July 15, 2021: Summer Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 7/15/2021
This is a really cool grouping for non-sport collectors of truly attractive arrays ranging from Presidents, Firefighters, World on Wheels and License Plates, to name a few, most in highly collectible condition. We'll start with a complete set (36) of the colorful 1952 Bowman Radio and TV Stars issue, plus five extra cards in an array (41) that is broadly Very Good to Excellent, with only a couple of cards below, mostly to Good. The classic 2 ½-by-3 ¾-inch cards come out to 22 percent Excellent, 37 percent VG-Ex and 37 percent Very Good. Breakdown of some of the keys: Kate Smith – VG-Ex, Dinah Shore – Very Good, Groucho Marx (2) – Ex and VG), Bob Hope – VG, and Jimmy Durante – VG. A near set of the 1953 Bowman Presidents issue (35/36), missing only Abe Lincoln, is mostly Excellent to Ex-Mt (60 percent) and Very Good to VG-Ex (46 percent), with only a couple below. Breakdown of the keys: No. 1 – Good, 3 Washington – VG-Ex, 4 Adams – Ex-Mt, 5 Jefferson – Ex-Mt, 6 Madison – Excellent, 7 Fair, 9 Monroe – VG-Ex, 10 Jackson – Ex, 21 Grant – Ex-Mt, 29 Teddy Roosevelt – Ex-Mt, 34 Franklin Roosevelt – Ex, 35 Truman – Ex-Mt and 36 Eisenhower – VG. The uniquely sized (1 7/8-by-3 ¾ inches) 1953 Topps License Plates group (50/75) is roughly 2/3 complete, and is about 60 percent Excellent to Ex-Mt and 40 percent Good to Very Good, with the majority of that latter group to the upper end of the spectrum at Very Good. A striking near set of 1953 Bowman Firefighters (59/64) is exceptionally clean and consistent, coming in at 41 percent Ex-Mt, 24 percent Excellent and 23 percent VG-Ex. The missing numbers are: No. 29, 31, 42, 49 and 62. A really strong group of the 1954 Topps World on Wheels cards is a near-complete array from the Middle Series, at 50/59 and missing only five cards from the Nos. 101-160 subgroup. The cards boast wonderful vivid colors and good gloss in the charming paintings of cars, trucks and military vehicles from many countries and eras. Initially issued as a 160-card set in 1953, another 20 cards of the new models from 1954 were added that year, and the 20 short-printed cards are significantly more difficult to find than the first 160. The missing cards are: No. 124, 128, 131, 135, 151, 153, 156, 158 and 159; the array is about 90 percent Ex-Mt and Excellent, divided almost equally between the two. The final element of the lot, another array of a uniquely sized non-sport classic (2 1/16-by-2 13/16 inches), the 1956 Topps Jets group from the First Series (50) of the massive 240-card issue, is generally Ex-Mt (68 percent) and Excellent (24 percent), with just a handful below.
Vintage Non-Sport Near and Partial Sets: Presidents, License Plates, TV Stars and More (285)
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