Dinner with Mike Gidwitz: A Story about Kindness

[MikeGarcia]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Love this story. I've long thought that kindness is the most underrated human virtue of them all, in fact all the others flow from it.

..Other baseball card collectors trump stuff..Even cardboard stuff.

..

[maddux31]

I had the pleasure of dealing with Mike around 6 years ago when I purchased a 1987 Classic board game from him. I can't remember the circumstances in our conversation, but we discussed the 1978 Family Fun Center set that he has. Thinking nothing of it, I then see that he added me to the listing where he thanked me for the help. He made a big impression on me and hope to meet him one day.

A big thank you goes out to my friend Jason Carter for his help and advice on what is a fair price to ask for the set because of the Ozzie Smith card.

http://www.preciouspaper.com/ItemDetail.aspx?ID=761

[Leon]

I also bought something from Mike several years back and the transaction was fine. If he only had Wags back

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[marzoumanian]

I thought you would enjoy reading this from Mint Condition by Dave Jamieson (p. 38). It makes me think about the dream of owning something rare/expensive, owning it, and then reality hits:
"Gidwitz enjoyed the reputation given him by his purchase, but the card itself was another matter. Indeed, owning it was a lot like dealing with a $1 million bill. In his postauction rapture, he posed for a few giddy photos with the two-and-a-half-inch piece of cardboard, but then he had to figure out what to do with it. The card is almost too small to be displayed safely...
"He put it in a safety-deposit box, where it sat for nearly four years, until the time felt right and he sold it."

I believe I read recently that Mr. Kendrick, the current PSA 8 Wagner owner, could get $10 million for it. However, he has made it clear that he has NO interest in selling it. My point? If I had the money and could buy ANY PSA-graded Wagner I would be scared to death of keeping it in my condo. I'd have to do what Mike did: Put it in a bank vault and hope that no one ever breaks into it. Imagine thieves robbing the bank (with their COVID-19 masks on, of course) and saying to the president: We don't want any money. Just tell us which safe deposit box holds the Wagner that Mark owns!
Stay healthy.