Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Set-Break: Near Mint 1968 Topps Football Cards
Sometimes you have the singles and sometimes you don't. When we don't have the singles at DeansCards.com we turn to our Complete Sets to see what we can do. We had a gorgeous Near Mint 1968 Topps Football complete set and decided to bust it so we could fill in the high grade singles we were missing. The lowest grade of any card from the break was Excellent/Mint, making this a really great addition to our singles.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Results of Year One of the Great Bubble Gum Card War: 1951
The following article was written by Dean Hanley and will be published in an upcoming issue of Sports Collectors Digest.
1951 Topps had proceeded very cautiously when they issued the 1951 Topps sets, much as Bowman had done with their first national post-WWII issue of cards in 1948. The main reason for packaging the 1951 cards with taffy was to protect the company from a potential legal attack from Bowman. Topps had gotten their feet wet with a very simple set. Topps had learned from its numerous mistakes and would never go to market with such a tawdry product again.
Topps catches some luck: Location
Although Topps got off to a very inauspicious start in the baseball card market in 1951, they did not let the failures of their first major set discourage them. They kept pushing forward and as a result, Topps did manage to catch a few breaks.
While Bowman was headquartered in Philadelphia, Topps was located in New York City, the epicenter of the baseball world. The Yankees, Dodgers, and Giants all called New York City home, which would prove to be a significant advantage for Topps in the early part of the 1950’s. The New York teams were at their peak and at least one New York-based team would appear in each World Series from 1949 to 1958.
More luck: Baseball reaches the heights of popularity
Topps also had the fortune of great timing. Baseball had reached a new peak in popularity. Baseball games were setting new attendance records and the number of local, small-town radio stations that broadcast games soon doubled. No longer was it imperative to live in a major city in order to enjoy a ballgame.
Baseball was further popularized by new technology. As televisions started appearing in homes across America, local stations began televising games. The first nation-wide broadcast of a baseball game was in 1951. A record number of people now had access to the sport. The very same children who once popularized the art of collecting baseball cards decades before, now had the ability to watch their favorite players in action, with lights and sounds.
Baseball’s exciting new stars
The year of 1951, the nation’s epicenter, New York City saw the arrival of two most exciting baseball stars, who would dominate the game for the next two decades: Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays.
Miracle of Coogan’s Bluff
Topps timing was also fortunate because America would tune into baseball just in time to witness something very special. The 1951 National League pennant race, considered one of the most exciting of all-time. On August 11th, the Dodgers were 13 ½ games ahead of the Giants. Dodgers’ manager Chuck Dressen was over-confident and proclaimed, “the Giants are dead!” However, the Giants proceeded to feed Dressen his words when they won 37 of their last 44 games, including the last seven, tying the Dodgers at the season’s end and forcing a three-game playoff.
The Giants’ Bobby Thomson hit a home run off of Ralph Branca to win Game one at Ebbets Field. The teams then moved to the Polo Grounds where the Dodgers won Game two, 10-0 behind Clem Labine. The stage was set for Game three. The teams were locked in a 1-1 tie until the eighth inning, when the Dodgers rallied for three runs. Dodgers Ace Don Newcombe sailed through the bottom of the 8th inning and looked to be in total control as the Giants came up to bat in the ninth inning.
Newcombe then ran into trouble, surrendering three hits and a run to the Giants. The score was now 4-2, with Game one Hero, Bobby Thompson coming up to bat. Dressen brought in Ralph Branca to face Thompson and Bobby responded by hitting Branca’s second pitch into the left field bleachers, on what has become known as the “Shot heard ‘round the world.”
The Giants immense joy was short-lived, as the dominant Yankees then proceeded to beat them in the World Series and also did the same to the Dodgers the following year. The World Series never left New York City for those three years.
If you think that big city teams dominate baseball today, in the decade between 1947 and 1956, the three New York teams made a combined 16 World Series appearances. The Yankees won seven rings and the N.L. clubs each took one home as well.
The popularity of the game of baseball was more popular than it had ever been. The fans could not get enough of the sport, which was also driving the sales of baseball cards to all-time highs.
Meanwhile back in Philadelphia
By 1951, Bowman was selling 200 million baseball cards and generating almost one million dollars in baseball card sales, which accounted for almost one-third of Bowman Gum’s total sales for the year. Even with the appearance of the Topps Blue and Red Backs sets in 1951, Bowman still had no serious competition in the baseball card market. Although Topps was making an effort to produce baseball cards, it was far from certain how that would play out. It was very possible that Topps could retreat from the baseball card market, as Leaf had done after 1949.
Bowman Gum had steadily improved its product, market position and profits since they re-entered the baseball card market in 1948. The Bowman baseball cards had improved in quality and quantity in each of the four issues. The 1951 Bowman baseball card set included 324 cards, the most that there would ever be in a Bowman set.
Although no one realized it in 1951, Bowman reached its zenith. Well, almost no one.
J. Warren Bowman was not the type of man to let his bubble gum empire slip away without a fight. When the 1951 Topps baseball cards appeared in stores, the Bowman Gum Co. was quick to take legal action to protect their dominant position in the baseball card market. Bowman Gum filed a lawsuit against Topps, just as they had done against Leaf two years earlier.
Issuing sets of sports cards alongside their gum products gave the Bowman Gum Company a huge advantage over the competition. Warren Bowman had the foresight to lock the professional players of both baseball and football, whose images were essential in producing a successful set of cards, into exclusive multi-year contracts. These exclusive contracts prohibited Bowman’s competitors from selling cards with gum products, giving Bowman a virtual monopoly on this fast-growing market.
