Vintage Sports Cards – Baseball – Basketball – Football – Hockey
Only a few complete 24-stamp sets of 1938 Signal Oil Oakland Oaks Stamps are known to the hobby, including this one, which was auctioned off in December 2005.
The 24 Pacific Coast League player stamps in this lot were each mounted in their original album.
The collection’s album has a big scuff on the left side, but the stamps were described as in excellent to near-mint condition.
Here’s George Woodruff’s portrait of Ted Williams that Fleer used as the photo on the box and wrapper of their 1959 set!
Mastro sold the 8” x 10” portrait in July 1998.
And yes, Topps used the same picture on the Splendid Splinter’s 1954 (#250), 1955, and 1956 Topps cards.
In terms of dating the photo, Memory Lane Inc. sold a Type 1 example for $1,501.20 in October 2017 and estimated the issue date right after Williams’ return from his final 1953 Korean War stint.
I shared a pair of 1956 Topps baseball 110-card uncut sheets a little while ago. Well, according to an article and this photo from the Spring 1982 issue of Baseball Cards, Topps also used uncut sheets as store promotional items. Has anyone seen another photo/item like this one?
The article said, “The descriptive advertising poster was pasted in the center of the uncut sheet to hype the sale of ’56 cards.” The author also argued that although the ‘poster’ proclaimed everything in 1956 was the biggest, he contended that the cards were the same size, had similar stars, and were only second in series/set size.
Check out The Uncut Sheet Archive for more!
The 1991 Upper Deck Denny’s Grand Slam Hologram cards were so popular that the partners doubled down on the promotion the following year with this awesome teaser ad that I pulled from the August 1992 edition of Baseball Cards Magazine.
Denny’s then ran this ad the next month, showcasing the cards.
Denny’s partnered with Upper Deck for six total releases (1991-1995) before switching to Pinnacle for their 1996 and 1997 sets.
Mastro offered these four signed 1952 Topps monsters from the Mark Friedland Autographed Card Collection in their August 2006 catalog.
The complete collection was described to have been amassed in just a year and a half, as Mark acquired several prominent private holdings, like the McAllister Collection. Most of the collection’s 10k+ cards were authenticated by PSA/DNA, with the remainder by SGC and James Spence.
The next lot in the auction, 1103, was for 210 different signed 1952 Topps cards!
“The 111 World Series cards Topps included in its regular sets from 1960-1981 are not only nostalgic treasures but also increasingly valuable collectibles.” Topps Magazine Fall 1990 – Edition 4.
Do you have a favorite among these? Mine is the 1964 Topps #136 World Series Game 1 Koufax Strikes Out 15.
A close second would be the 1971 Topps #332 World Series Celebration! I love those black borders.
This gorgeous 4” x 6” color painting of New York Yankees Hall of Fame legend Bill Dickey was produced for but never used in the final 1952 Bowman baseball set.
Ron Oser Enterprises offered this item with a reserve of $375 in their April 2000 catalog. It was framed and matted with a cut auto.
Check out The Original Artwork Archive for more!