December 1, 2016: Sports & Americana Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/1/2016
Presented here is an absolutely intriguing lot with rare proof cards that came directly from the Topps Company, most bearing the imprimatur of the Topps Vault, which for years now has served as an ironclad source of bona fide Topps archival material being offered to the public. This particular group is stunning in its depth and diversity, headlined by a 1963 Bazooka proof strip and 20 blank-backed Topps proofs from the 1970’s and 1980’s, many featuring Hall of Famers and major stars of the period. A total of 19 Certificates of Authenticity from the Topps Vault are included with the lot. We’ll start with the 1963 Bazooka proof, housed in an SGC Authentic holder and mislabeled by the grading company – the players pictured are actually Nos. 25-27, Chuck Hinton, Bob Purkey and Ken Hubbs. There is also a 1983 Topps three-card, blank-backed proof strip featuring George Brett, Dick Ruthven and Luis Salazar (Nr-Mt) and a 1966 Topps Rub-Offs uncut sheet with four players – Aaron, Ellsworth, Howard and Boyer – in Excellent condition but with a ragged edge on one side.
The key group of blank-backed single proof cards runs from 1975 to 1983, broken down as follows: 1975 cards of Bob Boone and Willie McCovey; 1979 Topps cards (2) of Ted Martinez, with black and yellow printing, a Bill Madlock and two Pete Rose proofs, one with black printing and one without black printing; two 1980 Topps (2) of Gaylord Perry, one in black and white and one with no black printing; a 1982 Topps John Candelaria with no facsimile signature; and a large array from 1983 Topps (10), including Roy Smalley (no team name), George Foster (no black printing), Ivan DeJesus, two (2) proofs of Manny Trillo, including one with only yellow printing, two (2) proofs of Bo Diaz, one with magenta and one with blue printing, and proofs of Ken Griffey, Terry Francona and Kent Hrbek. All of the single-card proofs are basically Ex-Mt to Near-Mint, with the emphasis to the upper end of the scale.
There is a large group of 12 different 1972 Topps blank-backed unissued proofs and two conventional 1972’s to illustrate the differences, with the variations ranging from different team and positions, different color backgrounds and borders and other color discrepancies. The lineup includes card Nos. 204 Helms, 217 Metzger, 240 Allen, 352 LaRoche, 368 Thompson, 257 Rookies, 342 Wood, 346 Fregosi , 454 A’s Team,487 Tigers Team, 522 Dodgers Team, and 743 Gutierrez.
The final element of the lot is a huge assortment (53) of the famed 1982 Topps “Blackless” Variations, including Hall of Famer Joe Morgan.
1970’s-80’s Topps Proofs, 1963 Bazooka Proof From Topps Vault (88)
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