Seeing the 1951 Topps baseball cards sets as a threat, Bowman went all out to secure exclusive contracts for as many of the baseball players as he possibly could. Believing that Joan Crosby was going to be the answer to signing players, Bowman contracted with Art Flynn, one of baseball’s first super agents, in July of 1951, to start signing players to contracts to appear on Bowman baseball cards. Flynn was authorized to sign a minimum of 15 players from each team to appear on Bowman baseball cards.
More Luck for Topps: Warren Bowman takes a bow
Given the business genius of J. Warren Bowman, it is doubtful if this chain of events was lost upon him. Bowman knew that Sy Berger had spent the summer signing hundreds of baseball players to contracts to appear on Topps baseball cards. Although he never publicly commented on it, Bowman knew what most of the public did not: a Bubble Gum Baseball Card War was about to begin.
In the 1930’s, Bowman had built his bubble gum company into the market leader, only to lose control of it a few years later. J. Warren eventually regained control of the company and Bowman Gum continued to be the leading producer of bubble gum, but things were different. Two decades had passed and Warren Bowman was no longer a young man. The value of the Bowman Gum Co. was at an all-time high and Mr. Bowman knew that even if Bowman Gum could defeat the Topps challenge to the baseball card market, that it may take years for Bowman Gum’s profits to return to 1951 levels.
Warren Bowman’s advantage was that he had inside information that was not yet apparent to the market. J. Warren Bowman decided that it was time for him to “cash out”. So in April of 1952, the Bowman Gum Co. was sold to Haelan Laboratories, Inc.
No matter how much due diligence that is performed by someone purchasing a company, the seller almost always has more knowledge and understanding regarding the company and its markets that it is selling, than the buyer can uncover.
On the surface, it appeared that Haelan Labs was acquiring:
1. The undisputed market leader - The Bowman Gum Co.
2. In a highly profitable market niche - Bubble Gum.
3. With an exploding target market – the kids of the Baby Boom Generation.
4. With a legally protected monopoly on a marketing advantage to sell its product – Baseball Cards. 5. Based on a sport that was at the peak of its popularity – Baseball.
The stark reality of this situation would turn out to be far different.
Haelan Laboratories had purchased all the assets that J. Warren had built, except leadership and creativity. Especially in emerging markets like baseball cards,is the most valuable asset that a company possesses. Jacob Warren Bowman would fade away into history, and with him went much of the company’s creative thought and competitive spirit. Those traits would be sorely missed in the next few years, as the Baseball Card Bubble Gum war continued to increase in ferocity.
With Bowman’s retirement, Topps had just caught its biggest piece of luck yet. That luck was also shared by Warren Bowman, who had made a great fortune of selling his company while it was at its highest value. Few entrepreneurs are wise enough and lucky enough to accomplish this feat. J. Warren Bowman had staged his last, in a long line of coups.
Sometimes, there is no substitute for good timing.
The Perfect Storm
By the end of 1951, by both circumstance and design, several drastic changes had all collided at the exact same time:
1. Baseball was at an all-time highin popularity, thanks to an infusion of new exciting talent and also by the 1951 N.L. pennant race that was climaxed by the “Miracle of Coogan’s Bluff”.
2. The nation’s best baseball teams – the Yankees, Dodgers, and Giants - were all located in New York City, which was also the largest U.S, market for bubble gum.
3. Baseball card sales were also at an all-time high, thanks to Warren Bowman.
4. The oldest of the huge U.S. Baby Boom population of boys was turning 6 years old – and now old enough to begin buying baseball cards.
5. The most experienced and successful seller of baseball cards ever, Warren Bowman had sold his company and retired.
6. J.E. Shorin had finally turned the Topps baseball cards efforts over to Sy Berger.
The stage was set. With assistance from an artist named Woody Gelman, Sy Berger spent the winter designing the 1952 Topps cards, on the kitchen table of his apartment in Brooklyn.
By the time that the big 1952 Topps baseball cards reached the shelves of candy stores in April of 1952, the ink that the executives of Haelan Labs had used to sign the purchase agreement, of the Bowman Gum Company, had barely dried. Haelan would be in for the surprise and the fight of its life!
This article is taken from Dean’s upcoming book “The Gum Card War and the Great Bowman & Topps Baseball Card Sets of 1948-1955”, which is scheduled to be released later this year in both print and eBook forms. Please feel free to contact Dean with any questions or comments at Dean@DeansCards.com
Dean Hanley is an authority on vintage sports cards and has written numerous articles on the topic. Mr. Hanley is the founder DeansCards.com, and with well-over one million vintage cards in inventory, DeansCards.com is the largest seller of vintage cards on the web. Dean has also published “Before there was Bubble Gum: Our Favorite Pre-World War I Baseball Cards”, which is available in eBook form at Amazon.com
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
WWII: The Boys go to War and baseball suffers.
WWII
War World II changed almost every aspect of American life and the production of baseball cards was no exception. With America’s entrance into World War II and a national rationing program, which included paper and ink, supporting the war effort, these great Play Ball baseball card sets came to an unfortunate end.
In addition to paper and ink shortages, bubble gum production for domestic use virtually ceased. The reason was the war made it impossible to import the chicle and Siamese jelutong needed to make the gum. Gum, Inc. was forced to temporarily shut down.
As the supply for bubble gum ceased, the demand for it greatly increased. Bubble gum was included in military ration kits. Believed to reduce stress and tension, gum was effective in keeping tired soldiers awake.
