Goodwin "Weiser Wonder" Walter Johnson postcard

[rhettyeakley]

I was looking through the Goodwin catalog today and was a little bugged by the write-up of their Weiser Wonder Walter Johnson postcard in there.

In the auction description they talk about how this was Walter Johnson's personal copy of this particular postcard as a major selling point. I don't have a problem with that but they also include a letter that written by the grandson of Walter Johnson stating... "This is to certify that the following lot originated from my personal collection of items relating to my grandfather, Walter Johnson..." signed at bottom by his grandson.

My issue is where does it say this ever was owned by WaJo--it seems clear that his grandson owned it but those are two very different things. Does this sound wierd to anyone else here?



---Also on a completely unrelated note about this postcard...

Goodwin is claiming this postcard was produced in 1907 and that it could arguably be Walter Johnson's rookie card. PSA has stated a date of 1901 on the flip!?!(wierd)
-My question is this, is the card postmarked 1907 on back? If not where in the world are they getting the date from?
-All the examples that I have seen from this set over the years have had postmarks of much later 1915-1918 or so, so what did Goodwin use to determine the date (which is a VERY significant feature of the piece were to really date from 1907.)
-The Walter Johnson story was well known back then and it was actually my assumption that these were likely produced after Walter had become a famous Major Leaguer to cash in on his notoriety.


Anyways, I was just venting a little as it seems like they are touting a few aspects of this card that are troubling to me. Beside those points above the card is a great card in and of itself and doesn't really need the extra fluff (if what I am assuming above is true).

I welcome your thoughts and opinions,
-Rhett

[fkw]

Wasnt there more than 1 type of card too? I dont have my book with me, so might be wrong.

I also thought they were all from the late teens when Johnson was more well known.

[rhettyeakley]

Frank, you are correct there are two "versions" one is the type in the auction and the other is a more sepia/B&W version of the same image.
-Rhett

[oldjudge]

Just a few observations:

1. I wonder if Henry Thomas wanted his address and phone number to be published in the catalog

2. Is there anything that PSA will not write on a slab? Since they dated the card 1901 (when Johnson was 13 years old during the baseball season), I wonder if someone had submitted it to PSA claiming it was Johnson's bar mitzvah photo if PSA would have listed that on the slab.

[PGACPA]

Hey Jay,
It's not just PSA whoring itself out. I recall purchasing a SGC 98 Old Judge Burns, Chicago from you that had "Pulled From Pack" on the SGC flip.
And all of those "XYZ Collection" flips....(I'm not naming names but we all know who they are) from both PSA and SGC...
All I can say is grading COMPANIES are in business to make a profit and they are not apologizing for it. Unfortunately we,the collecting community, have become slaves to this.
So when is the Jay Miller collection coming out?
Bob C.

[rhettyeakley]

Jay, I'm sure he isn't very happy about having his address, phone #, and email address all published out there--major mistake on Goodwin's part not to cover up those details on the letter.

I'm sure PSA meant to write 1910 as opposed to 1901 but where did they get that date from? Have they found an example of this postcard that can be attributed to that early of a date as the example in the auction was not postally used (website has photo of back)?

[bcbgcbrcb]

I too am very interested in all board members' opinions regarding this item. I had not previously included it among the five earliest Walter Johnson cards on the OldCardboard database for HOF Rookie Cards and am wondering if any more definitive information is available that would place it right before/after the 1907-09 Novelty Cutlery Postcard of Johnson?

[sox1903wschamp]

This is a really cool postcard and I would love to own it. With that said, I was watching the old game show "password" the other day and this thread made me think about that show and the fact that they could use this Auction as a clue for the word "Hype" .

But kidding aside, I am in the camp that this was produced sometime after 1907. Unless an example is found postmarked earlier, it is hard for me to imagine they produced these when the picture was taken with the intent of selling very many. When he made it big, someone probably had the bright idea to produce these cards of the legend that passed through Idaho (IMO).

And to JimB's point, did someone need to state that they were producing a commemorative issue back in those days?