Phyllis George (1949-2020) the Woman who came between Pete Rose and Andy Warhol

Phyllis George and Bill Kurtis (1985 Jan 18/ Getty Images)

While researching "The Andy Warhol Triple Play" for SABR48 in Pittsburgh one of the fun tidbits that I found out that got dropped from the final presentation involved 1971 Miss America Phyllis George.

Andy Warhol "Pete Rose" Test Print

Carl Solway had conceived the ides of having Andy Warhol painting a portrait of Pete Rose in April of 1985. To produce the painting in a timely (thus "pop") manner meant that for Pete Rose to sit for Warhol the meeting would need to happen during the baseball season.

The Reds only traveled to New York once during the remainder of the 1985 Season. That was a week day series from July 22 through 24th.

1985 Cincinnati Red Schedule (RedsCardCollector 2015 Oct 06)

Unfortunately for Solway and Warhol, Rose had a lot going on. In addition to the normal rigors of playing AND managing for the Reds Pete Rose also maintained a very busy press schedule.

Rather than sitting with Warhol while in New York Rose elected to spend his free morning on the CBS Morning News with Phyllis George.  And we know about it because Rose covered in his journal of the 1985 season "Countdown to Cobb" Co-Written with Philadelphia based author Hal Bodley.

 Countdown to Cobb - Rose/Bodley

The interesting passage above is the 2nd paragraph (click to enlarge) where Rose mentions he already was familiar with Phyllis from guesting on "NFL Today"

"I took the Greek’s (Jimmy the Greek) spot and talked about each of the NFL games."

Certainly not a shock, but it is a bit comical to know that Pete Rose was handicapping games on NFL Today.

So that is the story of how Phyllis George came between Pete Rose and Andy Warhol.

Getty Images

Getty Images / SI - Chuck Solomon (1985 JUL 24)

Amazingly Getty Images has photos of Rose playing in the 3rd game of the Red Mets Series.  

Andy Warhol
Getty also has Photos of Warhol during this time frame.

Andy Warhol and Debbie Harry demonstrate the Amiga Computer (Allan Tannenbaum 1985 Jul 23)


Warhol also has his own journal for 1985, The "Warhol Diaries" confirms that he and Debbie Harry were doing a promotion for Commodore Computers at Lincoln Center that day.

The Diaries also states Warhol thought his "drawing" of Harry was "terrible".

Scheduling Conflicts
There you have it. Rose was in NYC for 3 days. Monday Rose elected to appear on CBS - previewing his upcoming book. Tuesday Warhol was busy at Lincoln center and Wednesday was a day game.

That was the one chance for the two icons to meet, Warhol ended up doing the painting from photographs. You can read more about that here.

Sources and Links
Phungo Andy Warhol - Pete Rose Index
imdb
Countdown to Cobb - Pete Rose / Hal Bodley
Carl Solway
Baseball-ref

RedsCardCollector 2015 Oct 06

Getty Images / SI - Chuck Solomon (1985 JUL 24)

Getty Images Photo by Allan Tannenbaum (1985 Jul 23)

Getty / CBS (1985 Jan 18

The Andy Warhol Diaries

Touch of Modern / hamilton-selway

In Memoriam: Jim Bouton (1939-2019)

"I learned Math from Baseball & Jim Bouton taught me How to Read"

Not entirely true, but there is a lot of truth there.

Prior to college I think I only finished maybe...  three books, "1984", "Wired" the Biography of Jim Belushi, and "Ball Four". All those novels we were supposed to read in High School (Hester Prynne, Silas Marner, Macbeth, Huck Finn, etc Who Knows What Else)  - I read exactly none of them.

But "Ball Four" it spoke to me.

"Ball Four" - Jim Bouton (1970 2nd Edition)

I have read the book three times once as a teenager. Again in my 20s or 30s, and most recently in my late 40s in preparation to see Bouton at the NYC SABR convention.

The SABR panel was incredible. That weekend it was publicly announced that Jim Bouton had a brain disease related to dementia. Regardless with the help of his wife Paula Kurman he was up to the task of discussing his life and Ball Four in a panel dedicated to Bouton and the book. A fan of the book and the man could asked for nothing more. Bouton was funny, touching, and informative. He was "Ball Four" personified.

