefits.....I still will have my memories!
All I wanted to do here was let the gaming community know that later if you see this card come up for sale just know that you are buying it from a thief!
Thanks to all of you for reading my story and Happy Gaming!
if youve tried evaluating autographs before, you know that if they arent certified they are worth next to nothing. some nerd stole his card, that sucks, but it was only worth anything to him because hes the only person who knows for certain that it was an authentic autograph.
i feel for this guy.
If lost by the auction house (and proof of delivery exists) surely they are required to reimburse you? Appreciate there will be a negotiation over the worth of the item (and hence reimbursement amount).
@apl1989 best of luck buddy! I hope this story has a good end to it.
Neat story how he got it but I am in the eh thought about it. The guy realized he could make money off of something then got fleeced by a rando auction house…(heritage auction perhaps?). I dunno, it’s like the person selling the Sony snes a year ago and got pissed it didn’t go for more because they got greedy and didn’t take the initial offers.
@Markiemania95 That might make him lose some leverage if the pressure he's applying is naming them.
@apl1989 Yeah, welcome to the gaming community. A magical world full of knee-jerk reactions and absolute judgment for every action from every angle. 😂 This is the same community that wishes death on people for buying tiny figurines and reselling them on eBay at a higher price.
@ERIC_MACK Signed in person. I got two copies signed.
The game had not launched in Europe at that time, so hopefully they are pretty rare.
@ImDiggerDan Man, that is rad!!
@ERIC_MACK in person in 1989
@ottospooky have you EVER seen his signature where he used his first initial???? Very rare autographed!
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