1977 Detroit convention in Sports Collectors' News (16 pages!)

[trdcrdkid]

Here are the first 16 pages of the August 15, 1977 Sports Collectors' News, with exhaustive coverage of the Midwest Sports Collectors Convention (the Detroit show), held July 29-31, 1977. More than 5000 people attended, up from 1000 at the 1973 Detroit show that I just posted about; this was the de facto national convention before there was an official National. There is a story about Barry Halper's proposal for a new national association of sports collectors, which actually was formed but never really led anywhere, as far as I know; the results of the Friday and Saturday night auctions; a summary of what people were selling at the convention's 200 tables; and lots of photos, including several of a young, mustachioed Jim Beckett and numerous other well-known hobby figures. I assume that most of the articles here are written by SCN editor Mike Bondarenko, the same guy who wrote the 1969 editorial I posted last night, about the then-new phenomenon of card conventions.

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[Leon]

Great pictures. I know there is at least a board member or two in those pictures too. Thanks for posting.

[SAllen2556]

Tom Tuschak, who is in the first photo by the car, was a teacher at my high school! Time to bring the National back to the Motor City!

Thanks for posting this - fun read!

[trdcrdkid]

On page 14 is Dan Even, from whom I bought many of these old hobby publication I've been posting (though not this one), and Paul Marchant, from whom I bought my first T206 (from a 1979 price list that I posted a while back).

The 1970s fashions in these pictures are great. I had some plaid pants like the ones on page 13, but I was just a kid and didn't know any better. 1977 was the first year I collected the complete Topps set, and also the first year I went to the Sports Collectors' Store co-owned by Don Steinbach (pictured on page 5).