Hobby Library – Page 5 – Post War Cards

The Extremely Rare How To Play Better Basketball Booklets

January 27, 2025 by John

In the introduction to my article The Finer Points of Baseball For Everyone Instructional Booklets I mentioned that I only discovered them from my hunt for their basketball-related cousins. Between that and a $10,500 sale for a complete set of 12 booklets in the fall of 2023, it seemed appropriate to dive deep into these incredible basketball collectibles.

How To Play Better Basketball 101

A few auction catalogs and VintageBasketball.com show that a complete set of How To Play Better Basketball booklets has twelve items. Here’s the checklist:

Ball Handling
Basic Rules and Court Layout
Conditioning
How To Dribble
How to Pass
How to Pivot and Fake
How to Shoot
Drills for Defense
Drills for Offense
Man-To-Man Defense
Plays for Offense
Zone Defense

Like the baseball booklets, they’re full-color printings in a newspaper-like material saddle-stitched like a magazine. However, I keep reading that the basketball ones are 4-7/8’’ x 3-1/4’’ while the baseball ones are ~ 4-5/8″ x 3-3/8’’. However, I suspect they were printed and manufactured by the same people and are likely the same size, with a bit of variation from cutting back in the day. While the baseball booklets each have 16 pages, the basketball books have been described as having eight pages, but I haven’t found a complete set of scans from any of them, nor have I been able to speak with anyone who owns one; please reach out if you have one!

Now, not only are the basketball variations way rarer than the baseball ones but there are also two variations!

Hood Diary How To Play Better Basketball Booklets

While the baseball booklets have dozens of advertising backs through the years, the basketball ones only appear to have one produced around 1963 for Hood Dairy when the Bob Cousy Hood Dairy basketball card was produced.

VintageBasketball says they have a Copyright for Lane and Young Incorporated inside with an address of 128 Mallory Ave. New Jersey City, NJ.

Robert Edwards Auctions sold a collection of six of these booklets with a Hood Diary advertisement, a Bob Cousy quote, and his facsimile autograph on the back that they dated to 1963 in the description. They did mention that they vary a bit from natural diamond cuts when it comes to sizing. They sold for just $360 in the summer of 2021.

REA’s 1963 Hood Dairy How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 1

REA’s 1963 Hood Dairy How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 2

REA’s 1963 Hood Dairy How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 3

REA’s 1963 Hood Dairy How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 4

Interestingly, underneath the right side logo that says “Another Hood Food For Fitness,” there is an indistinguishable copyright emblem. That same logo appears on the baseball booklets; it’s just another point showing how they’re related.

1962 Finer Points Of Baseball DX Dealer Booklet

Indistinguishable Copyright Emblem

1968 Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklet Pack Inserts

The How To Play Better Basketball Booklets’ second variation was blank-backed and used as an insert in 1968 Topps basketball test packs. The Topps Archive’s blog wrote a post called Better And Better that shared some history behind the test packs and booklets. In the summer of 2017, he got to see the pack, cards, and How To Shoot baseball booklet and noted that it was folded in half to fit in the pack, that the interior was set up like a small comic book, and that the back of it (the booklet) was blank. Here’s the photo he shared.

The Topps Archives Photo of MHCC’s 1968 Topps Test Pack

In September 2017, Mile High Card Co. sold an opened 1968 Topps Test basketball pack, booklet, and cards for $4521.60. They described the booklet as having eight pages of colorized diagrams but having no mention of Topps; here’s their auction photo.

MHCC 1968 Topps Test Pack, Booklet, And Cards

In the summer of 2021, REA sold a collection of seven different blank-backed folded How To Play Better Basketball booklets for $6600. Again, Topps folded down the middle because the booklets were too large for the pack otherwise.

REA’s Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 1

REA’s Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 2

REA’s Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 3

REA’s Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklets – Image 4

Finally REA sold the following complete set of 12 booklets plus an original 1968 Topps Test envelope for $10,500 in the fall of 2023.

REA’s Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklets Set of 12 – Image 1

REA’s Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklets Set of 12 – Image 2

During bidding, I reached out to REA for a bit more information. They confirmed that each booklet was blank-backed, but the only one that displayed any condition issues was the How To Shoot Booklet; none of the others were folded, so perhaps they were extras that didn’t make it into packs. Also, I asked for some information about the internal copyright; they sent me back this photo showing a stamped 1966 copyright and the same Lane & Young, Inc. data that VintageBasketball said was in the Hood Dairy versions of the basketball booklets.

REA’s Topps Test How To Play Better Basketball Booklet Copyright Example

The baseball booklets all have a specific year copyright and either a Vital Publications, Inc. or WM. C. Popper & Co. copyright.

