October 24, 2024: Fall Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/24/2024
Offered here is a highly collectible example of the fabled 1959 Fleer Life of Ted Williams issue, comprising 86 percent of a complete set, most in an attractive Excellent to Near-Mint condition, with the emphasis to the upper end of the spectrum. Overall, the near set comes out to 24 percent Near-Mint, 45 percent Ex-Mt, 13 percent Excellent and 12 percent VG-Ex, with about a half-dozen cards below, mostly to Very Good. The breakdown of keys: No. 2 Babe Ruth – Excellent (Gum Stain on Back), No. 6 Ted Turns – Ex-Mt (st), No. 8 Ex-Mt-Plus (st), No. 11 Foxx – Good, No. 14 Rookie – Near-Mint, No. 17 Hitting .400 – Very Good, No. 25 Wings - Ex-Mt (st), No. 42 Yawkey – Excellent (st), No. 63 All-Star – Ex-Plus, No. 67 Snead – VG-Ex and No. 80 Goals – Ex-Mt. As the decade of the 1950’s drew to a close, Topps sat alone atop the baseball card realm, having absorbed archrival Bowman in 1956 to launch a monopoly that would stand largely unchallenged for the next quarter century. But another longtime gum company, Fleer, was eyeballing Major League Baseball and itching to nudge its way into the party, and its first tentative steps came in 1959. With virtually all major league players tied to exclusive Topps contracts, Fleer rolled the dice by securing the rights to perhaps the biggest name in the game: Ted Williams. Fleer’s charming “Life of Ted Williams” set was sold in packs and through vending machines, offering an 80-card set of standard-size cards, with each and every one depicting Teddy Ballgame (set is generally sold as “complete” with 79 of the 80 cards; No. 68 was withdrawn from production because of contractual conflicts with Topps). In an issue that was notorious for gum stains, about a dozen or so have visible stains, some of those on the reverse. The Near Set is missing only 10 cards: No. 1, 12, 16, 27, 29, 30, 32, 47, 70 and 75.
1959 Fleer Life of Ted Williams Near Set (69/79)
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