He was also good enough to pose for pictures while signing books and other memorabilia.

 Jim Bouton (2017 Jul 01)

The Photo on the left page is one that I took at the event. The book is a 2nd edition

Ball Four (2nd Edition)

Here is Ball Four sans jacket.

That's it for now. Over the coming weeks I would like to mine the Phungo Museum for some other Bouton related content. Today, I would just like to recognize that he will always be a favorite author and I am glad I was introduced to his unique point of view early in my life and have been able to enjoy it to this day.

Memorials & Tributes
SABR (Mark Armour)

Sources and Link
Jim Bouton Index
SABR Bio (Mark Armour)
SABR47 NYC

Frank Robinson 1934-2019

I have covered Frank Robinson a few times on this blog but not nearly enough. While I never got to see him play, I did get to see an historic game in which he was involved.

2005 Topps Update Nationals Inaugural Lineup #NI-TEAM

The April 2005 game was so historic that Topps honored it with a trading card - It was the first game in the history of the Nationals.

Robinson appears prominently on the card twice. First in the top photo he is at the center to the left of home plate, while the Phillies skipper Charlie Manuel guards the other. The inset photo on the bottom left features Frank Robinson even more prominently. The two images are clearly from different games - note that the smaller picture features the Nats in their Home uniforms at RFK.

The Phillies won the game 8-4 you can read more about the game at the SABR Baseball Game project.

I go into this card more in depth here, but at the time I didn't mention Frank Robinson. 

Tributes
SABR BB Card Blog
1960s Baseball Card Blog 
Fresh Air - Terry Gross Terrific interview (13 mins audio & text) includes Robinson's views on integration/segregation.

Links and Sources
Frank Robinson HOF Index
2005 0404 Nationals inaugural game at Phillies
SABR games project
Baseball-ref

Oscar Gamble (1949-2018)

Earlier this week we got the sad news that baseball card icon Oscar Gamble died. I was a little surprised to find out that I had never posted anything on Gamble or his cards. Today we rectify that situation.

Oscar Gamble falls into that category of players that played when I was a kid and I knew about but I never knew spent time with the Phillies. There are a couple of these guys out there, Fergie Jenkins is pretty notable as are Larry Hisle and Ken Brett. 

When I returned to collecting as an adult I was pleasantly to see Oscar Gamble show up in the early 1970s issues bearing Phillies pinstripes.

1972 Topps #423 Oscar Gamble

All of the bright colors of 1972 Topps with "PHILLIES" jumping off the top of the card fit Oscar Gamble perfectly. I also like the photo that appears to have been taken at the Phillies Spring Training facility in Clearwater Florida. As I look at Gamble posing for the shot with the follow through on a swing I wonder if the lean figure in the background with the beige jacket is Paul Owens.

This is one of three cards Topps issued of Gamble with the Phillies. He has a shared Rookie Card in 1970 and has a great action shot in 1971.  Nice cards all, but I chose his last Phillies card not for the front but for a fun fact I knew at one time but have likely forgotten multiple times.

1972 Topps #423 Oscar Gamble (b-side)

First off I am not referring to the vocabulary lesson in the cartoon - a good one I suppose, a phrase I never use, but it really doesn't need much explanation.

The Phun Phact I like on this card discusses the last game a Connie Mack Stadium. On October 1st 1970 the Phillies defeated the Expos 2-1 in extra innings. And as described in the excerpt on the above Oscar Gamble singled off Howie Reed plating Tim McCarver. It was the last hit and RBI ever recorded at the venerable building

The Inning in Baseball-Ref appears as follows

For a more old school look here is the box score that appeared in the Sporting News

The Sporting News 1970 Oct 1

In addition to Gamble looks like Tim McCarver had a nice day while scoring the stadiums final run. Larry Bowa is the only player in the box that would eventually play during the Phillies late 70s glory years. The big name for Les Expos is Rusty Staub, however twitter star @JohnnyBateman7 is also present.
 

