• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Get Sports Collectors Daily via EMail
    • Advertise with SC Daily
    • Write for Sports Collectors Daily
    • Write About Your Sports Collection
    • Where Can I Sell My Baseball Cards?
  • Hot on eBay
    • Most Watched Graded Rookies
    • Most Watched PSA 10 Cards
    • Most Watched BGS, BVG Cards
    • Most Watched SGC Cards
    • Most Watched Baseball Cards
      • Most Watched 2023 Baseball Cards
      • Most Watched 2022 Baseball Rookie Cards
      • Bowman Chrome Cards
      • Wander Franco Cards
      • Mike Trout Cards
      • Fernando Tatis Jr. Cards
      • Babe Ruth Cards
      • Hank Aaron Cards
      • Jackie Robinson Cards:
      • Mickey Mantle Cards
      • Willie Mays Cards
      • Vintage Baseball Card Sets
      • T206 Cards
    • Most Watched Basketball
      • Top 100 Most Watched Basketball Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2022-23 NBA Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2021-22 NBA Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2020-21 NBA Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2019-20 NBA Rookie Cards
        • Zion Williamson Rookie Cards
        • Ja Morant Rookie Cards
      • Michael Jordan Cards
      • Kobe Bryant Cards
      • LeBron James Rookie Cards
      • Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie Cards
      • Luka Doncic Rookie Cards
      • Prizm Basketball Cards
      • Panini National Treasures
    • Most Watched Football Cards
      • Most Watched NFL Rookie Cards
      • 2022 NFL Rookie Cards
        • Brock Purdy Rookie Cards
      • 2021 NFL Rookie Cards
      • 2020 NFL Rookie Cards
        • Joe Burrow Rookie Cards
        • Justin Herbert Rookie Cards
        • Jalen Hurts Rookie Cards
      • Josh Allen Rookie Cards
      • Patrick Mahomes Rookie Cards
      • Tom Brady Cards
    • Most Watched Hockey Cards
      • Top 100 Most Watched Hockey Rookie Cards
      • Most Watched 2020-21 Rookie Cards
      • Most Watched 2019-20 Rookie Cards
      • Connor McDavid Cards
      • Wayne Gretzky Cards
      • Bobby Orr Cards
    • Most Watched Soccer Cards
    • Most Watched UFC Cards
    • Most Watched Golf Cards
    • Most Watched 1 of 1 Cards
    • Most Watched Racing Cards
    • Top Sports Card Dealers on eBay
    • Most Watched Memorabilia
      • Vintage Sports Memorabilia
    • Vintage Sports Tickets, Stubs
    • Most Watched Autographs
  • Ending Soon on Ebay
    • Baseball Cards
    • Basketball Cards
    • Football Cards
    • Hockey Cards
    • Soccer Cards
    • Golf Cards
    • UFC Cards
  • Top - Ad

Sports Collectors Daily

Sports Collectors Daily

Sports collecting news - Sports cards and sports memorabilia industry news.

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network. 

  • Sports Memorabilia News
  • Sports Card News
    • Modern Sports Card News
      • New Sports Card Release Calendar
      • Shop Talk
    • Vintage Sports Card News
      • Affordable Vintage Cards, Collectibles
      • Old Baseball Card Sets
      • Old Basketball Card Sets
      • Old Football Card Sets
      • Old Hockey Card Sets
      • Vintage Pack Facts
  • Business/Industry News
    • Sports Memorabilia Business News
    • Sports Memorabilia Industry News
  • Around The Hobby
    • Editor’s Blog
    • David Cycleback’s Identification and Authentication Advice
  • Popular Stories
  • Sell Your Cards
You are here: Home / Rich Klein's Ramblings / Recalling Two of the Hobby’s Major Figures

Recalling Two of the Hobby’s Major Figures

August 31, 2015 By Rich Klein

It was not that long ago when the highlight of any sports collector’s week would be when a new Mastro Auctions catalog arrived.  Just to see some of the history that was being sold was amazing and the company did its best to create descriptions for each lot that, while often over the top, did whet your appetite for sports history.  The photography of some of the major lots made you really want what was in the picture. And that was surely the point.

