Wonder Bread

A 1950s Stan Musial Rawlings Die-Cut Advertising Sign

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I’ve shared plenty of vintage advertising signs before, but I think Stan Musial deserves more focus since he had fewer major card releases than his peers. Here’s a great Rawlings die-cut sign from the mid-1950s.

This one was offered in Ron Oser Entperises April 2001 catalog with the following description:

A circa 1955 Rawlings 17″ x 26″ cardboard sign which features a full body photo of Musial with fan-filled stands in the background, facsimile “Stan the Man” signature below. The oddly-shaped sign would fit together to form a store stand-up display. The lower right corner of the display has a few creases, otherwise, the body of the display is very clean. This Musial die-cut ad piece is incredible looking and if you have the glove or just happen to like the Cardinals or advertising pieces, this one will thrill you. Nicely framed to 21 x 28 inches. Minimum Bid $400

Heritage sold the similarly designed Musial Pro Leaguer Advertising Sign in October 2022 for $288, which they described as follows.

1950’s Rawlings Stan Musial Pro Leaguer Advertising Sign. Fine image of “Stan the Man” dominates this heavy cardboard advertising sign measuring approximately 18×16″ at its tallest and widest dimensions. Considerable water damage is apparent, and bat has been restored. We believe this is only part of the full display. Easel on back is missing.

Happy collecting!

Stan Musial Wonder Bread Cardboard Advertising Sign

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Here’s another classic cardboard advertising sign of Stan Musial pitching for Wonder Bread; it’s what “Good Ball Players Need” to “Build Strong Bodies 8 Ways.”

Sotheby’s offered this example in its April 1994 catalog of Important Baseball Cards and Sports Memorabilia. It is described as a late 1940s/early 1950s 30 by 40-inch piece in excellent overall condition.

This isn’t the first Stan Musial Wonder Bread ad that I’ve shared; there’s the more “common” one that he shares with Mickey Mantle and another cardboard example with seven of the era’s biggest stars.

1950’s Wonder Bread Advertising Sign With Mickey Mantle and Stan Musial

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Here’s an early to mid-1950s Wonder Bread Cardboard advertising sign that features black and white portraits of Mickey Mantle and Stan Musial.

Mastro offered it in their July 1998 catalog and described the multicolored, blank-backed counter sign as 10-1/2” x 14-3/4” in Ex to Mt condition but with minor restorations. They also implied the Stan Musial fountain pen signature was authentic. The minimum bid was $1k.

The Mantle looks a little like the 1957 Jay Publishing New York Yankees Picture Portfolio “card,” but a touch wider.

The Musial looks a lot like one of Musial’s 1958 Jay Publishing “cards” (All-Stars Set A, All-Stars Set B, St. Louis Cardinals Set A, and St. Louis Cardinals Set B).

1950’s Wonder Bread Cardboard Ad Sign

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How cool is this giant vintage Wonder Bread cardboard sign? It’s dated to the late ‘50s and pictures eight of the era’s biggest stars in “floating” headshot style, including Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Elston Howard, Warren Spahn, Stan Musial, Paul Hornung, Del Shofner, and Sam Huff.

The December 2001 auction lot described the cardboard display as “thick” and 46 x 34 inches.