Final Thoughts

Like the Finer Points of Baseball For Everyone booklets, the How To Play Better Basketball items are another great example of a significant historical collectible; the basketball ones are more card-adjacent. However, despite a clear relationship between the sets of booklets (appearance, type, design, that little copyright symbol on the backs of both), I haven’t figured out a relationship between Vital Publications/WM. C. Popper & Co. and Lane & Young Inc., whose copyrights were printed inside the booklets. So, if you have more information about these companies or booklets, please leave a comment or email me.

Happy collecting!

Robert Laughlin’s 1976 Gems: Fleer Baseball Firsts and Indianapolis Clowns

January 26, 2025 by John

Robert Laughlin’s creative sets have become super popular lately. In March 1976, he advertised two great 42-card sets in The Trader Speaks: the 1976 Laughlin Indianapolis Clowns and the 1976 Fleer Baseball Firsts.

Here’s a quick primer on these vintage gems!

First, naturally, let’s cover the 1976 Fleer Baseball…Firsts! The Standard Catalog says, “This 42-card set from Fleer is titled “Baseball Firsts” and features several historical moments in baseball, as captured through the artwork of sports artist R.G. Laughlin. The cards are numbered on the back, which is gray card stock with black printing. The set is not licensed by Major League Baseball.”

Obviously, based on the ad, Laughlin was allowed to sell these sets directly for $3.75 each, but TCDB also says that “These cards were inserted into packs of Fleer MLB Real Cloth Baseball Patches as stabilizers and are not mentioned on the pack itself.” However, the display boxes mention a color trading card in each pack, along with the four patches.

The set’s key cards are #5, Four Straigh Homers (Lou Gehrig), and #12, Baseball Cards.

Regarding the 1976 Laughlin Indianapolis Clows, The Standard Catalog shares that “in a departure from the style of most Laughlin issues, this 42-card set does not use his artwork but rather black and white photos framed by a light blue border. The cards are oversized at 2-5/8” x 4-1/4”, with red printing on front and back. The cards are numbered on the front.” It’skey cars belong to Hank Aaron and Satchel Paige.

Did you notice the special to subscribe to Bob Cards’ Inside Pitch? I’d love to get a run of these; let me know if you have any for sale.

The Finer Points of Baseball For Everyone Instructional Booklets

January 23, 2025 by John

Between 1957 and 1966, a series of 12 instructional booklets titled The Finer Points of Baseball For Everyone offered baseball insights and hints for little, junior, midget, and Babe Ruth players. The booklets, which had copyrights attributed to Vital Publications, Inc. and later WM. C. Popper & Co., were promotional products that provided advertising on the back for their clients.

My Introduction to The Finer Points of Baseball For Everyone

I discovered these baseball instructional booklets from my hunt for their basketball-related cousins. However, I can’t remember if it was this Mile High Card Co. auction from 2017 of an opened 1968 Topps Test Pack with a How to Play Better Basketball booklet or this auction from REA for a 1963 Hood Dairy Bob Cousy How to Play Better Basketball Booklet Collection that prompted my jump into this hobby niche. I’ll write more about the 1963 How to Play Better Basketball booklets soon; for now, if you’re interested in them, check out VintageBasketball.com.

To this day, I’ve been unable to secure a single basketball booklet, but in looking for them on eBay, I noticed the baseball ones and picked up a trio with a 1965 Copyright and Hood Ice Cream advertising on the back in May 2023. I hadn’t given them much more thought until the 2023 National in Chicago; when closing a deal on some pre-war strip cards, I noticed the dealer had a complete set of 12 from 1958 with Fleet Wing Gasoline advertising on the backs, so I included them in the deal. The set was priced at $150, but I believe I got them for $100. Here are the covers and backs to all 12. I’ve also included scans of every page of the How to Play First Base booklet at the end of the article.

1958 Finer Points of Baseball for Everyone – Fleet Wing Gasoline Set – Fronts

1958 Finer Points of Baseball for Everyone – Fleet Wing Gasoline Set – Backs

After that pickup, I had to learn more!

The Finer Points of Baseball For Everyone Overview

There’s not much out there about these advertising booklets; save for this page from KeyMan Collectibles and a few notes from MyComicShop. But between those references and some eBay/Auction sales, we can piece a lot of the details together.

First, the 12 booklets are ~ 3 3/8″ x 4 5/8″ in size. Each has 16 pages if you include the front and back covers. Ten are positional, or action “How-to” guides, another has rules for umpires, and one has finer points for everyone. Each has a cartoon drawing on the cover and the words “Hints for Little, Junior, Midget, Babe Ruth Players.”