Rich Ramblings 2014Bill Mastro, who will report to a federal prison sometime soon to serve 20 months for fraud, was boss of an operation that helped the hobby evolve from a show/store/mail order way of acquiring items to the current market where there seems to be a new auction house popping up every month or so.

I never dealt with Mastro on anything during my dealing days nor did I have the money to buy auction lots from him but I think we can safely say in the first decade of the 21st century, he and his company were a towering presence.  To supplement the thousands of consignments that were shipped to Chicago, you would see Mastro employees scouring the floor of major shows, buying and also rounding up items.  The dark side would eventually emerge as the FBI found major wrongdoing inside the company’s offices and today, Mastro Auctions is but a memory.

If we say Mastro was the most well-known figure of 2000-2009, we can make the same argument about Alan “Mr. Mint” Rosen in the 1980s. Unlike Mastro, I did have several dealings with Al during my New Jersey days.  He was a polarizing figure to many but he was always professional and honest with me and I was saddened when I heard at the National from a mutual friend of ours that he was battling some health issues.

Al has opted not to come to the National for several years but at the very first NSCC I attended back in 1983, he was getting his luggage off the cart in Chicago at the same time as me and seeing him made me realize the show was going to be a good one.  If Al Rosen was setting up, we knew there would be people in the room.  I don’t think any of us realized just how good the 1983 Chicago National was going to be but it gave me memories which still last to this day of being busy for 12 hours straight.  I have never had a day like the opening of the 1983 Chicago show.  The crowds were ravenous for sports cards.

Al made a name for himself during the 1980s and his innovative ways of advertising in the leading hobby publications and his stories about his “finds” brought us to new highs.  Whether or not you liked his in your face approach, the hobby received a ton of publicity because of Al including a segment on the Today Show, magazine features, radio coverage and wire service stories that appeared in newspapers coast-to-coast and beyond.  It brought many collections out of dusty attics and closets and not all of them went to Mr. Mint.

We won’t be hearing from Mastro again and Al’s days as a pitchman are probably in the past but even as their stars have dimmed and other hobby people have evolved to become leaders, it’s not possible to deny their impact on the hobby, even on today’s collectors.  Some became attached to “high end” cards as the catalog auction business grew and continue to operate at the highest realms of the graded card market.  Others are at the opposite end of the spectrum, like one of my local customers who is an assistant manager at McDonald’s and brings his change jar to buy cards at my shows.  Some saw Al Rosen’s wad of cash in an ad and became interested in picking up where their childhood collection left off.

It’s all a reminder that the last 30 years have been a remarkable time in the hobby, which still revolves around photos on cardboard but has had its share of interesting stories and personalities too.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit
  • Facebook Messenger

Related Stories:

Who’s Leaving Junk Wax Cards at NY Supermarket? Record Price for Mint 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle 1955 Bowman baseball boxStories in Rosen’s ‘True Mint’ an Invaluable Part of Hobby History Mr. Mint Alan RosenBaseball Card Pioneer Alan Rosen Dies Bo Jackson bobble head bat snapSox Unveil Bo Jackson Bat Snapping Bobblehead Larry Bird 1981-82 Topps5 Underrated Old Basketball Card Sets

Filed Under: Rich Klein's Ramblings Tagged With: 1980s, alan rosen, Bill Mastro, mr mint

Primary Sidebar

Our articles may contain affiliate links. When you click on links to merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network. 

  • Football
  • Basketball
  • Baseball
  • Hockey

High End Cards and Memorabilia

  • BBCE Authenticated Boxes, Packs opens in a new window
  • Graded pre-War Card Auctions
  • Graded Rookie Cards opens in a new window
  • Authenticated Photos opens in a new window
  • Graded Tickets & Stubs opens in a new window

Bargain Corner

  • Michael Jordan cards $5 and less opens in a new window
  • Kobe Bryant cards $5 and less opens in a new window
  • Mickey Mantle Cards Under $150 opens in a new window
  • Graded T206 Cards Under $150 opens in a new window
  • Pre-War Cards Under $100 opens in a new window
  • Pre-1980 Graded Baseball Cards $10 and Less opens in a new window
  • Pre-1980 Graded Football Cards $10 and Less opens in a new window
  • Vintage Graded Basketball Cards $25 and less opens in a new window
  • Vintage Graded Hockey Cards $10 and Less opens in a new window
  • Complete Sets $20 and Less opens in a new window
  • Baseball Hall of Famers for $5 or Less opens in a new window
  • Football Hall of Famers for $5 or Less opens in a new window
  • Hobby Boxes Under $30 opens in a new window
  • Pre-1986 Rookie Cards Under $1 opens in a new window

