The significance of "The Nationals"

[HRBAKER]

Originally Posted by travrosty

Poor hygeine? Don't they have showers at these nationals?

Sure they do, but it requires a choice to use them.

[cliftons8]

This will be my 22nd National. I am not a dealer, but a small time collector like many of you. I went to Atlanta in 1991 for my first, and have really enjoyed every one of them. If you enjoy this board or collecting, I really believe this is something you must attend. I have gone to most with Tom Boblitt and many with HR Baker. We all stay at the same hotel, eat our meals together, poke fun and truly have a good time. The National is something I look forward to each year soon after the previous one has passed. I have always loved baseball and collecting, but I think it has become much more than that at this point. This is a passion that very few of my every day friends and my family understand. At the National you can start up a conversation about baseball, especially old baseball with almost everyone you meet. I really enjoy being around that atmosphere. Sounds kind of sappy, hope I don't lose my man card over this.

Mike

[jcmtiger]

I have only attended 1 of the " New National Shows", it was in Cleveland. Anyway the original Nationals were held in the Detroit area years ago, Detroit, Troy and Plymouth Michigan. Great shows, nice drinks and snacks in suites in the hotel. I'm sure Leon's is party is much better, but these were great!!

Not sure if anyone on the Net54 site remembers these shows, but they were something else.

Joe

[cmcclelland]

It's a great experience if you have never been before. The only negative I would point out is that once you've been to several Nationals, you start to see a lot of the same inventory with the same dealers over and over again. Obviously, there is always some new material, but there is no doubt that a pretty good percentage of the material at the National (or any of the good vintage card show) is just the same "stale" material from the same dealers that just kind of makes its way around the circuit year after year. Once you've been to enough of these shows, it starts to kind of get old that you have to sift through all of the stale material to try to find the good fresh stuff. That said, if you can put up with that and just continue to dig and dig for the fresh material, you are sure to come away with some great finds.

[sox1903wschamp]

A quote sums it up best for me from that great Philanthropist Austin Powers:

"It's my happening baby and it freaks me out! Yeah man!"

[HexsHeroes]

Originally Posted by jcmtiger

I have only attended 1 of the " New National Shows", it was in Cleveland. Anyway the original Nationals were held in the Detroit area years ago, Detroit, Troy and Plymouth Michigan. Great shows, nice drinks and snacks in suites in the hotel. I'm sure Leon's is party is much better, but these were great!!

Not sure if anyone on the Net54 site remembers these shows, but they were something else.

Joe

I, too, went to several of the original Nationals held in Detroit/Troy/Plymouth Michigan, as well as many of the Jim Hawkin's sponsored shows too (no traditional Thanksgiving Black Friday shopping for me ). I miss those days. My count for new Nationals currently stands at five, but hoping to change that next year. Was just in Baltimore afew weeks ago. If only the Mrs. work conference at the Hyatt Regency had been held a month later, what a time I could have had.

[Exhibitman]

Last year there was a Beatles convention in the hotel where the N54 dinner was held. Robert Silverman, Zach Rice and I crashed it. Talk about a crap fest...I've never seen such manufactured dreck for sale. But they did have lots of women--or woman-like creatures--in attendance, unlike the National, which looks like a gay pride parade for the awkward and unkempt. Except for the Olympic area last year, which you could instantly tell wasn't part of the main show because of the many women and thin people in there [the highlight of that pavilion for me was the elderly German dealer with all of the 1936 Nazi Olympics paraphernalia reminiscing in his movie villain accent about the good old days...]. Plus, the Beatles afficionadoes had a sing-along in the hotel lobby--you don't see that very often at the National. Zach, Robert and I ended up looking at some bootleg CDs sold by two dealers who were totally baked and who had boxes of Hostess product [Twinkies, cupcakes, etc.] stacked to the ceiling for the munchies to prove it. I haven't had to execute so many hippie thumb grip handshakes since I attended a party at a collective in Berkeley while I was in law school with this blonde co-ed I was trying to pick up. But I digress...

[ullmandds]

That Beatles thing definitely made last years national more interesting!!!!! Funny observations!!!!!

[jp1216]

Can't wait for 2014 and the return the Cleveland!! 10 minutes away! Baltimore is out this year - family in town . 2013 is a road trip waiting to happen.

[Jewish-collector]

I was thinking of checking that Beatles show out too, but never did... The other section of the hotel was a religious convention of some sort....