Here’s the checklist:

Baseball Finer Points for Everyone
How to Catch
How to Pitch
How to Bat
How to Run Bases
How to Play First Base
How to Play Second Base
How to Play Shortstop
How to Play Third Base
How to Play The Outfield
How to Use Baseball Signals
Rules for Umpires

They’re full-color printings in a newspaper-like material saddle-stitched like a magazine.

The differentiation comes from the copyright on the inside front cover and the advertising on the back. I’ve noticed that the early years show a copyright attributed to Vital Publications, Inc., while the later years show WM. C. Popper & Co. Unfortunately, I haven’t found any details about these companies or if it was the result of an acquisition, but they’re both referenced to New York.

As I wrote in the intro, the booklets were used as promotional products. KeyMan wrote that “for the most part early books were used as a premium for meat companies like White Seal Franks, Neuhoff’s Franfurters, Essem Hotdogs, and Hydride’s Wieners. Other ads that show up are Kids Does, Reed Candy Company, Fleet Wing Gasoline, and Stop & Shop Supermarkets.”

I’ll have to take his word for it, and he shared quite a few advertisements, but I didn’t find a lot of meat company examples in my research for the early copyright years.

White Seal Franks/Bacon Ad with Booklets

He continued writing that “By the 1960s, an array of advertisers began using the baseball books, including; local banks, and car dealerships, Mr. Softee, Baseball on NBC TV/DX Oil, Sealtest Foods, All Star Dairies, International Harvester, Weaver Potato Chip Co., Country Kitchen Restaurants, Hood Ice Cream, Horn & Hardart Automats, Holland Popsicle, and Manny’s Baseball Land, located across from Yankee Stadium.”

Finer Points of Baseball for Everyone Yearly Breakdowns

Utilizing KeyMan Collective’s, MyComicShop, and eBay/Auction listings, I’ve managed to categorize a lot of the advertisers by years; there are likely many others. I’ve sometimes taken a listing’s title as truth, but I’ll note that below when a scan of the copyright page wasn’t included.

1957

First, booklets exist without any advertising; perhaps they were used by the publishers as samples through the years, like this 1957 example set.

Reed Candy Company

Stop & Shop Super Markets (no copyright scan)

1958

Blank Backed

Fleet Wing Gasoline – See the photos I shared above.

1959

Garden Gate Margarine

1959 – Golden Gate Margarine – Copyright

1959 – Golden Gate Margarine – Back Cover

1960

MyComicShop wrote that International Harvester Company had a 1960 release, and Heritage Auctions sold a lot of them attributed to 1960 (plus a handful from a few other years that sold for $264 in June 2018), but I don’t have any copyright page scans.

1960 – International Harvester – Back Covers (& Others)

1961

MyComicShop wrote that Sealtest Foods had a 1961 release, but I haven’t found any scans that include a 1961 copyright. But this is as good a time as any to share another advertisement KeyMan shared for Holland Popsicles that included a book in each 12-pack.

1962

Black Backed

DX Dealer

Sealtest Foods and Carstens Hygrade (No Copyright Images)

1963

I haven’t found any examples referenced to 1963.

1964

MyComicShop wrote that Twin City Federal Savings & Loan sponsored a set, but I don’t have any examples of that one.

Country Kitchen

1965

Hood Ice Cream

1966

National Bank and Trust Company

1966 – National Bank and Trust Company – Back Cover

Mister Softee

Undated Examples

I found a few other examples that I don’t have dates for.

Kahn’s Wieners

Friendly Chevrolet

Weaver Potato Chip Co.

Finer Points of Baseball for Everyone How to Play First Base Scans

From $121K to $50M? Revisiting the Iconic 1952 Mantle and Other 1996 Hobby Highlights

January 18, 2025 by John

Doug Kale published this piece in the January 1997 issue of Sports Card Trader, highlighting three significant sports collectibles events: The 1996 East Coast National, the Superior Sportscards Auction, where Marshall Fogel bought his 1952 Topps PSA 10 Mantle for $121k, and the September 21st sale of the Greztky/McNall T206 Wagner for $640,500.

There’s been talk around the hobby that the 1952 Topps PSA 10 Mantle cards could be worth $50M now; before Fogel displayed the card during the 2021 All-Star Game, he said he had rejected a $25M offer for it.

Here are a few photos from the Colorado Rockies Facebook page from that event.

For a bit more, Sports Collectors Digest has a nice piece about how Topps’ 1952 Mickey Mantle Became the Most Iconic Card in Hobby History.

For more about the infamous T206 Wagner’s history, click here.

Happy collecting!

One Of The Rarest Junk Wax Era Baseball Cards – The 1993 Topps Nikon House Celebrating Baseball Card

January 17, 2025 by John

Mario Alejandro introduced me to this card in his tweet from March 2024, and then I ran across the following picture of it in Issue 15 (Summer 1993) of Topps Magazine.

