The Dallas Cowboys have hired an archivist to organize and catalog the physical history of the franchise.
Joshua Thorn, a 31-year-old Cowboys fan from Philadelphia left a similar job at Campbell Soup and now works for the team.
Thorn told the Dallas Morning News he’s found a treasure trove of memorabilia including game-worn jerseys, player contracts, film of the team’s first pre-season games in their inaugural season of 1960 and thousands of photos.
Filling the position had been on team owner Jerry Jones’ mind for years, according to the story, which includes a photo gallery of what’s been dug out of storage so far.
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If you’re an old school collector, you may not understand the concept, but it’s pretty clear Topps is focusing much of its attention on the 18-25 year-olds who are the heart of its digital trading card business.
Topps BUNT has been especially popular.
It’s an idea that may sound new, but is really rooted in what collecting is really all about. At least that seems to be the conclusion of this Slate column, written by David Roth, who once worked for the company.
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One of Babe Ruth’s bats is no more but collectors of high-end Topps cards are more than willing to fork over big money to own the knob. It’s part of a 1/1 card in the 2012 Topps Triple Threads product—or at least it was until someone pulled it from a pack.
The card is now on eBay and is the ‘most watched’ baseball card currently up for bid.
See the listing here.
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You may have read our story about the new World Football League Series III set being produced by a group of collectors. It turns out, 
Topps had been planning a WFL set during its inaugural season 40 years ago.
How do we know?
Their plans were revealed in a July 8, 1974 Sports Illustrated story about the league, which mentioned a deal was in the works. They apparently dispatched photographers to capture images of players who might be candidates for what would more than likely have been a bubble gum card issue.
Richie Franklin, who is putting together the retro set, has purchased a few of those old images through the Topps Vault auctions on eBay. Those images are what you’re seeing here.
“After reading that SI article, I would check several of our local retail stores after school in my hometown to see if anyone had Topps WFL Football Cards,” Franklin recalled. “I even mailed a letter to Larry Fritsch to see if he had (them). I had bought some CFL football cards from him, and I was hoping he was carrying WFL cards. I am not sure if he ever replied to my letter or not. With the financial issues the league had and the uncertainty of the leagues future, I am sure Topps just scrapped their plans to create a set.”
Related Stories:
Mike Sherrard Q&A: Writing Letters to Biletnikoff, Bo Jackson Gifted Bat, New Venture
2nd Round of Emmitt Smith Auctions Includes Gear from Final Cowboys Game, TD Footballs
Topps Announces Multi-Year Partnership with Derek Jeter
BUNT App Launches 5th Anniversary Season
2016 Topps Bunt Combines Digital And Traditional Collecting
Confirmed: Topps Expanding Digital Efforts in Florida
Topps: More Than 2 Million Registered BUNT Players
World Football League Cards a Labor of Love
