Sunday, November 27, 2011

Rubbing Salt Into The Wound

Yesterday my father gave me this 2011-2012 University of Kentucky basketball schedule. He did not yet know about me losing the UT-UK wager with my friend.



I'm a good sport. I can post this without wincing.

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Rivalry

Today is the traditional end of the regular season UT vs. UK football game.  I've got a friendly wager with a high school friend on facebook.  If UT wins, he puts up UT's logo as his profile picture for a week.  If UK wins, I put up UK's logo as my profile picture for a week.  We also extended this wager for the two times that the schools meet for basketball in January.

1991 Hoby SEC Stars
The Beer Barrel (card # 393)




unidentified UT card set
Beer Barrel Stays Put (card # 123)



Things don't look good for UT or for me.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

For The Good Of All, Do Not Destroy The Birds

I took the day off of work on Wednesday. My dad and I went to downtown Knoxville to the Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection to do some research. He was interested in family history and I tore into a microfilm from the summer of 1921, doing some research on the local black team, the Knoxville Giants. We were both successful.

After a few hours of research we left to visit a new old bookstore. Central Street Books was formerly The Book Eddy. They have a nice selection of sports books, but I didn't buy any. I did find a book in the humor section for my dad. the lives and time of archy & mehitabel by Don Marquis.  It wasn't the title that caught my eye, but the dust jacket.  Below is the scan of the front of it.  Was it a German commentary on the Psalms?  Don't really know.  I don't read German.


There was a note that the dust jacket was from 1733.   We asked the clerk at the counter.  He said that they had received a three volume set that had very poor binding.  It wasn't worth it for them to have the books rebound, so they removed the pages and used them for various things around the shop.  This page ended up as a dust jacket.  They were selling the prints from the book individually.

There was a wooden bowl near the register that had some small (approx. 1-1/2" x 2-1/4") advertising cards of some sort.  I picked up three that caught my eye.  Normally I scan cards at 300 dpi and reduce them down to 150 dpi to show on this blog.  It keeps the images big enough not to strain the eyeball, but small enough in size that the page loads efficiently.

150 dpi

I liked these so much that I kept them at 300 dpi.  After getting home and looking at them I did a quick search on the web.

Jefferson Burdick designated them as "J7".  John Hodge designated them as "AH2211".   T.K. Treadwell designated them as "G".   The were issued in in several series, with a cornucopia of variations.  (See what I did there?  Happy Thanksgiving.)  I found most of my information on these cards at Joe Lill's Soda Cards page.









After Dad paid for his books (and my cards) I noticed a stack of loose sheets on the counter.  The clerk described them as pages from a 1716 edition of The Book of Common Prayer.  We looked through the stack and found the corresponding Psalm, 68, verse 24.  He bought that one, too.


The price on all these? $7.50 for the archy & mehitabel.  25 cents each for the bird cards.  A dollar for the Book of Common Prayer page.

We then went to Five Guys Burgers and on to another used bookstore.  I didn't buy any sports books there, either.

The German language dust jacket has that glassine cover over the dust jacket.  I didn't remove it to scan the jacket.  It is presented at 150 dpi.  Click on it for a larger image.  The Book of Common Prayer image is presented at 150 dpi.  Click on it for a larger image.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

NASCAR's Season is Over

The NASCAR season finished up on Sunday.  Tony Stewart was crowned the champion, dethroning Jimmie Johnson.  Johnson has held the title for the past five seasons.  There's a streak for you.  Probably will never be equaled.

During my trip to Chicago this summer I stopped at a Target to pick up some snacks and a wedding card.  What do you know, they had their bargain-bin-o-cards.  You know the one.  $1.59 a pack.  I picked up five packs of 2010 Press Pass Premium.  I don't have any Tony Stewart cards to show you.  My brother is a fan of Tony so he got the three cards of 'Smoke' that I pulled and two of the packs.

2010 Press Pass Premium
Jimmy Johnson - Preseason Thunder (card # 82)

By now you should know that my wife's favorite driver is Jeff Burton.  Only pulled one of his cards.  With racing cards I've noticed that the manufacturers show the drivers, the cars, the owners, crew chiefs, and sometimes the pit crews or a memorable moment of the season.  Here's Jeff's car.

