E121-80 poster or uncut sheet?

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Posted By: James B.

My brother and I inherited a ton of baseball cards from an old family friend. Most of the cards are e121's and are very easy to identify. The one thing I've never been able to find info on is a sheet of all 80 players. The 80 cards on the sheet are identical to the e121's and the paper is also very similar. Our friend actually purchased the cards himself as a boy in San Francisco. He told us that the store where he bought the cards had an offer where you could exchange any 80 cards for this sheet. My family insists that this is an uncut sheet, but there are no registration marks and the sheet has text at the top (The 80 Stars of Baseball) which makes me think it was intended for display as a poster.

Anyone know anything about this? I'd be happy to take some photos next time I have a chance.

Thanks- James

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Posted By: Josh K.

Photos would be great.

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Posted By: dennis

an uncut sheet would not have text at the top,so i'd say it's a poster.i think your friend answered the question sort of, in that you could exchange the cards for the sheet. love to see a pic

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Posted By: James B.

Thanks for the input- I'm also convinced it's a poster but thought I might be able to strengthen my argument with some of the knowledgeable responses I'm sure to get on this forum. I have lurked here off and on for a while, though this is my first post.

I'll have an opportunity to take pictures in a week or so and will post them soon after.

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Posted By: Mark Macrae

There was a Bay Area candy wholesaler located in Alameda (East side of San Francisco Bay) named Henry Johnson that marketed E-121 style cards, mostly with blank backs. Longtime collector, Don McPherson talked with Johnson over 30 years ago. As I recall, Johnson told McPherson that he acquired sheets directly from the printer & had them cut down locally. Johnson's cards can be found with blank backs or with a purple colored rubber stamp bearing his name.Its possible that the sheets you have were from Johnson & that they were never cut down. Another local candy company (Witmor Candy in San Francisco) marketed similar style sets, and presumably had a similar arrangement with the printer or American Caramel Co.

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Posted By: James B.

You've nailed it. All of our e121's have a blank back or are stamped Henry Johnson in purple, with the address 1827 Bay St. Alameda.

I can't thnk you enough!

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Posted By: Paul

Is your poster / sheet on the same stock as the cards, or is it thin like a poster?

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Posted By: James B.

The paper is identical to the 121's- the main reason my brother thought they must be an uncut sheet. The only real difference is that the sheet was in an attic for 75 years and was never exposed to light, so it's much whiter than the cards.

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Posted By: Paul

It sounds like Henry Johnson special ordered some sheets so that they would say "80 Stars of Baseball" at the top. Perhaps they were given away (or sold)as full sheets as some sort of premium. Similar to the Bucayrus (sp?) sheet that has the same cards as M101-4/5.