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Apple II manual signed by Steve Jobs auctioned for $787,484

An Apple II manual signed in 1980 by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and Mike Markkula, the second CEO of the company, was purchased for $787,484 by Jim Irsay, owner of the Indianapolis Colts. Photo courtesy of RR Auction
An Apple II manual signed in 1980 by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and Mike Markkula, the second CEO of the company, was purchased for $787,484 by Jim Irsay, owner of the Indianapolis Colts. Photo courtesy of RR Auction

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Aug. 20 (UPI) -- An Apple II computer manual signed by company co-founder Steve Jobs in 1980 sold for $787,484, a Boston-based auction house announced.

RR Auction said the 196-page manual, which features the technical specifications and operations instructions for the Apple II computer, was signed by Jobs and Mike Markkula, the second CEO of Apple, in 1980.

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"Julian, Your generation is the first to grow up with computers. Go change the world!" Jobs wrote on the inside cover of the manual.

The "Julian" the inscription referred to was Julian Brewer, son of Mike Brewer, who had negotiated exclusive distribution rights for Apple products in Britain and later became the first managing director of Apple U.K. Ltd.

"I was sitting in my bedroom writing games on my Apple II when Dad called me down to meet some guests," Julian Brewer, who was a teenager at the time of the meeting, told RR Auction.

"To my amazement it was Steve Jobs and Mike Markkula. I had the manual with me and only later understood how rare it was for Jobs to sign anything, let alone to write an inscription like this. He got on well with Dad, so I feel the inscription was made with care."

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RR Auction said the winning bidder was Jim Irsay, owner of the Indianapolis Colts.

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