The summer of 1976 was a firecracker celebration of American excess, from the nationwide commemoration of our Bicentennial to Bruce Jenner's crowning as the "World's Greatest Athlete" when he won the decathlon at the Montreal Olympics in record fashion. On the diamond, the star-studded Cincinnati Reds and New York Yankees were rocketing through the regular season and … [Read more...] about Vintage Set of the Week: 1976 Topps Baseball
6 Underrated Baseball Rookie Cards of the 1940s
Even though the sports card hobby was hit especially hard by World War II thanks to paper rations and playing time lost to military service, collectors were nevertheless treated to some pretty stout 1940s baseball rookie cards. Jackie Robinson, Stan Musial, and Warren Spahn, for instance, were giants of the game, and all three of them made their cardboard debuts during the … [Read more...] about 6 Underrated Baseball Rookie Cards of the 1940s
Vintage Set of the Week: 1977 Topps Baseball
When frigid collectors were finally able to shed their heavy coats and stroll to the corner store to pick up a few wax packs of Topps baseball cards 38 years ago this spring, they must have been even more rabid in their enthusiasm than normal. Not only did the arrival of 1977 Topps baseball mean the end of an especially brutal winter, but the new set also featured the rookie … [Read more...] about Vintage Set of the Week: 1977 Topps Baseball
Top Vintage Quarterback Rookie Cards
It has often been said that the NFL is a quarterback league, and that's especially true these days when just about every signal-caller is capable of reeling off 4000-yard, 35-touchdown seasons. Even so, NFL history is full of legendary QBs, and vintage quarterback rookie cards stand at the top of many collectors' want lists and drive set values year after year. What follows … [Read more...] about Top Vintage Quarterback Rookie Cards
Top 10 Hockey Rookie Cards of the 1950s
Hockey cards may never rival baseball and football cards in terms of the sheer number of issues or US hobbyists who collect them, but there is always a strong following for star rookie cards, regardless of the sport, and hockey is king in Canada. Hockey rookie cards of the 1950s, in particular, featured some of the greatest names the game has ever known, and their relative … [Read more...] about Top 10 Hockey Rookie Cards of the 1950s
1962 Topps Baseball Ingrained in Hobby Lore
Life as a Major League baseball player simply doesn't get much more glamorous than it was for Roger Maris in the spring of 1962. Not only did he break Babe Ruth's single-season home run record and win his second consecutive AL MVP award as his New York Yankees marched to yet another World Series title the year before, but he was featured in all his … [Read more...] about 1962 Topps Baseball Ingrained in Hobby Lore
5 Underrated Baseball Rookie Cards of the 1930s
After the tobacco card boom of the 1910s, baseball card collectors ran into some lean times during the 1920s, as most years during that Roaring decade featured very few major issues. Starting in 1933, though, Goudey came to the rescue of Depression-era kids with several colorful sets that featured some of the most iconic first-year cards the hobby has ever seen. Of course, … [Read more...] about 5 Underrated Baseball Rookie Cards of the 1930s
1952 Topps Baseball Card Set Launched an American Icon
In the fall of 1951, young Sy Berger was handed the task of designing a 1952 Topps baseball card that would make boys forget about all the issues that had come before and, especially, any issue that rival gum maker Bowman might put together for the following spring. Berger took a direct approach to the task, incorporating into his design everything that Bowman … [Read more...] about 1952 Topps Baseball Card Set Launched an American Icon
5 Favorite Multi-player Baseball Cards of the 1960s
In the 1950s, Topps and Bowman slugged it out for bubble gum dollars and cardboard supremacy by bringing several innovations to the baseball card market. One of those was the advent of multi-player cards, as illustrated by our five favorites of the 1950s, and it was a practice that Topps would continue long after Bowman had been dispatched to the history books. As the 1950s … [Read more...] about 5 Favorite Multi-player Baseball Cards of the 1960s
1936 Goudey Baseball a Cheap Pre-War Option
In 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression and seeking to gain an advantage on their competition, the Boston-based Goudey Gum Company dusted off an idea that had worked well for tobacco and candy companies earlier in the 20th Century: including baseball picture cards in packages of their products as an incentive to buyers. That 1933 Goudey set is generally acknowledged as … [Read more...] about 1936 Goudey Baseball a Cheap Pre-War Option