Other Oscar Gamble Tributes
Night Owl Cards - tremendous posts where with a great discussion about card backs.
Baseball Happenings - 1976T Traded and great photos from 2012 DiMaggio Legends game @ Ft Lauderdale
Baseball Card Breakdown - American Pastime Autograph, Printing Plate of 1979T, 1979 OPC
Starting Nine - 9up page featuring 1976T Traded in the center
MLB 1960s - 1972 Topps
80s Baseball Collector - 1979 Topps
 
NY Daily News obituary

Chicago Sun-Times obituary

Sources and Links
Game Dated Cards
Baseball-Ref
COMC
Baseball Card Database
The Sporting News
NY Daily News
Chicago Sun Times

Keith Jackson (1928-2018) Baseball Broadcaster?

Over the weekend we got the sad news of the passing of Sports Announcer Keith Jackson.

1994 Action Packed #66 Keith Jackson (image swiped from COMC)

Most of us know him as the voice of College Football, but he called a variety of sports including baseball.

One of the most famous ballgames he called was game 6 of the 1977 World Series.

That night Reggie Jackson hit 3 Home Runs and the Yankees defeated the Dodgers 8-4 clinching their first World Series Win in 15 years. The TV broadcast of the game can be found on YouTube. I did not check out the entirety of the broadcast, but I did drop into a few spots. It is a good listen despite the fact that Howard Cosell elephants his way into all the big moments. Also of interest is that the third man in the booth is Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver.

1978 Topps #7 RB Reggie Jackson

Reggie's 3 Homer game is commemorated in the 77 Record Breakers Subset at the top of the 1978 Topps.

1978 Topps #7 RB Reggie Jackson (b-side)

The back of the card does a real nice job of summarizing the MANY accomplishments of Reggie Jackson during the 1977 Series. Right at the top we see the 5 Homers hit by Jackson, A record that was matched in 2009 by the Phillies own Chase Utley, however that was in a losing effort.

All three of Reggie's Game 6 Homers can be found on the YouTube link cited above, unfortunately as I mentioned Cosell walks all over Jackson on each Homer.

I always like Newsprint themed cards, not sure this really considered one as there is no Header or dateline. There is a Headline and a tear at the bottom, I suppose that is close enough.

Sources and Links
Reggie Jackson HOF Index
Game Dated Cards 
Baseball-Ref 
imdb
COMC
YouTube
@KevinCooney (Twitter h/t for the heads up on Jackson covering the 1977 WS)

Roy Hallday (1977 - 2017)

Yesterday we got the news that Roy Halladay died in a plane crash.

2012 07 21 Roy Halladay at Photo Day

While the circumstances are horrible, it was good to hear all the reports of what a terrific person Roy Halladay was off the field. He appeared to be enjoying his post playing career spending time with his family and friends. During a press conference yesterday Cole Hamels showed tremendous poise, articulately discussing Halladay as a Mentor, Ballplayer and Friend.

For out tribute to Roy Halladay I went with a picture of him from the Phillies 2012 Photo Day rather than a card. After hearing so many folks talk about how great Halladay was as a person, I wanted to note the person rather than the ballplayer.

Here is an index of the many Roy Halladay postings that have appeared on Phungo. The NLDS No-Hitter in 2010 will always be one of my favorite sports memories, you can see some pix and read a few of my thoughts here.

Blogs are not as active as they were at one time, but I will be adding the Roy Halladay tributes to this posting as they arrive.

Memorial Postings
Phillies Room (2011 Allen Ginter #N43-RH)
Night Owl Cards (2009 UD OPC)
1960s Baseball (2011 Topps)
Not Another Baseball Card Blog
Ryan Cracknell Beckett
Wrigley Roster Jenga (2010 Heritage / 1961 Topps)
The Writers Journey (Twitter Compilation)
I Need New Hobbies (2007 Allen Ginter)
The Snorting Bull (1997 Bowman Autograph)
$30 a Week Habit (Donruss Studio)
Cardboard Greats (Topps National Chicle)
I Draw Baseball Cards (2013 Topps Custom)

High Heat Stats (1962 Topps Retro)

Sources and Links
Roy Halladay Index
Baseball-Ref

    

Rollie Massimino (1934-2017)

Yesterday we got the sad news that Rollie Massimino had died at the age of 82.

