When American youngsters were spotting Topps NFL football bubble gum cards for the first time, kids in Canada were seeing them in their cereal boxes...assuming of course, they didn't mind eating a non-sugary cereal for breakfast. The 1956 Shredded Wheat set offered a single card of a Canadian Football League player per box. Today, the cards are among the rarest … [Read more...]
1978 Holsum-Gardner Football Set a Regional Rarity
If you lived in Minnesota or Wisconsin in the late 1970s and early 1980s and collected sports cards, you probably ingested a lot of carbohydrates. It's where Holsum and Gardner's brand breads kept collectors full by offering a few different sets as promotions aimed at youngsters. They cranked out three different football issues during the time period including … [Read more...]
1952 Wheaties Tray Set is Actually a 1950 Issue
Sports fans have always been a target market for Wheaties. The "Breakfast of Champions" has often given sleepy-eyed fans something to read with their morning bowl of cereal. Sometimes the players were found on the back and sometimes they were featured on the front but there's a dating error when it comes to one of their most unusual and scarce collectibles. In the … [Read more...]
Rare 1961 Phillies Cigar Premium is an Affordable Mickey Mantle Issue
More than 50 years after his baseball playing career ended, Yankees Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle remains a beloved figure. Even beyond baseball fans, collectors not only pursue his cards and collectibles, but his items are among the most popular in the entire hobby. Most Mantle items have risen steadily in value over the years and are getting more expensive to the everyday … [Read more...]
1949-1951 Hage’s Dairy Pacific Coast League Cards Included Familiar Names
It was the west coast's "big league." A starting point for future major league legends, the Pacific Coast League spawned several baseball card sets during its long heyday in the first half of the 20th century. Among them are three early post-war vintage issues from Hage's Dairy. Operated in San Diego by Willard Hage Jr., whose father founded the company, Hage's was a … [Read more...]
Vintage Baseball Pictures Key 1934 Butterfinger Set
The Butterfinger candy bar was invented in 1923 by the Curtiss Candy Company of Chicago. Eleven years later, buying one for a nickel got you a nifty 7 3/4" x 9 1/2" photo of a baseball star as part of a point of sale promotion. The 1934 Butterfinger baseball card set doesn't get the same respect as its more popular cousins in the realm of pre-War baseball issues, but it's also … [Read more...]
1950 Drake’s TV Cards a Precursor to 1955 Bowman Issue
Whenever vintage collectors think of baseball cards and television, it's usually the 1955 Bowman set that comes to mind. That release would be Bowman's last one before being taken over by Topps. What some collectors don't know, however, is that the look was not an entirely new one. In 1950, Drake's offered a set of baseball cards with a similar design. 1950 Drake's TV … [Read more...]
1959-1961 Morrell Meats Dodgers Were Big League
Dodger fans who opened their morning newspaper in southern California on April 30, 1959 probably read about Johnny Podres of the Phillies beating his old team. The Dodgers were in the midst of a grueling 17-game early season road trip across the country as their second season in Los Angeles unfolded. In another part of the paper, fans learned of a new promotion that … [Read more...]
Hot Dog! Nice Find of Uncirculated 1954 Wilson Franks Cards
It’s one of the most popular regional sets ever issued, a challenging and somewhat quirky collection of 20 different subjects that were packaged with hot dogs in what some refer to as the ‘golden era’ of baseball cards. The 1954 Wilson Franks set had folks eating a lot of weiners, but not nearly enough to satisfy the demand of today’s experienced … [Read more...]
Steal a Base, Steal a Taco Promotion Includes Baseball Card Set
Taco Bell’s ‘Steal a Base, Steal a Taco’ promotion is back for the World Series but this year’s promotion has something of interest to card collectors. The fast food giant has partnered with Topps for a small set of cards that will be available beginning October 23. There is a bit of a catch, though. For the last six years, Taco Bell has handed out free tacos … [Read more...]