WAUKESHA — Everybody’s got their thing. I like to collect old and obscure records. Some people are bird watchers. And then there’s the guy who has collected every Brewers bobblehead giveaway and gets them autographed.
Jake Paulson has been collecting bobbleheads for two decades. It all started back in 2005. He went to a few games with a friend and picked up a couple of bobbleheads. Then he sought out a few special giveaways. After looking at his growing collection, he decided to go all-in.
"Just all of a sudden I thought, 'I have a lot. Maybe it's time to try and get all of them,'" Paulson said.
To date, he has 318 bobbleheads and almost all of them are signed. He has everything from Bill Hall in a track suit to Nyjer Morgan doing the T-Plush pose to Bob Uecker as Harry Doyle from the movie 'Major League'. That Bob Uecker bobblehead is autographed as himself and his fictional character Harry Doyle.
Getting the bobbleheads isn't always easy. He looks at each year's giveaway schedule and makes sure he has tickets to those games. Sometimes, the Brewers will announce a special bobblehead that he wasn't anticipating. He has purchased several online, especially the ones that came out before he started collecting. Paulson even had to barter with a friend to get a bobblehead. But Paulson did what he had to do.
“He just was like, well, I know you’re trying to collect all the bobbleheads. If you let me join the fantasy football team for free this year, you can have it," Paulson said. (The league usually has a $50 entry fee.)
While Paulson has autographs from people like Hank Aaron and Robin Yount, he is still missing out on one major player.
“Of all the Christian Yelich bobbleheads, I think theres seven or eight that I still need signed by him.”
Hey Brewers, can you help him out?
So why does he do this? It’s simple. He loves Brewers baseball.
“I have special memories going with my dad, my grandpa, and doing that. And baseball’s just special. And now I can share that with my wife and my kids and different memories at different games," Paulson said.
He has commemorative wall hangings for each of his kid's first games. There are even a few baseballs with his three children's baby footprints on them.
Paulson isn't the only one in Wisconsin that is an avid collector. There are a number of people around the state with giant collections. The world's largest Smurf collection is in Ripon. The largest Winnie the Pooh collection is in Waukesha. One of, if not the biggest, collection of Indiana Jones memorabilia is in Sheboygan. In Cedarburg, there is a guy who has collected autographs from almost every single person to ever play for the Brewers. (Know someone else with a sizeable collection? Reach out to james.groh@tmj4.com)
While Paulson's collection isn't going to set a world record, the fun is that it's never complete. A new season means new bobbleheads.
Watch the story to see more rare and unique Brewers bobbleheads...
Beyond bobbleheads, Paulson also has seats from County Stadium, bases, autographed balls, and more. It all takes up a lot of real estate.
“I am so lucky that I have a wife that supports this hobby," he said.
He doesn't collect bats or bases anymore, but the collection of bobbleheads will continue to grow. Who knows, maybe he will need to buy a new house to fit it all.
“Eventually, I might need a bigger basement. But as of right now, they’re all still fitting and I’ve got room for more.”
Paulson chronicles his collection on his website Milwaukee Brewers Bobbleheads.
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