2010 Phungo #10 Rollie Massimino

I am not originally from the Philadelphia area but I will always remember the 1985 Villanova Wildcats championship team. Winning that game made me a fan of the team for life.

I never expected to live in the Villanova community, but life's twists & turns brought me to a place where I reside less than five miles from the campus. The team has now returned to prominence and it is fun to be able to follow the local team.

March Madness 2009
I have gone to the opening rounds of March Madness when it has been hosted in Philadelphia several times. In 2009 I was checking out the lower level prior to the game and talking to a friend when Rollie Massimino passed right in front of him. We mentioned to Rollie how much we enjoyed the 1985 Championship team. He was congenial said thanks, shook our hands, posed for a picture and signed our tickets - the smudge and the fact that it is signed upside down are my fault.

Regardless it is a cool memory to have and one of the more fun artifacts in the Phungo museum.

Phungo Card
The picture I took made it onto a Phungo card back when I still made them. This is pretty early in the Phungo canon so we have a pretty vanilla design with the text being a snapshot from an excel spreadsheet. Pretty primitive, but considering my minimal graphic arts skills at the time, I am pretty proud of the finished product.

Rollie Massimino Index
2007 Donruss Extra Edition #65 (February 2016 Villanova reaches #1 for first time since 1985) 
2010 Phungo #10 (25th anniversary of 1985 Championship)
Game Report March Madness 2009


Wiki
I have a posted a few dozen of my photos to Wikipedia, this is the first of those pictures.

Sources and Links
Sports-Ref

Darren Daulton (1962-2017)

Earlier this month we got the news that Darren Daulton had died.

The beloved catcher was the anchor of the 1993 NL Championship team.

 2003 Fleer Ultra All-Vet #2 Darren Daulton 

Ten years later he also beat out Bob Boone for the honor being the catcher on the Phillies All Veteran Stadium Squad.

The day the Vet closed the Phillies gave out 12 card packs of cards honoring the All-Vet team. Most of the players were either members of one of the three teams to play a World Series at the Vet (1980, 1983, 1993).

The Phillies lost to the Braves 5-2 that day, but it didn't matter. As fan I was there to say goodbye to the Vet and recall all the good memories I had at the venue. 

2017 Phillies Alumni Weekend

2017 08 13 - Three Catchers

Darren Daulton's passing occurred shortly before Alumni Weekend and the Phillies honored the All-Star catcher by painting his #10 behind the plate. Alum introductions closed with a about a dozen of his 1993 teammates entering the field wearing his #10 jersey and encircling the plate area in tribute.

The above photo is one that I have simply titled "Three Catchers". The pix was taken between innings, at the right you have Jorge Alfaro entering the frame while Cameron Rupp exits. The two were both on field at one time because Alfaro was either on-deck or on base during the previous half inning while Rupp was in to warm up the pitcher. The third catcher in the picture is Darren Daulton, memorialized here by the #10 behind the catchers box at home plate.  

Other Darren Daulton Memorials 
Phillies Room
Nick Diunte interview with Don Carmen (The Sports Post)

Sources and Links
Darren Daulton Wall of Fame Index
baseball-ref

Dallas Green 1934-2017

Today we got the sad news that Dallas Green has died. I had heard he was very ill several months ago, yet it is still a bummer to get the official word.

2014 Phungo #46 Dallas Green

Never got around to posting this 2014 Phungo Card. The photo was taken during the Phillies Alumni weekend in 2013. Green can be seen greeting Gary Matthews. Johnny Briggs and Gene Garber are the players in the foreground.

In 1999 Dallas Green came to speak at the Chester County Historical Society to help promote a baseball exhibition at the museum. The above poster for the event hangs in my baseball card room right above my sorting table.

I don't remember a lot of what he said but he did mention that after his playing career was over he earned his Master Degree at University of Delaware. He also noted that Wayne Gomes was not a closer. My guess is that Green spoke for about an hour and then signed autographs for anyone who was present. When I met him we had a brief discussion about the G3-1 play.

Sources and Links
Dallas Green Index 
Baseball-ref
Philly.com (Frank Fitzpatrick)

Muhammad Ali (1942-2016)

1984 M&M Olympic Heroes #7 Cassius Clay

Muhammad Ali was still Cassius Clay when he won the gold medal so I guess when M&M the Olympic Committee put together this card that felt that was appropriate.  

