Looking for info on Dizzy Trout Altes Beer greeter -
 

I've had this for many years sitting around and it has decided to intrigue me today. From what I understand these are called "greeters" and were pasted to the side of Altes six-packs as a premium. I have seen a couple other players come up in auctions, but no Trouts. I believe these were only Detroit players and distributed only regionally in the Detroit area. I wonder how many were actually put out there as they are all hand signed by the featured player? The closest I have seen for an issue date is "1940's". Does anyone have more solid info on these to help sate my curiosity? Fun stuff like dates, distribution or values?

I'd think it is more likely a beer distributor salesman's tool than a consumer premium. Quite a few athletes who needed day jobs or post-sports jobs went into alcohol distribution and sales. They were naturals for glad-handing bar and restaurant owners and patrons. Here is a similar item, a PC from Carmen Basilio:

http://photos.imageevent.com/exhibit...e%20Beer_1.jpg

The reason I have for thinking it was a product premium is that this one has glue remnants on the back and the other example I have seen the back of was the same. I am working of an assumption they were placed on the product itself. The glue is not a scrapbook glue either, it's more of an industrial type meant to have a light enough tack to allow removal. Still, it's all guesswork.

They may have been placed on the product as samplers for wholesale purchasers but the language and autograph indicate it was not meant for large scale retailing. Breweries make a boatload of beer. Doesn't seem likely that the brewery would have contracted with a ballplayer to sign thousands and thousands of these things to stick one on every six pack.

Oh, definitely. I am sure it was very small scale, I don't think Altes was anything more than a regional beer. Alas, though it way before my time. I am thinking they was likely far less than a hundred, or maybe two hundred each of these. Most of them were likely discarded too.