Grady

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...1cc5fb77_z.jpg

Last 2 days: Grady is a bit OC but the Black on both is flawless.

John Calvin

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...n_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Here's Johnny.

I think Bowman was the reason. The DPs covered the unissued cards in the second series likely caused by player contract issues with Bowman

Heres....Johnny...


https://i.ibb.co/YhK1PYg/53-Johnny.jpg

This card came from my original small lot where a kid probably in the 50's wrote some pencil marks on the cards...I see Los Angeles on this card, and no idea why...ol' Bubba never played or lived near there...:)


https://i.ibb.co/7Cw3rZg/53-Bubba.jpg

Bubba

Emory Nicholas

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...h_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...737da1e5_z.jpg

Received TTM in January 2015.

Bob

Robert George

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...o_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Contracts
 

I dunno, Al. I think maybe contract issues are the easy explanation in lieu of evidence. Three of the guys on those five cards appeared in Bowman sets from 1951 to 1953 but while Ellis Kinder had a '51 Bowman card, he had none in '52 or '53. And, Joe Black had no Bowman cards - just Topps cards in '52 and '53. Of course, the other usual explanation is that Topps shifted the five cards in order to keep kids looking for missing numbers, but that has always seemed specious to me. As a nine-year-old in '53, I paid absolutely no attention to the card numbers, and it would never have occurred to me to thumb through my collection looking for a "missing" number. I can't imagine that anyone at Topps actually thought that would be an effective sales strategy. But the card numbers were arbitrary - those five "missing" numbers could have been assigned to any players. All the printshop needed to fill a sheet was one hundred faces, so why futz around with the numbers?

Agree the unissued cards created chase cards but think it was unintentional and due to contract issues. Cards 10,44,61,72 and 81 in series 1were skipped. In Series 2 the skipped cards were 94,107,131and 156. According to Dean Hanley the skipping was to fill holes on subsequent sheets due to failure to secure contracts for players (unknown) that were originally planned to be in the series. That skipping worked until they got to the last series when they ran out of players under contract resulting in the 6 unissued cards in the last series.

Here is George Vrechek's take on the 53 printing

https://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrJ...ebLZyxhR7kh1U-

Faye

Maynard Faye

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...y_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

#49 Faye Throneberry

Chuck

Charles Walter

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...n_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

When you guys get to 1973 I will finally be able to participate :D.

eta 2050?

Francisco J. (Lopez)

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...s_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Frank

Fascinating facts
 

Bob - Thanks for posting the card backs. It makes for some great reading for those members who lack the time or energy to thumb through their own collections, not to mention those who have no '53 Topps to enjoy.:)

I'm glad you're enjoying them. I regretted not doing it for the '52s. :)



Theodore Glenn

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...y_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Ted

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...00112482b4.jpg

John Sherman

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...r_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Sherman

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...1891c58c_z.jpg

sorry, got to catch up a little here...spent the last couple days in the woods chasing Turkeys...


https://i.ibb.co/nsdLWnf/53-Catch-Up.jpg

My Sherm...love that factory rough cut on the left side...but not the yellowing in the right upper corner...must have been in a scrap book at one time. Always crazy to think of the journey these pieces of cardboard have been on for the last 70 years!


https://i.ibb.co/bXKg1S6/53-Sherm.jpg

Robert Wm. Andrew

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...r_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Bob

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...af970713_z.jpg

Maurice John

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...t_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Maurice

Gerald Lee

https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...y_original.jpg https://caimages.collectors.com/psai...k_original.jpg

Gerald