Joe Jackson Autographed Check

by

Shoeless Joe Jackson autographs are super scarce. Sotheby’s offered this one, obtained directly from the Jackson family, in their April 1994 Important Baseball Cards and Sports Memorabilia auction.

Here’s the item’s description as it was written in the catalog:

Joe Jackson Autographed Check, original 1916 document acting as a promissory payment toward the purchase of “Shoeless” Joe’s new home in Savannah, Georgia. Signed by Jackson shortly after joining the Chicago White Sox, the team he would ultimately be accused of betraying in the 1919 Black Sox scandal only a few years later. Bold, black ink “Joe Jackson” signature graces the lower right portion of this attractively sized document. One of the few authentic autographs known to ever exist of this legendary baseball figure, who over the years has become a part of American folklore. Obtained directly from the Jackson family, the offered legal document is an exceptional example of this extremely rare and very desirable autograph from “Shoeless” Joe’s playing days with the White Sox. 3 3/4 in. by 8 1/2 in. (9.5 cm. by 21.6 сm.)

The expected price was $25,000-30,000.

PSA’s online price guide values Joe Jackson’s signed checks at $85k today.

SCD’s Minor League Baseball Card Price Guide

by

I’ve been looking for a Minor League Baseball Card reference for a while. Finally, I ran across an ad for one in a June 1993 issue of Sports Cards Magazine! There’s also a Standard Catalog of Minor League Baseball Cards out there.

I’d like to know if there are different editions; as you can see, the copy I picked up has a slightly different cover (text) than the one in the ad (2,000 sets vs. 1,900, for example).

Also, this is one of the rare examples where a book from the junk-wax era costs more than it did when it came out!

My copy is 480 pages long and begins with Dave Platta’s incredible 22-page “short” history of minor league cards. It’s a great read.

The book is arranged in two sections: pre-1970 and 1970-1992. Sets produced before 1970 are listed alphabetically, starting with the 1960 Armour Meats Denver Bears and ending with the 1950 World Wide Gum set. Sets made after 1970 follow chronologically and are arranged alphabetically by team name within each year. Upper Deck’s initial Minor League set from 1992 is the last set included.

Also, the pre-1970 sets generally include a short set history or synopsis, while the modern releases are mostly just a checklist with basic prices.

Despite the lack of detail, it’s still a fantastic piece for a hobby library, especially if you collect Minor League Baseball Cards.

Five Incredibly Rare Hockey Wax Packs

by

Mastro offered five scarce hockey wax packs in their August 2004 Sports Premier Catalog Auction. Here’s the oldest, from the 1954/55 Topps set featuring a “who’s who” of hockey greats: Kelly, Howe, Worsley, Bathgate, and Sawchuck!

Also included were a 1957/58 Topps Five-Cent Wax Pack, a 1958/59 Parkhurst 5-cent Wax Pack, a 1961/62 Topps Five-Cent Wax Pack, and a 1965/66 Topps Five-Cent Wax Pack.

For good measure, a 1954/55 Topps display box was also part of this catalog!

PS, this auction also included a few lots I’ve discussed previously:

Happy collecting!

1952 Topps Baseball Type Photos and Crossovers

by

The 1952 Topps Baseball set is the crown jewel of post-war cards. Driven by my passion for uncovering the original photos behind iconic cards, I’m building the ultimate resource for the photos used in this legendary set. And since many of these images appeared across other sets of the era, I’m including those crossovers too.

If you have any additions, please reach out to me via e-mail or on X.

A Curious Item – The “Original Artwork” For Darrell Johnson’s 1957 Topps Baseball Card

by

I ran across an item in Ron Oser Enterprises’ December 2000 catalog that perplexes me. It was described as a 3 1/2” x 5 1/2” flexichrome artwork for Darrell Johnson’s 1957 Topps card, but I always thought flexi’s were used to color black and white images.

I reached out to The Topps Archives, and he pointed out that flexi’s can look different but also thought they were only used to color black-and-white images. He also wondered if Topps just cut out the image with an Xacto knife as it would have already been in color. He pointed out that it sort of looks like an alternate for Johnson’s 1958 Topps card, which has a slightly different pose.

Any ideas? Did Topps have other plans for the 1957 Topps set? Were they going to use the cutout for another set?

Three 1914 Boston Garter Cards – Baker, Konetchy, and Johnson

by

Richard Wolffers Auctions, Inc. offered three 1914 Boston Garter cards in their June 1993 auction and included these color photos of the Frank “Home Run” Baker and Walter Johnson cards.

The third card they included was #10 Ed Konetchy. Here are the B&W photos and lot descriptions for all three cards.

If you want to know more about the set, here’s how The Standard Catalog of Vintage Baseball Cards describes it:

The second of what are presumed to have been three annual issues by the George Frost Co., Boston, contains 12 cards. The colorful lithograph fronts have a player picture in front of a ballpark diagram. A large Boston-brand garter appears at the bottom. Baseball with the Boston Garter name appear in each upper corner. Black-and-white backs have a checklist for the set, career statistics for the player pictured and details of the cards’ availability. Retailers received one card per box of dozen garters and could write to the company to complete the set. About 4’’ x 8-1/4’’, they were intended to be displayed in shop windows.

A complete set of 12 would be nearly impossible to piece together today and would probably cost more than $1M. SGC has graded only 43 examples, while PSA has graded only two. 

Unopened Case Clearance Specials In 1979

by

In “I wish I owned a time machine,” hobby history is this advertisement from the December 1979 issue of The Trader Speaks for “sealed gum cases at the lowest prices ever seen!” And yup, that would be from Mike Cramer’s Pacific Trading Cards.

I shared this image on the Facebook “Vintage Wax and Packs” group, which led to some entertaining comments.

One person said he’d take an infinite amount of 1977-78 Topps Basketball; I agreed since I’ve only ever seen one photo of a wax case.

Another collector asked himself why he hadn’t bought a case for $25, responding that it was about $151 in today’s dollars.

There were a lot of comments about Mike Cramer, who owned the company. By the way, if you have any of his old catalogs for sale, please contact me.

The best comment was, “Funny that the priciest case then is the crappiest one now.” Referring to the 1975 Topps ABC Sports “Giant Stickers” for $40. They must have printed a million of them (and) or sold poorly because they’re incredibly easy to find today; a box was sold on eBay for $8 a few weeks ago.

×