Production of gum for domestic consumption stopped and savvy grocers who had accumulated a back stock of gum, marked it up to many times of its pre-war prices. Kids learned that if they put their gum glasses in water overnight, it would stay moist and could be re-used for several more days.
The boys go to war and baseball suffers
In 1941, Joe DiMaggio hit safely in 56 consecutive games, Ted Williams batted .406, 41-year-old Lefty Grove got his 300th career win, and Dodgers' catcher Mickey Owen capped off an exciting season, by mishandling a pitch that cost Brooklyn the World Series. The popularity of baseball was at an all-time high in 1941, but that momentum would come to a halt with World War II.
By 1942, the players began enlisting in the armed services and going off to war. As a result, the popularity of the game of baseball greatly suffered. Major League teams were forced to fill out their line-up cards with “has-beens” and players who would have never made it to the major leagues under normal circumstances.
By 1944, the level of talent had become so depleted that journeymen like Nick Etten and Bill Nicholson won the home run titles of each league, with 22 and 33 HR’s respectively. That year, the lowly St. Louis Browns also won the only AL pennant in history of the team. The Browns even made a run at the pennant again in 1945, with a one-armed outfielder named Pete Grey in the starting line-up for much of the year, but eventually finished third. In 1945, Snuffy Strinweiss of the Yankees won the AL batting title with a .309 average.
Meanwhile, there were some great baseball games being played overseas. Most military units stationed in Europe and on bases in the Pacific, formed their own baseball teams. They were made up of major league players who were currently serving in those units to entertain the troops. By 1944, the soldiers on active duty and stationed far away, were seeing much better baseball games than the fans at home.
Once the “boys of war” returned home, the diamond stars of the “war years” saw their inflated numbers quickly drop and most disappeared back into civilian life.
Major-league attendance suffers During World War II, the number of people in the stands greatly diminished right along with the level of play on the field. The Brooklyn Dodgers led baseball with an attendance of 661,739 people for the 1943 season. In the seasons of 1943 and 1944, no team could reach the attendance milestone of one million fans.
No one had TV’s at this time and the large revenues that today’s clubs receive from television contracts were non-existent. Almost all of a baseball club’s revenue was created by putting fans in the stands. Once inside the park, the fans could also be sold food, drinks and team merchandise. By the end of the war, few baseball clubs were actually making money.
The boys return and baseball booms
To truly put these anemic attendance numbers into perspective, one must compare baseball attendance during the war to the number of fans in the stands after baseball’s stars had returned to the game. For the five seasons after the end of the WWII, ten of the sixteen major league teams drew over one million fans per season.
During the five-year period between 1946 and 1950, the “haves” and “have-not” of baseball clubs remained very consistent. The Yankees were the only team to draw at least two million fans every one of those years. Four of the six teams that drew less than a million fans each year, did not change. The Browns, A’s, Reds and White Sox never reached the one million attendance mark. Of these lowly teams, all but the Cincinnati Reds had a competing team (from the other league) located in the same city.
The Washington Senators topped one million attendance marks in 1946 for the only time in the club’s history. The Boston Braves just barely missed the one-million mark in 1946, but topped a million fans in 1947, 48 and 49. They barely missed the milestone again in 1950. The Pirates took the Braves spot in the “million plus” attendance club for the 1950 season. Of the six “have-not” teams of the late-1940’s, only three (Pirates, White Sox and my home-town Reds) still remain in their original cities today.
Post-War America and the Baby Boom
When World War II ended, and the soldiers returned home; they married their sweethearts and started families in unprecedented numbers. Thirty-two million babies were born in the United States during the 1940’s, eight million more than were born during the previous decade. The great American “Baby Boom” was under way.
The huge increase in the population of children was a boom for candy and bubble gum manufacturers. By the end of the decade, Americans were consuming 2.5 billion pieces of bubble gum each year, doubling the annual amount consumed before the war. With bubble gum booming in popularity, bubble gum manufacturers were consistently seeking new ways to creatively market their product.
The ink and paper that was rationed during the war, was now readily available. Combined, with the built-up demand for bubble gum and never before seen crowds at the ballparks, the stage was now set. The baseball card hobby was about to explode onto the American scene as never before.
This article is taken from Dean’s upcoming book “The Gum Card War and the Great Bowman & Topps Baseball Card Sets of 1948-1955”, which is scheduled to be released later this year in both print and eBook forms. Please feel free to contact Dean with any questions or comments at Dean@DeansCards.com
Dean Hanley is an authority on vintage sports cards and has written numerous articles on the topic. Mr. Hanley is the founder DeansCards.com, and with well-over one million vintage cards in inventory, DeansCards.com is the largest seller of vintage cards on the web. Dean has also published “Before there was Bubble Gum: Our Favorite Pre-World War I Baseball Cards”, which is available in eBook form at Amazon.com
The following article was written by Dean and will be published in an upcoming issue of Sports Collectors Digest.
War World II changed almost every aspect of American life and the production of baseball cards was no exception. With America’s entrance into World War II and a national rationing program, which included paper and ink, supporting the war effort, these great Play Ball baseball card sets came to an unfortunate end.
In addition to paper and ink shortages, bubble gum production for domestic use virtually ceased. The reason was the war made it impossible to import the chicle and Siamese jelutong needed to make the gum. Gum, Inc. was forced to temporarily shut down.
As the supply for bubble gum ceased, the demand for it greatly increased. Bubble gum was included in military ration kits. Believed to reduce stress and tension, gum was effective in keeping tired soldiers awake.
