Gus Grissom Signed Photograph

Color vintage 7.25 x 9.5 magazine photo of Liberty Bell 7 Pilot Gus Grissom wearing his Mercury space suit and talking on the phone after splashdown, signed and inscribed in ballpoint, "Warmest personal regards to Mayor Bartle, Gus Grissom.” The recipient is Kansas City Mayor Harold Roe Bartle. Double-matted and framed to an overall size of 13 x 16. In fine condition, with evenly trimmed edges. This photo was taken aboard the USS Randolph after Grissom was plucked from the Atlantic Ocean on July 21, 1961, following his historic Mercury-Redstone 4 mission. He is receiving a congratulatory phone call from President John F. Kennedy.

The recipient, Kansas City Mayor Harold Roe Bartle, later played a key role in bringing Lamar Hunt’s Dallas Texans to Kansas City in 1963; Hunt renamed the franchise the Kansas City Chiefs in recognition of Bartle’s longtime nickname, The Chief.