Wednesday, 24 March 2010

Why Did Obama Use 22 Different Pens to Write a Single Signature?


Picture Credits: Chuck Kennedy /The White House / Flickr

President Barack Obama's signature on the historic health insurance reform bill at the White House, March 23, 2010. What may surprise you is the fact that Obama used not one, or two, but 22 different pens (see the top picture) to sign this history bill.

When Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964, he reportedly used more than 75 pens (video footage can be found here, although camera cutaways make it hard to keep track)

TIME magazine explains the rationale behind multi-pen signatures:

The pen used to sign historic legislation itself becomes a historical artifact. The more pens a President uses, the more thank-you gifts he can offer to those who helped create that piece of history. The White House often engraves the pens, which are then given as keepsakes to key proponents or supporters of the newly signed legislation.

( Via: labnol.org )

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