RSS Auction Report

  • All-Star Cards Accepting Consingments
  • 2023 Auction Schedule
  • SCP Auctions Offers Wilt Chamberlain Rookie Season Uniform Auction – End June 17, 2023

Footer

Categories

  • Around the Hobby
  • Business/Industry News
    • Sports Memorabilia Business News
    • Sports Memorabilia Industry News
  • David Cycleback's Identification and Authentication Advice
  • Editor's Blog
  • Featured Articles
  • Hobby Shop Talk
  • National Sports Collectors Convention
  • Popular Stories
  • Rich Klein's Ramblings
  • Sports Card News
    • Modern Sports Card News
      • New Sports Card Release Calendar
    • Vintage Sports Card News
      • Old Baseball Card Sets
      • Old Basketball Card Sets
      • Old Football Card Sets
      • Old Hockey Card Sets
      • Vintage Pack Facts
  • Sports Memorabilia News
  • Uncategorized

Sponsor Links

  • Sports Card Forumopens in a new window
  • Buying Vintage Sports Cardsopens in a new window
  • Game Used Jerseysopens in a new window
  • Championship Rings For Saleopens in a new window
  • Vintage Basketball Cardsopens in a new window
  • NBA Signed Itemsopens in a new window
  • Autographed Baseballsopens in a new window
  • NASCAR Autographsopens in a new window
  • Vintage Graded Baseball Cardsopens in a new window
  • Player Picturesopens in a new window
  • Vintage Football Cardsopens in a new window
  • Sports Collectors Storeopens in a new window

Pages

Ending on eBay Soon
  • Baseball Card Auctions on eBay Ending Soon
  • Basketball Card Auctions on eBay Ending Soon
  • Football Card Auctions on eBay Ending Soon
  • Hockey Card Auctions Ending Soon on eBay
  • Vintage Sports Memorabilia on eBay Ending Soon
Top 100 on Ebay
  • Top 100 Most Watched Baseball Rookie Cards on eBay
  • Top 100 Most Watched Basketball Rookie Cards for Sale on eBay
  • Top 100 Most Watched Hockey Rookie Card Auctions
  • Top Authenticated Vintage Unopened Sports Card Boxes, Packs on eBay
Most Watched on eBay
  • 100 Most Watched Graded Rookie Cards for Sale on eBay
  • 100 Most Watched Tom Brady Card Auctions on eBay
  • 50 Hottest Hobby Boxes at Auction on eBay
  • 50 Most Watched Golf Trading Cards on eBay
  • 50 Most Watched Wrestling Trading Cards on eBay
  • 75 Most Watched Bowman Chrome Cards
  • Most Popular Bobbleheads on eBay
  • Most Watched 1/1 Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Basketball Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Complete Baseball Card Sets at Auction on eBay
  • Most Watched Football Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Football Rookie Card Auctions
  • Most Watched Goudey Baseball Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Hockey Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Racing Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Soccer Cards for Sale on eBay
  • Most Watched Sports Autographs on eBay
  • Most Watched Sports Jerseys on eBay
  • Most Watched Unopened Sports Card Boxes, Packs on eBay
  • Most Watched Vintage Sports Memorabilia on eBay
  • Hottest Panini National Treasures Cards on eBay
  • Hottest PSA 10 Cards for Sale on eBay
  • What’s Hot on eBay
Sports Memorabilia
  • Sports Card Bargain Bin
  • Sports Memorabilia Auctions Ending Soon on eBay
About Sports Collectors Daily
  • Advertise with SC Daily
  • Contact Us
  • Get Sports Collectors Daily via EMail
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
Sell Your Cards
  • What’s It Worth
  • Where Can I Sell My Baseball Cards?

Copyright © 2023 SportsCollectorsDaily.com | Web Design by Wickam Groupopens in a new window