Looking for help on variation World Series Program

[Beastmode]

I'll try and keep this short. I've had these in my possession for 36 years. My father knew a printer in Mountain View CA who, to the best of my knowledge, had the contract with MLB to print the World Series programs.

From what I was told, MLB wanted the cover in French because of the Expos imminent playoff run. Of course, Expos never made the playoffs, and since I was the kid that collected baseball cards in Menlo Park, he gave these limited programs to my dad, who gave them to me.

I would like to establish the provenance to support this, but some of the players may no longer be with us. I know those to be legitimate, but if I was ever to sell them, the buyer would want proof.

The inside guts of the program are exactly the same as the regular program. The only difference is the cover page in French, as far as I can tell.

edit: Forgot to mention that there is a Canadian Flag with the American Flag on the cover. I actually never noticed the Canadian flag until my son mentioned it to me last year. That may be the clue to solve this. John Martin and Jane Sterrett were the Illustrators for the cover.

Any help would be appreciated. I can give more scans if needed.

[baseball tourist]

You have nailed what it is and was intended to be - a WS program prototype should the Expos get in and their bi-lingual (French/English) fan base would be looking for game day souvenirs. Akin to a proof/phantom ticket that team's would have printed on the fly in the playoffs. The Bkue Jays have a number of 1985 ALCS Champs and 1985 WS tickets, pennants etc out there as they were up handily in the ALCS vs KC only to lose in Game 7.

[Darner]

It's curious they bothered to assemble a regular program with the French cover unless it was only a prototype. If the inside contents are exactly the same as the regular program (with no section on the Expos winning the NL East), it doesn't seem to be a true phantom.

Being a Phillies fan, I'd be interested in obtaining one if you choose to sell any.

[Beastmode]

Originally Posted by Darner

It's curious they bothered to assemble a regular program with the French cover unless it was only a prototype. If the inside contents are exactly the same as the regular program (with no section on the Expos winning the NL East), it doesn't seem to be a true phantom.

Being a Phillies fan, I'd be interested in obtaining one if you choose to sell any.

Yes, it doesn't make sense to put the cover in French and the rest of the program in English. What is the difference between "prototype" and "phantom".

thanks

[Darner]

Sorry to get the thread so bogged down but I would define "phantom" as something that was produced in anticipation of a team achieving something, the World Series for example, but the team failed to do so. These would be products (tickets, pennants, programs, t-shirts, etc.) that were all ready to be distributed and sold.

A prototype would be a version of a product that was still in development and not intended to be sold or distributed. If only a small number of these programs were made, it's probable that these particular copies were never meant to be sold which makes them prototypes. But since these were likely made in anticipation of the Expos making the World Series, they could also be considered phantoms too