Subscription programs like Topps' "Montgomery Club" may have gotten more sophisticated, with exclusive cards, early access and other perks, but the roots of a Topps "club" go back a long way. If you’ve seen a Topps wrapper from the mid-1970s you may have seen an ad for the “Topps Sports Club.” For $2.50 and a wrapper, they promised a newsletter and some … [Read more...] about Remembering the Topps Sports Club
1970s
Twitter Hero Super 70s Sports, Topps Team Up for Card Set
If you love Super 70s Sports on Twitter, you’ll probably get a kick out of this. Topps has teamed up with Ricky Cobb, the man with the comedic tweets on nostalgia, for a new baseball card set. The Topps X Super 70s Baseball set released Wednesday as on on-demand product, available through the Topps online store. Cobb turned his love for old school sports and … [Read more...] about Twitter Hero Super 70s Sports, Topps Team Up for Card Set
Notes: 1986-87 Fleer Case Now Wrapped; $100K LeBron Chrome; Yogi vs Ernie; ’70s Kid on Collecting; Japanese Cards
The only 1986-87 Fleer basketball unopened case to come to market in the last 20-plus years has now been verified and wrapped by BBCE. Collect Auctions' Steve Bloedow traveled to BBCE in Schererville, IN over the weekend with the case, which went on the block last week. Got to view the case in person today. Authenticity--100% Provenance--100% iron-clad Awesomeness--100% … [Read more...] about Notes: 1986-87 Fleer Case Now Wrapped; $100K LeBron Chrome; Yogi vs Ernie; ’70s Kid on Collecting; Japanese Cards
Hobby Time Travel: Photos from a 1973 Baseball Card Show
Before top loaders and display cases and cards encapsulated in plastic with holograms...there was the ASCCA. Among the first sports card collecting groups, the American Sports Card Collectors Association held shows in the New York City area where a small, but avid group of adults and kids gathered a couple of times each year to buy, sell and trade. We recently … [Read more...] about Hobby Time Travel: Photos from a 1973 Baseball Card Show
1971 Topps Football Was Condition-Sensitive But Filled With Stars
They weren't singing about cardboard when the tune "Just Dropped in (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)" by Kenny Rogers and the First Edition was getting regular radio airplay, but it's one collectors might be humming when they try to piece together a nice 1971 Topps football set. High-grade cards from this set are a tough lot. The set mirrors the … [Read more...] about 1971 Topps Football Was Condition-Sensitive But Filled With Stars
Sports Collecting’s Real “Boom” Was in the 1970s
You often read about the explosive time the hobby went through in the 1980s when sports card shops and shows were everywhere and kids went to school with Beckett price guide magazines. There's some truth to that, of course. Interest in baseball cards was at a fever pitch by the latter part of that decade, even among those who wouldn't normally consider themselves … [Read more...] about Sports Collecting’s Real “Boom” Was in the 1970s
Editor’s Blog: When Auctions Were Done with Pen, Paper and the US Mail
It's been around now for more than 20 years so to many under the age of 40, it might seem like sports card and memorabilia auctions began with eBay. The truth is, if you went to a card show of any size back from the 1970s through the early 1990s, there was a decent chance they would hold live auctions at some point during the day or weekend. Some shows still have them. … [Read more...] about Editor’s Blog: When Auctions Were Done with Pen, Paper and the US Mail
1977-78 Topps Basketball Set Began 3-Year Lean, Mean Run
The pro game was struggling when the 1977-78 Topps basketball set hit the market. America was smack in the middle of disco fever but there was no dancing in the NBA offices. TV ratings were abysmal, even with the addition of four fresh teams from the ABA. The malaise was reflected on cardboard. 1977-78 Topps Basketball Brought Smaller Cards; Smaller Checklist After … [Read more...] about 1977-78 Topps Basketball Set Began 3-Year Lean, Mean Run
1970s Ali vs Superman Comic is a Classic
As far back as I can remember it never seemed so far-fetched for a kid to become attracted to both comic books and sports. The unfortunate part was the realization that our culture still deemed comics as a childish medium in the Seventies, and that most kids would naturally stick with sports over comics because that's what their parents, teachers, and peers expected. Many … [Read more...] about 1970s Ali vs Superman Comic is a Classic
Ramblings: Few 70s Teams Resonate More Than Big Red Machine
At a recent card show where I’d taken a table, a customer purchased some vintage Cincinnati Reds cards and explained his passion for cards of guys who played for the Big Red Machine teams of the 1970s. After I thanked him for his payment, the thought occurred to me that the Reds have to be the most beloved and collected team of that era. Out of the five teams which won the … [Read more...] about Ramblings: Few 70s Teams Resonate More Than Big Red Machine