Production of gum for domestic consumption stopped and savvy grocers who had accumulated a back stock of gum, marked it up to many times of its pre-war prices. Kids learned that if they put their gum glasses in water overnight, it would stay moist and could be re-used for several more days.
The boys go to war and baseball suffers
In 1941, Joe DiMaggio hit safely in 56 consecutive games, Ted Williams batted .406, 41-year-old Lefty Grove got his 300th career win, and Dodgers' catcher Mickey Owen capped off an exciting season, by mishandling a pitch that cost Brooklyn the World Series. The popularity of baseball was at an all-time high in 1941, but that momentum would come to a halt with World War II.
By 1942, the players began enlisting in the armed services and going off to war. As a result, the popularity of the game of baseball greatly suffered. Major League teams were forced to fill out their line-up cards with “has-beens” and players who would have never made it to the major leagues under normal circumstances.
Meanwhile, there were some great baseball games being played overseas. Most military units stationed in Europe and on bases in the Pacific, formed their own baseball teams. They were made up of major league players who were currently serving in those units to entertain the troops. By 1944, the soldiers on active duty and stationed far away, were seeing much better baseball games than the fans at home.
Once the “boys of war” returned home, the diamond stars of the “war years” saw their inflated numbers quickly drop and most disappeared back into civilian life.
Major-league attendance suffers During World War II, the number of people in the stands greatly diminished right along with the level of play on the field. The Brooklyn Dodgers led baseball with an attendance of 661,739 people for the 1943 season. In the seasons of 1943 and 1944, no team could reach the attendance milestone of one million fans.
No one had TV’s at this time and the large revenues that today’s clubs receive from television contracts were non-existent. Almost all of a baseball club’s revenue was created by putting fans in the stands. Once inside the park, the fans could also be sold food, drinks and team merchandise. By the end of the war, few baseball clubs were actually making money.
The boys return and baseball booms
To truly put these anemic attendance numbers into perspective, one must compare baseball attendance during the war to the number of fans in the stands after baseball’s stars had returned to the game. For the five seasons after the end of the WWII, ten of the sixteen major league teams drew over one million fans per season.
During the five-year period between 1946 and 1950, the “haves” and “have-not” of baseball clubs remained very consistent. The Yankees were the only team to draw at least two million fans every one of those years. Four of the six teams that drew less than a million fans each year, did not change. The Browns, A’s, Reds and White Sox never reached the one million attendance mark. Of these lowly teams, all but the Cincinnati Reds had a competing team (from the other league) located in the same city.
The Washington Senators topped one million attendance marks in 1946 for the only time in the club’s history. The Boston Braves just barely missed the one-million mark in 1946, but topped a million fans in 1947, 48 and 49. They barely missed the milestone again in 1950. The Pirates took the Braves spot in the “million plus” attendance club for the 1950 season. Of the six “have-not” teams of the late-1940’s, only three (Pirates, White Sox and my home-town Reds) still remain in their original cities today.
Post-War America and the Baby Boom
When World War II ended, and the soldiers returned home; they married their sweethearts and started families in unprecedented numbers. Thirty-two million babies were born in the United States during the 1940’s, eight million more than were born during the previous decade. The great American “Baby Boom” was under way.
The huge increase in the population of children was a boom for candy and bubble gum manufacturers. By the end of the decade, Americans were consuming 2.5 billion pieces of bubble gum each year, doubling the annual amount consumed before the war. With bubble gum booming in popularity, bubble gum manufacturers were consistently seeking new ways to creatively market their product.
The ink and paper that was rationed during the war, was now readily available. Combined, with the built-up demand for bubble gum and never before seen crowds at the ballparks, the stage was now set. The baseball card hobby was about to explode onto the American scene as never before.
This article is taken from Dean’s upcoming book “The Gum Card War and the Great Bowman & Topps Baseball Card Sets of 1948-1955”, which is scheduled to be released later this year in both print and eBook forms. Please feel free to contact Dean with any questions or comments at Dean@DeansCards.com
Dean Hanley is an authority on vintage sports cards and has written numerous articles on the topic. Mr. Hanley is the founder DeansCards.com, and with well-over one million vintage cards in inventory, DeansCards.com is the largest seller of vintage cards on the web. Dean has also published “Before there was Bubble Gum: Our Favorite Pre-World War I Baseball Cards”, which is available in eBook form at Amazon.com
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
1952 Bowman – Steady improvement, but over-matched
While 1952 Topps card set stole the spotlight for that particular year, the 1952 Bowman card set was anything but boring. It was simply overshadowed by the grandeur of the 1952 Topps issue. Bowman continued to slowly and steadily improve their product offering each year and 1952 was no exception.
The 1952 Bowman are more attractive than the 1951 cards, but identifying a player from his signature can be a bit tricky on some of the cards, forcing a collector to consult the card’s back for identification. The simple card backs feature player statistics and an advertisement for the Bowman Gum Company, a first for the company since 1949.
All in all, the 1952 Bowman baseball card set is a nice set to own and is much more affordable than the 1952 Topps set. A collector can purchase an entire 1952 Bowman complete set for the price of a low/mid grade 1952 Topps Mantle.
