Counter Display Ad

1930s Dizzy Dean Grape-Nuts Cereal Advertisements: A Glimpse Into Gashouse Gang Glory

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In Mastro & Steinbach’s August 1997 auction catalog, I saw this stunning 1930s Dizzy Dean Grape-Nuts cereal advertisement. More research led me to find three total cardboard counter display versions from the Gashouse Gang era, showcasing vintage marketing at its finest.

Here’s the full ad description from the catalog:

From the glory days of the old Gashouse Gang, this striking easel-backed cardboard counter display (approx. 22-1/2″ x 26-1/2″) features the colorful Hall of Famer, Dizzy Dean, making a pitch for Grape-Nuts cereal. Still attached is the cardboard holder along with an original pamphlet which promoted Grape-Nuts’ Dizzy Dean premium offer. A hint of soiling, along with a minor crease in the upper left and missing tab on the lower right do not detract from its otherwise colorful and attractive appearance. One of the nicest cardboard display ads you’ll find from this era.
Minimum Bid $300

REA sold the same version of the Grape-Nuts counter display as Mastro & Steinbach offered for $630 in the fall of 2024. They also included a photo of the back but noted that the easel wasn’t original.

Most auctioneers date this next version to 1934. While appearing to be more common, it sells for more than the previous example, usually for just over $1k these days. It’s ~26” x 40” in size.

This final version seems the scarcest and is described as 20-1/2” x 26-1/2” in size. Like the previous examples, the easel isn’t original.

There may be other cardboard counter display examples out there, too, because there are certainly posters with different designs; if you know of any, let me know in the comments.

1950’s Star-Cal Decal Counter Display

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Here’s an item you don’t see come up for sale very often: a 1950s Star-Cal Decal Counter Display. It was produced by Meyercord Company of Chicago starting in 1952 for paint and hardware stores.

This September 2000 auction lot consisted of the large 13″ x 21″ dealer display, the envelope in which it was originally packaged, and seven smaller envelopes with four single-player decals and three two-player decals still packaged inside.

The players are Jackie Robinson, Monte Irvin, Rich Ashburn, Red Schoendienst, plus Snider/Roe, Jansen/Maglie, and Hodges/Reese pairings.

This display board still had its folding back stand fully attached and unused. Apart from some localized wear on the lower left corner, it was described as being in near-mint condition with the decals in EX-MT to NR-MT condition with some surface wrinkling. The red envelopes showed handling and mild edge and corner wear.

About a decade later, REA sold the following pair of displays in the spring of 2009 for $2,115, with one featuring New York Giants players and the other featuring Boston Red Sox players.

And another decade later Heritage sold one with Yankees players for $4920 in December 2019.

In terms of the back, Heritage wrote, “Comes wrapped in clear plastic (original?) and a cardboard stiffener. Back has tape and double faces tape remnants.”