YOUR AD HERE »

AMERICAN CENTURY CHAMPIONSHIP | An unusual autograph request

Joe Proudman
jproudman@tahoedailytribune.com
Joe Proudman / Tahoe Daily Tribune
ALL |

STATELINE, Nev. – Most fans will bring hats, cards, golf balls, flags and photos for celebrities to sign during the American Century Championship week at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course. But one Michigan woman asks that the celebrities sign her artificial leg.

Christina Kellner lost most of her right leg in an automobile accident in 1987. She wears a $49,000 artificial leg and was using a crutch on Tuesday to help her get around Edgewood. This is her second year coming to the ACC in search of autographs, and said that she gets odd looks when she asks people to sign in the thigh area of her artificial leg. The idea just came to her one day she said.

“Being something unique and different, I thought maybe I might also get them to come over. In fact, when I asked Aaron Rodgers to sign it today, he came over and he looked at me and he goes, ‘Really?’ I go, ‘Yeah, I got AJ Hawk’s on here, it’s OK.’ He was a little hesitant, but he ended up signing it,” Kellner said. “Jerry Rice last year, ’cause he usually doesn’t do autographs, he said, ‘I cannot not sign her leg.’ And he signed it and Aaron today he was a little taken back a little bit. Yea, they’re not quite sure at first.”



But she has accumulated several autographs over the past two years and is looking for more before her time in Tahoe is up. On top of the celebrities she mentioned, Sterling Sharpe and Marcus Allen have also signed the leg she wears everyday. She thinks it ranks pretty high as far as odd autograph requests go.

“This would be the top as far as having anything signed,” Kellner said. “This would be the top I would think. I would bet no one has ever came up and asked them to sign an artificial leg before.”



She expects her current artificial leg to last for about six more years. After it wears out, she plans on holding on to it.

“I’m going to keep this one,” Kellner said. “I got pictures, too, of some of them signing it. So this leg will be kept. The other ones have been donated to third-world countries.”

One of her main targets this year was Rodgers, which she accomplished, but there is one more autograph she is after.

“I’d like to get Charles (Barkley) too, but I don’t know if he does autographs.”


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around the Lake Tahoe Basin and beyond make the Tahoe Tribune's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Your donation will help us continue to cover COVID-19 and our other vital local news.