 1984 M&M Olympic Heroes #7 Cassius Clay (b-side)


The story of Ali's Olympic victory is on the flip side of the card.

Prince 1958-2016

In many ways I was more affected by the news of Prince's death than that of David Bowie. The biggest reason is timing.

Bowie was an established star, mega star even, before I got into music. Prince's career arc began to rise just as I was getting into music.
 
I probably have more Bowie Albums in the Phungo Collection, but they are more like historical documents to me. I played the grooves out of 1999 and Purple Rain. 

2004 08 23 Prince at the Wachovia Center Philadelphia

Once Prince became a star my interest waned, but I was very excited to see him on the Musicology tour at  the Wachovia Center.

I don't recall a lot about the show. and it is weird it feels like a recent show despite the fact that 2004 is over a decade ago. I suppose it is because at the time I was significantly closer to 40 than 30 and the process of giving into being a grown up was happening very quickly. Seeing Prince in 2004 is firmly ensconsed in the file of concerts I saw as an adult - no confusing it with seeing GnR, The Dead Milkment or Nine Inch Nails who all appeared at the latter edges of my misspent youth. 

A glance at the set list form the show refreshed my memory a bit.

The Wachovia Center is a good size arena and Row 2 of the Upper Tier was far away at times. The show was done in the round, Prince was "hidden" inside a box and snuck in below the stage emerging from beneath the center of the raised floor to open the show.

The concertw as broken into three pieces plus an encore. There was a full band for the shows opening and closing sections separated by a Prince solo set. Highlights from the show included "Lets Go Crazy" near the beginning of the show, Prince opening the solo with "Little Red Corvette",  and "7" at the top of the closing set. Prince highlighted the music of several other artists including a couple of Sheila E tunes, a solo version of the Stones "Satisfaction" and a cover of "Knock on Wood". The Three song encore concluded with a memorable "Purple Rain"

Maceo Parker opened the show and also played with Prince's band. A number of songs also prominently featured saxophonist Candy Dulfer

Sources and Links
Purple Cards - Night Owl Cards
Purple Cards - Phungo
VittlesTunes - Index of Music related posts
setlist
Candy Dulfer
Maceo Parker

Monte Irvin (1919-2016)

Last week we found out about the passing of Giants Hall of Fame outfielder Monte Irvin.

2003 UD Vintage #89 Monte Irvin

One of the interesting things I found out about Monte Irvin is that he donated proceeds from his autograph signings to benefit his alma mater Lincoln University, a Historic Black College just beyond the edge of the Philadelphia suburbs.

2003 UD Vintage #89 Monte Irvin (b-side)

For their 2003 set UD swiped the design from 1965 Topps - which makes for a great looking card no matter who is in charge.

Card related Tributes and other Memorials
HELP!!! - I got pretty sick last week and was unable to collect as many of these links as I would have liked, if you have a posting please let me know

Arpsmith (1992 Front Row)
Baseball Happenings (GREAT personal recollection story, numerous autograph)
Bob Lemke (1952 Topps)
Cards that Never Were (1957 Topps - custom, 1949 Bowman - custom)
Paul's Random Stuff (HoF Postcard auto)

Cardboard Connection - Top 10 Monte Irvin Cards
Phungo Monte Irvin HoF Index


Sources and Links
Lincoln University
Lincoln Lions baseball-ref 

Phungo Monte Irvin HoF Index

Tommy Hanson 1986-2015

Earlier today I woke up to the sad news that Tommy Hanson Had died.

2012 Phungo #21 Tommy Hanson

This picture was taking during BP On July 7th 2010. The Braves defeated the Phillies 7-5, Hanson did not play in the game. My enthusiastic game report can be found here. If I recall correctly the retiring Tim Hudson was working closely with the young Hanson that night.

Tommy Hanson earned one other blog mention - As a notable Braves prospect he made it into the 15 card Rookie Performers insert set of 2009 Heritage High Numbers.