By Dean Hanley
Owner of DeansCards.com
This article is taken from Dean’s upcoming book “The Gum Card War and the Great Bowman & Topps Baseball Card Sets of 1948-1955”, which is scheduled to be released later this year in both print and eBook forms. Please feel free to contact Dean with any questions or comments at Dean@DeansCards.com
Dean Hanley is an authority on vintage sports cards and has written numerous articles on the topic. Mr. Hanley is the founder DeansCards.com, and with well-over one million vintage cards in inventory, DeansCards.com is the largest seller of vintage cards on the web. Dean has also published “Before there was Bubble Gum: Our Favorite Pre-World War I Baseball Cards”, which is available in eBook form at Amazon.com
1951 Topps Red and Blue Back Sets - Topps gets in the game
The 1951 Topps Red Back and Blue Back baseball card sets were the first pure baseball card sets ever issued by the Topps Gum Company. Due to the cards being small size and total number, as well as plain in design, the 1951 Topps Red and Blue Back cards appear somewhat elementary when compared to the later Topps issues. However, despite their simplicity, the two 52-card sets managed to lay the strong foundation on which the company would build their baseball card empire.
Topps realized that their first attempt at producing baseball cards would fall short of the product that Bowman had continued to perfect over the last three years. With that said, Topps decided to use a gimmick in order to differentiate themselves from their competition. Thus Topps produced their 1951 Topps Red and Blue back cards in a way that created a game that kids could play. The cards measure 2” by 2 ⅝” and have a background and back design similar to playing cards.
The red back set has a total of 52 cards with two variations (#36 Gus Zernial and #52 Tommy Holmes have two possible teams), while the blue backs also have 52 total cards, but with no variations. The front of the card has the game printed on the corners and the player’s head printed in black and white in the center. The card number appears on a slant in the middle of the card. The cards also include a short paragraph of statistics in the lower left corner.
Sales of the 1951 Topps Blue Back and 1951 Topps Red Back cards were extremely disappointing. Ultimately, boys were the judges of which company made the best baseball card and in 1951, the boys placed their votes by giving their hard-earned pennies to Bowman instead of spending them on the inferior Topps cards.
Today, there are many more 1951 Topps Red Back cards in circulation compared to the blue backs. However, this was not necessary the case back in 1951. This is partially due to the discovery of cases of red backed cards in a warehouse in the 1980’s. The red back cards that were found in this particular discovery are usually easy to identify because they are in such great condition and the perforations can still be seen on the card edges. By the time the red back cards were discovered, the card collecting hobby had matured. Now more than ever, collectors were aware of the financial wisdom that stemmed from keeping cards in pristine condition. The blue back common cards are up to ten times more expensive than the red backs, particularly in the nicer conditions.
DeansCards.com has over a million cards in stock and our online inventory is a great indicator of card populations in the hobby. The current online inventory at DeansCards.com confirms that there are many more of the red back cards in existence today when compared to their blue backed counterparts. While DeansCards.com will usually have a nice selection of the 1951 Topps Red Back cards, we generally only have a few of the Blue Back cards in stock. Despite the major the Red Back discovery, there are far fewer 1951 Topps cards in circulation than any other Topps issue.
In most cases, a low card population means that the cards will have a high value. We all learned in Economics 101 that: low supply + high demand = high price. Both the 1951 Topps Blue Back and Red Back Sets certainly have a very low population (or supply) which helps to increase their value. The problem however, lies in the notion that despite their overall scarcity, demand for the 1951 Topps sets is low when compared to the other sets of the 1950’s. Very few kids collected the set back in 1951 and few collectors choose to pursue it today. As a result, the two 1951 Topps sets are still affordable, especially the more plentiful red back cards.
Bowman clearly had the best baseball card in 1951
Meanwhile, back in Philadelphia, Bowman was busy making improvements to the baseball and football card sets that they issued in 1950. In one year, Bowman managed to increase both size of the cards, and number of cards in the set. In 1951, Bowman produced a very attractive set with hand-drawn action shots and a full paragraph description about the player on the back of the card. The 1951 Bowman baseball card set also had the advantage of star power. Two of the biggest stars of the 1950s, Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle, were under contract with Bowman. Thus these two superstar's rookie cards premiered in the 1951 Bowman set, once again giving Bowman an edge up on the competition. The product that Bowman presented to the market in spring of 1951 was clearly superior in every way to the Topps offering.
1949 Bowman – Adding a Touch of Color
The following article was written by Dean and published in the November 4, 2011 issue of Sports Collectors Digest.
In comparison to their 1948 set, the 1949 Bowman baseball card set was an improvement in both picture quality and quantity. The 1949 Bowman cards are the same size as their predecessor, but, instead of a bland black and white coloring, Bowman tinted the photographs of the players and added a colored the background. Bowman also drastically increased the size of the 1949 set, reaching 240 cards. This set also includes a high number series of cards (#145-240) that were issued in fewer numbers and are harder for collectors to find.
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| #50 Jackie Robinson |
The 1949 Bowman set also has several different variations for many of the cards. The variations for this set include things like: “name on the front”, “no name on the front”, “print name on back”, and “script name on back”.
The 1949 Bowman cards were issued with both white and grey backs. Both backs were issued in roughly the same numbers and therefore have approximately the same value. The 1949 Bowman baseball card set was issued in seven series, consisting of 36 cards each. This was extremely efficient because each of the printing sheets contained 36 cards. The result is a very clean set with an equal population for each of the cards.
Has anyone seen card #4?
Not only was Bowman getting better at producing cards, they were also getting better at selling their cards. In 1949, Bowman tried a clever “marketing trick” to help increase sales for the 1949 set. Bowman intentionally “removed” card # 4 from of the 1st series printing sheet, by simply renumbering it as card #73.
This marketing ploy was designed to trick boys to waste some of their hard-earned change on first series packs of cards in the hopeless effort to obtain that elusive 1949 Bowman # 4 card. Collectors eventually discovered that they had to wait until the 3rd Series, which was released several months later, if they wanted to obtain card #4.
