Lionel Carter at the 1974 Detroit show

[Peter_Spaeth]

He is lamenting that some kid was buying his cards at one cent each and then selling them at two, when he was trying to do the kid a favor. The more things change...

[chaddurbin]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

He is lamenting that some kid was buying his cards at one cent each and then selling them at two, when he was trying to do the kid a favor. The more things change...

that kid was probably bill mastro. oh wait no, mastro would've trimmed the cards to a better grade, have his friend (let's call him mug dallen) pretend to be an interested party to drive up the price to 5cents ea and then dump them off to the unsuspecting buyer.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by chaddurbin

that kid was probably bill mastro. oh wait no, mastro would've trimmed the cards to a better grade, have his friend (let's call him mug dallen) pretend to be an interested party to drive up the price to 5cents ea and then dump them off to the unsuspecting buyer.

I keep thinking Milo Minderbinder.

[trdcrdkid]

Originally Posted by chaddurbin

that kid was probably bill mastro. oh wait no, mastro would've trimmed the cards to a better grade, have his friend (let's call him mug dallen) pretend to be an interested party to drive up the price to 5cents ea and then dump them off to the unsuspecting buyer.

Actually, I wonder if Frank Nagy's wife bidding up items in the Friday night auction, as recounted here by Carter, might have planted the seed in Mastro's mind for shill bidding...

[byrone]

Nice of Carter to mention dedicated collector Roland Villard, who had to make a special effort to attend.


http://www.the-daily-record.com/obit...rd-79-orrville

[insidethewrapper]

He stated that Mint cards of older sets appear to be things of the past. I also remember those 1970's shows and I attended many shows and I only picked the best of the best. Years later when I sent these cards to be graded, most came back PSA 6's or 7's and these were the best on dealer tables. I don't understand where all the 8's, 9's and 10's of older cards have come from in recent years, when they couldn't be found 40 years ago.

[1880nonsports]

enjoyed his musing immensely - my national reporting's not nearly as robust and encompassing. One thing I see differently than he did is those kids moving cards from table to table that he noted were choosing commerce over collecting (maybe they took the proceeds and bought more?) are necessary contributors in a COLLECTIBLE hobby equation. Future dealers or collectors perhaps - but the core concept of buying and selling of cards is an important principle necessary to sustain and GROW a large and robust COLLECTIBLE hobby. That is unless one is on the other side of capitalism....

[nolemmings]

I can't believe that was his first time eating KFC. Geez, even I as a boy had been eating it for 5 years or more by then.

Seriously, nice recap.

[JLange]

Thanks for sharing! I especially like his vivid details of interactions with other collectors. His concern for future collectors and the state of the hobby was obvious, all the way back in 1974. Very cool!

[xplainer]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

He is lamenting that some kid was buying his cards at one cent each and then selling them at two, when he was trying to do the kid a favor. The more things change...

Yeah, saw that. And the "rip off" with the Washington Nationals cards.