First, here’s a screen capture of what Mario wrote about the card

And here are the images he attached to the tweet.

Unfortunately, in their Topps Magazine blurb, Topps doesn’t add much more to the story. Mario alluded to the back of the card, which invited folks to show up at the Nikon House on Tuesday, April 13th, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. after RSVPing to Rebecca Kirisits. But that means the card had to have been distributed before then.

Perhaps it was handed out by Topps’s “paparazzi,” whose photos were displayed at Nikon House.

By the way, PSA has a single example, a gem mint 10, in its Pop Report.

Let me know if you have any more info about this card.

And happy collecting!

Championships And Collectibles: The 1963 HP Hood Dairy Bob Cousy Basketball Card

January 16, 2025 by John

Bob Cousy helped revolutionize the point guard position while playing for the Boston Celtics between 1950 & 1963, contributing to six NBA Championships. During this time, Cousy was a 13-time NBA All-Star and received the MVP award in 1957. Beloved as a player, his retirement ceremony became known as the “Boston Tear Party.” His legacy is extraordinary, encompassing the organization of the National Basketball Players Association, the popularization of modern guard play, the elevation of the NBA’s profile, the reception of a Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the naming of numerous basketball awards in his honor. Additionally, Cousy was well-known for his public stance against racism. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have many basketball card options, with only ten items needed to complete his PSA Master Set Registry. While many collectors target his 1957 Topps or 1951 Berk Ross cards for their collections, my favorite is the 1963 HP Hood Dairy oddball.

Here’s what VintageBasketball.com wrote about it:

Bob Cousy retired in 1963 and went to work doing promotions and clinics for the H.P. Hood Dairy Company. These 2 3/8″ x 3 7/8″ cards were distributed during this time period. Bob Cousy confirmed to a collector friend of mine that he used these cards during the period from 1963-1966. One of the Massachusetts-based company’s slogans during this period was “Schoolboy or Celtic, they both get energy to burn from Hood Milk!” The cards come in two variations. The most common variation has a blue ink facsimile signature and says “yours for better fitness, Bob Cousy”. At the bottom of the card it has the Hood logo and below that, it has the “Boston Traveler” logo. The Boston Traveler was a newspaper that is now defunct. The other variation is in black ink and only has the Hood Dairy emblem. Currently, the reason for the difference in cards is unknown. The Boston Traveler newspaper did go out of business in 1967, so maybe Hood had plans to use these cards longer?? We may never know. The black ink Hood card appears to be the rarer of the two. Twenty years ago, it was believed that these cards were exceedingly rare. However, as time has gone on, we have seen a few small finds of these, which have brought the price down slightly. I’ve also included an image of an 11 x 17 advertisement for John Alden fine foods that uses the Cousy graphic from this card.

1963 HP Hood Dairy Bob Cousy Card Variations From VintageBasketball.com

Bob Cousy John Alden Contest Featuring The Same Cousy Image

I’m unsure when that overview was written, but regarding the black ink variation, Heritage Auctions sold a lot of nine of them in June 2022 for $1320.

1963 HP Hood Dairy Bob Cousy Cards – Fronts

1963 HP Hood Dairy Bob Cousy Cards – Backs

PSA doesn’t appear to differentiate between variations in its Pop Report, which contains 22 cards and six autographed copies; SGC has graded six.

Despite the cards’ relative scarcity, they’re not that expensive. In 2021, Probstein sold a trio of them on eBay: a PSA 5 sold for $202 in March, a PSA 6 went for $472 in April, and a PSA 4 for $143 in July. He also sold a PSA 2 for $406 in June 2014.

That said, a PSA 7 (the highest graded) sold for $2,247 on eBay in November 2024.

Lelands sold the original photograph used for the card in November 2023 for $3,540.

Interestingly, I found an advertisement for Hood Milk for sale on eBay a while ago. It was described as coming from the Saturday Evening Post and is dated March 10, 1962, in the upper-left corner. The image looks like it could have been taken on the same day as the PSA Type 1 photo that Lelands sold, and the timeline fits the description of the Cousy card being used from 1963 to 1966.

The same image used on the 1963 HP Hood Diary Cousy card was also used for the souvenir program for “Bob Cousy Day” at Boston Garden on March 17, 1963, aka The Boston Tear Party. In April 2021, SCP Auctions sold the following team-signed copy for $3,769.

The scarcity of basketball card options for iconic figures is an unfortunate reality of the hobby. However, Bob Cousy played a big part in the growth of basketball in America, which led to the abundance of basketball card options that emerged in the late ’80s.

Happy collecting!

The Trader Speaks, Vol 3 No 10 August 15, 1971

January 10, 2025 by John