Card Memorials
Cardboard Icons (Bowmand Chrome Auto)

Sources and Links
ToppsHeritage.com

Fred Thompson 1942-2015

2008 Topps Campaign #C08-FT Fred Thompson

Today we got word of the death of Politician and Actor Fred Thompson. In 2008 Topps issued a card of Thompson as part of their insert set dedicated to that years Presidential contest.

2008 Topps Campaign #C08-FT Fred Thompson (b-side)

Brief bio on the flip side which doesn't mention Thompson role in "Hunt for Red October" which I had forgotten about until  @moxxjason mentioned it on Twitter.

Campaign 2008
This insert set has been on my mind a little bit since we are in debate season. A couple of names in that set that have come up again this time around: Clinton, Biden, Romney, and Ron Paul (father of Rand) 

Sources and Links 
Cardboard Connection
NY Times

Garo Yepremian (1944-2015)

Woke up this morning to the sad news that NFL Kicker Garo Yepremian had died.

1999 Fleer SI Autograph Collection Garo Yepremian

Garo Yepremian was the kicker for the undefeated Superbowl Champion 1972 Miami Dolphins. He is also known for an interception he tossed in that Superbowl that nearly cost the Dolphins their perfect season.

The above card features the cover of Sports Illustrated from the week that Yepremian kicked the game ending field goal for the longest game ever played. On Christmas Day of 1971 the Dolphins Beat the Kansas City Chiefs 27-24 in double overtime. Yepremian kicked a 37 yarder for the Divisional Playoff game victory 7 minutes and 40 seconds into the 2nd OT. The games total time was 82:40 outdoing the second longest game by about 5 minutes (77:54 Dallas Texans 20, Houton Oilers 17 - December 23 1962)

Garo Yepremian is not in the Hall of Fame, however he was elected to the 1970s All-Decade team by the HoF.  Strangely, the only kicker in the Hall happens to be Yepremian's opposition in the longest game, Jan Stenerud. During that 1971 Chiefs vs Dolphins playoff game Stenerud missed a 22 yard field goal at the end of regulation, that would have prevented the tilt from going into overtime.

Local Guy
I have no idea how Yepremian ended up here, but Garo Yepremian lived in the Philadelphia Area. I remember for a time he hosted a weekend fishing show on the NBC affiliate in Lancaster PA. He died at a hospital in Media PA, which is about 20 minutes from Phungo HQ. I believe the hospital is across the street from a mall where I have gone to a couple of card shows.

Brush with Greatness
This isn't my BWG story but was related to me by co-workers. A few colleagues of mine were out for a golf outing and needed an extra to fill out their foursome. They pick up a fourth and filling out the scorecard this conversation ensues:

Colleague: "Gary?"

Fourth: "No, Garo"

Colleague: "You mean like Garo Yepremian"

Yepremian: "I am Garo Yepremian"

My friends said Yepremian was a good guy and wore a baseball cap that honored the undefeated season. The youngest guy in the group who is probably in his early 40s didn't know who Yepremian was.

Garo Yepremian Foundation
The Yepremian foundation was inspired by Garo's daughter-in-lau Debby-Lu Yepremian who at the age of 19 in 1998 discovered she had brain cancer. Debby-Lu outlived a six months to live prognosis by six years, passing in 2005.

Oddly Garo Yepremian's death was also to brain cancer, He had first learned his own diagnosis in May of last year. 

sources
Garo Yepremian Foundation
Beasley Reece (Twitter @beasleyreece /CBS3)
Lancaster OnLine
Pro Football HoF
football-ref

The Thrill is Gone: BB King (1925-2015)

I have seen hundreds of concerts, but there are artists I never got to see. One of my bigger regrets is not making the time to catch BB King Live.

1991 ProSet Super Stars Legends #14 BB King

1991 ProSet Super Stars Legends #14 BB King (b-side)


Source
BBKing.com
BBC
VittlesTunes Index

Chuck Bednarik 1925-2015

Today I awoke to the sad news that Phiadelphia Eagles Hall of Famer Chuck Bednarik has died at the age of 1989

2008 UD Masterpieces #14 Chuck Bednarik

Known as "Concrete Charlie" Chuck Bednarik played both offense and defense - thus a second monicker "Sixty Minute Man".  He was a member of the Philadelphia Eagles last championship squad, clear back in 1960. And he was the man who knocked Frank Gifford down so hard he missed a year of football.  

