Hey, pennant guys

[thetahat]

Originally Posted by perezfan

There are less than 3 known copies of the Walter Johnson Pennant, and literally thousands of "beater" '52 Mantles, either raw or in low grade. There's simply no contest regarding which piece displays better. I will never figure out the gigantic premium put on pieces of mass-produced cardboard that have no connection to the player.

The winning bidder probably paid about $14,250 with the BP, state tax and shipping included. I also thought it might do a bit better, but am not too surprised. The Yankees pennant Gary referenced should have gone for triple what it did. Tough to predict these erratic outcomes, but that's just the nature of Live Auctions.

Make that at least 4, with an asterisk, if you include this one. The story is that Walter objected to pennants being sold to young children and eventually refused to allow his likeness on them. Or something like that.

The actual story is that this was one of those pennants that hung at the celebratory banquet that I think Hank mentioned. I have a blurry pic from that banquet but would love to have a clearer copy.

There’s a 1925 Pirates pennant that resembles this, clearly the same manufacturer, but with a batter graphic inside the baseball, identity unknown …

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by thetahat

Make that at least 4, with an asterisk, if you include this one. The actual story is that this was one of those pennants that hung at the celebratory banquet that I think Hank mentioned. I have a blurry pic from that banquet but would love to have a clearer copy. There’s a 1925 Pirates pennant that resembles this, clearly the same manufacturer, but with a batter graphic inside the baseball, identity unknown …

The photo of the WaJo pennants is in the Washington 1925 World Series program, showing the banquet for winning the 1924 A.L. pennant a year earlier with several of these on the walls. Since I've never seen a 1924 World Series crowd shot with one of these pennants, I'm guessing they were only made for that banquet, thereby accounting for their rarity, although I guess any pennant surviving from that era is almost by definition rare.

[thetahat]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

The photo of the WaJo pennants is in the Washington 1925 World Series program, showing the banquet for winning the 1924 A.L. pennant a year earlier with several of these on the walls. Since I've never seen a 1924 World Series crowd shot with one of these pennants, I'm guessing they were only made for that banquet, thereby accounting for their rarity, although I guess any pennant surviving from that era is almost by definition rare.

Found my pic. It looks like these were the “plain baseball” versions, i.e. without the WJ graphic. Looks like the laces on the ball run horizontal. Hard to tell for certain. Wish I had a more detailed photo.

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by thetahat

Found my pic. It looks like these were the “plain baseball” versions, i.e. without the WJ graphic. Looks like the laces on the ball run horizontal. Hard to tell for certain. Wish I had a more detailed photo.

Makes me wonder if the WaJo version was on the walls of the 1925 banquet, or if there was a '25 Washington version similar to the Pirates, which would have meant some kind of commercial distribution since the Nationals wouldn't have had Pirates pennants made up, I wouldn't think. Do we know anything about who made these?

[perezfan]

Originally Posted by thetahat

Make that at least 4, with an asterisk, if you include this one. The story is that Walter objected to pennants being sold to young children and eventually refused to allow his likeness on them. Or something like that.

The actual story is that this was one of those pennants that hung at the celebratory banquet that I think Hank mentioned. I have a blurry pic from that banquet but would love to have a clearer copy.

There’s a 1925 Pirates pennant that resembles this, clearly the same manufacturer, but with a batter graphic inside the baseball, identity unknown …

Great '24 Washington Pennant, Greg! Is it oversize, full-size, or 3/4 size? I've seen that '25 Pirates Pennant in the past, and (from memory) I believed it was 3/4 size.

Also... Are we sure it's from the same manufacturer? The font is different, the laces are different, and the laces run horizontal, rather than vertical. Just curious how you are sure these come from the same maker.

Thanks!

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by perezfan

Also... Are we sure it's from the same manufacturer? The font is different, the laces are different, and the laces run horizontal, rather than vertical. Just curious how you are sure these come from the same maker.

Thanks!

I thought the same.

[thetahat]

Originally Posted by perezfan

Great '24 Washington Pennant, Greg! Is it oversize, full-size, or 3/4 size? I've seen that '25 Pirates Pennant in the past, and (from memory) I believed it was 3/4 size.

Also... Are we sure it's from the same manufacturer? The font is different, the laces are different, and the laces run horizontal, rather than vertical. Just curious how you are sure these come from the same maker.

Thanks!

Thanks Mark. Yes it’s full-size, about 28”. I just think by the general design it suggests the same maker. Also the laces on the WJ version run verticle. Here is it with mine, for comparison …

[bocca001]

This one is on ebay right now as a BIN. Keezer pennant with concessionaire label. Boston Badge and Speciality co. Seller also has the Yankees with the same label. Kyle looked up the address and noted that this was very close to the Boston Braves stadium.

[UKCardGuy]

Thanks to Marc and Rob for making this one available to me. It's my first Reproduction Co pennant.

My next step is to get this in a frame.

[Fballguy]

Originally Posted by UKCardGuy

Thanks to Marc and Rob for making this one available to me. It's my first Reproduction Co pennant.

My next step is to get this in a frame.

Glad it made it safely!

Rob

[UKCardGuy]

Originally Posted by Fballguy

Glad it made it safely!

Rob

Thanks. You did a great job packing it up. It's now framed but I need to re-visit the tassels. I think they need to go along the spine on the left side. I took the knot out of the tassels but after 110 years, they have a mind of their own.

[Scott Garner]

Originally Posted by thetahat

Thanks Mark. Yes it’s full-size, about 28”. I just think by the general design it suggests the same maker. Also the laces on the WJ version run verticle. Here is it with mine, for comparison …

Damn, that WAJO is a nice pennant!

[bocca001]

Just received this SF Seals pennant made by ABC Emblem and Pennant co, which we have discussed a few times over the years. I think there are two known SF Giants pennants (one with sewn letters, one screen printed) and a few college pennant examples on Worthpoint.

One interesting feature of the ABC pennants I've seen (I own two and have seen two from Oooribay) is that they are always in very nice condition. They almost look new. I also just bought this postcard which shows their storefront in SF (lower right corner). Clearly not a modern storefront. I think their pennants were just really well made. And maybe on the expensive side, so the people who were buying them were also the types likely to take good care of them?

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by bocca001

Just received this SF Seals pennant made by ABC Emblem and Pennant co, which we have discussed a few times over the years. I think there are two known SF Giants pennants (one with sewn letters, one screen printed) and a few college pennant examples on Worthpoint.

One interesting feature of the ABC pennants I've seen (I own two and have seen two from Oooribay) is that they are always in very nice condition. They almost look new. I also just bought this postcard which shows their storefront in SF (lower right corner). Clearly not a modern storefront. I think their pennants were just really well made. And maybe on the expensive side, so the people who were buying them were also the types likely to take good care of them?

Cool pennant! Cool postcard! Do I have a screen printed ABC?