2010 Press Pass Premium
Jeff Burton - Passing Game (card # 79)

And to keep Night Owl happy, here's a card with Danica.  This is a retail only subset.  If you line the back of the four cards up you get a photo of Danica.  The backside of this one is the frontside of her backside.  I felt it would be a bit creepy for me just to show that.

2010 Press Pass Premium
Danica Patric - Retail Insert (card # DP-3/4)
I'll forget about NASCAR until early next February when my wife starts planning our Sunday afternoons around when the race is on.

Monday, November 21, 2011

My Mom's Chemistry Partner

My folks are in town for the Thanksgiving holiday.  Last night my mom and I were talking about her high school and old friends connecting on facebook.  I was retelling the story of how I met an alum of Beaver Falls High School at a mutual friend's book signing party.  It turned out that the alum was in band with my aunt (my mom's sister-in-law) in the mid-1960s.

As I was recounting the conversation with the alum it was basically:

Me: So, what team did you root for when you were younger?
Alum: The Pirates.
Me: Were they the hometown team or did you just like them?
Alum: Hometown.  I grew up in western Pennsylvania.
Me: Really?  Where.
Alum: You've never heard of it.  Beaver Falls.
Me: Yeah, that's where Joe Namath went to high school.  The Tigers.
Alum (with a surprised look on his face): Yeah, that's right.
Me: My mom, aunt and uncles attended BHS.

As I was telling it to my mom, she interrupted and replaced "Joe Namath" with "Joe Walton".  "He was my chemistry partner."  I thought that she said "Bill Walton" and shook my head.

I had heard the name of Joe Walton, but couldn't quite place it.  Joe Walton played football at Pitt and then was drafted in the second round by the Washington Redskins in 1957.  He played for them from 1957-1960 and then for the New York Giants from 1961-1963.  Later in his career he was the offensive coordinator for the Giants, Redskins, Jets, and Steelers.  Oh, and he was the head coach for the New York Jets from 1983-1989, finishing up with a 53-57-1 record.

I've got a new player/coach to collect.

1960 Topps #127 - Joe Walton RC (Rookie Card) - Courtesy of CheckOutMyCards.com
1960 Topps
Joe Walton (card # 127)
1961 Topps #126 - Joe Walton - Courtesy of CheckOutMyCards.com
1961 Topps
Joe Walton (card # 126)
1962 Topps #103 - Joe Walton - Courtesy of CheckOutMyCards.com
1962 Topps
Joe Walton (card # 103)
1969 Topps Mini-Albums Inserts #15 - San Francisco 49ers - Courtesy of CheckOutMyCards.com
1969 Topps Mini-Album Inserts
San Francisco 49'ers  (card # 15)

I'm a bit confused about the 1969 Topps Mini-Album Insert card. Clearly Topps reused the image from the 1962 card.  I don't know why.

Some of Joe's other cards are:
  • 1961 Fleer (card # 112)
  • 1961 Fleer Wallet Pictures ( card # 145)
  • 1964 Coke Caps Giants (cap # 35)
  • 1989 Pittsburgh Greats (card # 11)
  • 1989 Pro Set (card # 311)
Currently Joe just finished his 19th year as head coach of the Robert Memorial University Colonials.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

A fantastic read

The Baseball Researcher has a great post today.  He tracks down some info about the ballpark (and more) in this photo...


Go read it now.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Potpourri for 100, Alex?

"What is, 'Mark has too much time on his hands'?"

I've been poking around old newspapers and magazines and came up with a few articles that are interesting but don't quite make a whole post on their own.



I'm not quite sure where I found this. Could have been Google News archives, Paper of Record, I just don't recall, nor can I find it again. What caught my eye was two colored teams playing in 1878. Sure, the gunshot and beating was interesting.



Current intersection of Cumberland and Gilmor.  (link)



An ad from the September, 1958 issue of Popular Science.


I can't find any other reference to this game.



This article is from an earlier issue of Popular Science. October, 1937.

Okay, either their copy is wrong or the images are reversed.  The pitcher is not a left-hander.  I don't know who the pitcher pictured is.  Here's the 1937 Washington Senators roster from baseball-reference.com.  Who is he?