2007 UD Masterpieces was one of my favorite sets to release since I returned to the hobby. After the initial success of the baseball set UD came out with Hockey and Football sets in 2008. This fine Chuck Bednarik card featuring the image from the famous Frank Gifford play is just one of many fine examples of the great cards in Masterpieces.

Too check into our Hall of Fame profile of Bednarik click here. Rich Hoffman's piece for the Daily News can be found here.

Sources & Links
Sports-Ref
Philly.com

Sy Berger 1923-2014

Earlier today we got the news that Sy Berger has died at the age of 91. 

2004 Topps Archives Fan Favorites #137 Sy Berger

To many Sy Berger is considered the father of the modern day baseball card. He came to Topps in 1952 and designed the companies famous 1952 Set. In 2004 the company honored Berger with the above Topps Archives card which is in the 1952 design that he created.

I collect lots of different cards and brands, but Topps was always my first card and I return to it in this blog often. Thanks to Sy Berger for creating and promoting a simple item and hobby that I can enjoy.

2004 Topps Archives Fan Favorites #137 Sy Berger (b-side)

The flip side of the Sy Berger card gives some of the background regarding the 1952 Topps set and Berger's contributions to the hobby.


Card Tributes
Night Owl Cards
Base Set Collecting - Nice Collection of links to other tributes and obituaries
Cardboard Connection
A Cardboard Problem
Dime Boxes
The Topps Archives
Sports Card Info 
Yadier Molina Baseball Cards
1978 the Year it all Began
bdg610s Topps Baseball Card blog
All About Cards (includes embed of Olbermann tribute)

Sports Collector Digest Profile from September 2014

NY Times Obit
ESPNs Sy Berger profile

Sources
ESPN

Paul Revere (1938-2014)

Got the news via some FB friends that the frontman for Paul Revere and the Raiders died yesterday at the age of 76. I never got to see the Raider, nor do I have any of their albums, but I would like to mention that "Indian Reservation" was an important part of the soundtrack of a crazy roadtrip and I was involved in during my college days.

1993 Collect-A-Card American Bandstand #77 Paul Revere

Some Quality info on the flip side of the card.

1993 Collect-A-Card American Bandstand #77 Paul Revere (b-side)

For pop culture/music fans like myself the 1993 American Bandstand is a fun little set, for a bit more info on the set check the index in the Links below


Sources & Links
1993 Collect A Card American Bandstand Index

The Examiner
Paul Revere & The Raiders

Tony Gwynn 1960-2014

I only got to see Tony Gwynn's play twice, and he didn't start either game. He pinch hit in both games and didn't get a hit either time. So I don't really have any great memories of seeing Gwynn play live. The latter of those two games was Gwynn's final game in Philadelphia. When he came to the plate to bat, he got a standing ovation and tipped his cap.

2002 UD World Series Heroes #57 Tony Gwynn

We have already featured the Tony Gwynn Rookie Card here and I have decided to go in a bit of a different direction here. This 2002 UD card is from just after Gwynn's career ended. The Padres franchise dates back to 1969 but they have only been to two World Series 1984 and 1998. The Series' were 14 years apart and Tony Gwynn played in both of them.

Tributes
Here is a collection of Tony Gwynn Card Tributes, Obits and Memorials:

Padrographs - Great personal story from Rod
Card Buzz - How Gwynn handles autograph signings
Cardboard Icons
Cards that Never Were (1982 Topps Custom)
bdg610 Topps Baseball Card Blog (1983 Topps RC)
30-Year Old Cardboard
Sports Card Info (1982 TCMA Hawaii Islanders #10)
Beckett (1983 OPC RC) 
This Card is Cool 1994 Fleer
All the way to the backstop (2002 Topps)
Lifetime Topps Project (Goodwin Champ Auto)
The Writers Journey (Fleer)
Starting Nine (Various)
Uncle Doc's Card Closet
 
Jayson Stark on Gwynn's incredible numbers

Phungo Tony Gwynn HoF Index
1983 Topps #482 (rc)

Sources
Baseball-ref