Steve Jobs typed letter signed on original Pixar Animation Studios letterhead, dated January 5, 1996, addressed to Kimberly Johnson at T. Rowe Price Associates, 100 East Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21202. Single page, measuring 8.5″ × 11″. Near fine condition.
Jobs reports that Pixar’s debut feature has surpassed $150 million in domestic receipts, ranking it the third highest-grossing film of 1995 behind only Batman Forever and Apollo 13, and announces the picture’s two Golden Globe nominations — Best Musical or Comedy Film and Best Original Song. He further outlines Pixar’s roadmap for 1996, including the international theatrical release of Toy Story, its domestic home video release, two interactive CD-ROM titles, and the studio’s then-unnamed second feature film — which would eventually reach theaters in 1998 as A Bug’s Life.
The letter is no longer accompanied by a gifted copy of Toy Story: The Art and Making of the Animated Film, which Jobs notes was sent to Johnson as a gesture of gratitude for T. Rowe Price’s interest and support — confirming T. Rowe Price’s position as an institutional investor in Pixar’s landmark November 29, 1995 IPO, the largest initial public offering of that year, which raised $140 million and made Jobs a billionaire virtually overnight.
However, the present letter comes with original Sotheby’s London invoice documenting its appearance in the auction house’s Fine Books and Manuscripts sale of January 31, 2007. The invoice is included in full with the present lot, providing the buyer with complete documentary provenance.
Note: This letter is understood to be one of a limited number of copies distributed to multiple T. Rowe Price executives during this period, each individually addressed and signed by Jobs. The present example is addressed to Kimberly Johnson.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​