To the disappointment of many young collectors, Bowman had not been saving a superstar for card # 4, instead choosing to feature Jerry Priddy, a St. Louis Browns infielder with a less than remarkable playing career. Another benefit of this deception was that by including a card #73 in the 1st series, it was a clear signal to the kids that the set was going to contain more than 36 cards.
My guess is the ruse involving the #4 was treated with some distain by collectors, if it was even noticed by collectors. It is doubtful that this trick increased Bowman’s 1949 card sales by a large amount. As a business owner, I would imagine that the trust lost after pulling a trick like on their customers, far outweighed any extra profit made by increased sales. Either way, this ploy would never be intentionally repeated by Bowman (or Topps) again.
Left Coast Cards
Bowman also tried to tap into the rapidly growing population on the west coast by releasing a 36-card Pacific Coast League baseball card set in 1949 that looked identical to the regular 1949 issue. These cards were distributed only on the west coast and in Bowman’s hometown of Philadelphia. The Pacific Coast League players were particularly popular in the 1940's and early part of the 1950's because there was no major league team playing there until 1957.
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| #28 Lee "Jeep" Handley |
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| #28 Lee "Jeep" Handley |
The Pacific Coast League cards can be easily distinguished by the "PCL" before the card number. Unfortunately, the PCL cards were not very well received and idea was discontinued after one series of cards; therefore, because they were issued in much smaller numbers, the 1949 Bowman PCL cards are much more expensive and difficult for today’s collectors to find than compared to the regular 1949 Bowman set.
By Dean Hanley
Owner of DeansCards.com
This article is taken from Dean’s upcoming book “The Gum Card War and the Great Bowman & Topps Baseball Card Sets of 1948-1955”, which is scheduled to be released later this year in both print and eBook forms. Please feel free to contact Dean with any questions or comments at Dean@DeansCards.com
Dean Hanley is an authority on vintage sports cards and has written numerous articles on the topic. Mr. Hanley is the founder DeansCards.com, and with well-over one million vintage cards in inventory, DeansCards.com is the largest seller of vintage cards on the web. Dean has also published “Before there was Bubble Gum: Our Favorite Pre-World War I Baseball Cards”, which is available in eBook form at Amazon.com.
The 1949 Bowman Article is dedicated to Rocky, a regular SCD reader, who was kind enough to sell us is 1949 Bowman complete set. Earlier in the year he also parted with his beloved 1950 Bowman set. Rocky, Please enjoy!
1948 Bowman - The Return of the Baseball Card
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| #18 Warren Spahn |
Because this was first major set of baseball cards issued since before World War II, the majority of the cards (62%) are rookie cards. Among the 30 players making their first appearance on a card, nine would be elected to baseball's Hall-of-Fame, which is a record for post-war sets. These future Hall-of-Fame players in the 1948 Bowman set include: #3 Ralph Kiner, #4 Johnny Mize, #5 Bob Feller, #6 Yogi Berra, #8 Phil Rizzuto, #17 Enos Slaughter, #18 Warren Spahn, #36 Stan Musial and #38 Red Schoendienst.
In 1948, Bowman was forced to use the photos that they had available to create the cards. The results were very mixed. Warren Spahn's card is probably the most disappointing rookie card of a Hall-of-Famer ever printed. Evidently, this was the best photo of Spahn that could be found before the printing deadline. The strangest card in the 1948 set has to be the one of Phil Rizzuto. This photo gives the impression that Rizzuto has a pillow tucked inside of his shirt.
Short-Prints, Double-Prints, and High Numbers
As the first baseball cards produced in seven years, the 1948 Bowman set has some unique quirks. The 1948 Bowman baseball card set was designed to be issued in one series of 48 cards. The problem is that a printing sheet contained 36 cards, so the set would have to be printed in two separate sheets. It is unclear as to why Bowman decided to issue a set with only 48 cards. It could be that Bowman had signed contracts with only 48 players, which would explain the large number of players from the New York-based teams. A more likely scenario is that after a seven-year break in producing cards, Bowman had to re-educate themselves on the manufacturing process.
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| #8 Phil Rizzuto |
According to most traditional price guides, the 1948 Bowman baseball card set contains 12 short-printed cards and 12 high-numbered cards. After consulting the DeansCards.com inventory, the surviving population of 1948 Bowman Short-Print and High Number cards seems about the same. It also appears that the same number of sheets were printed for both of the print runs, so my conclusion is that one-half of the cards in the 1948 Bowman baseball card set had twice the number of cards printed as the other half of the set.
Bowman quickly discovered that the printing costs for a 72-card set is almost the same as that of a 48-card set, so they quickly corrected their mistake by the time they issued their football card set that fall.. Bowman used this card size for several more baseball, football, and non-sports card sets until they eventually increased the size of their cards in 1951. It is interesting to note that the number of cards in each of these sets is divisible by 36, eliminating the problem of short-printed cards.
Luckily for collectors of the short-printed cards, the only superstar is #8 Phil Rizzuto. Even with 24 "short-printed” cards in the set, the 1948 Bowman set only ranks as "moderately difficult" to complete.
All Part of a Bigger Plan
The Bowman Gum Co. knew exactly what they were trying to accomplish in 1948, therefore they were able to succeed. Bowman wanted to issue a “national” set and not be limited to just one region of the country; and that they did. The 1948 Bowman baseball card set contains players from 10 of the 16 major league teams.The 1948 Bowman baseball card set was a very modest offering by all standards. Considered the most basic of all the Bowman sets, 1948 Bowman set was an important first step in the evolution of the baseball card. It was the first set of the modern era of baseball cards, and ultimately ushered in a decade great sets. By doing things on a small scale in 1948 – a plan that Topps would replicate in 1951 - Bowman learned some very valuable lessons and was then able to come out with a much larger and better set of cards the following season. Even with a virtual monopoly on the bubble gum baseball card market, Bowman would steadily improve its product offering over the next five years.
