Flexichrome

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?

Update: 23 December 2024

After I shared the images on X, Keith Olbermann shared that the item was for sale on eBay at the time, with an asking price of $800. He wrote, “The scan is much clearer and suggests your conclusion is right. Look at the trimming around the image of Johnson. If I remember correctly this was a Wingfield photo taken in DC and appears in one of the Jay Publishing ‘unofficial’ Yankee yearbooks 1957-8-9…in b&w.”

The eBay auction description provided a bit more detail, particularly about its source: “Original artwork for the 1957 Topps Darrell Johnson baseball card. Artwork measures about 3 ½ inches × 5 ½ inches and depicts the pose used for the 1957 baseball card. Artwork is in excellent condition and the lot includes a 1957 Topps baseball card of Darrell Johnson. The artwork has a small note that reads: ‘Topps Artwork from the Gelman Collection.'”

Roselle Avenue then shared this cool custom card with all of us.

Happy collecting!