San Fran Seals Stadium sign

[perezfan]

Obviously other collectors felt the same way... The new sign (in far better condition) sold for less than half as much as the first.

You'd think this guy would have the sense to space his two current Seals signs apart. But I guess greed trumps common sense.

A shame... Hopefully the "winner" will somehow find this thread.

[william_9]

Originally Posted by perezfan

Obviously other collectors felt the same way... The new sign (in far better condition) sold for less than half as much as the first.

You'd think this guy would have the sense to space his two current Seals signs apart. But I guess greed trumps common sense.

A shame... Hopefully the "winner" will somehow find this thread.

The new Ebbets Field Flannels shop in Seattle purchased the first one, I believe. At the very least, they put one on display shortly after the first one sold.

[bocca001]

Here is the Seals sign in a window. Not sure if that is from Ebbets. It looks like it is in pretty nice shape too.

My question for long time collectors: Is this red sign (design etc.) entirely new to the collecting field? or does anyone remembers seeing it in the past?

As for the other sign (night game), it is hard to imagine that Fenway Park and Seals Stadium had nearly identical signs and that both aged so similarly.

Also, according to Wikipedia, the copyright symbol (which is on both the Fenway and Seals Stadium signs) was not used until 1954 (I spent some time trying to verify that factoid, but came up with nothing solid either way). I'd be curious to see any pre-1954 stadium signs etc. with a copyright symbol. I also wonder what exactly the copyright would be for. The team name? The night game slogan?

[seattlerainiers]

Originally Posted by bocca001

Here is the Seals sign in a window. Not sure if that is from Ebbets. It looks like it is in pretty nice shape too.

My question for long time collectors: Is this red sign (design etc.) entirely new to the collecting field? or does anyone remembers seeing it in the past?

As for the other sign (night game), it is hard to imagine that Fenway Park and Seals Stadium had nearly identical signs and that both aged so similarly.

Also, according to Wikipedia, the copyright symbol (which is on both the Fenway and Seals Stadium signs) was not used until 1954 (I spent some time trying to verify that factoid, but came up with nothing solid either way). I'd be curious to see any pre-1954 stadium signs etc. with a copyright symbol. I also wonder what exactly the copyright would be for. The team name? The night game slogan?

The Seals sign pictured above in the Ebbets Field flannels window belongs to me. Jerry saw it at my house years ago, really liked it, and I lent it to him for display in his retail shop. Incidentally, that's two locations ago for the Ebbets retail shop, so Marc's picture is at least five years old. The sign is not in the window at his present location, but he still has it there. This is NOT one of the signs that appeared on eBay recently.

My sign originated from a long-time, legendary PCL collector, who had owned it for many years. I've owned it for over 15 years. I know of one other of these original signs that was ensconced in another very extensive PCL collection, and privately passed into another great PCL collection within the last few years.

There is no question that both of the signs I describe are authentic and original to the period, likely late 40s to early 50s. I can't speak to the two that transacted on eBay.

As Mark S. implied, the "coincidence" of the eBay seller finding two different old Seals advertising signs from two separate sources within a week gave me pause, to say the least. The copyright symbol at the bottom of the blue Seals sign on eBay bothered right off the bat, as did the wording at the bottom. The Fenway Park sign that Marc found, of course, appears to be the final nail in the coffin on that sign.

[jerseygary]

seattlerainiers: Did yours have that other sign or any other graphics on the reverse?

By the way, yours is a really great sign.

[william_9]

Originally Posted by seattlerainiers

The Seals sign pictured above in the Ebbets Field flannels window belongs to me. Jerry saw it at my house years ago, really liked it, and I lent it to him for display in his retail shop

Well there you go. Can't beat a first hand account. Quite the coincidence then that someone at Ebbets (Lisa, I believe) posted a photo of the sign hanging in one of the new spaces around two weeks after the first eBay sale. My mistake.

[bocca001]

Originally Posted by seattlerainiers

The Seals sign pictured above in the Ebbets Field flannels window belongs to me. Jerry saw it at my house years ago, really liked it, and I lent it to him for display in his retail shop...My sign originated from a long-time, legendary PCL collector, who had owned it for many years. I've owned it for over 15 years. I know of one other of these original signs that was ensconced in another very extensive PCL collection, and privately passed into another great PCL collection within the last few years...There is no question that both of the signs I describe are authentic and original to the period, likely late 40s to early 50s. I can't speak to the two that transacted on eBay.

seattlerainers: Thank you for this information. I would also like to know if your Seals sign has a different advertisement on the back. Also, do you have any thoughts about how the sign was used? Do you think it was posted outside the stadium? Around town? It's a really nice piece.

[ooo-ribay]

So many questions....

The "dateable" campaign sign on the reverse of the most recent seems almost too convenient.

And the first ebay one that started this thread looks too have many, many screw or nail holes around the perimeter....it seems to me a "baseball this week" sign would be up and down and wouldn't have so many fasteners.

If I were to guess at Marc's question, I would go with "around town." In looking at vintage photos of Seals Stadium, I've never seen this kind of signage.

[vintagesportscollector]

piggybacking off this thread...I'd love to see more Seals memorabilia from others.

@seattlerainers..have any other items to share?

Others?

[seattlerainiers]

Originally Posted by bocca001

seattlerainers: Thank you for this information. I would also like to know if your Seals sign has a different advertisement on the back. Also, do you have any thoughts about how the sign was used? Do you think it was posted outside the stadium? Around town? It's a really nice piece.

To answer both Gary and Marc, my sign has nothing on the back. Neither does the other non-eBay-transacted sign I'd mentioned.

Here are a few Seals rosters and a pinback which employ the same cartoon Seal graphic, which is how I date production/use of the sign to the early 50s.

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by bocca001

Also, according to Wikipedia, the copyright symbol (which is on both the Fenway and Seals Stadium signs) was not used until 1954 (I spent some time trying to verify that factoid, but came up with nothing solid either way). I'd be curious to see any pre-1954 stadium signs etc. with a copyright symbol. I also wonder what exactly the copyright would be for. The team name? The night game slogan?

Just saw a Barnum & Bailey poster on Antiques Roadshow. It had the copyright symbol and dates to 1938.

That still changes nothing about these fake signs, though.

[icollectDCsports]

Originally Posted by ooo-ribay

Just saw a Barnum & Bailey poster on Antiques Roadshow. It had the copyright symbol and dates to 1938.

That still changes nothing about these fake signs, though.

When the fake Seals sign was first posted here, I also tried to find out when the copyright symbol was first used, hoping it would be a clue as to authenticity. I didn't spend that much time on it, but I got the impression that it was used by some for a while before it was actually required by law in the U.S. for some purposes.

[Shoeless Moe]

another one back again, and another "honest seller" in the old description. I "honestly" don't know what to make of this....

https://www.ebay.com/itm/San-Francis...kAAOSwNSJa-PCR

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

another one back again, and another "honest seller" in the old description. I "honestly" don't know what to make of this....

https://www.ebay.com/itm/San-Francis...kAAOSwNSJa-PCR

That's the same one. It's legit, IMO.