The Industry

A 1973 Topps Test Candy Lid Uncut Sheet From The Hobby Library Archives

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Here’s another cool uncut sheet from the hobby library archives, a 1973 Topps Test Candy Lid Uncut Sheet. This one was offered as lot 389 in Christie’s East Sports Memorabilia Auction in October 1992.

The sheet includes stars like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Pete Rose, Carlton Fisk, and Nolan Ryan. It was described as being in near mint condition and carried and had an estimated value of $700-800.

The Standard Catalog described the set as “a bit out of the ordinary, the Topps Candy Lids were the top of a product called ‘Baseball Stars Bubble Gum.’ The bottom (inside) of the lids carry a color photo of a player with a ribbon containing the name, position and team. The lids are 1-7/8” in diameter. A total of 55 different lids were made featuring most of the stars of the day.”

Here are a few examples.

There are also several slabbed and unslabbed proofs on the market, so I wonder if someone cut up the sheet.

Let me know what you think in the comments and don’t forget to check out more uncut sheets on the archive. Happy collecting!

The Original Artwork For The 1953 Bowman #51 John Karras Football Card

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Here’s a true hobby one-of-one: the original artwork for card number 51 in Bowman’s 1953 football set, featuring John Karras of the Chicago Cardinals.

The piece was a part of Mastro’s December 2005 Sports Premier Catalog Auction. They described it as a hand-crafted artifact measuring 3-1/8” x 4-5/8” (larger than the as-issued card). The item description mentioned that the item’s corners were chipped as a function of the working process. Also, the art piece was matted with an Ex sample of the final card on display measuring 11-3/4” x 15”, but Mastro didn’t share a photo of the combined display in the catalog.

So, here’s an example of the published Karras Bowman football card.

Happy collecting.

PS, check out The Original Artwork Archive if you want to see more pieces like this one.

The Backbone Of The Amusement Arcade Business: Exhibit’s Cards For 1955

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Here’s another cool item from Mastro’s June 2008 Classic Collector Auction: a 1955 Exhibit Card Catalog.

The only other copy I’ve seen (which could be the same as Mastro’s) is on Adam Warshaw’s Exhibit Supply Company Page.

The full text of the cover says: Exhibit’s Cards for 1955: Sportlands, Amusement Parks, Carnival Operators. The Backbone of the Amusement Arcade Business. Exhibit Supply – 4218 30 W. Lake St. Chicago 24, Ill., Est. 1901.

From the ad’s appearance, the slicks along the top appear to feature Exhibit’s Art Model Cards.

Happy collecting!

Exploring the Cosmos: Two Topps Space Cards Original Artworks

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Here are a pair of Topps Space Cards original artworks that Mastro offered in his June 2008 Classic Collector Auction.

Dating these is complicated. According to the Non-Sports Bible, the 1957 Topps Space Cards came out in 1957 with backs printed in black and blue tones, and their English version (U.K.) was printed in 1958 by A&BC. But there’s also a blue-colored back set issued in 1958 called “Target: Moon,” and Watson states that no one can say which was issued first, “Space” or “Target: Moon,” even though he dated the Space set to 1957. The salmon-colored backed cards were re-issued in 1967 as part of a game. However, in 2013, it seems like The Topps Archives settled on 1957 for Space Cards and 1958 for Target: Moon.

That said, it’s highly probable that just a single original artwork exists for each card. And for reference, a few others have sold for between $1,300 and $2,700. Also, “Testing A Space Pilot” is card #11, and “Robot Nears Moon” is card #8 in the 88-card set.

In case you’re curious, I found both sets’ penny and nickel wrappers on this Vintage Non-Sports Forum thread.

Happy collecting, and don’t forget to check out The Original Artwork Archive for more!

Vintage Baseball Card Sales Numbers And The Topps Monopoly

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Today, I wanted to look back at and share information from the early days of Topps as a card company, particularly the Federal Trade Commission decision regarding a complaint made against Topps Chewing Gum, Inc., alleging unfair competition methods in gaining control of the baseball card picture industry.

Topps Chewing Gum Inc. FTC Decision

As you can see in the image above, the court dismissed the case on April 30, 1965, because there was insufficient evidence. 

While the complaint uses a lot of legal jargon to allege a “monopoly in the manufacture and distribution of baseball picture cards in commerce,” as a collector, I find equally fascinating the reporting of sports card sales numbers from Topps, Bowman, Goudey, and Fleer. 

First Goudey Sales: 

Vintage Goudey Baseball Card Sales

Next Bowman Sales: 

Vintage Bowman Baseball Card Sales

Topps sales in those years were as follows: 

Early 50s Topps Baseball Card Sales

Topps sales once there were no Bowman cards were (“Baseball card gum” being packs with gum in them, and “Baseball cards” being products like vending boxes, cello, and rack packs that didn’t have gum): 

1957-1961 Topps Baseball Card Sales

And finally, Fleer sales figures: 

Vintage Fleer Baseball Card Sales

I’ll pour through this 112-page document in the future to see what other insights we can glean about the post-war baseball card market and the impact Topps’ actions as a company had on its competitors. That will come in the future as a Part 2 of this article. But these numbers are our best insight into figuring out how many cards Topps and other companies actually produced in the early post-war era. 

Happy collecting!

Dick Perez’s Original Artwork For The 1989 Donruss Frank Viola Diamond Kings Card

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Here’s the original artwork Dick Perez painted for the 1989 Donruss Frank Viola #23 Diamond Kings card.

Ron Oser Enterprises offered it in a lot with a few other signed Perez originals in April 2001. I think the piece is 11” x 17”. I previously shared the Mike Schmidt and Bobby Bonilla cards from this lot on the blog.

Here’s the final card, followed by a side-by-side comparison.

Donruss obviously did some cropping for the final card. Happy collecting, and don’t forget to check out The Original Artwork Archive for more!

Baseball Cards Magazine Advertised in The Trader Speaks!

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It’s always amused me how hobby periodicals advertised on each other’s pages, almost like an endless loop of cross-promotion. So, I wasn’t surprised to find this Baseball Cards Magazine ad in the May 1982 issue of The Trader Speaks.

Baseball Cards Magazine launched in the Spring of 1981, and I’ve long argued that its first few years offered the finest hobby writing ever produced. While it’s cost me more than $2.25 an issue to piece my collection together— it’s a steal for a magazine packed with top-notch articles, checklists, and hobby insight.

Back issues of The Trader Speaks are packed with valuable writing, too, but the advertisements for iconic collectors’ issues, card shows, and vintage pricing information are particularly valuable to me. Adding copies of either publication to your collection is a fantastic way to kickstart a hobby library!

Happy collecting!