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Post subject: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2010 11:03 pm
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I won the hand autographed Strat. That's correct. I have the signed letter from Jack Shelton, then Sr.V.P. Marketing dated October 14,1992. It was built in 1988, and the autograph is '90. One entry validated at Veneman Music, Springfield, Virginia that Summer. Such a fine axe, I went out and bought a "Blackie" to play live. I still have it in the 'vault'. So for all these years those of you that wondered "who the heck won that thing?", an actual real professional guitar player did! And a huge Eric Clapton fan from way, way back in the '60's to the present. Long Live Eric!


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Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2010 11:20 pm
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I've seen you post this somewhere on YouTube, but congrats anyway and Pics?

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Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2010 11:23 pm
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Welcome to the Forum dennisl59! Congratulations for winning a Stratocaster!

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Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2010 11:56 pm
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I've never posted before today on youtube or otherwise. There 'maybe' other "genuine" hand autographed Eric Clapton Strats in the world, but mine is the only one fully documented by Fender as signed by Eric. I've seen one on Ebay, but it's not 'the real deal' because there's no paperwork to back it up. If someone could tell me how to attach a document, then I'd post a picture of me holding it(back in the day) and the moment when the case was first opened(you can see the date, 10/26, on the shipping carton and my apartment number) Man it smelled good!


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Post subject: The Complete Story
Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 9:25 am
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So back in the Summer of '92 I was a subscriber to Guitar Player Magazine. In an issue(I forgot what month) there was the ad for the contest. I think it was right in the middle(stapled) of the magazine. (Don't have the back copy and Guitar Player Magazine doesn't have an archive going back that far, so they say...) Anyway, I had a day off and thought, Yeah, I'll go to Veneman's Music in Springfield, Virginia, take the entry coupon(about 2"x3"), pick up a Fender, play a G progression, get the entry stamped by the store and send it in. Girlfriend says "Is that all you're going to do on your day off?" "Yeah, why not?" So it gets done, I put it in a hand addressed envelope and send it off thinking, hey, you never know, right? One entry, what are my chances anyway? One in 60,000, 70,000?

Time passes...so on Saturday October 17th, 1992, we're sitting at the dining room table at Courtland Towers, Arlington, Virginia, doing the usual breakfast thing: eating bagles, drinking coffee and reading the Washington Post. The phone rings and the front desk says, "Sir, your have a certified letter". Ok, I think, what could that be?(Having completely forgotten about the contest by that time).

So I have it, sitting at the table and open it up. 1st paragraph:
"Congratulations, your name was selected as a winner in our Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest. You have won our Grand Prize, which is a signed Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster". Dead Silence...then jumping up, banging table, screaming YES YES YES!!! ONE ENTRY AND I WON!!!!
Girlfriend is stunned and shocked, not knowing what just happened, I give the letter to her, dead silence and then, YES YES YES!!!. We lock arms and start dancing aroung the apartment!!! Felt like a 'good' lightning strike!

After we calm down, and stop crying happy tears, we realize the hard part is next: CLAIMING IT.

So at the time, I'm working at the US Senate as a contractor for computer company and think, "Of all the Post Offices to send the Original Claim Form out, the one at the Senate is the most secure". I send it back, addressed to Patty Sullivan, certified, etc. Little did I know that she was out sick and didn't get my letter until days and days later. (Sweating bullets by this time, thinking, yeah I won, but until I have it , the deal isn't done, maybe it got lost, etc...) Huge anxiety going on here. I call and they say, "yeah, we've got the letter, the guitar is 'on the way". More sweating of bullets.

Finally, one evening, the 28th or the 29th, I come by the Front Desk, and there's the Carton. I take it upstairs to the apartment and wanting to open it, with camera ready, I wait and wait and wait for girlfriend to come home so she can take a picture at the exact moment the case is opened. So I sit there, chair facing the door, box unopened for more than 2 hours. She got stuck in traffic coming home from her job in Reston. Bottom line, it gets opened and we take pictures. The ones with the s-eating grins are lost, but a day later we take others that I still have, with me holding it.

Over the next few days, I take it to several friends houses so they can 'look at it', and hit a lick or two, then back into the case. It's taken to the Guitar Shop in Washington,DC for a formal apprasial(I have the hard and scanned copy). I played it out once at a basement jam, then, like I said before I went and bought a "Blackie" to really play gigs. (Built 1989, bought November 1994)

Since then it's only been out of the case for 'special occasions", the last of which is when Clapton was interviewed on Larry King for his book and it sat beside me. Now it's 'in the underground vault'

So, that's the complete story, to the best of my recollection, of what happened when I won the one and only Genuine Hand Autographed Fender Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster.


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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Fri Jun 12, 2015 10:08 am
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Some time has passed since my post and in order to clarify, for the record, some more details about the EC Strat. The serial number on the headstock is SE80XXX, meaning it(the neck) was made and serialized in 1988, but put in stock for future builds. The Neck Stamp is 4/12/1990, the date on the tag is 4/25/1990. So this is NOT a 1988 model, it is a 1990 model because of it's 'born on date'. Also when I spoke to Jack Shelton, many many years ago, about where and when Eric signed it, he told me that he signed it before a gig in Northern California. Checking the 'where's eric' website, in 1990, the only gig that could have been was in Mountain View, California at the Shoreline Ampltheatre on May 5th, 1990.

We STILL bring the guitar out and put it on the couch right next to me whenever Eric's on TV.

Long Live Eric Clapton~!


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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Fri Jun 12, 2015 10:32 am
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Hello Dennis ! Good to see your post. Great story, was hoping for pics :D

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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Fri Jun 12, 2015 11:33 am
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Image

Here you go...


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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Fri Jun 12, 2015 3:57 pm
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Nice. Very nice. Congrats Dennis. :D

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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Fri Jun 12, 2015 4:02 pm
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Thank you Dennis ! Beautiful pic !

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.


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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Fri Jun 12, 2015 5:05 pm
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Cool Stuff !! 8) 8)

cheers!

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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2015 1:43 am
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What a great thing to win. I am pleased it went to someone who treasures it rather than someone looking to make money from it.

On the other hand, for goodness sake, play it, use it, if it's any good, enjoy it. It's a guitar. I appreciate that it has been signed by The Man but, aside being thrust at him and someone saying "Oi Eric, can you sign this for a competition?" that is his only association with it.

Because Eric has been around for so long (and is still with us) it isn't the same as something signed by Hendrix. Perhaps in another 50 years or so ...

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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2015 7:05 am
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As soon as I picked it up I knew I wanted one to play and gig with, so the next month(November 1992) when I saw a 'Blackie' in my local music store I bought one, but still kept 'the winner' under the bed.And of all the people that could have won this, the guitar went to someone(me) who actually treasures it and realizes this is the best contest prize a true fan of Eric's could have ever won. He signed it on 1990, but the contest wasn't until 1992, so he probably didn't know that Fender was going to offer it as a Super Grand Prize in a contest at the time he signed it. I still know of no other verified, certified, with letter of authenticity from Fender hand signed EC Stratocaster after all these years. I've seen a few with a 'scribbled' signatures, but those don't have the documentation of mine.So unless someone shows me another, this one is truly 'one of a kind'.


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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2015 9:51 am
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Since anyone can say they won such a guitar. Here's the written and photographic proof that I did. Image[/url][/img]

Image[/URL][/img]


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Post subject: Re: 1992 Eric Clapton Action Campaign Contest
Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2015 3:56 pm
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Who is that handsome guy holding the Strat ? Oh, it's you Dennis ! Just kidding, thanks for posting. The letter and attachment from Fender are awesome Bro, very cool . 8)

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