Dealers (or fellow collectors) who lit the fire

[Steve D]

After getting started through Larry Fritsch and Renata Galasso from 1975-77, I kept going via dealings with card shop owners like Bill Goepner, Nacho Arredondo, J.R. Hewitt and Nelson Katz in San Diego CA, as well as at card shows with guys like Steve Brunner, Will Davis, Bill Heitman, Tony Galovich and Charlie Seaver from L.A., as well as Frank and Vivian Barning.


Steve

[camlov2]

For me it was my dad. I remember going out to the baseball card room growing up and being able to go through the drawers and binders of cards that he had collected. When I had to give a speech in Jr. High I decided to do it on the history of cards, it was pretty easy since he had already shared with me enough knowledge to speak for the time allowed. It seems that every time we get together we end up talking about a set or card that I have seen online.

[smokeyjoewood]

Mr. Schaeffer on Plymouth Rd., a crusty old bugger who sold me all 4 Cobbs for a hundred bucks. I had to mow a lot of lawns to save that kind of dough as a ten year old. Unfortunately he passed away not long after that and his little store closed down.

I worked at a couple of card stores during high school and college, this helped me acquire a lot of vintage material. People would bring in collections all the time and I would get to go through them and cherry pick. Mostly 50's and 60's stuff, but still fun. At one store, "The Old Ball Park"(anyone remember this place?), Chuck Scrivener(former Tiger) was in charge and I used to bust him all the time about his 78 Topps cards. I must have had about 40 of those babies, one in every pack it seemed like.

[Mrc32]

Ditto on those who said their Dad.

If Dad didn't have that old Stewarts Department Store box full of cards from his collecting days in the mid 50s, I don't know if I would have ever gotten started.

I miss ya Dad!