When they ripped open their first packs of baseball cards to greet a new decade, collectors couldn't have known that they were looking at the end of a monopoly AND the seeds of a hobby boom. The 1980 Topps baseball set was not too far removed from its recent predecessors in look and feel, but it was in a different league entirely when it came to making history. Indeed, by … [Read more...] about Set of the Week: 1980 Topps Baseball Marked the End of a Monopoly
rickey henderson
Editor’s Blog: Take Me Back to 1980
Sunday marked the 35th anniversary of the U.S. Olympic Hockey Team’s stunning victory over the Soviet Union, the ‘Miracle on Ice’ game that’s a part of the collective consciousness of any sports fan old enough to remember it. It got me thinking about what was going on from a collecting perspective 35 years ago, a time which also marked the end of an era of dominance. It … [Read more...] about Editor’s Blog: Take Me Back to 1980
Vintage Set of the Week: 1980 Topps Set Marked End of an Era
Who knew, back when a few photos of baseball stars were placed onto cardboard, that the baseball card phenomenon would become an enormously competitive, large industry, one that sparked a series of legal challenges that changed the collecting landscape forever? Topps baseball cards were virtually the only game in town from 1956 through 1980. Although other companies tried … [Read more...] about Vintage Set of the Week: 1980 Topps Set Marked End of an Era