Dating Topps Hocus Focus To 1955

[toppcat]

I was doing a little research on the Topps Hocus Focus cards this week and think I have finally managed to figure out their year of issue. Almost every hobby reference or article I have ever seen refers to the smaller of the two sizes issued as a 1955 and the larger (smaller and larger being relative terms) as a 1956. Based upon the player selection in the Baseball Stars subsets (23 cards in the small version, 18 in the large) it is obvious both came out in 1955.

Each Baseball Stars subset includes at least one player form each major league time at the time. In addition, two players printed in both sizes had team changes and these really help to pinpoint the year. Ed Lopat started the year pitching for the New York Yankees but was traded to Baltimore on July 30, 1955. He would end his career for the Orioles, who released him on October 10th. He is shown in both sets as a Yankee.

Boston and Kansas City were the only two teams with two players in the "large" set, so Lopat was the only Bronx Bomber present. He dates the set at 1955, as does the inclusion of Johnny Schmitz.

Johnny is clearly a Senator in the "small" set and Washington traded him to Boston after the 1955 season. In addition, he indeed led the Senators staff with a 2.91 ERA in 1954, which answers the quiz question on the back of his card. Based on Lopat and Schmitz, I am dating both Hocus Focus sets as 1955 issues.

The other thing I am learning is that the first 96 cards in each set are identical, except for size and subset numbering. All 96 seem to share the same photo, text and card number, although not all small cards are confirmed yet in this run but each one that is matches the corresponding large numbering. I am still working on the length of the small set but it's well above #96.

All Hocus Focus cards have the set name on the back. The 1948-49 Magic Photos do not. I have some details here:

http://toppsarchives.blogspot.com/search/label/1955%20Topps%20Hocus%20Focus

[ALR-bishop]

Interesting analysis Dave. I have the 1948 Magic Photo subset, and added the Bendix as Babe Ruth card to that. I also have all the "1956" Hocus Focus baseball "cards", but so far have managed only 11 of the 23 "1955s. I have said before that I think the 1955 baseball subset is the toughest of all Topps "issued" set to complete.

I also have a slabbed 1956 unopened Hocus Focus pack ( it is labeled as Non Sport from the Rosen find) ...now I wonder if it is little or big, and how much the wrappers varied, if at all in design and size.

Also, while the 56s are not plentiful, I wonder why the 55s seem much more scarce. I wonder if they were distributed the same. For that matter I wonder what the distribution was on both

[toppcat]

Al-if it's a penny pack, about the size of a postage stamp, it's a small version. Only the sealed, elongated packs had the larger cards. I suspect the small cards were distributed outside of most cities, the larger packs in places like NY and Boston.

[CharleyBrown]

Both sets are incredibly difficult to find.

I've maybe found 3 '56 Hocus Focus cards and 0 '55s. Forget finding them at shows, and I have been scouring the Internet for them for some time....

Very interesting find..

[ALR-bishop]

I had found only 5 of the 55s until someone posted scans of 8 of them on CU that he had stumbled on. Two of them were listed in SCD only by number as not yet known. I bought 6 of them from him since I already had one of them ( J Robinson) and he sold another ( Haddix) to a Cardinals collector. I was pretty pleased to be able to finish the 56 set

They are not only hard to find, but when they do pop up, they are usually in poor condition or poorly developed, or both. Even in great condition they are ugly, which is why most people who got them probably tossed them

[ALR-bishop]

http://i1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj555/Bishop539/th_img010.jpg

http://s1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj555/Bishop539/?action=view&current=img013.jpg

[CharleyBrown]

Al, is that the '55 and '56?

[ALR-bishop]

1956