Jackie Robinson was an incredible athlete, famous for breaking the color barrier in baseball, but before his baseball career, Robinson lettered in four sports at UCLA: football, basketball, track, and baseball.
Before UCLA, he attended Pasadena Junior College. The Junior Rose Bowl (now called the Pasadena Bowl) was a championship game for junior colleges. It started in 1946, so Robinson never played in this competition, but clearly, they wanted him there.
Pasadena is an HBCU, and Robinson graduated in 1940 and then transferred to UCLA. At UCLA he was one of the first four black football players to take the gridiron, so Robinson had been breaking color barriers long before he became a Dodger in 1947.
This lot offers a Rose Bowl Luncheon program dated December 11, 1959, autographed by Jackie. He included the inscription "Best Wishes" above his autograph. PSA has encapsulated the program and graded the autograph MINT 9.