Back in the middle of June, I was watching a baseball game on television.  It might have been ESPN. Yankees at the Cubs, if I remember. The announcers were talking about how neat it was for AL teams to come play at Wrigley, since it is such an iconic park.  They spoke of Gehrig and Ruth coming to Wrigley for the 1932 World Series, among others.  I know that 1929 Philadelphia Athletics visited for the 1929 World Series, bringing Mickey Cochrane, Jimmy Foxx, and Lefty Grove.  Mickey Cochrane returned to Wrigley in 1935 with Detroit.  He brought Charlie Gehringer and Goose Goslin.  The Yankees also returned in 1938, with Tommy Henrich and Lefty Gomez.  Then the announcers mentioned that the Red Sox had never played at Wrigley in the Golden Era of Baseball so it was sad that Ted Williams never got a chance to play there.

This didn't ring completely true to me.  The Red Sox have never faced the Cubs in the World Series, but the 1947 All-Star Game was played at Wrigley.  Who batted third?  Ted Williams.  Yes, this is nit-picky, but I like to be right.  I'll claim it where I can get it.



To wrap up I'll leave you with a fun photo from 107 years ago.

Phoenix Indian Industrial Training School, 1904
Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library
In very broad terms, the school was set up to assimilate the Indians to the Anglo way of life.  I don't know who these young men played against.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Nachos Grande's Autograph Survey

In honor of Autograph Week, Chris, from the Nachos Grande blog has asked a few questions:


1. What is the best autograph you own?
I'd probably have to say Ryne Sandberg because I got that in person.



2. What is the best autograph that you've ever pulled from a pack of cards?
I don't buy or open enough packs to have ever pulled one.

3. What is the worst autograph you've ever pulled from a pack of cards?
See the answer to #2.

4. Do you try to get autographs through the mail? If so, what sort of success (or failure) stories do you have?
I've contemplated it, but have never actually done it.

5. Who was the subject of your first ever autograph?

Not sports related at all, but in July of 1971 Lt Col Eugene W. Loy, 4007th CCTS commander, piloted the first FB-111A to Plattsburgh Air Force Base. I do remember getting the crew's autograph on a promotional picture.

Probably the first sports related auto that I got was B.J. Armstrong.


6. Do you actively collect any autographs (certain players, teams, brands, etc)?
Being a Hershiser collector, I've got one of his and wouldn't turn down any more.



7. Which is better: Autographs or Relics?
I'm thinking that Autographs are better, especially based on the recent charges of fraudulent jerseys.

8. What do you think of cut autos?
It depends upon the design.  Some are nice.  Others... not so nice.

9. What is your favorite autograph design (say in the last 5 years)?
Allen & Ginters look nice with an auto.  I don't have a specific design in mind, but I prefer on-card.

10. If you could get the autograph of any five people (dead or alive) who would you want a signature from (and why)?

This one took some time to ponder.
  • Alfred Hitchcock - I admire him as a director
  • Walt Disney - A true part of Americana and a neat signature
  • John Hancock - duh
  • Shoeless Joe Jackson - I don't think that there are that many of his signatures out there
  • William McKinley - just so I could give it to Beardy

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Hershiser Venezuelan Stickers

While scouring ebay today I came across these Orel Hershiser oddball stickers. Oddball in that I don't think that one would typically find them at their typical card shop.

2007 Venezuelan Panini Sticker
Orel Hershiser (sticker # 170)
image lifted from this ebay auction

2008 Venezuelan Panini Sticker
Orel Hershiser (sticker # 225/26)
image lifted from this ebay auction

I assume that the 2008 sticker numbers are actually 225 and 226.

The seller is offering them up for $5 each. A bit too rich for my blood, but good to know that these are out there.

Corey Hart and his vast collection

I was poking around on my BlackBerry last night and came across a free app from the MLBPA.  Somehow they collect tweets, news, videos, and player profiles then serve them up right to your mobile device.  Interesting.

It isn't going to be the "go to" app on my phone, but I will use it.  One of the news stories was about Corey Hart.


