Hey, pennant guys

[thetahat]

Originally Posted by perezfan

Jerry...

I see exactly what you are describing, and truly believe that lighter patch of red is due to reflection of the glass frame. I have photographed these things countless times, and that's the exact type of reflection you just can't seem to avoid when photographing.

REA is pretty meticulous with their descriptions, and did not allude to any fading of the pennant. I am 99.9% positive they would have mentioned it if it was indeed present. Heck, they even disclosed the "clipped tip" which was not even a real condition flaw! Let's call it a blunted Fishtail (as made).

Okay I confess, I won it. And I have one already. (I’d really like to get a blue version.) I knew the tip was fine, it’s just like the one I have (pictured). The exact pennant in the exact same frame went for more than double on Heritage five years ago. Also Hunt sold one awhile back with the same tip. So I’ll hope for an upturn in the pennant market or look for a good trade or something. .... I didn’t want to be a pennant hog but no one was bidding on the darn thing!

(I will add that I’ve seen this without the squared off tips, the blue versions more than red but I’ve seen it red, too. Just production variability, that’s all. I think I may have even seen this completely squared off without the “notch” ... but my memory is vague.)

[Domer05]

Totally agree with you guys: none of these were clipped by the consumer.

This fishtail style was, to my knowledge, only used by Trench in 1955. Fishtails aren't unusual as concerns pennants; but, by the 1950s, they weren't real common.

What makes this pennant so unusual is that the spine is covered in real fringe; and the fishtail end is adorned with a faux-fringe that was screen printed on.

And, apparently, the "fishtailing" was done by hand at the factory in Buffalo. It looks to me like they just had someone cut a simple "V" into the end of the pennant; and, that person wasn't real consistent as to how precisely he/she cut into the end of the felt. Additionally, the screen printer may have gotten too close to the edge of the felt ... leaving the cutter little room to play with.

Since this pennant was thrown together at season's end, there probably wasn't time to redo these.

I've definitely seen some pretty clean, symmetrical versions of the blue variant. But even these two below show you how imperfect the cutting was....

[perezfan]

Originally Posted by Domer05

Totally agree with you guys: none of these were clipped by the consumer.

This fishtail style was, to my knowledge, only used by Trench in 1955. Fishtails aren't unusual as concerns pennants; but, by the 1950s, they weren't real common.

What makes this pennant so unusual is that the spine is covered in real fringe; and the fishtail end is adorned with a faux-fringe that was screen printed on.

And, apparently, the "fishtailing" was done by hand at the factory in Buffalo. It looks to me like they just had someone cut a simple "V" into the end of the pennant; and, that person wasn't real consistent as to how precisely he/she cut into the end of the felt. Additionally, the screen printer may have gotten too close to the edge of the felt ... leaving the cutter little room to play with.

Since this pennant was thrown together at season's end, there probably wasn't time to redo these.

I've definitely seen some pretty clean, symmetrical versions of the blue variant. But even these two below show you how imperfect the cutting was....

Regarding the part above in bold.... Great observation Domer!

And also to Greg's point, a couple have surfaced with no fishtail (in other words, just a very blunt end, with no "V" cutout). This would certainly lend credence to the belief that these were cut by hand at the "factory". There was a definite lack of precision, and they even missed a few altogether!

[perezfan]

Hard to believe that Greg had to save this pennant from getting no bids (as a duplicate, no less). I was tempted to do the same when I saw it was still available for the opening bid amount. But at the time of the initial bid shutdown, I thought I still might win a couple of lots later in the night. So I stayed away, in the fear of spending too much money. Had I known I'd be shutout, I might've done the same thing as Greg!

This pennant used to cause a "bloodbath" of activity. I have noticed a slow downward trend with Brooklyn stuff in particular. Anything Brooklyn Dodgers was almost untouchable a decade ago. This included everything from the Rempel Dolls to Dodgers Pennants to Programs, Ad Signs, Uniforms, etc.

But as the last generation of fans who lived through the Ebbets Field days is now well into retirement (or has passed away), I think we have lost a significant percentage of Brooklyn collectors. Seems that way, at least.

[jsage]

Mark -
You are correct about the current lower value of Brooklyn Dodger items.
My 1955 WS Pennant sold in a Lelands Auction for a little over $1,000.
As you can see by the red staining - the condition was not great.
The one in REA was beautiful.

Also note the irregular cutting of the tip.
Jerry

[thetahat]

It used to be that a clean Emmet Kelly pennant would fetch about $300.

[rlevy]

Mark, I can’t really comment on the market for Brooklyn pennants, but I believe you are correct regarding Brooklyn memorabilia in general. Richard Simon (veteran autograph dealer) made the same comment a while ago regarding autographs. While I am an avid Dodger collector, I am marginally too young to relate too much to the Brooklyn team (plus I grew up in LA). I used to collect both LA and Brooklyn because I appreciated the history of the team, but about 5 years ago I quit buying Brooklyn stuff in general and actually sold off a lot of what I already had (other than anything relating to Jackie), mainly figuring the Brooklyn collector base would begin to shrink each year as they aged and quit buying. The connection to Brooklyn is fairly weak here in LA, and a lot of fans aren't even aware that the team moved here from Brooklyn. Certain Brooklyn players like Snider and Hodges still do well because they are also known from their playing days in LA and were popular here, but I think there is a definite softening in prices for players whose careers were strictly in Brooklyn. Incidentally, I believe prices have softened for items relating to early (1958-1970) LA players as well.

Rick