The Post War Cards Newsletter #19
Discover more from The Post War Cards Newsletter
👋 Welcome to the latest issue of The Post War Cards Newsletter, the newsletter that celebrates #TheHobby.
🗓️ Every other week, I share unique content about vintage sports cards, hobby & sports history, and industry activity with collectors.
😎 Sound cool? Feed your hobby soul with issues sent directly to your inbox:
🇻🇪 The Only Graded 1960 Topps Venezuelan Tattoo Of Juan Marichal
If you’re into unique cards and have a Twitter account, @VenezuelaTopps is a great follow. He recently wrote an excellent thread about 1960 Venezuelan Tattoos and shared the only graded example of a Juan Marichal.
He wrote that back in 2013, a single Venezuela-made Tattoo showed up on eBay, of Don Drysdale, and sold really quickly for $360. It looked like the US and OPC versions but had a Spanish label, and The Topps Archives wrote a few words about it.
Things were quiet on the Venezuela Tattoo front until a few months ago when a pair of sales occurred in a private Facebook Group. In November 2022, a Nellie Fox and Ed Mathews Venezuela tattoo were sold together for $955. And in December 2022, Juan Marichal’s (lower quality than the SGC 2.5 pictured above) and Rocky Colavito's tattoos were sold together for $530. The Marichal was quickly flipped and sold on eBay for $525. Also, a Luis Arroyo Venezuela Tattoo was sold around this time on eBay (December 18th, 2022) for $281.
Even with these recent sales, there’s still a lot to learn about 1960 Topps Venezuelan Tattoos. The Topps Archives has published another great article with a few key questions like how many subjects are in the Venezuelan set? How many subjects from the major Caribbean, Central, and South American Winter Leagues did Topps create for the Venezuelan release? And what year saw the release of the Venezuelan baseball tattoos?
I’ll do my part to uncover what I can, so stay tuned to the blog for a more in-depth article comparing American, Venezuelan, and Canadian (OPC) Tattoos.
✍️ Great Hobby Writing
SABR’s Baseball Cards Research Committee: A Tribute to Nate Colbert through Topps Cards
Cardboard History: In Memorium 2022
Night Owl Cards: Brush with greatness: Marv Levy
Collecting Canadian Football: Colourization --NOT-- Catastrophe - Topps CFL Cards Part 2
Sports Collectors Digest: 1962 Post Cereal football cards were popular with kids and collectors
Cards Over Coffee: You Think Friday The 13th Is Scary....
The Fleer Sticker Project: 1973 / 1974 Fleer Baseball Big Signs Variation Helps Answer Question Regarding When These Were Issued
The Topps Archives: A Child's Garden Of Turf
🧢 As A Player And As A Manager
Tommy Lasorda's MLB career started as a Brookly Dodgers player (1954-1955). But he is most well known for managing the Dodgers from 1976 to 1996. During his tenure, he led the team to two World Series championships and four National League pennants, for which he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997. He was known for his colorful personality, motivational leadership style, and player loyalty.
Only recently did I stumble upon a really cool card that honored him as a player and a manager, and it was made very early in his managing career. This 1978 Topps Tom Lasorda card is a hidden gem. I love the composition of the black-and-white player photo, almost like a stamp, next to his color photo as the Dodgers’ skipper.
This PSA 10 copy recently sold for $216. If you want a pristine copy, PSA has graded 43 Gem Mint copies, so they’ll show up for sale a couple of times a year.
🏒 An Update To A Classic
Nope, that isn’t a 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr. card; it’s a really cool redemption (I think an ePack Achievement) that Upper Deck ran celebrating their 30th anniversary in 2019.
This nostalgic throwback featuring Connor McDavid is nearly an exact replica of the Ken Griffey Jr. card. However, while I’m not super knowledgeable about modern cards, I bet Upper Deck didn’t have to airbrush the cap on Connor McDavid. You can pick up a copy of the Connor McDavid versiom for around $35.
🗞️ In The News
Sports Collectors Daily: 9.5 Million Sports Cards Were Authenticated and Graded in 2022
Sports Collectors Digest: Collectable unveils competitive bidding for investors, fractional ownership of sports collectibles
Sports Collectors Digest: Top 40 eBay sports card sales of 2022
Nintendo Life: Pokémon Cards Targeted In Series Of Trading Card Store Burglaries In Tokyo
Bloomberg: Steve Cohen-Backed Collectibles Firm Goldin Starts New Platform
Yahoo Sports: Collectable Flips Institutional Trading Idea Into Card Auction Service
🏅 On The PostWarCards Blog
January 9th, 2022: Identifying a Pee Wee Reese Photo as a 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers 8×10 Action Picture Card
January 10th, 2022: 6 Original Photos That Transformed into Iconic Basketball Cards
January 16th, 2022: PSA’s Alleged 1964 Kahn’s Wieners Jerry Lucas Variation: Real or Not?
January 17th, 2022: The $13800 1969 Topps Aurelio Rodriguez Card That Doesn’t Happen To Actually Picture Him
🔥 Jordan vs. Baby Jordan
Thanks to Baseball Card Backs (@sportcardbacks) for sharing this awesome basketball card front and reminding us of the literal “HEAT” coming off this card in 1992.
