Early Apple Computer Company check, 6 x 3, filled out in black felt tip and signed by Jobs, "steven jobs," payable to Quement Electronics for $24.75, July 16, 1976. Headed "Apple Computer Company," the check uses Apple's first official address at "770 Welch Rd., Ste. 154, Palo Alto"—the location of the answering service and mail drop that they used while still operating out of the famous Jobs family garage. In very fine condition. Boldly filled out and signed by Jobs during this foundational era of Apple Computer, this is an ideal example of his autograph.
During this period in the summer of 1976, just a few months after founding the Apple Computer Company, Jobs and Wozniak were hard at work building their first product. In March 1976, Wozniak had completed work on an innovative microcomputer design—now known as the Apple-1 Computer—and Jobs suggested that they sell it. Based on the early date, this check for $24.75 to Quement Electronics—a barn-sized electronics warehouse in San Jose specializing in ham radio gear and electronic parts—likely represents payment for component parts affiliated with the production of early Apple-1 systems.
Though initially conceived as a kit to be soldered together by the end user—like most enthusiast computers of the era—the Apple-1 became a finished product at the behest of Paul Terrell, owner of The Byte Shop in Mountain View, California, one of the first personal computer stores in the world. Terrell offered to buy 50 of the computers—at a wholesale price of $500 a piece, to retail at $666.66—but only if they came fully assembled. With this request, Terrell aimed to elevate the computer from the domain of the hobbyist/enthusiast to the realm of the mainstream consumer. Wozniak later placed Terrell's purchase order in perspective: 'That was the biggest single episode in all of the company's history. Nothing in subsequent years was so great and so unexpected.'
Thus, the Apple-1 was one of the first completely assembled 'personal' computers that simply worked out of the box with a few accessories that could be purchased from a local electronics store (a power supply, case, keyboard, and monitor were not included). Altogether, over a span of 10 months or so, Jobs and Wozniak produced about 200 Apple-1 computers and sold 175 of them. A superb check signed by the innovative personal computing pioneer.
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