Think "Topps" and most people think baseball but the truth is, the trading card side of the business always been about pop culture. If it's entertainment or sports and people talk about it or like to collect it, the company is interested. If it'll sell and the licensing is right, it's a candidate for the company's cards, both physical and digital. … [Read more...]
Duke Snider Cards Spanned Parts of 3 Decades
While Yankee fans loved Mickey and Giants fans thought Willie was the best, Duke Snider baseball cards are what Dodger fans wanted in the golden era of 1950s New York baseball. In Brooklyn, he was known simply as the Duke, or the Duke of Flatbush. Edwin Donald “Duke” Snider was a mainstay for the Dodgers, a power-hitting center fielder who helped the franchise win five … [Read more...]
Best Pete Rose Cards Through the Years
He was a staple inside packs for over 20 years. Loved by some; despised by others. Respected by most even now, at least for the way he played the game. Every collector has a different idea about what would be on the list of the best Pete Rose cards. For those growing up in the mid-1960s through the mid-80s, it was rare to find anyone who didn’t have at least a … [Read more...]
1964 Topps Rookie Stars Full of Fun, Flubs, Future
At a recent show, one of my regular customers started for fun peppering me with various questions about certain cards. After about the fifth name, he realized I truly do love the cards from the 60’s and 70’s and how each one of them tells a story. Since the first card he asked me about was the 1964 Rookie Stars card with Tom Butters, we’ll start with him and discuss a few of … [Read more...]
1964 Topps Baseball Might Rub Off on You
The so-called "British Invasion" began in earnest when The Beatles made their first U.S. television appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in February of 1964, just weeks before pitchers and catchers reported to Spring Training. By the time kids popped open their first packs of 1964 Topps baseball cards that spring to background strains of "She Loves You" and "I … [Read more...]
Baseball Cards of Golden Era Hall of Fame Nominees
When the ten nominees for what the Hall of Fame now calls the "Golden Age" were announced recently, many pundits compared their careers and then offered opinions about whether any of them were worthy of the Hall of Fame tag. A committee consisting of former players, baseball executives and veteran media members will decide but what’s interesting is that card collectors have … [Read more...]
Cornering the 1964 Topps Curt Flood Market
The mystery of the 1964 Topps Curt Flood card has been solved. You might recall Rich Klein's story last March in which he wondered why the card carried such a premium. It's not Flood's rookie card. It's not a scarce high number or short print (You can see eBay market here). He's an important player in baseball history but he's not a Hall of Famer. Yet we had heard that … [Read more...]
Massive ’70s Find Hasn’t Dulled Appeal of 1964 Topps Giant All-Stars Set
This is the 50th anniversary year for the 1964 Topps Giant Size All-Stars set which is the one of the most interesting sets of the modern era. Topps always tried to experiment with products of different types, some of which are now considered very rare “test sets’ such as 1961 Topps Dice Game and some of which ended up being produced in enough quantity so they gained permanent … [Read more...]
1964 Topps Curt Flood: What’s the Deal?
We sometimes talk about cards which have reached “mythical” status for how difficult they are to find online or at shows. Some of our favorite examples are some of the 1966 and 1967 Topps single print high numbers. However, there is a card for which one person is apparently driving the market upwards for reasons no one has yet been able to figure out. Unlike these two earlier … [Read more...]
eBay Card of the Day: Better Late Than Never: Niekro’s 1964 Topps Rookie
Seeing this is Topps’ 75th anniversary year, we started looking for people and events which occurred 75 years ago. Everyone remembers different aspects about players from the past but my first two thoughts of players born in 1939 were Hall of Famers Phil Niekro and Carl Yastrzemski. Niekro is interesting as a player as he really did not develop into a full-time major league … [Read more...]