The Post War Cards Newsletter #37
Incredible Vintage BB Advertising Signs, My Favorite Auction In A Long Time, And Topps Traded Boxes
⚾️ Memory Lane’s Spring Rarities Auction
Memory Lane Inc. closed its 2005 Spring Rarities Auction on May 31st. One featured lot was a circa 1933 Babe Ruth Old Gold Cigarettes Tri-Fold Advertising Sign that sold for $19,326.
But the hobby has a long memory, and Mastro had offered the same piece, “The Ultimate Ruth Display,” for sale way back in their May 2000 catalog. Unfortunately, I don’t know what it sold for.
Memory Lane also offered a 1934 Lou Gehrig Knot Hole League of America advertising window display that sold for $46,198. Interestingly, the poster was unknown to the collecting world until 1995, when Memory Lane mentioned it sold for $49,233. Who sold it? REA (then a division of MastroNet Inc.), in their July 2000 catalog, I wrote about it nearly a year ago on the blog.
These weren’t the most expensive lots in the catalog, though. The top five were:
1954 Stahl-Meyer Franks Mickey Mantle PSA 8 NM-MT; $231,484
1953 Bowman Color #59 Mickey Mantle PSA 9 MINT; $195,484
c. 1910s Christy Mathewson Signed - Type 1 PSA Encapsulated Frank W. Smith Photograph PSA/DNA LOA - Auto 9 MINT; $136,736
1952 Topps #311 Mickey Mantle PSA 3.5 VG+; $82,966
1953 Topps #82 Mickey Mantle PSA 8 NM-MT; $75,808
💰 Huggins & Scott Highlights
After Bill Huggins passed away and the company was acquired by REA, many of us were concerned that Huggins and Scott would lose their niche as having some of the most unique and oddball auction items in the hobby. I remained worried until their current auction, which ended on May 29th. It was one of my favorites from any auction house in a long time.
I can't cover everything here, so look out for more on the blog soon. In the meantime, here are two lists: some of the priciest cards and then more niche awesomeness
1952 Topps #311 Mickey Mantle High Number PSA GOOD 2; $46,800
1952 Topps #312 Jackie Robinson High Number PSA EX-MT 6; $18,600
1934-1936 R327 Diamond Stars #77 Charlie Gehringer - Original Card Artwork; $16,800; My Favorite item in the auction; you’ll be seeing it on the Original Artwork Archive soon
1952 Topps #261 Willie Mays PSA EX-MT 6; $13,800
1939 Play Ball #92 Ted Williams Rookie PSA VG-EX 4; $9,600
1950 Bread for Health Basketball George Mikan Bread Label PSA FAIR 1.5; $6,600; this was the biggest group of cards from the set we’ve seen in a while.
1958 Yoo-Hoo Mickey Mantle Matchbook Cover-Cap Offer PSA GOOD 2; $480; Yogi Berra helped recruit investors and brought in his teammates to help promote the drink.
1959-1966 Uncut, Strip & Oddball Collection (9) with 1959 Topps Vault BGS Sheet, Yoo-Hoo Can with Mantle & 1962 Post Full 7-Card Box Panel; $420; the graded file copy page really stood out (I‘ll republish my series on them soon).
1962 Bell Brand Los Angeles Dodgers Advertising Sheet Pair; $630; the 1962 Bell Brand Dodgers Ad Sheet was one of my first posts back as blog 2.0.
1965 Topps Transfers Production Proofs of Ron Santo and Bill White from 1989 Guernsey Auction; $240; Anything from Guernsey’s is hobby history.
1966 East Hills Pittsburgh Pirates Uncut Sheet Set; $180; Clemente, and an uncut sheet, you have my interest.
1971 Fleer World Series #1 1903 Red Sox vs. Pirates (Cy Young) Original Art Card; $270; original artwork from one of the greats. He sold some of his original pieces in The Trader Speaks.
1967 Willie Mays Press Photograph Used for 1969-1970 Milton Bradley Cards; $216; in the future, there will be a “used for” archive on the blog.
1976 Topps Football #310 Jack Youngblood Progressive Proof Set (10/10); $330; you don’t see many ACU-Card slabs around the hobby these days.
1956 R707-1 Topps Jets Near-Complete Set (238/240) In (2) Topps Jets Albums; $192; mix the hobby library and aerospace (I work in the industry), and you’ve got my attention!
✍️ Great Hobby Writing
Night Owl Cards: The incredible impact of the 1979 George Foster card
Cards Over Coffee: It's About The Firsts
Topps Ripped: Office Hours | The Enduring Appeal of Mark Fidrych
Japanese Baseball Cards: The 2000 BBM O-N Set Saga Continues
The Topps Archives: Distress Call
And Sports Card Collectors posed a few questions about Sports Card Blogs:
How many of you still read them? How often do you read them? What's some of your favorite topics to read about such as what makes you click the link to read? What are some of your favorite blogs to read?
⚾️ Unopened Item(s) Of The Week - Topps Traded Baseball Sets
I always find it interesting when someone auctions a run of similar products that end around the same time; it provides a clear picture of how each compares in the market. On May 24th, a seller listed BBCE-authenticated 1983, 1984, 1985, and 1986 Topps Traded Baseball sets on eBay, all ending within seconds of each other.
I guess people are putting the most value on the ‘84s in search of mint Dwight Gooden cards (though the ‘83s have Strawberry and the '86s have Barry Bonds)
Also, if you’re into unopened, Monday’s Unopened Market Report featured ‘70s Rack Packs, a ‘61 Fleer Basketball Case, ‘85 Topps Football White Wrappers, and items from Memory Lane’s Spring Auction
📝 On The Blog
May 29, 2025: The Curious Thing About 1979 Topps Baseball Sell Sheets
May 30, 2025: 1974 Topps Vending Boxes: Raw Risks and Rare Finds
May 31, 2025: 1962 Mars Attacks Uncut Panels
April 1, 2025: Newspaper Collecting Is Making Big Headlines
April 2, 2025: The Trader Speaks, July 1976
April 3, 2025: 1977 Topps Baseball Cards For Sale In Early 1977
April 4, 2025: Robin Hood: The Legend Lives On … In Cards
📰 In The News
Sports Collectors Daily: Atlanta, Detroit Contending to Host 2028 National Sports Collectors Convention
WKBN27: Man pleads guilty to attempted felonious assault for argument over sports cards
cllct: PSA to open first retail location inside new Burbank Sportscards store
Sports Collectors Daily: Baseball Hall of Fame Opens Bobblehead Exhibit
cllct: PSA survey solicits feedback on card cleaning, grader notes
Yahoo Sports: Upper Deck introduces new authentication and security features with Rookie Patch Autographs series
Sports Collectors Daily: Stolen Credit Cards Cost Florida Hobby Shops Thousands of Dollars
Sports Collectors Daily: PSA Set to Add Card Grading in FL, Tickets in Texas, and PSA: PSA to Scale Capacity With Two New Grading Hubs
Sportcal: Panini collects license for first ever EFL trading cards
The Athletic: A Manute Bol basketball card sold for more than $20,000 — but why?
Happy collecting!
The vintage illustrations are so beautiful