By Dean Hanley
Owner of DeansCards.com
This article is taken from Dean’s upcoming book “The Gum Card War and the Great Bowman & Topps Baseball Card Sets of 1948-1955”, which is scheduled to be released later this year in both print and eBook forms. Please feel free to contact Dean with any questions or comments at Dean@DeansCards.com
Dean Hanley is an authority on vintage sports cards and has written numerous articles on the topic. Mr. Hanley is the founder DeansCards.com, and with well-over one million vintage cards in inventory, DeansCards.com is the largest seller of vintage cards on the web. Dean has also published “Before there was Bubble Gum: Our Favorite Pre-World War I Baseball Cards”, which is available in eBook form at Amazon.com
Friday, September 9, 2011
1957 Topps Space Cards / Target: Moon
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| # 16 Strapped Down for Takeoff - 1957 Topps Space Cards |
It's 1957. The United States and Soviet Union are beginning the great space race. What would happen in the near future could only be imagined as a fantastic dream. The sky was clearly not the limit any more.
With a majority of the population entranced by the atmosphere of a science fiction novel, the Topps company decided to throw its hat in the ring with their release of 1957 Topps Space Cards and 1957 Topps Target: Moon Cards. The sets each contain 88 cards with identical card fronts and backs.
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| # 88 Life on Other Planets - 1957 Topps Space Cards |
The reason for producing two nearly identical sets escapes a lot of collectors. One theory is that the Target: Moon cards were released a year after the Space cards. Regardless, Target: Moon is still recognized as a 1957 Topps release. Target: Moon also holds a marginally higher value when compared to the Space Cards issue.
Another interesting twist with this set is the Popsicle version of Target: Moon. The differences can clearly be seen on the back of the cards; with the Space cards and earlier Target: Moon having blue colored backs and Target: Moon Popsicle cards having pink (some call it salmon colored) backs. The year of issue for the Popsicle backs is rumored to be a good bit after the initial releases of both the 1957 Space Cards and Target: Moon sets.
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| The differences between the regular issue and Popsicle version are a bit more evident. |
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Broke a Set: 1953 Bowman Black & White
We recently broke a set of this classic baseball card offering from Bowman...
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| # 28 Hoyt Wilhelm - 1953 Bowman B&W |
The 1953 Bowman Black & White cards are generally more difficult to find than their color counterpart and therefore are slightly more expensive on a card by card basis (an entire 1953 Bowman Color set is more expensive than the '53 Bowman B&W because there are so many more cards in that set).
Dean's Cards just broke an Excellent/Mint set of 1953 Bowman Black and White Baseball Cards and added them to inventory. As with all of our vintage complete sets, the grading is extremely consistent. This means that we now have a card in Excellent/Mint for just about every number!
Featured players in this set include: Mize, Stengel, Lemon, Wilhelm, Bridges, Harris, Bell, Sain, and Roe.
If you like the 1953 Bowman Black & White Baseball card set, check out the 1953 Bowman Color Baseball Set. We also have 1953 Bowman Black and White Reprints, Reprint Complete Sets, and other various vintage Bowman offerings.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Recently Added: 1961-62 Fleer Basketball Cards
Check out some vintage hoops stars in the classic Fleer Basketball Set...
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| Black and White on Ultra-bright backgrounds |
The 1961-62 Fleer set featured cards of 44 different players and consisted of 66 cards in total, thus cards #'s 45-66 were action shots of players pictured elsewhere in the set. We've just acquired a collection of 150 of these cards that are online and ready to sell! In this collection were multiple stars including: # 36 Oscar Robertson, # 44 Lenny Wilkins RK, and # 66 Jerry West.
So head on over to DeansCards.com and check out our offering of 1961-62 Fleer Basketball Cards. Also, if you are interested in buying Basketball Cards, check out the 1986-87 Fleer Basketball Cards.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Recently Added: 1965 Topps Baseball Complete Set - Very Good
Check out our new 1965 Topps Baseball Complete Set...
This 1965 Topps Baseball Complete set contains 589 cards. The front of each card features a player's photo with a pennant design containing the player's team. The reverse side is printed in blue ink and provides the player's biographical information and statistical history. The high numbers series (371-598) is hard to find individually and contains several expensive short print cards, which are also included in this set.
Important rookie cards included in this set include: Steve Carlton, Catfish Hunter, Tony Perez, Joe Morgan, and Mansori Murakami.
Players included in this set that are now in the Hall of Fame: Roberts, Morgan, Bunning, Marichal, Conigliaro, F. Robinson, Kaline, Mantle, Gibson, B. Robinson, Maris, Clemente, Aaron, McCovey, Stengel, Perry, Spahn, Rose, B. Williams, Mays, Drysdale, Wilhelm, Koufax, Ford, Cepeda, Stargell, Yaz, Killebrew, Aparicio, Niekro, Berra, Carlton, Fox, Mathews, Banks, Hunter, Brock, and Perez.