He talks about his collection of comic books, action figures, bobble heads, jerseys, signed baseballs, and other memorabilia. 
"I like my original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Transformers and He-Man figures."
Seriously?  $6.8 million last season, $9 million next season and you're obsessing about TMNT and He-Man figures?  If I was making that kind of green I'd be looking into some very nice vintage.

You can read the whole story on MLBPlayers.com.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Interesting ebay auction

I've been looking at this auction for the last few days. I just can't pull the trigger.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

More Women on Cards for the Night Owl

I'm not going to clutter this up with a bunch of words. Well, maybe a few. I went to the Antiques and Collectibles store in south KnoxVegas this afternoon while running errands. I dropped a whole 80¢ on these cards. Marilyn Green was the first Miss Winston Cup. 1971 was the year. Now they have have a bevy of young lasses to be the Miss Sprint Cup.

1991 Pro Set - Legends
Marilyn Green (card # L6)

1992 Pro Set - Legends
Marilyn Green (card # L17)

1991 Pro Set
Miss Winston/Beth Bruce (card # 27)

1991 Pro Set
Miss Winston/Renee White (card # 125)

1991 MAXX - Red
Shawna Robinson (card # 65)


Enough women with long, flowing hair.  Now on to some guys that have long, flowing hair.

1994 Action Packed
Kyle Petty and Aerosmith (card # 95)

According to the back of Derrike Cope's card "A knee injury had ruined his his chances at a professional baseball career".  Derrike was the Daytona 500 winner in 1990.

1994 Press Pass
Derrike Cope art card (card # 138)

And finally a card for my wife.  This Raybestos car was driven by Jeff Burton, her favorite driver.

1994 Action Packed
Jeff Burton car (card # 125)
Don't look at that last one too long.  Go back to looking at the long haired beauties.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Feel the Guilt

Last night I had to run down to the Wal-Mart to pick up a few things. Light bulbs, Italian bread, shredded hashbrowns, whey protein powder, storage box. Things of that nature. I try to look at the card aisle. I call it a card aisle. It is actually a small part of one aisle. Magic the Gathering, Pokemon, Beyblades, and the like take up most of the space. There are a few sports cards, but nothing really caught my eye. This whole baseball season I haven't purchased any new cards. New as in "off the rack". I've picked some singles up from ebay, JustCommons.com and I've been eyeing a few singles on SportLots.com.

I was drawn to the 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter feeder packs.  They've already moved out the rack packs to make room for football cards.  And some hockey cards.  Not much left for baseball.

As assistant to the Commissioner of Gint-A-Cuffs III, I figured that I should at least pick up a pack.  Let's see what I got, shall we?


A sketch card of Ryan Howard.  I still can't figure out if the card should be shown in portrait or landscape mode.  I'm going with portrait, since you can read the words more easily.  The painting of Howard doesn't do much for me, but I do like the Monetified fans.

2011 Topps Allen & Ginter
Ryan Howard (card # BHS-10)


One of those mini-cards chase sets.  I don't think so.

2011 Topps Allen & Ginter
The Human Blockhead (card # SRU6)

I don't know anything about Madison Bumgarner.  I was taken by his hat, which looks like it is camouflaged.  Probably just part of the printing process.

2011 Topps Allen & Ginter
Madison Bumgarner (card # 304)

Delta Burke.  Night Owl just posted about getting this card and how he has the hots for her.  Or women on cards in general I think was the overall theme.  She sure has slimmed down since her Designing Women days.

2011 Topps Allen & Ginter
Cheryl Burke (card # 242)

Another player I don't know much about.  Pedro Ciriaco.  Sounds like a car model.  "Come test drive the new Volkswagen Ciriaco.  A sports car that doesn't look like a sports car."

2011 Topps Allen & Ginter
Pedro Ciriaco (card # 34)

Robert Fulton.  Commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte to build a submarine.  How cool is that?

2011 Topps Allen & Ginter
Robert Fulton (card # MMF21)


The pack cost me $2.98. That's 50 cents a card. I can get a few more Hershiser cards for that. They are what I collect. I should have saved the coin and put it towards something that I really wanted.  I should have listened to my inner card collecting voice.  I feel guilty.