The high-dollar-cards grade as follows:
#134 Mantle (World Series Game 3): Very Good
#160 Clemente: Very Good
#207 Rose: Excellent
#250 Mays: Excellent
#300 Koufax: Very Good
#350 Mantle: Very Good/Excellent
#477 Carlton RC: Very Good
#510 Banks: Excellent
#526 Hunter RC: Excellent
#581 Perez RC: Very Good
If you’ve already been working on completing your 1965 Topps Baseball Complete set, check out Dean’s cards to buy 1965 Topps Baseball singles and fill in your
holes. We also have a large assortment
of other Vintage Baseball Complete Sets and Vintage Baseball Cards to choose
from. If you let us earn your business,
you will find that our Complete Sets are graded more consistently and more conservatively than just about
anyone online.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Recently Added: 1962 Topps Baseball Low Number Set - Very Good/Excellent
This 1962 Topps Baseball low number set contains cards 1-522. The last series (523-598) is NOT included. The last series of this set contains mostly "no name" players and is fairly hard to collect due to the majority of cards being short printed. Low number sets like this one, are popular with collectors because you get almost the entire set and all major stars, at a fraction of the cost.
The important sub-series for this set include the popular Babe Ruth series, summarizing the life and career of Ruth (135-144) and the Sporting Magazine All Star Series American League (466-475) and National League (390-399).
Rookie cards included in this set include: Boog Powell, Lou Brock, and Gaylord Perry.
This set is loaded with hall of famers including: Koufax, Clemente, Mantle, Mays, Banks, Stengel, Mathews, Cepeda, B. Robinson, Musial, Maris, Killebrew, Fox, Hodges, Spahn, Kaline, Perry, Ashburn, Ford, Roberts, B. Williams, Mazeroski, Berra, Wynn, Brock, Aaron, F. Robinson, Snider, Marichal, Wilhelm, and Schoendienst.
The high-dollar cards grade as follows:
#1 Maris: Excellent
#5 Koufax: Very Good/Excellent
#10 Clemente: Excellent
#18 Managers' Dream (Mantle & Mays): Excellent
#50 Musial: Excellent
#53 A.L. Home Run Leaders (Maris & Mantle): Very Good
#200 Mantle: Very Good/Excellent
#300 Mays: Very Good
#318 Mantle IA: Excellent
#320 Aaron: Very Good
#387 Brock RC: Very Good
#425 Yaz: Very Good/Excellent
#471 Mantle AS: Excellent
Click here to buy this 1962 Topps Baseball Low Number Set...
If you’ve already been working on completing your 1962 Topps Baseball Low Number set, check out Dean’s cards to buy 1962 Topps Baseball singles and fill in your holes. We also have a large assortment of other Vintage Baseball Complete Sets and Vintage Baseball Cards to choose from. If you let us earn your business, you will find that our Complete Sets are graded more consistently and more conservatively than just about anyone online.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Recently Added: Great Collection of 1953 World on Wheels Non-Sports Cards!
Check out the new selection of classic car cards...
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| These cards are ready to drive off our lot and into your collection! |
The 1953 World on Wheels set began as a 160 card set when it was first issued in 1953, however an additional 20 cards were added to ensure the set included the newest models of the time. Dean's Cards recently acquired a collection of roughly 300 of the 1953 World on Wheels cards!
Perhaps the coolest part of this collection is that it contains over 50 of the High Numbers (#'s 161-180)! Most of these cards are in mid-grade condition, so they are affordable for the casual set or singles collector. The World on Wheels cards truly do provoke nostalgia for classic automobiles many of us grew up with.
So head over to DeansCards.com and check out our selection of 1953 Topps World on Wheels cards. Also, if you are a fan of these, you might enjoy 1961 Topps Sports Car Cards or 1955 Topps Rails and Sails Cards.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Recently Added: 1959 Topps Baseball Complete Set Very Good/Excellent
Check out our new 1959 Topps Baseball Complete Set...
At DeansCards.com, 1959 Topps Baseball cards and sets are some of our best selling items. This particular set grades Very Good/Excellent so it is a great mid-grade set, and is very affordable when compared to high grade sets (which usually go for a premium).
Rookie cards included in this set: Sparky Anderson, Felipe Alou, Bob Gibson, Norm Cash, and Bill White.
This set is loaded with hall of famers including: Frick, Mantle, Snider, Fox, Mays, Bunning, Musial, Slaughter, Koufax, Berra, Maris, Wynn, Ashburn, Aparicio, Sparky Anderson, Wilhelm, Banks, Roberts, Kaline, Aaron, Drysdale, Cepeda, Ford, F. Robinson, B. Robinson, Mathews, and Clemente.
The high-dollar cards grade as follows:
#10 Mantle: Very Good/Excellent,
#50 Mays: Very Good,
#150 Musial: Excellent,
#163 Koufax: Very Good Plus,
#202 Maris: Excellent,
#380 Aaron: Very Good/Excellent,
#461 Mantle HR: Excellent,
#478 Clemente: Excellent,
#510 Yankees Team: Very Good,
#514 Gibson: Excellent/Mint,
#515 Killebrew: Very Good/Excellent,
#543 Corsair Trio: Very Good,
#550 Campanella: Excellent,
#561 Aaron AS: Excellent,
#563 Mays AS: Very Good Plus,
#564 Mantle AS: Good/Very Good.
Click here to buy this 1959 Topps Baseball Complete Set...
If you’ve already been working on completing your 1959 Topps Baseball Complete set, check out Dean’s cards to buy 1959 Topps Baseball singles and fill in your holes. We also have a large assortment of other Vintage Baseball Complete Sets and Vintage Baseball Cards to choose from. If you let us earn your business, you will find that our Complete Sets are graded more consistently and more conservatively than just about anyone online.
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